The first protected reserve in the area of the Slovak Paradise was founded in 1890. The first protected plant was the edelweiss in 1936. The name Slovenský raj first appeared in 1921 in the Krásy Slovenska magazine and replaced many names used until that period. On 21 August 1964 the first protected landscape area in Slovakia was established in the Slovak Paradise. The area was recategorized into a national park on 18 January 1988. In 2000 Dobšinská Ice Cave became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Parts of the park also belong to the Natura 2000 network since 2004.
Geography
The National Park is situated in the Banská Bystrica Region, Prešov Region and Košice Region. The Slovak Paradise creates the northern part of the Spiš-Gemer Karst. It is bordered by the Low Tatras in the west, central part of the Slovenské rudohorie Mountains in the south and the Hornád basin in the north and north east. Rivers and streams have formed many gorges, canyons, valleys, caves, and waterfalls in the Slovak Paradise, with the Hornád River being most important to the area. The core of the national park is a karst plateau cut into several smaller plateaux by deep rocky gorges. The most famous gorges are Veľký Sokol, which is also the longest at 4.5 km, Suchá Belá, Piecky, and Kyseľ, all of which have numerous waterfalls. Prielom Hornádu is the longest canyon at 11,7 km, and also contains the greatest diversity of species. The highest waterfall is Závojový vodopád at 70 m. The largest water reservoir is Palcmanská Maša, finished in 1956, which covers an area of 0.85 km2. It is used for swimming, water sports, fishing and other recreational activities. The highest peak is Predná hoľa at 1,545 m AMSL. Havrania skala at 1,153 m offers a panoramic view. A rock shelf known as Tomášovský výhľad is popular with both climbers and visitors for its unique view situated at 680 m. The lowest point is at the Hornád's surface at 470 m.
Geology
The geological formation of the Slovenský raj mountains is rather complicated. The majority of the territory is built by two basic units. The small, western one is the Bebrava unit separated from the eastern, larger Northern Gemer unit by the Muráň fault. Both of them are comparatively homogeneous, as the Mesozoic sedimentary rocks such as dolomite and sandstone prevail. As they were built by carbonate rock prone to karstification, the character of the Slovenský raj mountains is that of a karstic plateau. The relatively flat and rather short mountains of the Slovenský raj mountains were lifted up in the Tertiary and Quaternary periods. This caused the local river network to erode and create narrow and deep valleys.
Biology and ecology
The Slovak Paradise has the highest concentration of butterflies in Slovakia with 6.06 butterflies per km2. Kopanecké lúky contain exceptionally rich biodiversity in vascular plants with 75 species per m2. The National Park contains about 4,000 species of invertebrates, which include more than 2,100 species of butterflies, 400 species of bugs and 150 species of molluscs. Vertebrates are represented by about 200 species, of which 130 are protected. Forty species of mammals include the bear, fox, wolf, European wildcat, deer, boar, and marten. The National Park is home to 65 endangered species, including the saker falcon, European otter and European ground squirrel. Forests cover 90% of the park. The most widespread trees are the beech, spruce, fir and pine. The park is home to 930 species of plants, of which 35 are protected. The park contains 6 endemic plants, which are exclusively native to it and 19 endemic plants exclusively native to the West Carpathians.
Tourism
The best known tourist centres and resorts are Čingov and Podlesok in the north, Dedinky in the south and the only tourist centre located inside the National Park, Kláštorisko, with ruins of the Carthusian monastery. The most visited places in the park are the Dobšinská Ice Cave and the Suchá Belá Gorge. The park offers about 300 km of hiking trails and several bike trails. One of the most visited routes is "Prielom Hornádu". In the northern part of the Slovak Paradise two main tourist centres of this region are situated: Čingov and Podlesok. They are connected by a 15 km long marked route, leading through the canyon along the Hornád river.
