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Vrsic Pass closure - suggestions urgently needed for alternate route and hikes

Posted by (Melrose) on

Hello,

My wife and I are in the midst of a trip that we planned about a year ago to Prague, Vienna and Slovenia and were upset to learn last night about ongoing repairs to the Vrsic pass road in the Julian Alps that require weekday closures between 7:30 and 17:00. We saw an online notice that mentioned a detour to Bovec, Slovenia (where we have overnight reservations 3 days from now) that requires crossing over into Italy - it's called the Kranjska Gora—Rateče—Predel—Bovec route. Is anyone familiar with this route? Should we be concerned about this route and/or are there particular highlights (hikes, etc.) on that route you recommend?

We're also concerned that the closures (which extend from the summit of the Vrsic pass to Trenta) may prevent us from accessing some of the hikes we were planningin Triglav National Park and further south in the Soca River Gorge and the Tolmin Gorges.

Does anyone have any thoughts on these concerns and/or further suggestions?

Thank you for any help you can offer.
Best,

David and Leslie

Posted by
47 posts

David & Leslie,

We were in Slovenia last September. We did venture over the Vrsic Pass transitioning from Bled to Bovec. After our time in Bled we headed north into Austria & did pass thru a very small section of Italy. I believe this is a section you mention as the suggested detour. It was all on well maintained roads.

Not sure of your specific hikes in Triglav National Park, but I see no reason you'd not be able to hike the Gorges. Soca River Gorge is at the western base of the Vrsic Pass, but easily accessible from Bovec. The Tomlin Gorge is south of Bovec & unless there is more construction it's also easily doable as a day trip from Bovec. Not far from Bovec town center are two hikes to beautiful waterfalls. Sorry I can't remember the names, but the Bovec tourist office was very helpful in pointing them out to us & provided maps.

We loved our 3 nights in Bovec at the Dobra Villa. Bovec was a welcomed respite from the more touristy activity in Bled.

Enjoy your time in Slovenia. It was such an enjoyable time for us. We loved it and are heading back as part of a Northern Italy trip next May.

Posted by
91 posts

Slapa Kozjac is near Bovec. It's a nice trail and there are structures from the war that you can walk through. The Bovec visitor center has a website.

Posted by
18 posts

David and Leslie, do you know how long the road repair work is supposed to be happening? Thank you. I hope you found ways around it!

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