We are officially on the road again. We wanted something easy but beautiful so Debela Peč (2014 m) in Julian Alps was ideal choice. The drive is 2.5h long if you’re coming from Zagreb. The majority of the car trip takes place on the Slovenian highway.
Somewhere near Krvavec, we are always happy when we see mountain ranges in Slovenia - they are really special
I first visited Debela Peč 8 years ago and it was end of August. So the season for the above 2.000 m mountain tops was in full blossom for some time already and, some may argue, actually soon to end because of the possible snow in September.
The start of the hike is mild so our bodies had some time to adapt to working temperatures. Sadly, you soon realize that playing badminton or even running (to be honest, combination of walking-running – we just started last week to try and get back in the wanted shape) is quite different from hiking. Hiking requires constant exertion, especially when the route becomes steep. But hey, it’s okay, you can always stop and catch some breath. In badminton, for example, furious and victory hungry opponent will not stop during the rally (and sometimes not even in between of the rallies!) so you can get better. Quite opposite, they will push you… Yes, now I understand why I need more hiking in my life and a little bit less badminton :)
After one hour of hiking, you arrive at Blejska koča na Lipanci
There are more buildings here but this is the one where you can get refreshment
A lot of options but we chose Debela Peč
Ana just realized she left cash in the car and we already did expect we will not be able to eat bean stew for lunch. Then we were saved because Slovenian mountaineering huts accept credit cards – when there is internet connection. Okay, now we could leave for Debela Peč and still dream about beans. On the waypoint, it says there is 1h 30min to Debela Peč peak. Let’s see…
Leaving Blejska koča behind us and gaining some altitude
The signs are here, but some of them weren't - the terrain generally looks like there was some kind of a storm and some of the waypoints fell down from trees, even some trees were destroyed. Snow starts to appear
Yeah, I definitely remember this place and this hiking route differently! The snow was still there and some black clouds started gathering above our heads and mountains. The weather forecast predicted some light rain at 14:00 but we were starting to worry a little bit. The snow did slow us down and if we would have to leave back abruptly, that wouldn’t be possible. Anyway, we continued and hoped for the best.
The snow wasn't too deep but sometimes, if you stepped wrongly, your foot could sink in deeper
Some of the rocks with markings were under snow so you had to follow the route someone else paved in - the danger of that will be clear later when you realize you are not walking on the marked route but a little bit off the course and that course sometimes goes close to the edge
Here we are - Ana is keeping the mountaineering cool and I am a sweaty pale mountain man who questions in his head why did he even leave the cozy apartment
Anyway, International Labour Day is in Croatia celebrated with eating famous “worker’s” bean stew (a really dense stew with a lot of zaprška* – flour heated in oil, really healthy, yes) and quite often getting intoxicated with alcohol. Everything in Croatia can be mixed with alcohol – the only nation (and region also) wide and socially accepted drug*, sanctioned only if you drive a vehicle afterwards. All the other drugs*, not that we encourage any of them, breddas, are forbidden by the law.
So, most people are preparing barbecues, sometimes in nature, near rivers and lakes, and if they’re lazy, they just stay at home and eat there. Sometimes when I am low on energy and my brain starts to bombard me with questions like: “Why are you doing this to yourself Borna? You could have just stayed at home and eat and drink!”, I imagine all those other people just sitting on their asses and my pain feels much more purposeful. Walking through this slippery snow was one of those moments. If thoughts of a healthy lifestyle don’t help you, maybe vistas like this could…
When you cut through the snow on the steep hill, you get to see this
Soon after you reach this plateau, you can also see your destination – Debela Peč peak. We have seen some people up there but not even close as many like last time. It seems that others maybe know that snow is still present so they will postpone their visit a little bit. Rjavina is visible, but probably the most valuable sight is the king himself – Triglav, of course. Triglav and all other peaks around it are chained in ice. I am more of a summer person, although it gets unbearable last few summers, but it is nice to see snow and ice. Walking through it is something else but okay :)
Hail to the king, hail to the one
View from Debela Peč, the other, a little less attractive side but still majestic
Union 0.0% Radler Isotonic Limona is the best and proper greeting for the King - some of you who have read other articles know that I have fallen in love with this drink when we were hiking to Triglav
A little bit of rest at the top and then it is time to return to Blejska koča. The return was going really fast, maybe because we already knew the snow traps on the track so we were almost running towards the mountaineering hut. Caution is still recommended, the snow was melting under the sun (not even a drop of rain has fallen so the dark clouds were not potent in the end) and it can get a little bit slippery. Mountaineering boots are required (please no flip flops, not now, not ever!) and hiking poles will help you a great deal.
The Internet was stable and we were able to pay for the jota with the credit card. Jota was good like always but with a little too much cabbage, very few beans so the overall taste was kinda sourish. Cringey joke incoming: My grandma likes zelje* (croatian for cabbage) very much and I think my father also, so I guess you can also call us KeZELJE. Ana wasn’t so much amazed by the jota so I had to eat hers also. Oh, well, a man has to do what a man has to do. Union Radler Pomaranča (orange) was the only one left at Blejska koča so I got it instead of the lemonish one. Pomaranča is also great ;)
The second jota is getting devoured. Everything tastes so much better after hiking!
Conclusions
Slovenia is something special. Every hike we made in Slovenia was worth it. However, you should maybe think about making this route a little bit longer or maybe make a two-day hike or something similar. We work on friday so we had only one day at our disposal. Now we know that early May is maybe too early to expect no snow at the peaks who are over 2.000 metres.
All other information can be found on the Strava link below:
Zajavornik – Blejska koča Lipanci – Debela Peč
If you feel like it, you can join our End7ess SoulSport club on Strava.
Until next time my breddas, peace!
About the Author: Borna
