Triglav

Tags: Alpinism, Country High Points, Europe, Latest, Mountains, Slovenia, Ultras

Triglav (2864m) is the highest mountain in Slovenia and a bit more demanding than the average country highpoint in Europe. I was also happy to get some company from Norway.

Long and steep climb to Triglavski Dom

On very short notice Lars had decided to join me on the second half of my Eastern Europe Tour. He had rented an old and cheap VW Polo in Pula (Croatia), and picked me up three hours later at Lake Bled in Slovenia. Together we drove the remaining kilometers to Mojstrana and then into the Vrata Valley. We paid 3 Euros in parking fee at Aljazev Dom (950 m.a.s.l), packed our backpacks and set off towards Triglavski Dom this afternoon. We decided on the Tominskov-route, which supposedly is a bit steeper and more exposed route than the Prag option. The Tominskov-route turned out to be some sort of "via-ferrata" and it was well protected with hardware. We eventually joined the Prag route higher up, and from there we crossed over easier terrain to Triglavski Dom (2500 m.a.s.l). We arrived here after a total of 3 hours and 15 minutes, well before nightfall.

We rented a room for two people (56 Euro), as this turned out to be only slightly more expensive than sharing a dorm with dozens of others. We ordered sausages and bread for dinner, and it tasted so-so. The cold beer was perfect though, because we were extremely thirsty after a hot day in the long uphills.

Second day and summit

Next morning we were up at 7 am and had a quick breakfast before we began on the last part of the route to the top. Occasionally it was somewhat exposed but the route was well protected with cables and various aids to overcome the steepest sections, ie not requiring any climbing equipment. Some hikers used a helmet but we gambled without. We overtook many small groups and reached the summit after 45 minutes. It was a gorgeous day and the view was absolutely amazing. Still it was too much haze in the horizon to see Grossglockner.

After a toast of Ararat brandy on the summit, we descended to Triglavski Dom again. We immidiately checked out of our room and began the long descent. The Prag route proved to be fairly easy, and it was well secured where it was needed. There was a vertical section of about 10 meters though, but not any harder than down-climbing a ladder.

Troubles with the car

When we arrived back at the parking lot, our rental car would not start. Lars had forgotten to turn off the lights so the battery was now dead. Pushing the car did not help, the engine remained completely dead. A few attempts to obtain jumper cables from others proved difficult. Eventually a nice older couple from Slovenia helped us to call the local car assistance company. They promised to get there in 30 minutes, but after one hour we gave up. While it was pouring down, Lars stood in the middle of the road and stopped every car that drove past. After a long, long time, we finally got luck with a lady who happened to have jumper cables. I was a little worried that Lars would connect it wrongly, but the data engineer had full control and the engine finally started.

A couple of hours delayed, we started on the long drive (more than 900 kilometers) towards the country highpoint in Serbia (Midzor). We had some worries that we would meet the rescue vehicle somewhere in the Vrata valley, which would set us back 70 Euros, but we saw nothing of it until we were out on the highway. But then we were safe, and speeded up on the excellent highway towards Serbia. Nothing could stop us now.

Triglav at EveryTrail

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