Waking up this morning in such a beautiful, peaceful and idyllic place made all the effort to get here worthwhile. What made this an extra special place to stay were it's owners. Katja Majerhold is a family run refugio that has been in the family for a couple of generations. Old family photos decorate the walls, and you can just tell that they truly care about this place. We learned that it's only open from April to October and then the snow arrives, and it shuts down to guests for the winter. Our lovely host noted that in the winter time the other guests arrive; namely the animal friends. We were warmly treated, and if you ever have a chance to get up here one day yourself, we highly recommend it. But, you're going to have to work for it.
After a hearty breakfast, we were packed and off on the road. What was to follow was perhaps one of the most scenic rides we have ever been on, with vast, expansive views off our right shoulders of the Kamnik-Savinja Alps. Here we traversed and hugged our side of the valley at about 1200meters for several kilometers; and across the valley from where were riding, mountains filled the sky and the green of the Solcava valleys blanketed the ground. It was spectacular! This route is aptly named the Solcava Panorama route.
Sue along the Solcava Panoramic route. We're fairly high here, traversing at an elevation of about 1200m
Information boards along the way. I regret not taking a photo of the information boards about a fictional orphan boy named Kristoff who takes you on an educational journey through this region looking for his lost sheep. There were about 20 of these boards, and young Kristoff would tell a little story, highlighting an important fact or tale about the region.
Together with Krištof the shepherd boy, information signs trace his tale of locating his lost sheep from the Logar Valley, Robanov kot, Matkov kot, and Podolševa. I am not sure which of the valleys we are looking at here.
Along the way we arrived at a vending machine in the most unusual, but most incredible spot. It sold various homemade meats, sausages, yogurts and cheeses from the farming community in this region. It was refrigerated, well stocked, and everything looked amazing. So, we slipped in 5 Euros and bought a package of two hearty sausages. In fact, I'm indulging in one right now, and it is delicious.
And the most scenic vending machine award goes to......
We said in yesterday's post that there would be some gravel riding, and there sure was. Just past the vending machine, we were in for about 20kms of a well-surfaced and hardpacked gravel. It made slower going and the climbs a little more challenging, but it added a little bit of adventure to the day. We saw more cyclists up here than cars.
We will always think of the sound of running water in Slovenia. Every day on this trip so far, the sounds of water dripping, trickling, pouring, rushing and roaring have been the soundtrack of this region. It seems to seep out of every crevasse.
This is where the gravel section finally ended. Riding steep 11-12% descents with a loaded bike on loose gravel was an exercise in bike handling, and Sue pulled this off with flying colours.
As we descended out of the mountains and towards Ravne, the heat made its presence known. We made a 'quick' stop at the Lidl supermarket and I went in to get some snacks while Sue waited outside. Apparently, I was gone to long, obliviously shopping in the comfort of an air-conditioned store. When I came out, a sweaty Sue looked at me quite disapprovingly, and wondered what took me so long. It's kind of hard to think when you're hungry and tired.
After having some much needed food, I worked on the blog for a bit. Then, we took the 20 minute walk into town. At 5pm, it was still in the low 30's. When we arrived in Ravne, nothing was open, and the town was not at all a lively place to be. In fact, it was rather miserable. There were no people walking around, and it looked to be a place where everyone drove everywhere. But, these are only cursory impressions. But, we'll be glad to move on from here and towards Maribor tomorrow.
It's good to know where to recycle your libations. Ravne.
