             We are WAY behind on our blog, but ironically the weather here in Croatia as I write this on Sept. 23 is exactly the same as it was in Bled, Slovenia, the night before our Mt. Triglav climb: thunder bolts and lightning (though not very, very fright-en-ing—en-ing—ennn-IIIING!). We had our doubts that the climb would actually go, but our coordinator assured us the weather was improving (the forecast did look better for our summit day) and pushed the start a little later in the day to minimize our time in the rain. This was fine by me because I got to have one more delicious breakfast from Pension Kaps…seriously, if you ever come to Bled, stay there!
After a quick orientation and gear demonstration, we piled into a van to head for the trailhead with two German sisters named Liza and Inga. We had all signed up for an unguided climb, so we weren’t really a team at first but sort of became one as the day progressed. That is, we started walking together and began to talk along the way; by the end of the three-day tour, we had become climbing partners and friends. Also, the term “pile†is probably not the right word to describe 4 clients getting into a van made for 12 people; I told you the weather had been bad!
The first portion of the day went through the woods on mostly flat terrain along a very clear river cut through cavernous limestone. After hiking fairly gently for a little over an hour, we came to a flat road along some open areas that I think were still used for farming (I think the national park went through some private property) because we had to dodge a very large tractor. I was beginning to wonder just how steep the trail would be when we eventually started to ascend. I didn’t have long to wait, though, because we soon found ourselves climbing up a steep old gravel road that switchbacked aggressively for about another hour. It was the worst part of the day…nothing to look at but our feet. We were quite happy to reach a small open meadow and grab a quick snack before continuing another hour through more open forest and limestone bluffs.
Eventually, we reached the tree line and immediately remembered why we’d signed up for this climb—the Julian Alps are gorgeous! The first high mountain hut was here, and it gave us a nice chance for a break and to get to know Liza and Inga a bit better over a quick discussion of Fanta’s origin; apparently, it was a German invention during World War II when American Coca-Cola was not available. Someday, I will use this knowledge to win final Jeopardy and become the envy of all blue-haired Americans eating early-bird specials at supper clubs; seriously, I was actually really intrigued by this, and it was fun to make some new friends while Sarah and I were doing what we loved.
The remaining 400 meters up to our hut were stunning! Mt. Triglav remained a mystery shrouded in high clouds, but jagged peaks surrounded us everywhere below. While we needed to get up to the hut fairly quickly in order to get dinner after our late morning start, it was difficult not to stop at every switchback to take a dozen pictures. As we got to the hut, the clouds lifted just enough to give us a sneak peak of the mountain, though the clouds sat right back down until after dark.
We slept pretty well for sharing a room with 14 other tired people at just under 8,000 ft. It was cold, and we were happy for the double wool blankets on top of our bunks. Luckily, there were at least three people who snore way louder than I do, and all three of my teammates confirmed that I was not the culprit robbing others of sleep.
After a quick breakfast and stop at the squatty potty outhouse (thank goodness, we’d been to Nepal!), we geared up in harness, via ferrata set, and helmets. Climbing via ferrata is basically ascending fixed lines with two safety cords girth-hitched (tied) to the belay loop on your harness. These cords are linked to locking carabiners that you clip onto metal cables attached to drilled-in bolts and metal spikes intermittently. If you fall, you won’t fall past the bolt. Soldiers used this technique to climb the mountains in war fronts (like the Soca front that Sarah described in our last blog) during World War I.
Actually, we had done most of the hard work the day before; the summit only required a little under 1.5 hours from the hut. After some easy scrambling, we started to hit some via ferrata sections; while the climbing was pretty easy everywhere, the cables were placed in sections that were really exposed and would have serious consequences if someone fell unprotected. It was very cold outside, and the visibility above us was not ideal, but man was this route fun! If really felt like play time as we romped up steeper sections, clipping here and there along the cables!
