Lake Bled, Slovenia Day 1

Lake Bled, Slovenia Day 1

We departed Ljubljana and took the bus to Bled. It was only an hour and a half, but the trip was spectacular! The countryside is something else and the clouds only added to the unique sky. We have now traded heat and sun for clouds and coolness. We are situated NW of the capital, Ljubljana just in the foothills of the Julian Alps. The lake here cradles the only island in Slovenia, which is one of the world's most picturesque lakes. It holds true to the testament. The surrounding mountains and the depth of view are amazing. The town is super small and within walking distance of everything. Our apartment is on a hill with views in all directions. The first thing that we did after checking in was find out where the market is. In our case, it is right down the street. I only carry a little bit of emergency food, but when people get hungry, they get cranky. I try to avoid that at all costs. It is easy to prevent, but when it happens it comes on full force. Just keep a reserve in your bag and all is good.

We had a little time to kill for the apartment owner to prepare the room. She just let us keep our bags behind the desk and we headed out to the castle on the hill. There is a trailhead right by our location, and we headed up into the thick forest. It was a brief ascent and we topped out next to a small parking lot and a wonderful view of the castle. This castle is simply named Bled Castle and is situated on a cliffside overlooking the lake. It has had a few owners and at one point was the area center of management. Since the end of WW2, after being looted, it has been refurbished and is a museum. The displays are first class with very detailed artifacts. Some of the best items were the swords discovered in the area. One was from around 3k BC and found in the bottom of the lake. I can only imagine what else is in there.

The tourist crowd is definitely here, but it's a little different than what we have seen. People seem to be a little older and the hostel guests are a little more calm. It's a very relaxing environment with soothing scenery to aide in the effect. There are many people riding bicycles and walking the streets. It's not too crowded and the mood here is pleasant.

The descent from the castle brought us to the edge of the lake. We were granted up close views of the island in the center and could peer into the clear waters. The entire circumference on trail is roughly 6k. We just took a brief walk and headed back to make dinner. Tomorrow we plan to hike, and possibly canoe out to the island. We'll see how things go.