Vršič da Trenta

In May I climbed Slovenia's highest pass, Vrsic (1611m), from Kranjiska Gora to the north. It was a good climb, but not real steep. I noticed the descent on the south side seemed much steeper. So today I decided to try it before the snow arrives next month.

I drove across the Slovenian border to Boveč (450m) and started the 20km warm-up to Trenta. It's a gorgeous secluded ride along the Soča River, surrounded by forested mountains. At Trenta you enter Triglav National Park, and begin the climb. It features a couple of dozen tornanti scaling the steep slope, with lengthy stretches of 13-14% and short bits even steeper.

At the summit it was quite cold, with a surprising number of mountain bikers. Not so many road bikes. Plummeting down the tornanti was fun, and I was well-refreshed for the rolling ride back to the car. This is a challenging climb with wonderful scenery- check it out.

Edit: surprised to see this video about the Soča River on TV this morning:
http://www.afneurope.net/Home/ArticleDisplayDD/tabid/649/Default.aspx?aid=20868

Warning of things to come

Panorama to the west

Close up of Mangart (2679m)

Slovenian for
"No poseurs allowed next 22km"

The headwaters of Soča River

The Soča flowing through narrow gorge-
a sign said water levels rise 10m during spring snowmelt!

Took this from a shaky suspension footbridge over the river

The twisty climb

9% average gradient for 9km

The steepest stretch