45
By Laura Mackay
Bikepacking through the Slovenian Alps and ending with an ultra marathon
A two week bikepacking trip in the lead up to an ultramarathon is probably not recommended training. But the heart wants what the hearts wants.
Mixed
1
Bike
Airport to Lake Bled
We flew our bikes into Ljubljana, thinking we had finally aced the start of a bikepacking trip by booking to have our bikes made up while we merrily had our first oat milk flat white of the day. Alas, the store was unexpectedly shut so we instead sweated on the side of a motorway while we made up our bikes with an Allan key and an emergency pump.
We were told by a local that the ride to Ljubljana was not particularly interesting and in with the hindsight of the rest of the trip, he was absolutely right. But as a first day, with a picturesque ending at Lake Bled, it was perfect.
We would recommend avoiding the Bled town and going straight to the campsite https://www.sava-hotels-resorts.com/en/sava-hotels-bled/camping/camping-bled/ - it has a restaurant, bar and small supermarket on site. This is probably the only campsite of the trip you should book in advance because it was super popular. In their high season you need to book minimum 3 nights, but we emailed to say we were coming through by bike and they were completely fine with it
2
Bike
Bled to Bohinj
Lake Bohinj was in no way on our route but its worth every kilometre. It’s a super cruisy ride and they have nearly completed a brand new cycle way between the two lakes which is completely off road.
It’s much more alpine than Lake Bled with significantly less tourists. We stayed at the lakeside campground https://www.camp-bohinj.si/ which was incredibly beautiful. You can’t book tent sites in advance but there was plenty of space when we arrived. There is a restaurant and small market on site .You can hire kayaks and SUPs from the campsite and in the weekends there was a small farmers market with great treats.
From Bohinj you can access Mt Triglav park and a whole range of hiking as well so worth staying a few days if you have the time.
3
Bike
Bohinj to Mojstrana
We headed up and over a small mountain to Mojstrana which is one of the more common places to begin the Mt Triglav hike. If you don’t feel like any hills you can cycle from Bohinj back to Bled and then along the valley to Mojstrana. The way we went was fairly cruisy but the descent was long and steep so I wouldn’t want to attempt it the opposite direction.
The final 20km of this ride is spectacular riding as you exit a small valley and are deposited at the beginning of Triglav National Park. We stayed at Hostel Lukna https://hostel-lukna.com/ which had a super cosy and friendly vibe. From here you can hire via ferrata equipment for cheaper than the rental stores as well.
There is a small supermarket in Mojstrana which has everything you need, but would also recommend restaurant veranda https://maps.app.goo.gl/j3brgzVf5A3wg4sQA?g_st=com.google.maps.preview.copy - it’s an unassuming little roadside restaurant with surprisingly good food.
4
Run
Hike to Dom Triglav
The next day we headed into the Krma Valley to begin the hike up to Triglav national park. We cycled in and tied our bikes to a tree in the car park which was completely fine. If you don’t have a car or a bike, try calling one of the guide companies in Mojstrana to see if you can get a lift with them. As a last resort you can get a taxi but we were warned this is very expensive.
The cycle itself is beautiful - we left early in the morning to avoid the late summer afternoon storms and had the road to ourselves. The hike itself is not very difficult but you get a spectacular range of scenery.
The hut itself sits at 2500m and is quite basic compared to other European huts (though of course with beer and wine helicoptered in). There is very little running water there and you can’t drink it so be prepared to buy the bottled water and forego a shower. In high season, you need to book, but when we were there in early September many people were just showing up. There is a lot of hiking in this area, and it’s possible to string together multiple days so if you have the time, it would be worth looking up some routes
5
Other
Via ferrata Mt Triglav
It’s common to climb Mt Triglav for the sunrise and it’s absolutely worth it. We left a little later as the summit was (and stayed) under a thick cloud but we still saw a beautiful sunrise on our way up. It looks scarier than it is, and in fact was a pretty easy climb to the top, even for us with little experience with via ferratas. In early September, with a 6am start we almost had the way up to ourselves and it was magical.
+3
6
Bike
Soça Valley to Trenta
It’s difficult to put into words how mindblowingly beautiful this ride is. Put it this way- it was Harley Davidson European tour week and even the motorbikes roaring past didn’t affect our ride.
It’s not an easy ride to the top with bags on the bikes, but it is absolutely worth it. If you can get ahead of some cars on the descent you will have a clear route down as well because the hairpins make for better cycling than driving. We stayed at Kamp Triglav which was another gem of a campground https://kamp-triglav.si/en. It’s nestled right in the valley and they can usually accomodate bike packers without a reservation. We would have stayed longer and used it as a base to hike into the back of Triglav national park but unfortunately the weather turned and we decided it was best to keep moving.
7
Bike
Soca Valley to Triglav
You know how not every day of a bike packing holiday can be a dream? This was that day.
It’s possible that there are some better gravel roads to leave the Soca Valley and if there are I would take them, because the main road is the equivalent of a New Zealand state highway - no cycleways and trucks roaring past at 100kpm.
However, despite that and thunderstorm, we made it to the Vipava Valley where most of the wine in Slovenia is made. We stayed at a beautiful family owned vineyard where every night they do a wine tasting with a charcuterie board and then basically leave the guests to help themselves to wines and get drunk in an ancient courtyard with the neighbours dogs. Would highly recommend http://www.vino-zorz.si/
8
Bike
Vipava to Piran with a detour to the Skocjan Caves
The next morning we headed to Piran via the Skocjan Caves. Again the route was initially a bit dire with busy roads but the visit to the caves was incredible. You need to book, but we did so the day before and were still able to get a spot.
The ride from the caves to Piran was much better, in particular that last section which took us on a bike path round the back of Trieste and down the coast of a sparkling sea into the town. We initially planned to stay at the campsite in Piran but it was full so we booked an Airbnb in the town which was worth the extra money for the access to the town.
We had some the best food of trip here at a small seafood canteen https://maps.app.goo.gl/gBFjHoKGpt6z3uG3A?g_st=com.google.maps.preview.copy. There was also a great looking restaurant called Neptun https://maps.app.goo.gl/XqeaMdrsNqxPQFWH6?g_st=com.google.maps.preview.copy which looked excellent but needed an advance reservation.
9
Bike
Piran to Trieste
We had intended to cycle down into Croatia from Piran but with some serious rain warnings we decided to head to Trieste and take the train to Lake Garda and Venice instead. It was a lovely cruise trip along the coast with a decent cycle way most of the way.
