Lake Bled and Lake Bohinj | Slovenia Road Trip Part I

Lake Bled and Lake Bohinj, Slovenia

Last month Mac and I did something we’ve never done thus far on our trip: we rented a car. For people like us who usually travel by hitchhiking or public transit, renting a car was a big deal. The reason for renting was to undertake a one week road trip in Slovenia. This small country is fairly well connected by bus, but given its mountainous terrain, there are so many points of interest off the beaten track that are only accessible with a car. (Plus we found a crazy awesome deal that we just couldn’t refuse!) We focused mainly on the Julian Alps in the northwest part of the country but we also fit in some coastal time as well. I’ll be splitting up our road trip into three posts: Lake Bled and Lake Bohinj, the Julian Alps (Kranjska Gora and Dovje), and Piran. So buckle your seat belts and let’s hit the road!

One Week Road Trip in Slovenia – Part I | Lake Bled and Lake Bohinj

Lake Bled

One fine rainy morning in Ljubljana, Mac and I picked up our bright and shiny Mercedes Benz and set our for our one week road trip. Given that neither of us can drive manual transmission, we got the smallest automatic in the fleet – and it just happened to be a Benz. We definitely felt out of place when we first got inside, but it didn’t take us long to break it in on the back roads!!

Our first stop after leaving Ljubljana was to head directly north to Lake Bled and Lake Bohinj. These two lakes are incredibly popular for tourists given their close proximity to Ljubljana. Lake Bled is especially picturesque. This 3km long lake features an island with a church in the middle, a castle perched high on a cliff above its shores, and snow-capped mountains just beyond. The sights from sea lake-level are pretty stellar, but for some of the best views we’ve had while hiking, it’s best to head up to one of the many lookout points.

At the far southwest end of the lake is a trail with switchbacks leading all the way up to the summits of two hills overlooking the lake. The first one – Velika Osojnica (756m) – is reached after a harrowing steep set of 88 stairs. En route to the summit, be sure to stop at Mala Osojnica. There are a few benches at this viewpoint and it’s unobstructed by trees. The summit of Ojstrica (610m) is equally impressive and gives a full panoramic vantage of Lake Bled and the surrounding area.

Kremšnita

After descending back down to lake level, we decided to fuel up our tired hiking legs. Before even arriving in the town of Bled we had been inundated with stories and tales of the town’s famous cream cake: kremšnita. Made up of puff pastry, whipped cream, and custard, this pastry reaches nearly 5cm high and is deemed a necessary treat while staying in Bled. After paying an exuberant price (4€), demolishing it in style, and Mac declaring it delicious (but not necessarily excellent), we discovered kremšnita is a classic staple not just of Bled, but of most of the Balkans! Since we first saw it in Bled, we’ve now seen it in bakeries as far as Montenegro! So, a fair word of warning… don’t believe all the hype about these creamy custardy pastries – chances are that you’ll have more than one if you’re in the Balkans (and they’ll only cost you ~1.50€!).

The lakefront trail that follows the shoreline is about 6km in length. The trek up to the two summits adds another 3km.

Lake Bohinj

Just 30 minutes by car from Lake Bled is Lake Bohinj. This lake is much less built up than it’s little brother and the surrounding mountains make it seem much wilder and more rugged. We visited Lake Bohinj twice – once in the rain, and again in the sunshine! The gloomy clouds certainly lent to a melancholy feel, but the turquoise blue & green waters helped to lighten the mood.

When we returned again the next day the sun was shining and we decided to go off-roading a bit. The goal was to try and drive up and over the mountain pass to  get to our next destination. After a few harrowing hairpin turns on some fairly bumpy forest roads, we had reached the limit of our rental car. The road became ice-filled and slippery, and with unknown terrain still to come we decided to turn around. Ah well, guess we’ll just have to rent a 4×4 next time!!

On the southwest corner of Lake Bohinj is an area called Vogel. It’s here where you can catch the cable car up to the Vogel Ski Resort. This resort has 22km of ski runs and eight chair lifts. It’s possible to ride the gondola up (and down) as a non-skier if you’d like some more epic views of the mountains. An adult return ticket is 20€ which was a bit too much for our daily budget, so we admired the slopes from the ski-cam instead. (Plus, we knew we’d be in for some incredible mountainous terrain when we visited the Julian Alps!) If you are a skier (or snowboarder) a one-day pass is 32€, with discounted rates available for multi-day or multi-park passes.

Blejski Vintgar (Vintgar Gorge)

A notable highlight in the region of Lake Bled and Lake Bohinj is Blejski Vintgar (or Vintgar Gorge). Located just outside the town of Bled, this gorge is 1.6km long and features the turquoise blue Radovna River coursing through it. Unfortunately at the time of our visit, the trail through the gorge was closed for winter maintenance.

The trail finishes at Slap Šum – an impressive 16m-high waterfall. Not wanting to give up hope of seeing this waterfall, we consulted the map and found an alternate route. We drove to Sveta Katarina, a small church just up the hill from Zasip village. From here we walked along a well-marked trail through the woods until we eventually reached the falls. They were every bit as picturesque as we had hoped – even more so considering the detour we made to get there!

The gorge is set to open May 2019, just in time for the summer season.

The sights and adventures at Lake Bled and Lake Bohinj got our road trip off to a great start and I can’t wait to share more photos and stories coming up in parts II and III – stay tuned!

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