About 10,000 kilometers of marked trails and about 150 two-thousand-meter peaks in the Julian Alps

make hiking enthusiasts cheer. In addition to the famous cross-border Via Alpina, the 83,807-hectare Triglav National Park (pronounced Triglau) is one of Europe's largest natural reservoirs. Lush green alpine meadows with cozy wooden huts, emerald green mountain lakes, streams and rivers with steep waterfalls and the rugged limestone peaks of the high mountains complete the impressive natural panorama.

Alpinists climb the highest mountain in Slovenia: Triglav (2,864 meters), in German "Dreikopf", according to legend, watches over the sky with one head, the earth with the second and the underworld with the third. It is considered by the locals as the mountain of destiny, even adorns the flag and should be climbed at least once in a lifetime. Those who have mastered the demanding ascent are rewarded with a ritual: a photo next to the Aljaž tower, built in 1895, is obligatory, and first-time climbers receive two or three light "slaps" on the backside with a rope. Ibex, chamois, red deer and capercaillies, but also rarer animals such as lynxes and brown bears are native to the nature reserve. Attentive connoisseurs of vegetation will also come across the Zoiz bellflower, edelweiss and Dolomite cinquefoil here.

Two of the five sections of theEuropean long-distance hiking route Via Alpina lead through Slovenia on foot. The red route runs through the Julian Alps - through the Lower Bohinj Mountains to the Triglav National Park and with a spectacular view of the rock massif to Lake Bohinj. Along the historic Alpine trail, many cozy inns and hotels invite you to stop for a bite to eat. Just recently, the Slovenian Tourist Board published the comprehensive and free brochure "Hiking in Slovenia" in German. On 60 pages, interested parties can find out everything they need for an ideal trekking vacation: numerous photos, selected routes with detailed descriptions, altitude data and profiles, degrees of difficulty, length, walking times, contact addresses for refreshments and accommodation, and GPS coordinates.