This year I have decided to take my annual hiking trip to the country of Slovenia to hike along the Slovenian Mountain Trail for about mid-September through early-October. The entire trail tours the country over about 599km (~372.2miles). Normally, hiking the entire trail takes about 4-7 weeks, depending on rate of travel and time spent in each of the towns along the way. Since my time is limited, I’m planning to hike a decent chuck of the northern alpine region of the trail from Maribor to Triglav. Once I get to Triglav, I’ll work my way down to Stara Fužina/Lake Bohinj and back northeast to Bled. After I reach Triglav, the rest of the hike will not be on the Slovenian Mountain Trail. (click image to enlarge)
In total, I’ll likely hike about 180-215 miles over the course of the trip. Over the anticipated 16-18 days on trail, I should get in about 10-16 miles per day. There will be quite a bit of elevation gain and loss over the course of the entire trip as well.
Over the last several weeks, I have been busy doing some initial research and learning about the trail system, accommodations, transportation, and websites detailing useful information about the trail and making the journey to the country. Since its certainly not everyday I take trips like this, I am also interested in touring some of the towns/cities along the way so I won’t be purely hiking the whole trip. A good part of the timing, is I’ll be traveling and hiking in the off-peak season so the experience will be much different than a trip during the summer.
Gear and Travel Optimization
A unique feature, and challenge, about the trip will be everything I think I’ll need on the trip, I’ll have to carry the whole time. Once I leave my home, I will not have a place to stash any travel or non-hiking items. This will make for one of my first real ultra-light hiking trips, which will make me critical of the multi-purpose utility of every piece of gear and clothing I think I’ll need for the 23 day trip.
Another constraint will be my carry-on bag size. Since I am very hesitant to check my favorite Osprey Atmos 50L pack, I have decided to test out a couple of smaller packs that meet the carry-on dimensions over the next several months. Whichever pack I end up using will have to be sufficient in volume, as well as comfort.
Due to carry-on weight limitations, I will have a checked bag, but it will inevitably have to all consolidate into my pack upon arrival in Ljubljana. The reason for having my pack as my carry-on, is to ensure I have it when I arrive in country. I will definitely be carrying all the essential items for this very reason. I’ll likely carry close to the max weight-limit and put the rest in my checked luggage. This strategy will at least ensure I can get up and running without severely altering my plans or having to burn valuable hiking days waiting around. Worst case, I’ll just purchase items in country as needed.
Along the trail, I’ll have to go through a few towns every 2-6 days, which will provide opportunities to wash clothes, get trail snacks, pick-up any missing or damaged items, and eat a good meal before continuing along.
Gear reviews for the two packs (Gregory Zulu 40 and Osprey Talon 33) I’m evaluating will be forthcoming in the next few months. In my usual hiking posts between now and my trip departure, I’ll also try to annotate the gear and pack. There will definitely be dedicated a post before departing about my final load-out.
Weather and Climate Conditions
A perk of going when I am, the temperatures should be ideal for hiking. Highs in the 60s-70s with lows around the 50s. According to historical weather data, there should be slightly less rain throughout the trip, but I’ll still need to plan and pack for it. There should be about 11.5-12 hours of daylight, allowing for sufficient time to get where I plan to. There likely would not be a need to worry about cold-weather gear, which can add a lot of bulk.
Definite Not Needed Items
In my initial research, I have found that I’ll be staying in mountain huts and hostels along the trail. In fact, camping the way we think of it in the US is illegal there. This reduces the need to worry about a tent or bivy bag, sleeping bag and ground mat. I’ll likely carry an emergency bivy in case I run into a situation where I cant make it to the next mountain hut (which is allowable).
I will not have to worry about carrying much food because I should be able to eat along the way at the various mountain huts/refugios and towns. I will likely carry some form of snacks for sustenance between though. This also eliminates the need to worry about cooking sets, stove and fuel.
All of these items drastically reduce the volume and weight that would be more normal for multi-day hiking. In total, all these items probably account for a 50-75% reduction in a typical multi-day hiking trip for me.
Training
I have already begun training by hiking with most of the anticipated gear load-out in the possible packs. This has already begun the process of the looking critically at what I’m carrying and how everything will function. Although I have almost decided on the pack I’ll use, I will hold off on that just yet until I can get more mileage with elevation gain under my belt. Following the trip, I’ll comment on whether my training and preparation were sufficient and lessons learned.
Future Posts
Over the next several months, there will be posts contain more details about planning and preparations. These posts will encompass getting there, transportation in Slovenia, hiking route and lodging throughout the trip, gear/packing list, and general sight seeing features. Since the trail is not commonly known about in the US, my goal is to try to bring some light to the trail system and traveling to the country.
As with my previous trip to the Grand Tetons National Park in September 2018, I’ll be posting the details of the trip along with ample pictures to share the experience.
Links for More Information
https://slovenia-outdoor.com/top_poti/slovenian-mountain-trail/?lang=en
https://www.slovenia.info/en/destinations/regions/alpine-slovenia
https://www.slovenia.info/en/stories/visit-triglav-national-park-with-respect
