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Ankaran
Sunset over the bay Driving through Rijeka in the rain during the busy afternoon traffic was slow going, but at least Jac finally managed to load the credit onto her phone and we could communicate with the world again. It was not long after that that we came to the Slovenian border and passport control, and after a couple of quick questions we were into another country. With 20 273 sq.km and 2 million people it was one of the smallest countries we had visited (after Luxembourg) and as soon as we arrived we noticed the trees - apparently 57% of the country is forested. The weather had cleared and we headed for the short stretch of coastline and a place called Ankaran, just across the water from Slovenia’s main port of Koper. Once again the campsite was on the waterfront with a concrete promenade along the front, and the view out to sea showed 6 large freight ships waiting to dock at Koper, it may not have been natural beauty but it was interesting watching them come and go. That evening the campsite had a large bonfire for everyone as part of the spring celebrations for Labour Day which precedes May Day on the
Ankaran
Sunset over the bay 1st of May. There were also many other bonfires around the area and the campsite was quite smokey all through the night.
The next morning dawned fine again and we noticed that the huge car freighter had docked overnight. (Well, we thought it was interesting) We were off again north via the scenic route to a place called Bovec but we thought we would stop and take a look at Slovenia’s biggest cave system at Postojna - and Jac said she would even come too! After buying tickets and queuing for half an hour we boarded the little train for the 2km trip into the mountain and when the train stopped we all got off and assembled at different places according to language. Three trainloads arrived and there must have been over 200 people assembled but because we spoke English our guide only had to speak to five of us! We walked for about another kilometer or so around the system which had well established concrete paths and railings and even a bridge, and some of the formations were amazing as was the whole vastness of the system. We then boarded the train back to the surface and stopped at
Bovec
Part of the Julian Alps from our campsite the underground river that flows through the lower sections of the system. We completed our experience with a visit to the ‘aquarium’ to see the little unique proteus fish/salamander and the signatures on the cave walls dating back hundreds of years. It was a great trip which we both enjoyed, along with thousands of others and at €20 per head what a money spinner! But then, I suppose it’s no different to a lot of other tourist ventures. We hit the road again and carried on through some very scenic, and very Austrian looking, countryside. But I suppose that’s not surprising considering it controlled Slovenia for almost 400 years up to 1918. The trees were every shade of green and the river was an incredible turquoise colour thanks I guess to the limestone rocks but unfortunately it was raining off and on most of the day. Bovec was a small town which is the centre of what looks like a thriving adventure sport scene centered around the Soča River which we had been following for the last 30km or so. The little campsite had a large group of tenters who were going rafting but we weren’t here for that, we
Bovec
The mountains from the campsite in the other direction were here to drive through the Julian Alps - named in honour of Caesar himself - and across the Viršič Pass. That night we ate at the restaurant adjoining the campsite where they served up a huge meal that we couldn’t finish. We also managed to contact David and Judy from the UK who were also travelling around Slovenia and arranged to meet up on the other side at Moistrana tomorrow.
The next morning turned out beautiful and we headed out along the Soča Valley alongside the Soča River. With the river, the trees, the mountains and a little bit of sunshine it was a beautiful place. We then started climbing up to the pass quite steeply, not as steep as the road to Tuarracher Höhe as we probably could have held second gear if it wasn’t for the sharp corners, but it was steep enough. As we rounded the corner at the summit we were greeted by a couple of people jumping and waving their arms around frantically and realised it was David and Judy from the UK who had decided to take the drive up to the pass as well. Jac made a brew while I went and
Triglav National Park
The Soca Valley and the Soca River took some photos. We hadn’t realised until then that the pass had only been cut out of the snow in the last week which explained the 2m high snow banks on the side of the road. The wind was really cold (to be expected at 1611m) so we motored on down the other side stopping to take photos on the way until we got to Moistrana where we checked into the campsite while D & J checked into their motel up the road. That night we had a great dinner at the restaurant and the wine flowed and the chins wagged as David amazed us with his knowledge of Roman history - and pointed out a few things we had overlooked in Italy. Thanks guys for a wonderful evening and thanks to our Slovenian host who kindly gave us a lift back to the campsite. Very friendly people those Slovenians.
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