Shepherd's Cabins at "Pod Ok贸lne" Clearing
Shepherding was one of the main activities of the inhabitants of Jurg贸w. In the old days, the Jurgovians used many clearings in the Tatra Mountains where they grazed their cattle and sheep. They had their huts (shepherd's cabins) built in these clearings. In today's language, residential and economic buildings. After the loss of the Tatra clearings, the huts from these clearings were moved to one place and thus a cluster of huts was created, called by some a summer village. The name comes from the fact that the huts were used from spring to autumn, when cattle were grazed in the nearby clearings, eg Binkov谩 (now in Slovakia), in the clearing around G贸rkowy Wierch (currently Jurg贸wSKI ski station). In the winter, the cattle were taken to the main village.
Shepherd's Cabins in the Spring
Many tourists visit Shepherd's Cabins
Currently, the huts are practically no longer used. In some, the inhabitants of Jurg贸w still store hay, but it is rather sporadic. The most persistent people used them at the beginning of the 90's.
Shepherd's Cabins at "Pod Ok贸lne" Clearing in winter. (1)
Shepherd's Cabins at "Pod Ok贸lne" Clearing in winter. (2)
Sza艂asy w Jurgowie.
Life in the huts was revived in the spring, when the Jurgovians drove their cattle from the village to the huts about two kilometers from the village. They had assigned duty hours as to who would graze the cattle. It happened cyclically, everyone who had their own cattle had to go graze them or find a shepherd who did it for him. In the best times, there were even several hundred cows to graze. However, their number was systematically decreasing as the inhabitants gave up their breeding and the inconvenience of living in a shelter.
Currently, a few huts have been renovated and are used for tourist purposes. The main reason is probably the growing attractiveness of Jurg贸w and the Jurg贸wSKI ski station adjacent to the huts. The remaining huts are in a condition unsuitable for use in accordance with their original purpose. Virtually all of them need a more or less renovation, otherwise they will be completely destroyed, like the one in the picture on the right. However, the huts are privately owned and their owners usually cannot afford renovation or do not see such a need. There have been attempts to motivate the owners to renovate them, but so far no effects are visible.
The huts in the "Podok贸lne" clearing in winter, just like you could admire them a few years ago.