Two-day crossing of a part of the Javorníky Mountains with children

Easy hiking with children through the Bařkárka and Portáš mountain huts

Starting point

Take the bus from Velke Karlovice to the Soláň crossroads and arrive at the Podťaté u Polanských stop. Here I recommend to take a hike to refresh yourself in the Bistro Polanský Dvůr, where really great cooking. After lunch in the Bistro we head up the gentle hill on the blue trail.
 

Description of the hike

1. day

After a great lunch in Bistro Polanský důvr we follow the yellow trail up a slight hill on the road. Soon we turn left from the road, still on a smaller asphalt road, to the saddle Pod Lemešnou. Here we join the red hiking trail Via Czechia - South. Although at this point we are actually on Slovak territory.

After the red trail we follow the forest path. We climb ever so slightly up to the crossroads Pod Soliskom. From there, you can take a relaxing traverse through the forest, almost on flat ground to the Javornická studnička (Javornicka studnička) spring, where you can refresh yourself with fresh water from the Javorníky spring.

From the well, continue along the red trail, without a significant climb, along a relaxing path to Butorky, from where you descend down the road along the green trail and then along the blue trail to the Bačkárka mountain hut. There is a large playground for the kids, they have good pizza. We get an apartment with the kids on the terrace with private bathroom (which not every room in the chalet has).
 

2. day

The next morning after breakfast we have the steepest climb of the day - climb up a steep slope about 100 vertical meters straight up again to the red marker. We'll sweat a bit :) ... but at the top we are going along the ridge again with minimal climbing. 

After about half an hour we come to the top of Velký Javorník 1 072 m above sea level, from which there are great views of the eastern part of the Moravian-Silesian Beskydy Mountains, but also of our further journey along the Javorníky ridge. We take a short rest and a snack on the top. 

We continue along the red trail through the Gežov saddle to the Stratené lookout tower. Here we will have a light lunch - we will heat up the pasta for the kids on the gas cooker, so they will also have a different type of high gastronomy experience :). The lookout tower is wooden and quite small, so don't expect any great views from it unfortunately.

From the Stratené lookout tower we continue on slight swings (the path does not lead along the plain, but over small peaks) up to Malý Javorník 1 019 m above sea level - the peak is actually in the forest, unfortunately without views, so we at least have a snack. We continue along the same terrain (forest paths and roads) following the red marker to the mountain hotel Portáš. Here we have a second accommodation with the children. They have their own Portáš beer here, which I definitely recommend trying. Again, they cook very well, so we have dinner and go and watch the Euro 2024 quarter-final between England and Switzerland :)
 

3. day

On the third day we get back down the ridge from Portáš to Karlovice by cars, which we brought up to the hut the previous evening, and start heading home.
 

Difficulty

It is a two-day easy hike, which can be done by children from six years old - tested even with a small backpack. It is still on comfortable forest or dirt paths. The steepest part, which will only take a toll on the lungs, is the ascent from Bačkarka up the slope to the red mark towards Velké Javorník. The slope is steep, but nothing terrible. Both small children and dogs can handle the hike. I personally wouldn't recommend it with a stroller, at most with smaller children in a carrier on your back.
 

Water availability

On the second day, behind Bačkárka towards Velký Javorník, there is a well from which you can drink, but it is completely useless. This trip was designed so that we go with small children and max 12 km per day. Thus, there is always a possibility to get water in a hut, pub or accommodation along the way and there is no need to watch streams or wells for water. For each day in the summer heat, 1 litre per person was enough for us.
 

Sleeping options

Since we went on the trip with small children, we chose to sleep on the way at two mountain huts - the first night we sleep at Bačkárka and the second night at Portáš. Both huts have good cuisine and nice playgrounds for the kids.
 

Mountain peaks

On the way we will reach two larger peaks - Velký Javorník 1 072 m above sea level and its smaller friend Malý Javorník 1 019 m above sea level. 
 

Danger

We deliberately chose the safest route possible because we were walking with children aged six to nine. As the profile or technical difficulty of the route so the potential dangers are minimal. So the biggest danger may be walking on the road from the start of the trip. The fact that bears are now more common in Slovakia does not apply to this part of the Javorníky Mountains - you certainly don't have to worry about them here.