Caves of Slovenia

In the region of caves I booked a ticket to see the Postojna Cave and the nearby Predjama castle. From what I researched Postojna seemed like the lesser of the big caves in the region so I did not prioritize it, instead booking the Skocjan Cave ahead of time (scheduled tomorrow). After driving an hour away to the Postojna cave I am now thinking I have that reversed. Getting there early to not miss my start time I stop in for coffee and a strudel since I left before breakfast this morning.

I line up for my cave entrance time and they start scanning tickets about 15 minutes before start. All those that have requested audio guides go off into a separate room to pick up the guide. We also all enter the train together. Train? Yes there is a train to take us 3.5 km to the walking portion of the tour. This cave is the second longest cave system in the country made famous by its karst or limestone landscape. Formed by an underground river, the stalagmites and stalactites are quite impressive to look at. As I walk through the cave drops of water fall periodically from above proving the cave is still a work in progress. We walk 1.5 miles through the cave, get a look at a “dragon”-like cave creature and then we take the train back out.

During the tour of Postonja we end up in a cavern like area where there is good acoustics. It is common to have Christmas concerts here. Toward the end is a river running along the cave.

After my visit to the cave I hop in the car and drive about 10 km to Predjama Castle, a castle built into the rocks and around another cave system. It is pretty impressive how it is built, security being its top priority. Apparently it is too damp to be a permanent residence but it provided great protection to attackers for it being high up and its vast cave system that could be used for escape routes. I was able to visit a bit of the upper cave but I am too early in season to visit the caves below because bats use it for hibernation during many months of the year. The audio guide there talked about a couple of the past residents and uses but the most interesting is the Robin Hood like character that lived there for a while. He had quite the reputation for robbing the rich.

Tomorrow I go see another cave so we will see how it stands up to the one today.

I head back to Piran for some food and drink. I am craving some ćevapi and luckily they have a Bosnian restaurant in town. It is very good but some rude guy next to me felt the need to interrupt my meal and tell me I am eating my ćevapi wrong. I tell him I’ve been to Bosnia and know how they eat cevapi and can eat it how I please. He seems very proud of him self for “correcting” me. I basically tell him to mind his own business since he isn’t even Bosnian.

After eating I find a place at a cafe and have myself a happy hour and do some reading. It is a nice and relaxing way to end my day.

Škocjan Cave

In the morning they are setting up for a market. I hope it will still be active when I return to town later.

My tour for the caves starts at 10 am. I am early and I wait for the guide to gather us to walk us the kilometer or so down to the cave entrance. A group of men arrive as what seems like a stag party. There is a bar at the cave entrance. They start doing rounds of shots and cheering “OPA!”. It seems to be a lively group. They separate all of us by what language we understand for the tour. Each group enters a few minutes after the other.

I am visiting Skocjan caves and the first thing that comes into mind touring this cave is that this is some goonies sh*t. What I mean by that is that the high cave paths and views down below make me think of the movie Goonies, a favorite from my childhood. The cave was first discovered BC but was majorly explored in the 1900’s. It is culturally significant and added to the UNESCO list in 1986 (https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/390/). We explore via a modern made path but as we walk along thee cave you can see the old path the explorers made, a pretty impressive feat. Unfortunately they have a very strict no photo policy inside (though ignored by the woman in front of me who made me stop constantly so she could take her illicit photos). I have borrowed a photo from the unesco site so you can get an idea of how impressive it is inside.

Photo of inside Škocjan Cave (credit to Borut Lozej from unesco site)

After our inside tour there are a couple different exit options. Don’t take exit 2 unless you just like stairs. Take elevator or long cave exit. Nothing to gain by exit 2 which I took. I felt I’d be too lazy to take the elevator and I didn’t have it in me to take the longer cave exit; although I regret it later. I do catch a little waterfall on my way out.

Afternoon in Piran

I return to Piran for the afternoon. There is a band playing with an accordion and tuba and I’m eating pizza at an outdoor cafe. I’m confused if I am in Slovenia, Italy or Germany right now, there seems to be a mix of cultures here. There is a flea market going on. People are selling various things like antiques, light fixtures, baskets, and jarred foods. Along with the band people are singing in the courtyard.

I take some time to do my laundry since I’ve been sweating through everything here near the sea. While I wait for my laundry I watch the singing groups perform at the square outside. It must be some sort of informal music festival, or do they do this every week.

I finally eat at the recommended restaurant in that very same courtyard. There is very strange way of getting a table compared to the rest of town. I wait in the unmarked line like I am told and watch at least two couples “steal” tables anyway, even after learning the rules. Once you have a table you can go order from the window. There is a waiter but that is for drinks only. You must pay attention for your number to be called. I eat one of the best plates of fried calamari I think I’ve ever had. If I had more time I’d come back and order the grilled ones.

