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Krompachy - is a town in Slovakia, with a rich mining
and metallurgical history, well-known both in Slovakia
and in its close neighboring countries for its Plejsy
ski center. It is believed that the town was founded at
some point in the mid 14th century. From then onwards,
it was a centre of mining and metallurgy until the end
of the 20th century, particularly focussed on the iron
and copper industries. At the start of the 20th century,
the Krompachy Ironworks (Krompašská železiareň) had
around 3,500 employees and was the biggest ironworks of
its time in the Kingdom of Hungary. The Ironworks closed
after World War I. In 1921, there was a bloody uprising,
known as the Krompachy Uprising (Slovak: Krompašská
vzbura) in the town. Since 1991, following the
industrial decline and as a result of large scale
investment, Plejsy became an internationally visited
alpine ski centre and became known as a holiday
destination.
As well as the skiing centre at Plejsy, Krompachy is
known for its scenery of hills, valleys and fields. This,
together with a number of local natural and cultural
sites, have made the town a year-round tourist
destination. Krompachy is situated in the central Spiš
area in the valley of the Hornád river, 360 – 450 meters
above sea level. The town lies on the meeting point of
three mountain ranges; the Levoča Hills (Levočské vrchy)
and Branisko Massif (the highest point is Slubica 1129
meters above sea level) are to the north and the Volovec
Mountains (Volovské vrchy) (part of the Slovenské
rudohorie Mountains) are to the south. The town is
surrounded on every side by mountain massifs, with
summits 900-1,100 metres above sea level. The annual
rainfall in the Hornád Basin (Hornádska kotlina) is
between 590 and 800 mm. The rainiest month is July and
the driest is February. Snow covers the area 75–90 days
a year. The average annual temperature is 6.8 °C (44
°F), the lowest in January −6.2 °C (21 °F), the highest
in July 17.0 °C (63 °F). The large conifer and mixed
forests are home of red deer, boars, wolves, lynxes,
badgers. The forests are rich in mushrooms and wild
forest fruits. The Hornád river is the home of trout,
salmon, grayling and eel. |
