Adventure

It seems that winter has its own ways on Mt. Snežnik, Slovenia’s highest non-alpine peak at 1,796 m. Only 28 km from the sea, it receives a comparable amount of precipitation as the Alps, which in combination with strong winds sometimes results in incredible snow sculptures – dwarf pine trees and spruces carved into a finest art display. At first glance, the landscape encapsulated in the clutches of the snow resembles Lapland, yet just a stone’s throw away, you’ll find its beautiful beech forest, for what the 793,9 ha Snežnik-Ždrolce primeval forests got included on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2017. The tall beeches, whose branches become bare of leaves in winter, turn completely white and look delicately gentle set against the blue skies. 

Those would be a few of the many reasons why Snežnik might just be the best winter hike in Slovenia.

As we were driving towards the mountains, the soft morning light, caught in the forested slopes of the Karavanke mountains on the right and the craggy peaks of the Julian Alps on the left, added to the vibrancy of a beautiful autumn day. The contrast between the freshly covered snow-capped peaks and the explosion of colors in the forest lower down was mesmerizing. Anything from virgin white to bright green, red, yellow and orange-brown, all set against a clear blue sky with an occasional streak of fog still lingering in the fresh air. The kind of perfection that can only be seen right after a good long downpour.

Check out our guided hike here: Fairytale hike in the Karavanke Alps

Having two kids and a puppy is super cute…for someone other than the parents. I’m one of those suckers who recently adopted a puppy. If my husband bought a house with a garden a week later, I’m dealing with it my way. I go to the mountains. Or to put it better, we go to the mountains. So, here are five hikes, friendly to kids and dogs, we’ve recently done and have kept my sanity plus entertained my whole family. I’m sure they’ll fit your family as well!