Mountains, nature, Slovak wealth, of which we are rightly proud. The Tatras are the smallest major mountains in the world in terms of area, with an extraordinary concentration of beauty in the middle of deep valleys and protruding rocky peaks. And they hide a European, perhaps even a world unique. These are our porters, the only Sherpas of their kind, who carry tens of kilograms of cargo on their shoulders several times a week.
The sky without a single cloud, it's warm even in the mountains, and after a 4-hour hike you arrive at one of the Tatra huts and all you want is to drink a cold beer and have something good to eat. Imagine the "torture" you endured to get to the hut. And now imagine how all the things that the hut owners need to provide refreshments, cooking, heating or accommodation get to the hut. Meet the high-altitude porters, who are part of the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Slovakia and are applying for inclusion in the UNESCO list.
"The environment of the Tatras is not easy. For about half a year, our highest chalets are inaccessible to inexperienced tourists, but all but one are open. They are heated all year round. Currently, carriers supply four chalets in the High Tatras (Chata pod Rysmi, Zbojnícka chalet, Téryho chalet, Zamkovského chalet), one chalet in the Low Tatras (Chata Milana Rastislava Štefánik pod Ďumbierom) and one chalet in Veľká Fatra (Chata pod Borisovom). All of these are protected areas with the highest level of protection, and the Tatras are not only a National Park, but also a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, which is the absolute highest level of nature protection in the world. So we have confirmed that the area is still beautifully preserved in its natural state, so it is not possible to use a helicopter 2-3 times a week for each chalet as needed. At the same time, another reason is that a helicopter is still expensive to fly with daily goods. necessities such as pastries, fresh food, bed linen, etc. Another big limit is the weather. In relatively bad weather, when it is not "suitable for flying", in fog, storm, rain, strong wind, etc., the helicopter cannot fly, but the carrier will carry the load," says Štefan "Pišta" Bačkor, one of the Tatra carriers.
Even though the Tatras are low compared to the Alps, our pilots have more difficult flying conditions than, for example, those in Italy. In the "small" mountains, the weather dynamics are much higher than in the high ones, the queues are unpredictable, in short, cottagers cannot rely on a helicopter, because if the weather does not allow, tourists will not only not be able to drink beer, but may not even be able to warm up during the winter.
If a porter is employed in a hut, his work does not end with the delivery. He helps in the kitchen or with "boy" work around the hut, repairs, paints, is a universal helper. However, former porters or guys who do not do it as a job, but rather as a hobby, often carry goods to the huts. "Freelance" porters do not stay overnight at the hut, they carry something out, or carry it, and if necessary, they replace the regular porters, the whole "community" in the mountains is very friendly and helps each other.
The history of Tatra porters began almost 200 years ago, but to this day, in almost unchanged form, all loads are carried on their backs in the so-called tree huts by sturdy men, whom you can easily meet during your hike. Technology is, of course, developing, but our mountain environment has certain specifics, due to which helicopters are used only a few times a year, when heavy things, including firewood, etc., are carried to the hut.
It's all in the head.
Kilos on my back, kilometers in my legs
Alpine huts have two seasons, and in the summer peak, porters supply “their” huts 4-5 times a week. The number of tourists is increasing, and if the hut wants to operate without problems non-stop, it must have really good porters. During the winter, one or two porters go to the hut approximately 2-3 times. The “load” they carry is not light at all.
"We all started somehow, my first load was 45 kg, and carrying, for example, a large barrel of beer was a seemingly unattainable goal, but it is a constant that every good porter should be able to carry. Together with the tree trunks, it weighs around 70 kg, but there are usually also various small items for the kitchen, something for heating, bed linen for the cottage, etc. The summer average is about 70-80 kg. In winter, it is about half the weight, and also depends on whether the porter is skiing or walking," explains Štefan.
Even though the porters usually meet at Hrebienok before the delivery, where the huts are stored, everyone goes to "their" hut alone. "In winter, we try to go in pairs, because of avalanches and safety, but we don't always manage to get along, to pair up, there are few porters. But we always tried to agree with the hut owners. Safety is important, goods can be replaced, but human life cannot," says Štefan.
Sherpa Museum
The Sherpa Museum is located together with the Sherpa Caffe in the Swiss House, one of the oldest in Starý Smokovec with an amazing history. The museum is constantly changing and being supplemented, its essential component is the mapping of the history of portering combined with the exhibited porters' tools - you can find various tree trunks, old shoes, crampons... One wall is dedicated to the Sherpa Rallye portering race, another is modern, for example with a model of a valley made of stone. The expansion of the museum will never end, the "hall of fame" will only expand. Štefan Bačkor also organizes lectures about porters in the museum, which are attended by schools, spa guests, seniors, domestic and foreign tourists, professional mountaineers, and mountain enthusiasts.
Competition, help and meeting
Wearing is a love for life
Time is short, but many former porters with commitments, whether family or otherwise, who no longer go to the chalets regularly, try not to “cool off as porters” and are happy to participate in special deliveries, when their help is invaluable. They often help with deliveries to film crews, most recently during the filming of the Dutch film Magic Mountains or the TV series Rescuers. 12 trucks of equipment, 150 people on the crew, and demanding technical and logistical support add variety to the regular porter's work. For the fourth year in a row, in spring and autumn, for example, porters have been bringing a dismantled floating platform with a drilling rig to the Tatra lakes. People from the Geological Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences then disassemble it on the lake, measure what they need, and the porters again help them carry the dismantled platform down, including the samples taken. "I always look forward to such deliveries. It's for several days - weeks of carrying. A great group of friends, porters, colleagues get together there. It's such a specialty, because it's a valley where there are no huts, and therefore deliveries are not normally made there. Such an "exotic" delivery for every porter and in a good group it's great," smiles Štefan and remembers another nice delivery of a live "load".
