Lovrenc Lakes and Rogla

I'm sooo behind with post-processing my photos and publishing them here. :( Hopefully things will get better soon, time-wise.
Not long ago I visited Rogla and its famous Lovrenc lakes. I'd been there before, but it was many years ago and I don't think I even had a camera with me.
We arrived at Rogla, a mountaneous area with a ski resort at 1500 meters above sea level, relatively late in the day for any serious hiking, at about 2 p.m. After a hearty meal at the nearby restaurant we went for a hike to the lakes and back. The walk takes about an hour in one direction and is not strenuous at all -the path leads across the pastures and through some woods without any steep ascent or descent. Recommended, even for families with small children!

Across the pastures:
A lonely bench with a view:
After an hour's walk you emerge from the forest and this is what you see from a viewing tower. The area is a high peat swampland and a few small lakes are only fed by precipitation as there is no groundwater.
As the ground is boggy, an elevated path was built for the visitors.
One of the small lakes:
Water or sky? :)
Playing with the fisheye.
The light was perfect. It was late in the afternoon and we just had enough daylight to make it back to Rogla.
After a bit less than one hour we returned to Rogla just in time for the sunset.
Cows were still hungry.
One last look before going home.
As usual, a few more photos here.

Barcolana

Every year, the biggest regatta in the Mediterranean, Barcolana, takes place in the bay of Trieste on the second Sunday in October. About 2,000 sailboats from many countries flock there to compete. I'd never seen any regatta before, except on TV, so this was quite a sight for me! We rented a small sailboat and observed the race from the sea, about half a mile from a buoy where the boats made a turn.

First, we headed north from Izola. We weren't the only ones.
After arriving at the scene, the sailboats were just white specks in the distance.
Soon they grew larger.Some of them had really huge sails.
Does anybody know what this sailboat is called?
When most of the regatta was over, we headed back to Izola and then on to Piran.Punta and a red sail.Piran houses.
Sail and ropes.
An old fishing boat .Reflection I.
Reflection II.Dinner in Izola was fantastic and we even got to see a nice sunset.
Time to go home.
More photos here.

Crazy sunset on Island Krk

In late September I went to Island Krk for the weekend - probably the last time this year. While it was almost too cold to swim (but we did nonetheless), the sunset was really crazy. The whole sky was burning red and orange then violet until it finally died down. What a sight!

After crossing the bridge from the mainland to Island Krk, we were greeted by this:
Then in Stara Baška, the sky went completely crazy. I ran to the beach to take photos:
The sea was glowing in the sunset:Wooden fence and violet skies:
The following night the sunset wasn't as spectacular, but it was still interesting:
A perfect night to take pictures:
The nudist beach in the evening. No, no naked people here. :))
A few more photos here.

Carthusian monastery in Žiče

If you haven't visited Žiče carthusian monastery yet, I can only strongly recommend that you do. It's nice to stroll around the walled-in estate full of ruins and semi-renovated buildings. The monastery was first built in the 12th century and was famous for hosting the first pharmacy in Slovenia.






More photos here.

Kašna planina

Last Sunday I was busy with work. But in the afternoon I decided to go out for some fresh air as the weather was nice and warm and it would be a shame to spend the whole day at the computer.

Where to go? I've been to all the nearby hills, taken all the short walks around my home and driven around the scenic points many times. For a minute I thought I'd climb Velika planina (again), but in the end I thought of another great short hike in the vicinity - the Kašna planina mountain. Although practically right before my nose, it had somehow escaped my attention thus far.

I left the car near Kranjski Rak pass and started climbing the grassy slope full of blueberry bushes turning red.
After reaching the top at the altitude of about 1500 meters, the views toward the north revealed Velika planina and the Kamnik Alps in the background.
Velika planina silhouette.Kašna planina is full of small ponds from which cattle drink when on pasture here.
Grass by the pond.
It's amazing how trees are already losing their green color.
I couldn't pass up the opportunity to play with the reflections.
Kašna planina hut was already deserted - the cattle and the shepherds had left for the winter.
The Kamnik Alps in the late afternoon sun.
Mt. Skuta framed by trees.
It was a great hike, perfect if you only have a couple of hours to spare.
More photos, as usual, in my photo journal.