Skrzyczne

Trails

Green trail from Szczyrk through Becyrek Pass

Trail length:

5,6 km

Duration:

2:40 h

Elevation gain:

761 m

Difficulty level:

easy

Parking in Szczyrk

When driving into the center of Szczyrk, free parking spaces stretch along the main road. The trail officially starts at this location 49.714715, 19.023124 so you can start looking for a free parking space in this area. If not, it's worth looking for a place as close to the center as possible and heading towards the river, which will lead you to the trail.

Trail description

In our opinion the most interesting and pleasant trail to the summit. Most of it leads through the forest, but in places interesting viewpoints emerge. Sometimes you walk on wide roads, but most of it leads along quite narrow routes, which makes the trail seem more wild. Despite the fact that it constantly leads uphill, it is gentler than the blue trail leading along the cable car. The trail begins behind the bridge, immediately quite steeply uphill. First, you have to overcome the section on concrete slabs, then the trail enters the forest on a rocky path. At 862m a.s.l. we reach Becyrek and continue along the green trail. Most of the route leads through the forest, which provides a lot of shade, especially during afternoon hikes, only when the trail occasionally leads along the slopes do views of the city emerge. When the trail crosses the slope, a panorama of Szczyrk opens up, which made an even greater impression on us when the sun began to set and the city lights slowly began to come to life. From this point on, the trail leads along a narrow path zigzagging upward all the way to the summit.

Rocky path of the green trail climbing through beech forest toward Skrzyczne in Beskid Śląski

View from the green trail to Skrzyczne over the Żywiec basin with reservoir visible below

We managed to complete the route in 2:25h and covered 6.35km, but this was not our only trip to Skrzyczne, but the first one with a night spent under a tent. We returned the next morning via the same trail. However, there are many options, which we will discuss in the further part of the blog.

Blue trail from Szczyrk through Jaworzyna Meadow

Trail length:

3.9 km

Duration:

2:08 h

Elevation gain:

715 m

Difficulty level:

easy

Parking

The trail begins at the lower station of the Skrzyczne cable car, under which there are many paid parking lots. You can also drive towards the center of Szczyrk where there are many free parking spaces, but you have to take into account that you will have to cover the route to the trail on foot along the main road.

Trail description

The fastest and shortest hiking trail to the summit, which is why it is quite steep uphill in places. The route leads along the cable car for most of the way. About halfway there is a cable car transfer station at Jaworzyna. There is a bar and a small meadow there, from which views of the city spread out. Further on, the trail moves away from the cable car and on the last section connects with the green trail, which already leads to the summit.

View from Jaworzyna meadow on Skrzyczne over Szczyrk valley and the Żywiec reservoir in summer

View from the blue trail through Jaworzyna meadow down into the Szczyrk valley in Beskid Śląski

There is a possibility to make a loop - going up the blue trail and descending the green one, or vice versa, but then you have to cover about 1.5km on foot along the sidewalk along the main asphalt road.

PTTK shelter and overnight stay on Skrzyczne

On Skrzyczne there is a shelter where you can rest, eat something and drink good coffee and even use accommodation. The offer includes both the possibility of sleeping in the shelter and the option of pitching your own tent on the meadow. This is a good proposition for people planning to spend several days mountain trekking. Being there on a July weekend, we did not encounter much interest in camping on Skrzyczne, so we believe it is a good place for people seeking peace and contact with nature. After paying the fee for overnight stay under a tent (15 PLN per person - for 2025) you have the opportunity to use the shower and get boiling water, e.g. for making tea, but only during the shelter's opening hours. You can find this and more information on the official shelter website link to shelter website. Despite the fact that the meadow under the shelter is surrounded by trees, you can still see a beautiful panorama of the surrounding peaks from it, and in good weather even the Tatras are visible.

PTTK mountain shelter on Skrzyczne summit with green roof and antenna masts in Beskid Śląski

Outdoor terrace of the PTTK shelter on Skrzyczne summit with benches and Beskid mountain panorama

Crown of Polish Mountains stamp

Skrzyczne belongs to the Crown of Polish Mountains, so if you belong to the group of conquerors, remember to get a stamp, which is located in front of the entrance to the shelter.

Cable car from Szczyrk

On Skrzyczne there is also the possibility of getting there by a two-section cable car. The first one leads to Jaworzyna meadow, right behind the next building begins the second section of the cable car leading to the very summit. You can find current ticket prices and opening hours on the official website: link to cable car website. Great option for families with children, elderly people or those who want to make a loop, e.g. up on foot, down by cable car.

Little Skrzyczne

If the trip to Skrzyczne is not enough for you, you can extend it by conquering the slightly smaller Skrzyczne, just 20 minutes further along the green trail. Little Skrzyczne is 1211 meters high, so the section between the peaks is covered on relatively flat terrain, a bit more exposed. A little earlier, before the summit, there is a cable car leading to Hala Skrzyczeńska, where we can again transfer to a gondola cable car, which ends under the Szczyrk Mountain Resort center. A less trekking proposition is the Szczyrk Loop via 4 cable cars, from Szczyrk from the two-section Skrzyczne cable car to the summit, through trekking on foot to the two-section cable car starting at Little Skrzyczne, then walking 2 km along the road back to the first cable car. The route of this cable car through Hala Skrzyczeńska can also be covered on foot via the yellow trail, or return on foot to Skrzyczne via the green trail. Along the green trail beyond Little Skrzyczne you can reach Malinowska Skała.

Chairlift descending the forested slope of Skrzyczne toward Szczyrk in Beskid Śląski mountains

Summary

Skrzyczne is a good choice both for a mountain 'first time' and for people who just want to relax with a view. The availability of trails is quite large, and the presence of nearby Little Skrzyczne together with the cable car provide the opportunity to choose different travel options, both on foot, by cable cars and combined variants.