After about 40 minutes, we reached a long, exposed traverse and were not entirely excited to see that the several centimeters of snow from two days before had not yet melted. It was mostly packed down, but you couldn’t be sure what you were stepping on beneath it. Since the ridge was easy, not as many cables were placed, but the exposure was still no joke. I was actually glad when we got to the much steeper summit approach, because more of the climbing was via ferrata. Once again, the fixed climbing was such fun that we were at the summit before we knew it!
At 2,864 m. (9,308 ft.), we were on top of Slovenia, enjoying summit #7 (the final one) of our year. There was this funny rocket-shaped shelter at the very top, which made for fun photos. Even better, the clouds lifted all around us about two minutes after summiting. We enjoyed panoramic views of surrounding peaks and green valleys far below us. Soon, Liza and Inga followed and celebrated their first alpine summit! Slovenes truly adore this mountain—it is even featured on their national flag—and to be truly a Slovene, you have to climb Triglav (we are still waiting for our dual citizenship cards). While summits are very nice, however, the climb this morning definitely took the cake.
Unlike most people, we were descending a different ridge than we’d climbed. Normally, this would be great, but the slick snow on this route hadn’t been packed down by climbers the past two days. We decided to start down immediately in case the clouds sat back down since we weren’t thrilled about the path anyway. We could always turn back and descend the main route, but it would add quite some time and distance to an already long day. Nowhere along the path was outright dangerous, but some patches were slick enough to add some spice and keep our attention. Fewer cables were fixed here, but there were ladders consisting of metal spikes to provide extra footholds in exposed 4th class sections without cables. I had much respect for the German sisters; this was their first descent and not an easy one, but they kept calm heads and made it through just fine. Still, though, we all breathed a sigh of relief when we eventually hit regular trail (just before clouds sat back down on the route) and could really celebrate…hello, caramel chocolate bar!
We actually still had a really long trek (I think 7 more hours) to get to our hut for the night, so we didn’t wait long. The first part of the descent was through these sort of hillocks between lower peaks and then steep switchbacks down to another hut where some grumpy old American kept going on about ordering black tea and getting coffee (Sarah distinctly heard the word “coffee†come from his lips, and anyway, what sort of American man chooses black tea over coffee? Note: if you are that American man, keep it to yourself…I am just joking…black tea is perfectly fine to drink if you actually order it instead of coffee…it is even better if a tornado has destroyed all available coffee sources within 299 miles).
From there, we were disheartened to discover we actually had to ascend another 1500 feet to a saddle between two other peaks before we could finally descend for the rest of the day. Once we got to this saddle, though, we were in a great section of seven beautiful lakes along the trail. Each lake featured that signature clear water we were coming to expect of all waters Slovene. Further down, the limestone cliffs grew smaller and whiter, and we began to see more green. The hut may not have featured the stunning backdrop of Triglav that could be seen on a clear day, but it was situated between two pretty lakes. Moreover, they had microbrew on tap!
All four of us had long drives ahead of us after finishing the climb, so we got an early start on day 3 and made quick work of the morning. We did have a nice break at a scenic hut overlooking Lake Bohinj, however, where we enjoyed some strong coffee (not black tea) and fresh apple strudel while enjoying the sunny view of the lake and the Julian Alps! Why don’t we have the hut system at home? I guess then this wouldn’t be as cool…wait, did I mention the apple strudel?
A couple of hours (and over 40 steep switchbacks…they number them), we found ourselves at our pickup point and headed back to Bled. Lake Bohinj was quite beautiful and looked like a cool place to hang out, but it was time to go. Outside the tour company, we said goodbye to our new friends; we enjoyed getting to know them and were impressed with the way they approached their first alpine climb. Climbing Mt. Triglav and experiencing via ferrata for the first time was super fun, and I think it was my favorite part of Slovenia.
Stunning photographs mike. The summit, the mountain w/snow just great. I liked the one that showed the cable and bolts. Must have been a job to place.
Thanks, Doug. Your daughter made the bolt picture look good! Can you imagine climbing one of those with enemy guns trained on you?