Friday 7 September 2012

Lake Bohinj (still Slovenia) into Italy


31/8 continued..

Kids did well especially Wil given how terrible he felt.
It was a short drive to Slovenia’s largest glacial lake, Lake Bohinj, deep in the Julian Alps. It seems we just don’t get ‘laked out’.  A forested, much less developed campsite sits at one end with a white pebbly beach and surrounding ‘walls’ of superb etched rock and densely fluffy hills.Layers of increasingly tall mountains encircle the lake like onion rings but we can’t see Triglav for the height of the first ‘ring’.









We chose a lazy afternoon of reading, popping out to watch the clouds change shape & chase each other up and down the mountain walls, Italian lessons and finally before dinner, a re-run of our favourite Happy Feet 2.


We have so much time to sit and contemplate our navels - it’s really wonderful. Jeff & I enjoyed a conversation on the empty beach whilst watching the cloud dance and wondered what the mountains would say…. Neolithic man using wonderful local resources of water, rock, shelters; farming man grazing and planting small fertile plateaus nurtured by abundant fresh waterfalls (omnimatopaeic “Slap” in Slovenian); was it Austria, Italy, Yugoslavia??; Slobodam Milosovic and civilian unrest & slaughter and now a still campsite full of all world nationalities & religions, all getting along and holidaying respectfully in nature.  And who says the world is going to the dogs?! 

1/9/2012  THROUGH TRIGLAV National Park in Slovenia to ITALY

CHARLIE’S BIRTHDAY! Ooo! Happy Day Sweet Pea!

Despite being awake at 0630, Jeff felt URTI infested and the clouds surrounded Ed prohibiting a ride up to the Vogel Lookout, so we donned some longs and strolled around the wild Lake Bohinj marveling at the geology and, even under a grey sky, the striking colours of the water.  It was so quiet and the Christmas tree & granite bouldered forest of the Triglav National Park is so soft & pretty I felt we could have walked all day.  We saw a bouncing dotted bambi fairly close up thanks to the soft pine-needled ground cover muting our footsteps.  Reluctantly but quite wet, we turned for home and breakfast.

Ed transformed into an exam room & Kel sat enthusiastically at her literacy NAPLAN punching out a perfect score.  Wil ploughed through maths including a review of mistakes in yesterday’s exam.

Given ongoing rain, obscuring fog, the expense of the campsite and Jeff & Wil’s suboptimal health, we decided to take off bound for Italy some 4 hours away and bypass the magnificent Soca Valley.  Put it on the list for ‘next time’ - the extraordinary bike trip Jeff & I are planning once kids are through high school.

The drive was beguiling, up over mountain passes in the Julian Alps, through charming small farming countryside, and down the other side, following fast flowing rivers. We stopped in the wilderness for an under-the-weather driver’s snooze and to have lunch.





The weather cleared somewhat and Jeff made an excellent decision to re-route to the lower end of the Soca Valley and head for Bovec. 
We had glimpses of the turquoise river from a high point where white water canoists descended to their fun park.  


Then we peeled westward and into Italy!
Kel very excited, we found crops, esp vineyards, massive shops a la Bunnings, Ikea, Decathlon, full Sat avo, may advertising 24/7 trading.  Also lots of ugly, concrete, abandoned, disrepair, we look north to mountains for visual relief and forge ahead through Forgeland - the great man’s family hails from these parts.


Set TomTom for Perdona rest stop behind a fuel station.  Only ones.  Ex-drive -in cinema?
Rain all night, clearing to warmish, humid morning.

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