The Gorce Mountains are part of the Western Beskidsmountain range spreading across southernmost Poland. They are situated in Małopolska Province, at the western tip of the long Carpathian range extending east beyond the Dunajec River for some. The Gorce are characterized by numerous ridges reaching in all directions for up to with a series of higher elevations cut by deep river valleys. The range is dominated by about a dozen gentle peaks including Turbacz in the centre, and – facing east: Jaworzyna Kamienicka, Kiczora, Kudłoń, Przysłop, Czoło and Gorc Kamienicki. The south-eastern ridge of the Gorce reaches the Pieniny range, with Lubań as its tallest peak followed by Pasterski Wierch, Runek and Marszałek. The north-west ridges include Obidowiec, and the peak of Suhora featuring an astronomical observatoryowned and operated by the Pedagogical University of Kraków. There are a number of smaller caves in the Gorce, carved out in sedimentary rock and its conglomerates which form the Carpathian Flysch Belt. High annual rainfall is caused by the air forced up by the mountains and accumulating into clouds. Rain water flows fast in all directions due to dense ground and ; feeding the Raba river on the north-west side of the Gorce, and the Dunajec on the south-east side. Other rivers, formed by the mountains include the Kamienica, the Ochotnica and the Porębianka, as well as large streams such as the Turbacz, the Gorcowy and the Łopuszna among others. The main city is Nowy Targ on the Dunajec below in the valley of Podhale, with large recreational villages including Krościenko nad Dunajcem, Szczawa and Ochotnica.
Geography
Part of the Gorce Mountains are protected within Gorce National Park, a bird sanctuary and a biodiversity conservation area designated in 1981 by the Małopolska Province, with strictly protected zone covering 3,611 hectares, out of the total park area of, in the highest part of the Gorce. Wildlife include almost 50 mammal species, with wolf and lynx at the top; less frequent brown bear, and lutra, as well as marten and badger often found digging under pasture fields. The Hazel and the Forest dormouse along with the Edible dormouse are all strictly protected. There are over 200 Red deer counted in the park area, as well as Roe deer and Wild boar, fox, wildcat, hare, skunk, and stoat. Reptiles and amphibians include the fire salamander, as well as over ninety species of breeding birds including owl, eagle, hawk, grouse, black stork and others. In the Gorce, there are hundreds of species of plants, including Alpine and Subalpine plants, which grow in meadows and open areas. Forests cover about 65% of the mountains, in four distinct levels according to elevation. The most common species of trees are beech, spruce and fir, with the average age of up to 100 years. The Gorce landscape has been altered by human activity. Early settlers appeared in the Gorce area in the 12th century. The first monastery was erected in Ludźmierz by Cisterian monks in 1234. During the reign of Casimir III the Great the first castles were built, including in Czorsztyn, and more new settlements, such as town of Krościenko and villages: Kluszkowce, Grywałd, and Tylmanowa, were established along the border with Kingdom of Hungary, followed by increased commercial logging and transport. However, the Gorce forests suffered most in the 19th century during the imperial rule of Austria-Hungary. Trees were cut on a large scale, especially in easily accessible areas. The Gorce Mountains are a popular tourist area, with forty well-marked trails for hiking trips two-to-four hours long, split into different levels of difficulty with the maximum distance of . Notably, the colors of trail blazes do not imply levels of difficulty, but rather primary and secondary trails with different length and orientation, for example: the red and blue colors signify trails in east-west and north-south directions, while shortest loops generally use yellow blazes.
Red, the longest trail, traversing the entire range: from easternmost Krościenko nad Dunajcem, to Rabka-Zdrój at its western end.
Blue trails, from Snozka Pass in the south, to Kamienica.
