Slovenia Bikepacking Trip 2020

[chriswoody]

I first "Discovered" Slovenia on a family camping trip in 2017, we were in search of sun and mountains and stumbled on this amazing country. I've always harboured a desire since then, to return and undertake a solo adventure. I came across a mixed terrain route called the Slovenia West Loop on bikepacking.com and a plan was born. I finally had the opportunity this year then Coronovirus hit and I thought it would be all postponed, then at the last minute the borders re-opened and tourists were welcomed back, I didn't need asking twice and set off south.

Day One

The official loop starts in the capital city of Ljubljana, the capital city, however, I elected to start in the North East corner of Slovenia, in the town of Kranjska Gora, the nearest point to me coming from Germany. Kranjska Gora sits at the foot of the Vršič pass, at 1611m high, it is the highest pass in Slovenia, as well as the highest in the Eastern Julian Alps. It connects Upper Carniola with the Trenta Valley.

l had packed the bike with bikepacking bags, mostly to keep the weight down to the bare minimum and a lot of the route is off road on hard single track and gravel trails where panniers would be liability. The first kilometre is on road and heads past some lovely swimming pools before the first gravel track appears on the left. I headed uphill on lovely gravel trails then came to a stop against a barrier that had been drawn across the trail. I pondered what to do before I turned the bike around and contemplated heading back down and onto the road. Just then, four German lads on EMTB's turned up, took one look at the barrier and decided it was meant for animals and ducked under it and off up the trail.My inner Britishness grappled with angst, before I thought, what the hell and followed them. The trail continued for several kilometres winding it's way deeper and higher into the mountains as the storm clouds gathered boiled up over the tops.

The trail finally ended at a river crossing, which I foolishly thought I could traverse, until my wheel hit a rock and pitched me sideways, aside from a wet foot no harm was done and I pushed the rest of the way across. After the crossing it was back onto the main road and the endless switchbacks as you wind your way ever further up. The current road over the pass follows an old trade route and was built by approximately 10,000 Russian prisoners of war during 1915 in order to help supply the Isonzo Front. The Russians built a Russian Orthodox chapel at an elevation of 1200m to commemorate their fallen comrades and it still stands today as a memorial to them.

Further up the trail once again leaves the tarmac and returns to the forest, weaving it's way higher and higher. Several old World War one bunkers lay as silent witnesses to past history. Eventually several hours after setting off, the top hoves into view and time for a well deserved break. Sadly the clouds obscure parts of the view, but it's still breathtaking.

The old bunker normally commands a stunning view down into the valley, but today it's steel grey all around. With a windproof on, it's time to set course back down the other side. After a few minutes the gravel gives way again to the road and the descent is on the tarmac road. Ten kilometres of switchback after switchback, exhilarating and exciting as I plunge ever deeper into the Soca valley. The village of Trenta, marks the easing of the gradient and the first time I meet up with the Soca, a breathtaking aquamarine river, who's headwaters rise in the nearby mountains and which will provide me with companionship over the next days.

The route meanders down the valley, firstly on paved roads, before crossing the river and heading up the valley side walls on lovely gravel trails. At various points along the river are precarious suspension bridges with broken rickety boards offering up views of the tumbling river below, there is no other way of crossing the river.

Finally the day finishes up in Bovec, a small mountain town that is a vibrant hub of outdoor pleasure seekers. Whilst it's only been 52 kilometres from the start, but a brutally tough 52 kilometres, a massive thunderstorm has brewed up and the rain is coming down in sheets. I seek some shelter and wait out the rain, when it's finally over I head out of town for a couple of kilometres and found a lovely quiet spot for a stealthy bivy.

 

[chriswoody]

Day Two

Day two started as day one finished, with rain and I cursed my rotten luck. I packed away my tarp and bivy bag and pointed my bike down the trail. The ride starts gently, undulating up and down on the main road from Bovec to Kobarid, however, it doesn't last long. Rather than follow the road down to Kobarid, it takes the straight route, up and over Mount Stoll. After a few kilometres I reach the village of Zaga and top up my water bottles and then the ascent starts and much like yesterday it's relentless tarmac switchbacks, winding ever higher. My legs start to burn and I focus on a few metres ahead of me as I slowly make my way. The views start to slowly unfold as I wind higher.

