Of course, like any other trip to the mountains - it requires reason. Reason in assessing one's own strength, weather and many other factors, such as appropriate footwear or jacket, backpack, thermos of tea. Although on the way to the Black Pond of Caterpillar we will meet a shelter where we can eat and drink tea.
The route to the Black Pond from Kuznice is 13.6 km. Guidebooks state that the route in both directions can be covered in 3.40h. It follows that it will take a very fit person 2h to walk this route, and a person in very poor physical condition may take up to 5-6h. Nevertheless - this is an easy route, especially during vacations, late spring and early autumn, when the trails are not icy and slippery.
We leave from Kuznice. However, you need to remember that you have to get to Kuznice on your feet, or by bus - the road to Kuznice from the John Paul II traffic circle is closed to traffic. However, there are buses to Kuznice. From our apartments Kawa z Mlekiem, Stars and Scandinavia, the walk to the traffic circle takes 5 minutes.
It is worth traversing this road on foot if only to stop for a moment at the Prometheus Shattered Monument. The monument, designed by Władysław Hasior, stood on the road to Kuźnice in 1964. It was the 20th anniversary of the execution of 20 Poles by the Nazis in the Great Kuznica Glade. The monument, by a prominent Zakopane artist, is a work as fascinating as it is overwhelming. A few meters above the ground, on a granite block, Hasior placed the metal, headless, torn remains of a man, pierced by arrows with a huge hole in the middle. A ladder leads to them from the ground. Next to it the author also placed a symbolic one. Next to it stands a wooden cross with the inscription "Here perished those who reached the honorable name of defenders of the Fatherland - May 30, 1944".
In Kuznice we choose the blue trail, on the left from the cable car station. If we choose the blue trail on the right side - we will unexpectedly land on Giewont... We leave from an altitude of 1010 meters above sea level, to finish the hike at 1624 meters above sea level, at the Black Caterpillar Pond. The blue trail will lead us, after about 1.30h, to the PTTK Murowaniec Hostel on Hala Gąsienicowa. On the way, we will pass the TPN forester's lodge and Bethlehem (Central Training Center of the Polish Mountaineering Association).
The place where the blue and yellow trails meet is the Pass between the Mounds. Behind the pass, on the southern part of the trail, stretches the grass-covered Queen of the Plains. The view we can enjoy from this place is one of the most picturesque in the Tatras. On the Pass, benches have been set up for the comfort of tourists.
PTTK Murowaniec mountain hostel on Hala Gąsienicowa is located at an altitude of 1500 meters above sea level. It was built in 1921-1925... by the Polish Army. It has 120 beds in rooms for 3-10 people.
From here it's less than 2 km to our destination. According to the guides, it will take us another 30 minutes. The height difference between the Shelter and Black Caterpillar Pond is 124 meters. The Black Pond is the fourth deepest lake in the Tatra Mountains. At its deepest point it measures as much as 51 meters! Above its western shore begins the slope of Koscielowiec, one of the most frequently and most visited mountains by mountaineers in this part of the Tatras.
The water of the Black Caterpillar Pond can be deeply dark blue or even black. Such an effect is given by the water,flowing from the nearby slopes and blue-green algae, covering the stones on its banks. But in fact this color is only an illusion. The water has a sapphire hue and its transparency reaches 12 meters.
Black Caterpillar Pond is covered with ice, depending on the weather, in October or November. The ice completely melts in May, sometimes even in June or July.
In order to diversify the way back on the Pass between the Mounds we choose the yellow trail, also leading to Kuznice through Jaworzynka Valley. Interestingly - this valley resembles a gorge more than a valley. It is narrow, and its slopes are steep. It was in this valley that Poland's first large ski jump was built in 1921. Its record was a jump of 36 meters. After the construction of the big Krokwi, the jump in Jaworzynka Valley was finally dismantled in 1930.