Mala Osojnica

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This morning we woke up to an overnight dusting of snow on the high mountains surrounding Lake Bled. We can see the snow capped mountains from one of our two panoramic balconies. The day is overcast, but at least it is not raining.



After breakfast in our apartment, we commenced walking around the lake with Liz and Darrol, and settled on a Gondola Type Boat Ride out to Bled Island. The young guy rowing the boat (which had around ten passengers) had a relatively easy run out to the island, where he waited for forty minutes to allow us time to explore the island. We settled in for coffee and cake in the coffee shop, and then took some quick photos before rejoining the boat for the row back to shore. By then, however, a strong wind had come up, and the guy rowing the boat had a difficult job pushing the boat through the water into the teeth of the strong breeze. He earned his money today.



After walking around the lake a little further, we decided to take the Chair Lift up the mountain at the Straza Winter Ski Slope, followed by a Toboggan ride down the mountain. The views from the chair lift were great, but flying down the mountain on the toboggan, I didn’t get to look at the view, as I was trying to go as fast as possible without using the brake. I would have loved another go on the toboggan to really test out the limits, but we had to move on.



We had been advised by our host that the best view of Lake Bled was from the top of Mala Osojnica, a small mountain overlooking Lake Bled. Liz and Darrol decided to the take the steep steps straight up the front of the mountain. Kim’s back was a little sore, so we decided to take the gradual winding path that circled the mountain. We agreed to meet Liz and Darrol at the top, however, we didn’t know that there were multiple lookouts at the top, and we didn’t meet up. Kim and I eventually wound our way to the escarpment, to a panoramic lookout over the Lake, Bled Island and Bled Castle. After taking a heap of photos, we made our way down the very steep steps that lead down the front of the mountain.



On our way to dinner at our favourite restaurant near Bled, we drove up to Bled Castle to take some photos. The castle was first mentioned in a 22 May 1011 deed of donation issued by Emperor Henry II in favour of the Bishops of Brixen. The castle passed to the Austrian House of Habsburg in 1278.



Kim’s IPhone informed her that we did the equivalent of eighty six flights of stairs today.

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