Student Tourist Shelter "Skalanka"

The Student Tourist Shelter “Skalanka”, also called Chatka Skalanka, is a mountain shelter in the Żywiec Beskids, in the border range south of the Zwardoń Pass, below the summit of Skalanka. The wooden building is run as a student hut, not a commercial mountain hut.

History of the building

The wooden building was probably erected around 1930. In the 1950s it was bought by a private owner, who added a kitchen and a workshop, and later it was taken over by Almatur. Under martial law the building was closed, and in the following years it changed owners. In 2007 it was taken over from the Independent Students' Association by the Silesian University of Technology, and from 2010 it was leased by the Tourism Enthusiasts' Club “Grzmot-Odrodzenie”. The university decided to sell the building in 2011, and in March 2012 this association bought it.

Conditions on site

It is a two-storey building with a kitchen and a veranda. Several rooms accommodate about 50 people, the cellar has a toilet and showers, and there is also an outhouse outside. Electricity and running water have been installed. The veranda is the customary meeting place, with a view of Pilsko, Rachowiec, Muńcuł and Oźna.

Getting there

Right next to the hut runs the border trail from Zwardoń to Wielka Racza. Nearby are also the Oźna Mountain Hut and the Zwardoń Ski Resort.

Practical information

• Place: Zwardoń, Żywiec County, below Skalanka south of the Zwardoń Pass.
• The rules for overnight stays, reservations and opening dates need to be checked with the owner, that is the association, before you travel.