Solčava Panoramic Road
On the way from Maribor to Bled, we took a scenic detour along the very twisty Solčava Panoramic Road for some amazing views.
Logar Valley
While pretty, we found the valley to be not a great value at 10€ per vehicle. Our first stop was just before the entrance to get a photo of the small (and completely tree-covered) Church of Christ the King, then we continued to the first waterfall. Many people park and walk from the gates as it’s free to hike or bike in the park.
We parked next to the valley hotel which had plenty of space. Hoping to take a quick photo, we were thwarted by a gate and signs saying the trail was only for hotel guests (eye roll). So, we had to walk back along the road to the ‘public’ access trail for the short walk to the falls. We stopped again about five minutes later at the Logarska Dolina Walking Trail to see if we could find a waterfall that Maps.me had listed but the riverbed was dry and the path wasn’t well marked so we gave up and continued on to the end. Thankfully, Rinka Falls was quite pretty and had good flow. Lots of vantage points to take photos and we easily found a parking spot.
Palenk Waterfall; Rinka Waterfall
We took the easy route to Rinka!
Soča River
We drove along the Soča every day of our stay in Bovec and never got over how blue the water was! While we did explore the narrowest part of the river (Velika koritka) on foot, it was hard to see into the gorge as it is deep and very narrow. We found the best views to be from the bridges with parking pull-outs – if you can find a spot, take it!
Korita Možnice
The start of the trail has easy parking access on the side of the road but the trail itself was tricky to follow, even with Maps.me, and very steep. After crossing through some fields and sheep herds, we eventually got to the gorge. The path had a nice view of a bridge, moss covered stone walls and partial views of two falls. We only saw one other couple with their dogs the whole time.
Mangart Saddle
This drive was at the very top of Eric’s list and the views did not disappoint! The last 7-8km is a very narrow road but there were plenty of pull-outs and we rarely met another vehicle, I am guessing the 10€ entry kept some people away? There were also several tunnels and at one point the road crosses above itself through a tunnel via a figure 8 set of turns!
Unfortunately, the last 1.5km was closed due to a rock slide, but an uphill (reasonably muddy) hike from the roadside parking led to some amazing 360 degree views of the nearby mountain peaks still above us and into the valley below. It was very chilly at the top!
I even managed to get a photo of some dwarf alpenrose at the very top of the ridge!
And some edelweiss (cue the Sound of Music soundtrack…)
Fratarica Gorge
From the large parking lot, you cross the Koritnica River and then head up into the gorge. The trail was easy to follow but very steep with lots of tree roots and rocks. Getting to some of the falls just off the main trail could be tricky but Eric managed to photograph a few. Several groups decked out in ropes and wetsuits passed us on the trail, and we could see why this is a popular canyoneering spot. We even got to see one group use ropes to descend the largest waterfall, Slap Parabola.