After 12km, the route finally leaves the road and heads into the forest. I've swapped tarmac switchbacks for gravel switchbacks, however this time, under a canopy of lovely trees as we relentlessly grind out the kilometres.

8km later we break cover from the forest and come out onto the coll, the main summit lies to the East and several hundred metres higher, but that's not our destination. The coll is more than enough and marks a rest while we drink in the view. The rain has moved away and the cloud base has lifted, allowing me to see down into the next valley and the way forward.

After a rest it's on to the next challenge, a technical and tricky descent of 10km over the most amazing gravel roads. However the gravel is the size of a small fist and with a rigid bike shod with 44mm gravel tyres it provides a real stern test. My whole body was aching from the pounding and the noise of the bike being slammed from one chunk of gravel to the next was alarming, but we all made it down in one piece.

The village of Sedlo lies at the bottom of the gravel descent and provides the start of the next tarmac section as we descend further into the Nadiza valley. The tarmac is wonderfully smooth and we fly down into the village of Podbella and the Nadiza river. I'd been looking forward to a dip in the river to cool off, but it really wasn't that warm and the cold waters just didn't appeal enough! So we turned away from the tarmac and followed the river bank over gravel tracks for several kilometres and down into the town of Kobarid, where we once again say hello to the Soca.

Kobarid has a rich history from it's time on the front line during World War 1. If you've never been here before, then it's well worth taking a days break here and walking the historical trail that encompasses sections of the Walk of Peace. The Walk of Peace is 230 kilometres of the old Isonzo front, where thousands of troops lost their lives. The old trenches and emplacements have been preserved as a fascinating open air museum and Kobarid itself was the scene of some of the fiercest fighting. The museum in town is also a very sobering and fascinating place to visit.

Rather than wild bivy, I treated myself to a pitch in the town campsite and a well deserved beer and pizza as I contemplated the next days route. Another 50km completed with 1170m of ascent. Just 300km to go!

 

[chriswoody]

Day Three

The next days route is meant to start with the 900 metre ascent onto the Kovolat ridge and ride it's undulating top down to the end of the Soca Valley. I was starting to realise though that my legs were really not conditioned enough for the brutal climbing of this route and if I was to stand any chance of returning to the start, then I would need to make some hard decisions. The last two mornings have each started with a large climb, a third day would be too much. So I decided that rather than head up onto the ridge I would save my legs and ride down the valley. I would miss out on seeing some more of the walk of peace, but I've spent time around Kobarid last year, so I decided it was worth it.

So rather than head up, I headed down along the Soca and towards Tomlin. The route is along quiet tarmac roads, gently undulating and a nice start to the day. South of Tomlin is Most na Soci, a small town where a reservoir creates a lovely lake for the Soca river.

After Most Na Soci the road heads steeply uphill again, there really is no getting away from steep hills around here! After a few kilometres the route heads off road and through a wonderful section of single track, weaving up and down through the forest before roads lead on down to Kanal, a wonderful old medieval town spanning the Soca. The heat of the day is really starting to grow now and there is little shade as we hit the cycle track running next to the Soca. It's cruel, riding along fighting the heat and looking down on the Soca, knowing that there is no access for swimming and cooling down.

Finally after 50 gruelling kilometres, we hit the outskirts of Nova Goricia and join back onto the main route. It's here I bade a final sad farewell to the Soca as it flows into Italy and becomes the Isonzo. As I dived further into the city, my Garmin decided to throw it's famous straight line trick and my track becomes a direct line from one side of the city to the next. Luckily I was also using Ride with GPS app on my phone as a back up, so it wasn't the disaster it could have been. The end of the city sees me plunge into a nice wooded section and blessed relief from the sun. It doesn't last long though and I'm back on quiet country roads climbing steep hills in the full glare of the sun. Frequent stops ensue in any shade I can find as I plough slowly on. The scenery has changed dramatically, from the steep sided river valley I'm now in the rolling hills of Southern Slovenia and all around the fields are full of wine grapes a beautiful landscape.

