Given the state of Mrs A’s toes and inability to walk, another ride was the only way to go. She put her ebike in turbo mode and managed to cycle one footed! An unintended benefit of these little beasts of bikes.
We rode up to Lake Bohinj, which was looking particularly sultry on this Wednesday morning.
Colour coordinated boats for hire along the shoreA serene sight if I ever saw one
We pressed on to the top of the lake and the awful Camp Bohinj…well awful to us anyway at this time of year – lots of people seem quite willing to stay there crushed together in the mud and mayhem.
We explored the upper reaches of the lake then decided it was time to start wandering back to rest up madam’s foot…35km of one legged cycling later!
Ridiculously clear and green waterBeautiful creek running into the lake from waterfalls up stream It is hard not to admire this viewThe off road shared path we cycle along, lined with beech trees
A lazy afternoon ensued, with only a wash loaded and hung out to chalk up any sense of achievement. But it didn’t matter…we’re chilling.
Late afternoon madam decided she was up to another little foray in search of wild flowers. I tagged along cos I’m good like that, I don’t bother to feign any interest.
Shades of purple…Many shades of white….And a little yellow thrown in….And a beautiful native bee collecting red pollen…
It was not long before I noted the storm clouds gathering and pronounced there would be rain before nightfall. Catherine told me the forecast says not. I packed everything up and put us into rain mode, and was then proved correct as just after a lovely reheated pork curry the heavens opened.
There is no better sound to drift off to sleep than the patter of big drops of the wet stuff on the roof of our motorhome.
We left Ljubljana early to drive the 90 minutes up to Lake Bohinj, Slovenia’s largest permanent lake, in the hope we might be able to find a lakeside campsite for a couple of nights. There is one campground beside the lake, and they had told us to be there early to find a spot as they didn’t take bookings.
Our first view of Lake Bohinj – mirror-still in the early morning
On arrival we found a chaotic jumble of tents, campers and motor homes camped and parked up everywhere and anywhere, no set sites or organisation whatsoever. Most were parked within just half a metre of each other on muddy patches. Oh, but they were close to the water. Definitely not our type of camping., no matter how beautiful the lake is.
We abandoned that thought and found an alternative camp at Camp Danica in Bohinjsko Bistrica – further away from Bohinj but on a picturesque river and off road cycleway leading to the lake.
We got set up with almost no incident. Usually it is Mr A who is the clumsy one, but today it was me. I managed to trip over an unexpected guy rope on the campground. It sent me flying and now I have a suspected broken toe…perhaps two! Either way my left foot is not in a state for walking with two purple puffy toes. Hopefully they’re just badly bruised and my hobble will reduce with time (I will withhold photos – they can be shared on request if desired!).
I dosed up on anti-inflammatory tablets and we jumped on the bikes to ride…it didn’t hurt too much as long as I didn’t pedal with my left foot or step down…again – thank goodness for e-bikes!
It is hard for photos to do it justice as we ride through the valley surrounded by mountains
And what a ride! The path wound through beautiful alpine meadows full of white, yellow and mauve flowers of every variety, surrounded by the most gorgeous mountains of the Julian Alps and Triglav National Park.
Meadows full of flowers, butterflies and the hum of insectsThe Bohinjsko River which leads from the lake Bohinj’s 700 year old St John the Baptist Church is visible for miles around
For most of the ride we followed the crystal clear Bohinjsko River, watching groups of paddlers negotiate the small rapids and gravel races. We explored small villages, full of flower filled holiday accomodation intermingled with farmers. It was just magical.
Absolutely loving this ride!
The lake was icy cold when we dipped our feet in it, though there were a few brave people in for a swim, not us…it did my toes some good though!
The lake – not as mirror perfect as first thing in the morning, but still beautifulWe followed a path part the way around the lake – stopped by a pile of boulders we couldn’t crossAmazing colours in the shallowsAh the serenity….
It was a beautiful ride – just over 35km (about 22 miles) all up, so we were ready for dinner on our return. In spite of an unexpected injury, a brilliant introduction to this area.
We rode 35km today – many more little lanes to explore another time too
