Beautiful trek in Slovenia
Our first trek
I don't even know how it all started, but one day we decided to go on a slightly more adventurous holiday in the mountains, who would have guessed that it would completely absorb us and change our way of travelling. We have already visited the Slovenian mountains in the past, we were literally enchanted by them, but we have not yet visited the Triglav Lakes, so the search began in this area.
There was very little information about this trip, we had to browse through various foreign blogs, until we finally planned a three-day trip that starts at the top station of Vogel and since it is a round trip, our destination is at the bottom station of the cable car. We were a little worried about how our youngest child Terezka, who was only 6 years old, would handle the journey, but we were looking forward to the trek a lot and did not allow any complications.
Our journey started at the end of June 2020, the plan was to walk about 36 kilometers in 3 days. We planned the journey from the top station of Vogel with a destination in the village of Ribčev Laz, which is located in the eastern part of Lake Bohinj. As a reward, we planned to take a cruise boat from Ribčev Laz to the Zlatorog camp near the bottom station of the cable car. I will tell you right away that this plan didn't quite work out, the journey got complicated at the end and we had a slightly longer journey ahead of us.
The trek starts at Slovenia's most beautiful lake, Bohinj, located a short distance from the more famous Lake Bled. We spent the night before the start of our journey in the Zlatorog camp, which is ideally located right by the lake and a short walk from the bottom station of the cable car. I definitely recommend Camp Zlatorog, it is a clean campsite in a beautiful place with the possibility of pitching a tent in the forest.
1 day from Vogel cable station to Dom na Komni
We get up early in the morning, but you know, before we pack everything up is after 9 o'clock. We hurry to the cable car, we let our car in a free parking place right next to the cable car and at half past nine, head up. From the top station there is a beautiful view of the lake and the surrounding mountains, but the more beautiful is yet to come.
We set out in the line-up of father, mother, Terezka 6 years old, Hanička 8 years old and Kubik 10 years old. From the top station we set off in the direction of the Zadnji Vogel cheese factory, the road is quite boring, but as soon as we arrive at the place, we are amazed at what a beautiful place we have just discovered.
We will stay here for a while, but the road is still long, so we must move on. After the cheese factory, we have the option of going towards Vogel and then along the ridge to Konjsko sedlo, however, our plan is via a less frequented route and probably a bit more fun.
We ignore the turn to Vogel and enter the forest. We enjoyed the landscape near the cheese factory a bit, the forest is a little more boring for us now, but after about half an hour we finally get out of the forest and beautiful views of the mountains and the surrounding countryside open up to us.
As the meters increase, the landscape becomes more and more beautiful, we stop at a small patch and watch the clouds rolling over the mountains, an amazing sight. The path continues into the interior of the mountains, still slightly uphill and downhill.
We find ourselves in a place like from a fairy tale, a green valley, blooming meadows and mountains, what more could you wish for. From this beautiful place, we are only going uphill, fortunately, nature is still magical and beautifully green, so the path does not become boring and stereotypical for children. The more we climb, the character of the landscape partly changes and unfortunately the weather, which is very changeable here, the sun for a while, then the clouds descend and we walk in the fog, it even forces us to take raincoats.
We continue in the fog on a slightly exposed slope, the path later rises sharply, in the distance we see some figures in the fog who have taken the second path along the ridge and this gives us the feeling that we are approaching the highest point of the path.
It was so, Konjsko sedlo looms in the distance at an altitude of 1,780 m. We climb for a while until we finally arrive at Konjsko sedlo, the views are spoiled by the fog, but sometimes it breaks and reveals the mountain massifs that surround us, a beautiful place. Both routes connect at this place, if you don't have time for a multi-day trek, this circuit is an ideal choice, but definitely not suitable to complete in the fog
We sit in the mountain saddle, enjoy the views and prepare for the next part of the journey. After a short rest, we continue along a partially exposed path, here you need to be careful, slipping on the gravel might not turn out well.
The fog recedes and we can see the mountain landscape in full display. Gradually, the road turns green again and we literally love and enjoy the trek, but as the meters increase, fatigue sets in, especially for children.
After a constant gentle descent, dwarf pines appear, the landscape changes again. The trek begins to turn towards the western part of Lake Bohinj, we are still looking to see if we will finally discover it somewhere in the distance. In the end, we will be able to enjoy the view of the lake, but it is from a little more distance and height, the lake looks more like a larger pond from here.
The path further turns from the lake towards the cottage Dom na Komni. We come to the road above a special valley, again a beautiful place, but we have been on our feet for almost 6 hours and the children are already starting to ask us when we will be there?
Fortunately, after a while we arrive at a sign indicating just 5 minutes to the cottage. However, we had no idea that in Slovenia the markings are a little different, the way to the cottage took us another 20 minutes of constant climbing up the hill, and we really weren't messing around.
Finally at the cottage, we stumble to the rooms and admire the beautiful view from the window of Lake Bohinj, we couldn't possibly wish for a better view. Unfortunately, we didn't choose the ideal shoes, our feet hurt a lot, luckily we don't have blisters yet.
After a short rest, we treat ourselves to dinner and go a short distance from the hut to a rock lookout to watch the sunset, an impressive end to the first day. We have 12 kilometers and 6 hours of walking in our legs, the next day we have a trip to the Triglav lakes, we are going to sleep.
2 day Triglav lakes
In the morning we wake up surprisingly fresh, our legs don't hurt much and we are generally in a great mood, today we have the longed-for trip to the Triglav Lakes. We thoroughly enjoy breakfast at the cottage, there is no need to rush, we finish our third coffee and slowly start packing. The children, boosted by Nutella and drinks of all kinds, are overflowing with energy, today there will probably not be a break for a snack after a 5-minute walk. One last look from the window at Lake Bohinj covered in fog and we're on our way.
