Today we have a bit of grey and drizzly weather. The snow is gone and I long for spring. When looking through some photos, I came across the pictures of Mirna Gora, where we went twice in March 2016. The first time Bine and I were alone and a few weeks later we went back again with my parents because we wanted to show them this beautiful place as well. Mirna Gora is a “planina”, so an Alpine meadow and literally translated the name means »quiet mountain« :). And that it is!

Mirna Gora is located in the region »Bela Kraijna«, near Semič. It is also the highest point in that region, with the peak at 1048 meters. Just below the top you’ll find a mountain hut from where you have a beautiful view and where, when it will open again, you can eat and drink something and also stay overnight f you would like. Near the hut is a watchtower that you can climb into for an even better view. Seeing that this place is quite close to the Croatian border, you can, on a clear day,  see all the way to Zagreb and even Karlovac.

Until World War II, the church of Saint Frančiška was standing on this spot, which was built in 1743. Unfortunately, it burned down in 1942, together with the former mountain hut. After the war, in 1953, the burnt-out mountain hut was rebuilt and it was decided to give the original bell tower of the church a new use as a viewing tower for visitors.

For us, it is a good hour’s drive to Mirna Gora and you can drive all the way up by car if you would want. But much nicer is, of course, to park the car earlier and do the nice walk to the hut on foot and enjoy the beautiful nature. From the village of Vrčice, for example, it is a 2 hour and 15-minute walk. But you can also drive a little further and walk from a closer spot. There are three different »učne poti« (learning paths) as they call it here, leading up. These are well-marked hiking trails with signs everywhere with all kinds of interesting facts on them. School classes often come here, for example, to take the walk up the mountain as an outing and learn a few things along the way. All three paths converge 300 meters below the top from where there is then one path leading to the mountain hut.

For example, there is an old construction in which people used to dry fruit and also a charcoal burner, which is a construction in which charcoal was made. There are also many rare trees in this area and there are still traces of an earlier railway line that ran through this forest.

There is also a small cemetery where the former (temporary) grave of Franc Rozman – Stane can be found. This was a soldier of Slovene-Spanish descent who fought in the Spanish Civil War and later, during the Second World War, became a commander of the partisans. In November 1944 he died of injuries sustained while trying out a new weapon. A few days after his unfortunate death, he was proclaimed a national hero. Later, his remains were transferred to Ljubljana and placed in the tomb of National heroes.

So if you ever find yourself in Bela Krajina, be sure to take this beautiful walk to Mirna Gora and enjoy all the beauty that you encounter along the way. Hopefully, we will soon be able to travel freely again and the catering industry will open again. Because with a hike in the mountains, arriving at the top, of course, is the reward of a tasty snack and drink in a mountain hut!