As the afternoon draws on I'm directed into a small patch of woodland where the trail peters out in the wood. The way ahead is deeply overgrown and there is no way through. I make my way back to the nearest road and consult the maps. I can make a detour around the local lanes without adding too many kilometres, so off I set. Before too many kilometres have passed I spot a sign for a campsite on a farm and can't resist. I'm overheating and running with sweat, struggling to cool down and tired, so I follow the signs. The campsite is on a wonderful winery where the pitches are set between the vines. I find a lovely spot in the shade of some vines and cool down with a lovely ice cream and a dip in the small swimming pool. A fantastic end to another tough but interesting day. 84 kilometres today and over 2000m of ascent.

 

[chriswoody]

Day Four.

After yesterdays struggles in the heat, I decide to head off really early to tackle the first days climb in the cool of the morning. So 6:00 my tyres are crunching over the gravel again as I complete the last couple of kilometres from my diversion the day before. The morning starts well with lots of rolling climbs and descents between fields of vines.

The sun is shining but the heat has not got too oppressive. just over 20 km in and the gradient increases as we climb over 700 metres in the next 14 kilometres. Passing small villages and settlements with lovely churches.

The top of the climb is on wonderful gravel roads and as the gradient eases we start flying along only to be greeted around one bend by a construction lorry bearing down on me and barely any room to squeeze down the side, a heart stopping moment.

The next 8 kilometres see me drop down from the top until a wonderful piece of downhill single track brings me out in Predjama. A kilometre further on is the famous Predjama Castle, a truly spectacular castle half buried in a cave and well worth a stop.

After a cooling ice cream I set off in the direction of Podjama as the storm clouds started to gather overhead. Podjama is the site of the most famous caves in Slovenia, I'd visited a couple of years ago, but if you've never been to Slovenia then a stop here is highly recommended. As the rain started I reached Podjama town and found a lovely Pizzeria in time for lunch. I was hot sweaty and filthy from the trail, the waiter looked at me before hesitating and sending me into a quiet corner away from everyone else, I was just happy he'd not turned me away!
After a hearty lunch we set out on the hill that wound it's way out of town. After a few kilometres I'm back on pristine gravel tracks that are actually an official road, just not sealed with tarmac. The roads are fantastic and wonderfully quiet, I speed along through the trees in complete solitude.

The track slowly gains height before plunging down past two lake beds that sometimes dry up, but not this summer. Overhead the skies are dark and threatening and the afternoon is getting later. At the lake bed I meet a local Slovenian guy on another gravel bike and we ride along side each other into the next town, chatting about cycling and my trip in broken English.

Another feature of Slovenia is the numerous beehives everywhere. A lot of the time they'll be on the back of old soviet era lorries, other times they'll be in fields. One common feature is the colourful boxes that comprise the hive itself, a splash of welcome colour on a dark grey afternoon.

Then it's back uphill, a 500m ascent to almost finish the day. With all of the climbing that a ride in Slovenia entails, it's always worth keeping your water bottles topped up. Thankfully there are a lot of natural wells and taps, most small villages have a communal tap and it soon becomes second nature to top up your bottles whenever a chance presents itself. Sometimes on the climbs themselves you will also find water available. Sometimes it's obvious that it's drinkable water like the first picture, however the spring in the second picture made me smile, just as I was pondering the potability of the water, I noticed what was hanging on the post at the back, . Who knows who'd put them there, but I didn't need telling twice.

At the top I elect to avoid the epic singletrack descent that's the official route, but stuck to the gravel roads that wound down in perfect switchbacks into an area known as the Ljubijana Marshes.

Over 120 km covered today, with stunning views and the most amazing gravel riding however, unbeknown to me ,I was about to plunge into 20 hours of pure hell.

 

[chriswoody]

End of Day 4 and Day 5.

