Hiking the Alpe Adria Trail: Day 24

It’s difficult to write a daily blog without drifting into clichés and repetition. But today’s walk really was superlative. I was following the Soca valley all day long, which lies within Slovenia’s Triglav National Park.

Unlike the majority of the days hikes so far, this wasn’t a big climb or descent. Nor was it a gentle flat walk along a river bank, although I did follow a river almost all day. I started back in Trenta, after being driven back there from Bovec.

At first the views of the river Soca were fleeting, and when you saw the river its water level was clearly very low. The path wandered behind trees and sometimes a little bit away from the river, and over the course of the day to and fro, up and down, along stony paths, through little bits of woodland, sometimes a few metres from the river, sometimes a bit further away, occasionally along the roadside.

Last night I’d been woken by thunder and lightning, and while it stayed dry almost all day, during the morning in particular, the rocks and tree roots I walked over were incredibly slippery from last night’s heavy rain. This slowed me down, and I have to say as the day progressed and I became a little more tired, it was evident I was slower than almost everyone else, as I kept stepping aside to allow others to overtake me.

This was actually the first time on the route, apart from little interludes like the Austrian lake towns or the very top of the Vrsic pass, where there was a flow of people all day. Most seemed to be young couples or families. There were people with dogs, people out for a swim, and judging by what they were wearing, this was the top attraction. There were a few hikers, with all their camping gear on their backs, and a group of scouts, but most were probably just walking a little way to find a spot to swim or sunbathe, if their lack of apparel was anything to go by.

The river at first seemed incredibly dry, at times only a couple of metres wide and not very deep. Maybe it was the tributaries that fed into it that built up the flow, or perhaps the river split at points into more than one channel, but it did seem to gather more water after the first few miles until it at least looked like a river, although you could see it was low.

Along the route today there were probably half a dozen river crossings, including a few suspension bridges, as the path crisscrossed from one bank to the other. These were always a bit of fun, and a great spot to take pictures up or downstream. Most were a bit on the wobbly side, so if you stood in the middle to take a photograph you needed to hang on, particularly if someone else was crossing.

By lunchtime I’d arrived at the first really popular spot, by the Jelincic cafe. Here lots of people were gathered on rocks, swimming and generally lounging about. The guidebook mentioned a shady seat under a tree, and I was lucky enough to grab it for my lunch spot.

Shortly after, continuing the walk, the river suddenly narrowed into a fast moving gorge, hemmed in by deep cliff edge rocks. This highlighted the turquoise of the water even more.

At one point the two sides of the river were only a few metres apart, but the drop to the river was so great you couldn’t even see it. And then the river opened out again, providing mini beaches and slabs of rock for people to lie on, near Podklanec, where soon after the ‘tributary’ (now dry) of the Lepenjica met the Soca.

A little diversion away from the river followed, but before long I was back, following more tree root lined paths up and down close to the river bank. Eventually the path led over another bridge to a large camp site, before diverting up a short, steep hill and the path to the town of Bovec. Tomorrow I’ll be following the Soca again, continuing downstream from Bovec to the village of Dreznica.

Bovec is actually quite a holiday hotspot, probably smaller than Kranjska Gora, but feeling more crowded because of that. All around are shops advertising water based activities, and plenty of lively cafes and bars. So you can see why if the water becomes too low to allow those, it will hit the town hard.

As for myself, a month in to the trek, the cumulative fatigue is beginning to kick in. I’m going to sleep instantly in the evening (I was almost falling asleep when I wrote yesterday’s blog post last night), and this morning I still felt tired when I woke up. The next few days are all quite long and after another day along the Soca tomorrow, there’s going to be a return to the longer ascents and descents. I know I can and will manage to carry on, and will enjoy the scenery, but keeping going will be hard at times and I expect some long days. I seem to be eating a lot and frequently but still burning it all off. Luckily my feet seem fully recovered for now, and my calves seem to be building up in strength.

What has been fantastic has been having so many and frequent messages of support and encouragement from everyone- friends, family, neighbours, former colleagues and fellow hikers. The response has been phenomenal and have really kept me going when I’ve been at a low ebb. Thanks so much to everybody for your continued support. I’m now well over half way though the hike so the end is, if not in sight, getting ever nearer. And I’m determined to make it through if I possibly can.