Adventure

There are days when I need a challenge and days when I just need to take it easy, relax, even meditate in a way. That’s how I pick mountains. I usually turn in for the night with a ready backpack, but no real plan where to go the next day, only to make one during my morning ritual. If it seems impossible to decide in the evening, it all clears up in the morning. My Wednesday pick two weeks ago was no different.
I woke up early when others were still sound asleep, an hour before my actual alarm. I set out in complete darkness and drove towards the mountains. Since the snow was still fresh from the day before, the greater risk of avalanches outweighed my wish for a true adventure. My safest bet, thus, was Mt. Begunjščica, a 2,060-m or 6,760-ft mountain in the Karawanks range, also called a mountain of a hundred ravines. I figured it would make a great winter escapade; nothing technical, just pure pleasure.

I don’t know about you, but this is the most wonderful time of the year for me and my family. When the first snowflakes begin to fall, we all crowd by the window and watch how the snow slowly turns our little world into a white wonderland. Then, we all dress up like snowmen and hurry outside to do just another crazy thing. This time, it was sledding right from the top of Ljubljana’s favorite hiking destination, Šmarna gora. Let’s take a look.
At 2,195 ft (669 m) and a little less than a 1,000 ft (303 m) elevation gain, it is a popular hiking destination for the locals and tourists visiting Slovenia’s capital.