Last Friday I went on a hike to a few hilltops above the Vipava Valley, through which I drove for too many years to college, but I've seldom seen it from the towering hills that run alongside it. This year Vipava Valley was featured in Lonely Planet as one of the top ten destinations to visit in Europe, and I am very glad that Slovenia is getting more and more noticed in the world.
I love going on hikes and this was just perfect for the end of my vacation. We went to hilltops Mala Gora to get to Kucelj and then to nearby Čaven, and at the end to a nearby village to see some landmarks. The trail is easy through beautiful nature with spectacular views. My uncle is an experienced mountaineer so we took him along as he at least knows the way :) I've literally made hundred of photos, which I would like to share, but I can't just throw them here, so here I've got only some great views and some landmarks. And it's still a very photo full post, which is something I don't like to do. But let it be this time :)
The weather wasn't the prettiest, but if it were any sunnier it would be too hot. So it was just perfect :)
The only thing was poor visibility, one can see all the way to the sea on a clear day, but all we got were obscured hills in the background (Nanos in this case). Well, tiny villages far below were a pretty sight too.
A funny one, once a girl must've been so hot she threw her bra over the edge, hehe :)
The top of Kucelj.
A hidden gem hidden on the hills, this is by the Cottage on Čaven.
After we got back down, we decided to go to a nearby village Otlica, which has an interesting landmark.
Otliško okno, a big natural window in the rock offers a special view of the Vipava Valley below. It was supposedly created by the devil with its horn :) In all thuth, experiencing a sunset there must be quite special.
Nearby is another thingy, a great stone pyramid...
...which marks the beginning of a big spiral made of stones in the landscape. I couldn't get it into one photo as it's too big, someone took a lot of his time to arrange them so, a long time ago. It has a religious meaning, and there is a board there explaining everything, how and why, but I've forgotten :)
Well, let that be enough. Soon the day was over and I was pretty tired after all the walking :) A great day all in all. As I've said, plenty of photos, but I didn't want to split the post into two.
We have a beautiful country here, there are plenty of hidden gems everywhere. As small as it is there is incredible diversity, but I think we don't even cherish it enough ourselves.
Have a very nice day, thanks for stopping by.
Photos taken with Huawei P9