The shepherd's hut has operated since 1978 as a certified tourism shepherd's hut (PTTK initiative of small mountain huts for individual tourists). Stanisław Nowak, an activist of the Krynica branch of the Polish Tourist and Sightseeing Society, after whom the shepherd's hut is named, initiated its construction. It is housed in a converted granary that was relocated from Złockie (hence the unusual architecture for a certified tourism hut).

The shepherd's hut is made of wood and offers 40 beds inrooms with anywhere from one to four beds located on the first floor of the building. Next to the shepherd's hut is accommodation in a so-called Finnish cottage as well as in a yurt, and there is also an area where you can put up a tent.  The shelter offers a buffet where you can enjoy dishes prepared on the spot according to home recipes, as the shepherd's hut is famous for its 'shepherd's hut tea', kugel with mutton goulash, apple pie, and sour cream on mutton. A fireplace room, a scenic veranda and a sauna are available for visitors who stay overnight. Sanitary facilities are located on the lower storey. The shelter also has a storage room for ski equipment, a room for drying wet clothing, and a tool point for simple bike repairs. A tourist kitchen and a bicycle garage are available in the adjacent building. In winter, snowshoes can be hired.

The shelter can be reached only on foot or by bicycle along the trails from Jaworzyna Krynicka and Runk, Wierchomla, Szczawnik, Żegiestów, Piwniczna, Rytro and Hala Łabowska, as well as by the scenic ridge from the upper station of the chairlift from Wierchomla, the forest road from Wierchomla, the road running along the stream valley from Szczawnik.

Bacówka nad Wierchomlą is located in an exceptionally attractive area – in the Poprad Landscape Park, rich in mineral waters and spas, with magnificent panoramas of the Polish and Slovakian Tatra Mountains, the Belianske Tatras, the High and Western Tatras, the Radziejowa Range, and the Lubovnanska Vrchovina. There are many reminders of the Lemkos who inhabited the area until 1947: wooden Orthodox churches with preserved iconostasis, old cemeteries, roadside crosses, remains of rural buildings and traces of seasonal shepherding pens.