I take it easy the rest of the evening. Tomorrow I am heading back to Ljubljana to return the rental car and explore some more

Piran, truffle hunting, and hair pin turns

I’ve checked into my hotel in Piran and settled in. It is a small hotel and I am the only guest for right now. I have a room on the top floor with windows that open up to the outside. It’s early in season but still very warm out so I take advantage of the air conditioning while inside. I do sneak some views from my window into the town center.

After a rest I go out for dinner, a drink, and a walk around town.

Finally found some good mussels and of course fresh fish is always a good idea.

I finish off the evening watching the sunset at a cafe along the water. The water gets rough and some of the tables in the cafe are in the splash zone. I see what looks like cruise ships off in the distance. We are nearby to the town of Koper which has a large port.

In the morning I get to sleep in a bit. I head downstairs and order breakfast at a nearby cafe. This is sleeping in for me but the cafe is barely open when I order. This is not an early morning town.

This afternoon I am heading to the town of Gazon to have a truffle hunting experience.

If you remember my previous post I was afraid I left the rental car unlocked. Obviously people are honest around here because when I get to the rental car in the garage it is unlocked. Would never trust an unlocked car in the USA.

This parking garage is bad for my nerves. Tight ramps that are too close for comfort are stressing me out. And seven floors of this! I hope navigating this gets easier.

I white knuckle it down narrow curvy roads with steep inclines between vineyards; at one point I am on a dirt and rock road. Not sure what is happening with google but these routes suck. I know there are highways I could be taking but google is giving me these goofy routes.

I finally arrive to the meeting place: a small, full parking lot across from a bus station. I park illegally until someone shows up to tell me where I can park instead.

I meet my host for the outing, Jerneja, who directs me to a parking lot I can legally park in. From there we walk to a wooded area to meet the truffle hunter and his dog. She tells me that she runs her own travel company and along the way she is greeted by people in town setting up for a party. It is one of those towns where everyone knows each other. She will be stopping by later after she completes my tour.

She also tells me that truffle hunting in Slovenia was illegal until 2012, even though it still occurred. My host tries to explain that the land for hunting is pretty much open for all hunters even though the land is private. I am not sure if I understood that part correctly. I do learn that white truffles are more expensive because they are more rare. We won’t be hunting those today because the season is September through January and we are in May.

I meet a Sheepdog named Lilly and her handler. Sheepdogs are very good at this but also golden retrievers are fine hunters too. Any dog can be technically trained for it. Lilly is 4 years old and trains every day. Her handler basically does this as a hobby.

Truffle hunting has its good and bad days. To make it enjoyable for visitors some truffles are pre staged for the dog to discover I find out later. However it is a good day because the dog finds many more after that.

We go back to Jerneja’s house where we I try some local products: wine, truffle sausage, truffle cheese, white truffle spread, black truffle spread, and homemade elderflower water. She also shows me how to make the popular local dish of istira truffle pasta. I help grate the truffles and she instructs me on pasta cooking and the importance of combining the truffles with fat to make the flavors appear, in this case it is butter. She later adds egg yolk and cheese as well. It is simple but perfect. We share a meal and a nice conservation. I learn a better way to drive back; in fact she discovers that I had asked google to avoid highways that was the reason why I had all these ridiculous routings. It must have happened when I was trying to avoid driving through Italy a day ago.

I head back to town and back to the dreaded parking garage. I find a parking spot but its too tight for me so I give up and drive 3 floors down. I find a better spot but still takes me ten tries to get it to where I am sufficiently away from accidently “door damage”.

For the walk from the garage to town I take a different route – this time down a bunch of stairs. The town of Piran is beautiful at night. I can hear people partying in the plaza so I have to close my window for the night. I am getting up early tomorrow to visit one of the caves of the area.

Vršič Pass and Piran

I am still in northern Slovenia. Today I pack up and drive out to the Vršič pass. Located in the northwest corner of Slovenia the pass is a switchback road through the Julian alps and Triglav National Park. It is only open for driving part of the year when the weather allows. Besides the beautiful views of the mountains I also get to enjoy an introduction to the Soča Valley. It takes about fifty hairpin turns to complete the pass.

I take the route beginning at Kranjska Gora first stopping at a rock bed along a stream that provided great views of the mountains.

As I am driving up the pass I discover how popular this pass is for cyclists. I pass by many struggling to get uphill, even some walking their bikes up the tough parts when they lose momentum. I know some people really like this but I would be miserably uncomfortable and unable to enjoy the scenery if I chose this method of traveling. I am happy biking on flat paths but give me a car for all the hard stuff.

