Frosty trees at the Vršič pass

Two weekends ago I hiked from the Erjavčeva hut to the top of the Vršič pass and back. The moisture and cold temperatures caused frost to form on everything and it didn't melt even after several hours of sunny weather. The sight was magical!

Fall colors around Gorenjska

All Saints' Day was the last sunny and warm fall day. Luckily I decided to spend it driving around and taking photos instead of staying at home. I didn't really have a plan, so first I just explored some of the backroads around Dovje.

Above Dovje you can see straight into the Vrata valley.

The gravel road ascended for quite a while until I reached a clearing in the forest.

It was unbelievably warm and the sky was deep blue.

The entrance into the three valleys of Krma, Kot and Vrata was directly in front of me.

Then I quickly headed to Kranjska Gora and stopped at Lake Jasna.

Backlit tree at Lake Jasna.

The only thing I really wanted to see that day was golden larches on the Vrsic road. Hurriedly I pulled over to take a photo of the Krnica valley ...

... and magnificent Škrlatica.

With minutes to spare I reached my favorite spot with a very scenic larch forest.

While I was running around, trying to find the best vantage point, the sun was about to set behind the mountain.

One more look at the larches and off I was.

I didn't even stop at the Vrsic pass. Instead my next stop was a couple of kilometers down the Trenta road. There is a viewing platform offering great vistas of the surrounding mountains.

Again, I was late for the next destination. The sun had just disappeared behind the mountains, which cast a shade over Zelenci.

Time to move to the sunny side of the mountains. Not knowing exactly where to go, I had a look at the map and chose another gravel road above Podkoren.

The road slowly climbed the southern slopes of Karavanke, offering nice views of the valley below.

Every time the forest thinned I stopped to take photos. The whole slope exploded in fiery orange.

Kranjska Gora below me.
I reached a clearing just in time for sunset.

Last sun rays.

On the way back down to the valley there were more photos to be taken.

Only the peaks were illuminated by the sun as I made my way down.

Considering the fact that there was no plan and I had no idea where I was going, the end result exceeded my expectations. The fall colors were really crazy and it seems that day was the last chance to photograph them, at least at higher altitudes. The following day it snowed. ;)

More photos here.

Spring colors of the Predel and Vršič passes II.

The first part of our road trip was behind us.
After driving through the Koritnica valley we turned left before Bovec and started up the Trenta valley. The weather started to play some tricks on me with clouds obscuring the sun from time to time. We made several short stops along the Soča river, one of the most pristine Alpine rivers in Europe, but I'll have to come back just for the photos of Soča - on this trip I simply didn't have enough time to explore various spots and play with the tripod.



Trenta is simply beautifully scenic. Many footbridges, typical architecture, green meadows and, of course, the emerald Soča.

Higher up the valley there is a monument to Dr. Julius Kugy, gazing towards his favorite mountain, Jalovec ...

... the peak of which was now shrouded in clouds.

The conditions at a higher elevation were still wintry.

Along the road to the Vršič pass a viewing platform offers great views over the Zadnja Trenta valley and the surrounding mountains.

One of the most striking rock faces in the Julian Alps for me: Veliko Špičje.

At the Vršič pass, which was just opened earlier that day, it was amazing to see the deep corridor cut into the snow.


Snow walls were high ...

... even up to 10 meters.

Interesting layers of snow on a milestone.

Driving back home we caught the last glimpses of sun rays on the mountains above Gozd Martuljek.

Mt. Kukova špica in the golden hour.

We were lucky to catch the last fine day. The following day the weather fouled up and it's been raining ever since. Just great, with the holidays and all. :(
The whole travelogue with more photos is here.

Fall colors on Vršič and Mangart passes

In late October fall colors were at their best. We drove to Kranjska Gora and over the Vršič pass to Bovec. This is what we saw:

River Pišnica near Kranjska Gora:
Panoramic view on the road to the Vršič pass:
Another Vršič panorama:
When returning, we took a detour to the Mangart pass, the highest road in Slovenia. It goes as high as 2050 meters above sea level. We were on top just in time to catch the sunset:

Sunset and mists in the valley below the Mangart pass:
As usual, it is impossible to describe the whole day trip in a couple of pictures, so the rest can be found here.