In practice, the logging railway in Oravská Lesná in Orava was not only cheaper with respect to the construction and operation, compared to the conventional railways, but it also could cope with a very rugged terrain. Nowadays, it is not used for the original purpose – the transport of timber, but it serves as an attraction of the Orava Museum.
Logging railways are tracks with the gauge that is narrower compared to the standard gauge of 1,453; they have only 760 mm gauge. Regardless of this fact, they used to be of great assistance upon the hauling of timber in the past.
When a part of the Kysuce-Orava Logging Railway in the section Chmúra-Beskyd-Tanečník was declared to be cultural monument in 1972, it was the last-minute stop to the liquidation of this remarkable technical masterpiece. The purpose of this solution was to preserve the highly valuable logging back swath system by means of which the railway track could handle the climbing on the Beskyd hill.
In August 1992, an agreement was concluded between the Orava Museum in Dolný Kubín and the Kysuce Museum in Čadca on the general reconstruction of the whole preserved part of the Logging Railway in the territory of both regions. As part of the works, the railway station Beskyd and the bridge near the village Tanečník were renovated. The reconstruction works on the railway track body and in the premises of the railway station Tanečník were finished in 2007 and the Orava part of the narrow-gauge logging railway was submitted for the museum operation.
Operation times unavailable.
The village Štefanová with numerous buildings built in traditional style is situated in the north-west of Slovakia at the foothill of the mountain Veľký Rozsutec (1,610 m).
The National Park of Malá Fatra is situated in the westernmost Slovak high mountains Malá Fatra. Gorges, rock peaks and an attractive ridge tour are among its attractions.
The only access road to the Vrátna valley, the most attractive part of the Malá Fatra Mts. is from the village Terchová. The Vrátna valley has four points of access: Tiesňavy, Stará dolina, Nová dolina and Starý dvor.
The water reservoir Orava is the result of artificial blocking of the river Orava in northern Slovakia as the remedy to frequent floods. It spreads as far as the Polish frontier. There is an island in the middle of the reservoir called Slanický ostrov – the favourite destinations of trippers.
The mountain Veľký Choč towering above the dividing line between regions Liptov and Orava is one of the most beautiful in Slovakia. Prevailingly spruce woods cover the mountain and in the highest parts a continuous growth of dwarf pines (unique in this whole mountain range) can be seen. For well-conserved forest bioncenoses with rare flora which in places acquire the nature of virgin forest, it was designated the National Nature Reserve.
AquaRelax is a modern aqua park in Dolný Kubín, outstanding for its unique pyramid architecture. It uses only crystal-clear water in stainless steel pools.
The Orava Museum established the exposition of the Orava Logging Railway and the Orava Co-ownership Association in the reconstructed premises of the service building and it will be pleased to welcome anybody coming to this beautiful part of Slovakia to spend their time in a pleasant manner and to have some new experience.
The outdoor ethnographic exposition presents the "kopanice" type of scattered settlements in hilly areas which was typical of the Kysuce region.
The narrow gauge Historic Forest Railway in Vychylovka in the Kysuce region in northwestern Slovakia is a technological masterpiece of world prominence operating in the area that divides the Kysuce and Orava regions.
The most famous highwayman, Juraj Jánošík, was born in the mountainous village of Terchová in the north-west of Slovakia. The inhabitants of Terchová had a statue of their native made to guard the entrance to the Vrátna valley.
The most attractive tourist locality of the northern Slovakia is the Orava Castle lying on the river Orava near the village Oravský Podzámok, below impressive cliffs. In 1370, it became a county castle and the seat of the Orava Castle estate, which included almost the whole region of Orava.
The Orava Gallery with 8,000 pieces of works of art is one of the most important public galleries in Slovakia. The Orava Gallery, which is a regional gallery for Zilina region, was founded in 1965 and is located in the town of Dolný Kubín in the 17th-century County House on Hviezdoslav's Square.
The Kysuce Regional Gallery was founded in 1981, with its seat being located in the Town House on Hlinkova Street in the town of Čadca. It has a branch in the manor house in Oščadnica.
PODBIEL is a typical village lying in the region of Orava (north of Slovakia) with interesting compound of original log houses called Bobrova rala built in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
The wooden articled Evangelical church of 1688 with wooden belfry was included in 2008, along with seven wooden churches of the Slovak part of Carpathian Mountain Area, on the UNESCO Word Heritage List.
Kysucké múzeum, organizácia v zriaďovateľskej pôsobnosti Žilinského samosprávneho kraja, pozýva širokú verejnosť na novú stálu expozíciu Dejiny Čadce a okolia.