One of the most popular stops on the pass is the Russian Chapel, a chapel dedicated to the Russians who were prisoners of WWI by the Austrians and were used build the roads. Many were killed by an avalanche while working.

I stop at a meadow with lovely views of bright green trees and the snow capped mountains in the background. This stop, Prisank mountain viewpoint, provides great views of the mountains.

I get a little closer to the mountain range and see things like the Heathen Maiden or the face in the mountain (Ajdovska Deklica).

There is livestock around to stop and look at.

I get to the top at the Vršič Pass high point or the Postman’s Lodge.

I drive down into the Soča valley blasting Sonic Youth’s Dirty Boots on the speakers inside the car.

I had wanted to stop at a dairy store near Bovec at the end of the pass – Soca Valley Dairy and Cheese Museum – but it is still closed another week or so until season starts. I pick up a bar of chocolate from the grocery store across the street instead.

Since my next stop is a couple hours away I decide to head back on the road south toward the city of Piran. Piran exists in a little slither of Slovenia that exists on the coast in a region called Istria. South of Slovenian Istria is Croatia and north of the area is Italy. The area is know for its warm temperatures, wine, and truffles.

Because I told the rental car place that I would not be crossing borders I end up taking the very long route to Piran to avoid entering into Italy. It turns out to be a nice drive where I drive through small vineyards with picturesque churches in the background….why didn’t I stop more for pictures? I also drive by the largest stone arch railroad bridge in the world. Unfortunately there is no where I can safely stop for pictures; I glance at it for a moment while I drive by.

Still many more back roads and I finally get to the town of Piran. I am told I can bring my car into the city center to drop my bags and my hotel will give me a card for a nearby parking garage. I can’t find somewhere to safely park the car except far away. I park in paid lot and carry my bag ten minutes to the hotel. If this is close parking I can’t wait to see where the satellite parking is.

I get my key card and map to the garage. I thought the hotel owner mentioned the garage I saw driving in but turns out its another garage. I eventually find the garage and I zig zag my car down four or five very narrow floors eyeing the narrow spots I pass on the way down. This is where the car is going to get banged up. I sure hope my credit card insurance is legit because I am about to test it. I find a spot where I can get close to a pole to lesson the chance of a door nick. I’ll have fun trying to get out of this tight space tomorrow. I get a few feet away from when I am not sure if I actually locked the car. Hopefully its one of those cars that auto lock because I am not going back down there right now. Google says its a 12 minute walk but it takes me more like 20 and that’s all downhill. I need to schedule 30 minutes for this walk to the car tomorrow when I leave for my outing.

I check into my room and settle a bit before exploring town. More on that later.

Zadar and Parks

We arrive in Split and are walking to the car rental location. We have chosen this location at the ferry port because of convenience and also it had the least crappy reviews of all the local rental shops. We spurge for the full coverage even though technically the credit card covers this because the last thing I want to do is fight over car scratches at the end. We discover that along with our stress free rental we are given a car that’s seen better days. We aren’t picky so other than the GPS we rented being completed useless the car is fine. We laugh that it is the owner’s cousin’s car that he rents out on the side to make some money.

I start driving and all we want to do is get our butts out of the city. We head toward Zadar, our next overnight location. It is a little stressful dealing with traffic in a new country but we make it out of the city relatively easy.

We stop on the way at a small town named Trogir. We walk around the medieval town for a couple hours.

We get to Zadar, find car parking and check into our apartment just in time to run down and catch the sunset at the artwork called “Greeting to the Sun” which during the day looks like just a glass floor but at night lights up beautifully. We catch the show better a couple hours later. There is a sax guy playing while we admire the sunset.

We share a late dinner then head to bed as we are heading to Plitvice Lakes national Park tomorrow.

As we head to Plitvice we aren’t without drama on the way since it is a long drive with absolutely no bathrooms along the way.

It is a rainy day so I am sure it keeps the crowds down a bit but it still pretty busy in the park known for its numerous waterfalls. This UNESCO protected park is very beautiful. We follow one of the most popular paths around that is estimated to take about a half day. Part of the route includes taking a ferry inside the park to another set of falls. We at some point lose the route we are supposed to be on but luckily we find our way back to the car park.

Despite the rain the park is very enjoyable.

On our way back we stop to buy some local cheese at one of the road side cheese stands. It is a weird texture and has very little flavor but what it does have is weird and disappointing. We try to eat it but it isn’t that great. We even try to feed it to street cats later and they wont eat it. I can’t believe there are cheeses out there I don’t like.

We get back into town wander to find a place to eat dinner. I decide tonight I need all the vegetables since my diet has been poor lately. I order a carpaccio salad and side of grilled vegetables.