As I'd been descending down on perfect gravel, I'd been scanning around looking for a decent bivy spot. Sadly the terrain was far too steep and nothing promising presented itself. I wasn't too perturbed though because I'd heard of a nice stealth camping spot in the valley below. After descending I set off up the valley floor looking for this supposed lovely camping spot and found only areas strewn with rubbish and no where that inviting. Turning around I started heading back towards the capital of Ljubljana, I didn't want to head into the city because I would then need to find a room, so I hoped a suitable bivy spot would present itself. After a few kilometres a promising looking spot appeared just off of a gravel track and in the lee of a small copse. Perfect I thought, until that was, the mosquito's came. There was hundreds of them swarming around me, it was 9:00pm and I quickly unpacked my bivy sack and erected my tarp to protect me from the rain. Once in the bivy sack I tightened it up so only my face was exposed, but the Mosquitoes still attacked. I hoped with darkness they may disperse, but they carried on through the night mercilessly biting and all through that long night I could also hear wild boar sniffing around really close. By 5:30 I'd had enough and leapt out of my pit only to find the skies opening up and the deluge starting. I packed up as quick as possible and setoff towards the capital in the pouring rain and gloom, my spirits couldn't have been lower, I'd barely slept, I was exhausted and I had a gruelling days climbing ahead.

After 15 kilometres I was in the centre of Ljubljana and finally free of the mosquitos, I stopped at a bakery and coffee and croissants warmed me up and lifted my spirits partially. The city itself looked lovely in the wet gloom and I promised to return on a better day and have a look around.

A few streets on from the city centre and I came into the park, at the back of the park the route dived into a hilly forest and fun gravel tracks wound their way up and down, I couldn't believe a wild area like this would exist so close to a city centre. After a while I emerged into a small suburb, from where I finally escaped the city. Ljubljana lies at only 300m so there is only one direction to go from here and thats up. The road wound onwards climbing steeply on quiet roads as the rain poured down. By this point I was drenched through and starting to feel really cold, but I had no choice but to press on. 10 km from the city and 800m high I came across the first of todays churches on a hill. Spectacular places commanding amazing views over the landscape around. My camera was struggling with the rain by this point so the photo isn't great I'm afraid.

From here, more singletrack leads me back down to 300m and onto Škofja Loka, a stunning old medieval town with a lovely castle. The rain starts to finally abate, but I'm still frozen to my core and decide to press on. a 600m ascent now awaits. A mix of roads and forest roads lead me ever higher. At one point during a brief rest another cyclist hoves into view with bikepacking bags. I've not seen another cyclist since the Soca Valley. Turns out to be another German who's also following the same route as me, but is much fitter and faster. We have a good chat for a while then he disappears off up the hill and we wave our goodbyes.

Later on as I'm deep in a forest section my navi gets all vague on me and I lose the way. I spend a good deal of time toing and froing trying to pick up the correct trail again, eventually I discover that a large splash of red paint on a tree was actually trying to show me the correct way. Re-orientated I find myself heading downhill at quite a rate on the most technical singletrack I'd yet encountered. Weaving in and around trees it's all very exhilarating on a rigid gravel bike. After a few more Ascents and descents we arrive out of the forest and finally a clear view back of the forests and hills we'd just travelled.

The bike was absolutely filthy as well as me!

Then up on the ridgeline the last of the churches came in to view, sat alone on a ridge at over 800m high it towers over the surrounding countryside.

From here the trail finally turns downhill, most of the days climbing is over. The exhilarating singletrack is not though. It's hard to tell from this photo, but trust me when I say it's steep. On drop bars my weight is on my arms and I take quite a pounding over the half hour or so of descent.

The weather is finally starting to clear, the sun is out, my clothes have almost dried out and I'm almost at Lake Bled. A last Brutal climb brings me up to the lake and I wearily pedal round to the campsite on the Western Shore. I dry my kit out in the late afternoon sun, take a hot shower and eat a meal in the nearby restaurant, absolute bliss after the horrors of the previous night. Overall 92 kilometres covered today and over 2000m of ascent.

 

[chriswoody]

Day 6

I had a well deserved lie in this morning. Finally setting off at 9:00 after a lovely breakfast courtesy of the baker that visits the campsite every morning. As usual the day starts with a stiff climb and the sun is already feeling quite strong. After a few kilometres the road levels of and then heads downhill into a quiet valley. I'm back in the tourist areas and after several days of solitude I'm surrounded by cyclists, mostly road riders out for a days ride. The road winds steadily up the valley, the road is lovely and quiet, the views stunning.

For a short way the track briefly disappears up a side gravel track, but aside from these few kilometres the rest of today is on tarmac. towards the end of the valley the road turns to one side and a stunning view down to Mount Triglav opens up. Triglav is Slovenia's highest mountain at 2800 metres high.