Behind the hut we start to climb and offer us the last distant views for a long time. After 15 minutes we stop and say goodbye to our wonderful overnight stay. The cottage looks deserted from here, maybe we will come back here again.
We continue along the path lined with dwarf pines, the path does not change much and if we did not experience the incredible natural beauty of the first stage, the children would probably enjoy it more despite the lack of views, but the forest has its own charm, we are surprised that we do not find candy wrappers, wet napkins or used tires. The trip was a balm for the soul for mom and dad. After almost three hours of wandering, the first lake appears.
We descend to the lake with our eyes fixed on the calm surface of the lake, where the surrounding landscape is mirrored. We come to the the lake, we have no idea what is behind us. When I turn around I feel like Alice in Wonderland, with my mouth open I look at a cheesy picture of a cottage set in a breathtaking landscape, so this is where we will sleep today.
Today we are not done yet, we are going to check in, leave all our things alone and head towards the lake in Ledvice. An absolutely breathtaking path through breathtaking countryside, we often stop to observe marmots. Along the way, we meet a chamois, which looks at us for a long time, then moves away with a graceful step and we continue on.
We reach the horizon from where the destination of the bonus trip can finally be seen, it was definitely worth it. We descend to the lake, I can't resist and go for a swim, ignoring the warning in the form of the rest of the snow on the opposite side. I go into the water and get an ice shock, I don't give up and actually dive.
Why did I go into that water? At the cottage, we learned that there is no water and the desired shower simply won't happen. It was hot and I really needed a bath. I don't know why, but the children did not mind the information about the unavailability of showering water at all. We return to the cottage, have a traditional Jota meal, a thick soup that really fills up. After dinner, we walk around the neighborhood and go to bed.
3 day back to the lake Bohinj
In the morning we wake up in to cloudy weather, it is raining slightly, but the forecast is not bad. After a hearty breakfast, we pack up and go to enjoy the last day of the trip. I would love to stay here one more day, it's really a magical place. We pass two lakes, it's still raining lightly and we're in a good mood, we only need a bit of sun, that's all. Let's take a last look behind the cottage, maybe we'll come back here again.
Our first trek went without any major problems so far, who would have guessed that everything would be a little different on the last day. It started with a pointless turn a short distance behind the cottage, mainly because we studied everything at the cottage, but the sign at the intersection says clearly, Koča na Planiny pri jezeru is a right turn into a crazy slush.
Well, there's nothing we can do, we climb and wonder where the road leads, we catch the signal to load the maps in vain, another error, we don't have offline maps. When we are almost at the top of the climb, we find that the road is going to get worse, at least we have beautiful views of the lakes.
We prefer to descend and look for a signal, after all, this cannot be the most frequented route to the Triglav Lakes. At the crossroads, we finally catch the signal and discover that the signage in Slovenia is quite confusing, and not only in terms of time to the given destinations.
According to the map, the road goes straight, up is the only alternative, Slovenians probably prefer to use more challenging roads, classics are apparently boring for them. After 5 minutes we reach the next intersection and wonder, the sign says Koča na Planiny near the lake, it's not worth worrying about.
From the sign, the path leads up the slope, again beautiful views await us, in the distance we can even see the Dom na Komni hut, where we slept the first night, and on the left in the distance we can see the upper station of the Vogel cable car, where our journey began, somewhere below us is the lake Oh god, shouldn't we descend to the lake?
At the end of the climb, the beautiful Planina Ovčarija appears, where we take a short break. It stops raining and sometimes the sun appears. It is here that the two roads from the Triglav Lakes meet, the sign shows both directions and the same time value of 1h. We continue on a leisurely path until we arrive at the surprise of the day, the Dedno polje Plateau is breathtaking.
As if time has stopped here, it is a place with a special atmosphere. We have a short picnic and enjoy the silence interrupted by the beautiful sounding bells of grazing cows. We don't want to leave this place at all, but time is relentlessly pressing, we have to move on.
After a while we come to Planina pri Jezeru, again a beautiful place, we don't hesitate and go to have something taste on the terrace with a view of the lake. We order soup and great apple pie.
The last photo is on the terrace railing, the descent to the lake awaits us. There are two alternatives, the most popular leisurely route to Planina Blata, ideal only if you have your own car in the parking. No one wants to trudge along the tarmac road.
We choose the second, more demanding descent route, but prefer to inform by friendly staff about safety. We hear great news, the road is safe, that is, if it doesn't rain. The sky is partly clear, it will good weather.
The journey is really cool, it even looks like we will catch the cruise ship, it will be a great end of our journey. A short stretch of tarmac leads us to the Vogar Plateau, everything looks great except for the rapidly advancing clouds. Lightning followed by a blow like from a cannon, we add to the pace, here somewhere awaits us a section that is not ideal for walking in the wet.
It's late, the storm catches up with us at no less suitable time, it's raining like a torrent and we have a road with smooth stones waiting for us. We descend slowly in the rain, it's incredibly slippery. The section that we were supposed to meet in 15 minutes stretches for almost an hour.
Totally drenched, we hide in the shelter in the parking place. We quickly change wet clothes for dry clothes and set off to the village of Rybčev Laz, from where the excursion boat departs. We are there, euphoria alternates with disappointment, the last ship has just left. The main thing is that we are safe downstairs, we are sitting by the lake shore full of ducks and about three ducks.
It's an interesting sight, the poor duck is apparently facing some criticism from about ten ducks, who are also very loud. The children are having a lot of fun, I leave them at the lake with mom and go almost 7 kilometers for the car.
I manage it quite quickly with the occasional run, after an hour I pick up my family and we go to the store to buy a reward. In the evening we are already sitting by the lake and reminiscing about our journey, it was great.
