Sudetes

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A view from Zygmuntówka refuge, Góry Sowie

Śnieżka/Sněka/Snow Mountain

Destroyed forest on the top of Wielka Sowa

The Sudetes, also called Sudeten (in German; pronounced: [zu'de:tən]) or Sudety (pronounced ['sudetɪ] in Czech, [su'detɪ] in Polish), is a mountain range in Central Europe. It stretches from eastern Germany to Poland and Czech Republic. The highest mountain is Sněka/Śnieżka in Krkonose Mountains on the Czech-Polish border. It reaches up to 1,602 m. The Sudetes are divided into

Western Sudetes with Lusatian Mountains (Germany and Czech Republic) and Karkonosze/Krkonoše/Giant Mountains (Poland and Czechia)
Central Sudetes
Eastern Sudetes

Especially Krkonoe Mountains are facing growing tourism for winter sports during the past ten years. Its skiing resorts are becoming a serious alternative to the Alps.

Famous towns in this area are:

Zittau (Germany)
Karpacz (Poland)
Szklarska Poręba (Poland)
Špindlerův Mlýn (Czech Republic)
Harrachov (Czech Republic)

The name Sudetes has been derived from the name Sudetayle (English "Mountains of Wild Boars") used by the Greek Ptolemaios in 150 for the present-day northern Czech mountains.

The name derived from Sudetes was used before World War II to describe the German province of Sudetenland. The province was located only partly in Sudetes, partly in other areas of Bohemia. The Germans living there were called Sudetendeutsche.

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