From here, one last brutal but short ascent awaits, then it's a stunning downhill on sweeping perfectly surfaced roads. Smiling at all the road cyclists sweating and swearing there way up as I enjoyed every second of the descent. The views everywhere are stunning, I'm well and truly back in the high mountains.

Back in the valley, I'm faced with a gentle uphill ride on a perfect segregated bicycle track to Kranjska Gora and the end of my Slovenian adventure.

The last day was 32 kilometres and it was with mixed emotions as I pulled back into Kranjska Gora after an amazing adventure in a stunning country. The weather was defiantly not the best, however I had an amazing trip. Ideally I would have loved to spend a few more days, but I just couldn't find the time and had to push myself more than ideal. All things considered though, It was a stunning trip and kudos to the routes developers, it was amazing.

EDIT: As my post post below, some stats for the ride:

Total Distance 446.2 km
Average Speed 12.4 kph.
8142 metres of ascent.

 

[steveindenmark]

It looks stunning and I am sure you had a great time. But what stands out most from all of your photos is that in the whole week you did not see another living thing. No people, not even sheep or cows. Nice gravel roads though.

 

[IaninSheffield]

Wonderful account. Wonderful photos. Wonderful country. Sounds like anyone who enjoys the ups and downs would be in seventh heaven.
Did you keep a record of your stats for the week? Dist travelled, height gained?

 

[avecReynolds531]

Wonderful account. Wonderful photos. Wonderful country. Sounds like anyone who enjoys the ups and downs would be in seventh heaven.

+ 1
Thanks for this - a great read & beautiful images.

 

[dodgy]

Thank so very much, what a great write up. I kind of lost myself in it. Inspirational.

 

[chriswoody]

Thanks everyone, it was a bit of a rambling account, but glad some folk liked it!

Wonderful account. Wonderful photos. Wonderful country. Sounds like anyone who enjoys the ups and downs would be in seventh heaven.
Did you keep a record of your stats for the week? Dist travelled, height gained?

I've just been back through everything and the Stats are as follows:

Total Distance 446.2 km
Average Speed 12.4 kph.
8142 metres of ascent.

The bike itself was an absolute dream. Really comfy to ride all day, a capable load load lugger and more than capable on all the terrain I encountered. I'm running tubeless and wasn't aware of any punctures over the whole ride, the only mechanical issue was when the 1st and 2nd gear partially went out of adjustment so making gear changes a rattly imprecise affair. The hydraulic disks were brilliant despite the hammering they received, going downhill in the wet off road was really re-assuring.

@steveindenmark I hadn't noticed actually how empty my photos were! There really wasn't much in the way of livestock around and as for people, the Soca valley and around Kranjska Gora were busy with tourists, but aside from that it really was empty. I have wrote about the encounters I had, but yes, lots of times I was in complete solitude. It is tricky at the moment with Corona virus, but Slovenia is quite dependant on the tourist trade, there are folk around, but no where near the normal numbers.

 

[mjr]

How did you get to/from the tour, please?

 

[chriswoody]

How did you get to/from the tour, please?

I elected to drive down and stay the night in a campsite at Kranjska Gora. I then left my car at the campsite for the week and stayed the final night there as well. Many of the campsites in this corner of Slovenia are happy for folk to leave there cars at the campsite for a small fee or even free of charge, it gives you peace of mind knowing it's relatively safe for the week.

Alternatives would be to take the train to Villach in Austria and then cycle from there, but you do need to cross a small mountain pass to get there and the train from Northern Germany was really expensive, so I discounted that option. Ljubijana also has excellent air and train connections, which is why the route is meant to start and finish there. However, train travel within Slovenia is really limited, you can probably picture from my write up that the geography of the country precludes a comprehensive rail network!

Slovenia is a Shengen country as well as having the Euro, so travel is hassle free and easy. There was a border control between Austria and Germany because of Corona, but other than that travel was back to some sort of normality.

 

[CXRAndy]

Ive been to Slovenia a couple of times, stayed in capital and at my mates house near the Croatian border. It is a beautiful country. I didn't realize it had so many wonderful tracks to navigate along.

Great report of adventure

 

[robjh]

Looks fantastic. Great write-up.