The next day we head to the town of Nin, Croatia known for it’s salt harvest. Nin is also known for its beaches and its royal history in the 7th to 13th centuries. We visit the salt museum in this sleepy town and buy lots of salt including the flower of salt, a special salt that is harvested.

Back to town where we sit and listen to sea organ, an amazing art installation that sounds like an organ making music when the waves come in. We also shop, buy ice cream, eat dinner and make bad drink decisions. Afterwards we have Eurovision night in since it is on the next two nights.

Watching Eurovision

The next morning we visit the market in town because I love a good market.

We start driving toward Split but first we want to stop at Krka National Park, another waterfall park. Google gives us directions but we ignore them to follow the signs. For a while it seems like a dumb decision that has us driving out of the way but it ends up being the smart one. We find the park entrance and we park conveniently close to the free bathroom because of course we both have to go. On the way we stop by this cool looking abandoned building.

We buy our ticket and wait for the bus to take us down to the park. When we get off the bus there is a commotion. Someone may have died at the entrance to the park. Someone is giving CPR to a man on the ground while they wait for emergency medical help. Not wanting to contribute to the chaos we leave and start our waterfall visit, wondering if he is ok.

Today it is raining again. We see lots of water between the rain and waterfalls. Some parts around the trail become flooded. Thank goodness again for my poncho.

After our visit to Krka we drive to split and return rental car. More on that later.

Georgia Road Trip: Springer Mountain

It is early in the morning and I hear a drum beat outside my room. We must be expecting a great sunrise this morning. I go to the kitchen to get some coffee and walk down to the sunrise observation area.

The sunrise is amazing this morning. I feel very lucky. The lodge at Hike Inn is mostly quiet but some guests play Here Comes the Sun from their phone and the sunrise group sings along.

After sunrise it is time for breakfast. It is very filling and I am offered extra servings of bacon. I would never pass up extra bacon.

I talk to the front desk staff about how long today’s hike should take. There are two dinner times scheduled this evening and I am assigned to the early one. I know I am a slow hiker so I ask if I can be moved to the later dinner. I never know how long a hike will take me and I want to be safe. Luckily they can move me.

I ordered a trail lunch yesterday and pick it up at the front desk while I get ready for my hike today ($8 three sandwich choices ~meat, veggie, peanut butter; plus trail mix, and a large cookie).

My cookie. I end up eating it later after my hike.

I start my hike today at 9:20 am. I am hoping that gives me enough time for the return trip.

The hike today is to Springer Mountain, the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail, a 4.4-mile hike (8.8 miles round trip) from the Hike Inn.

The first part of the hike is mostly downhill which is nice but I am warned to save energy for this part on the return trip.

I reach a gap where there is an open area. I cross this area to continue my hike. It is here that I start the hike uphill. Luckily the climb is pretty gradual.

There are a couple springs where I can refill my water bottle with fresh water but my camelback is still 3/4 full and already heavy enough. Good to know that on a hot day there are options for refills.

I finally get to the top. I stop to take some pictures then sit down to enjoy my sandwich. I chat with other hikers.

Sandwich time

There are ladies from the lodge up here who brought their own wine in a water bottle. What a fun idea!

I try not to rest too long because I want to allow enough time to get back in time for my late dinner. While hiking back I meet a barefoot hiker from Florida. It takes a brave person to hike barefoot in the woods.

I love the fall colors and slightly barren trees.

The last couple miles on the way back is hard because there is about a mile of inclines to hike toward the end. I need to stop frequently.

I eventually arrive back at the inn. I am not as late as I anticipated. In fact, I could have made it in time for the early dinner. I decide to take advantage of this extra time and shower so I am cleaned up for dinner. I can go to sleep soon after eating. I am so tired I forget to photograph my dinner.

My body is sore so I proactively take pain relief so I get a good night sleep. I despise being woke up by aching muscles.

Next Morning

I do wake up a few times during the night but I otherwise am well rested. We are woken up for sunrise but it isn’t as lovely as the day before. Fortunately I scheduled two nights at the inn and had at least one full sunrise.

After sunrise I take one last look around the grounds.

Since I burned so many calories yesterday I am excited about breakfast this morning. No bacon today but I enjoy the sausage and biscuits and gravy. After breakfast I get ready to checkout.

After I pay my bill I sit at the front entrance tightening my shoes and such getting ready for hike back. There are a group of ladies getting ready to hike back to the parking lot “the long way” (all the way to Springer mountain and then to the parking lot for a total of about 12 miles). One in the group is not up for the long hike (nor would I be) and asks if she can walk back with me. Its been a long while since I’ve had a hiking companion. We have a nice hike back and talk about lots of different things. We make it back to the parking lot safe!

Never been so happy to see a sign that I have reached the parking lot. I have another smaller hike scheduled for later in the trip but for now I am heading to Helen to relax.