Expedition 9 to 5

It is my firm belief that everyone needs a friend like Carly. Carly is the type of pal that will say “yes.” She will book a flight for a Big Sur road trip you can’t bear to cancel just because of a breakup. She will convince you of the need for bear spray in Glacier National Park when you think it’s an “unnecessary purchase” (it was, in fact, necessary). Most importantly, she will agree to a 22-mile, 3-day, hut-to-hut hike in the Slovenian Alps. It’s not everyone’s idea of the perfect European summer vacation, but it works for us. 

This is a hike many people book on their own, picking out their own trails and reserving the huts for themselves. However, the summit involves a Via Ferrata portion. As Carly and I did not have the proper gear or the required experience, we booked a guide through Triglav Tours. We started our venture in Triglav National Park on a warm August Saturday when our guide picked us up from our hotel and drove us to the base. We then hopped on a shuttle to the trailhead with our guide and the 2 other Slovenian women we would be hiking with for the next 3 days. 

Day 1:

We attempted to warm up for our hike the day before by doing the Mala Osojnica trail in Lake Bled for a beautiful lookout, but our first day on the trek to Triglav proved much more demanding than a cute warm-up could prepare us for. We started on an immediate incline through the forest until we finally broke the tree line at our first stop: Cheese Hut. We stopped to see some local cheese makers, took a small tour of their cheese-making process, and grabbed a snack to replace all the salt we lost on our first ascent. Even Carly, prone to a sensitive stomach, partook in the treat. Following the cheese break, we started another climb, this time through a pasture in the valley of surrounding mountains. I would love to say we spent most of our time soaking in the majestic views, but we were primarily focused on putting one foot in front of the other until our next break at Vodnik hut: lunch hut! The sun was relentlessly beating down on us, and we were thankful to stop for shade and a nice cold drink. Carly and I munched on our PB&Js and sipped on a shandy, while the rest of the group ordered meals and got drinks (Beers in the mountains? Incredible.) We chatted and laughed off the pain of the first few hours before we started on our next ascent. The terrain after was predominantly scree and a quick patch of via ferrata. The path wasn’t very exposed, so we did not feel it necessary to harness up and clip in; instead, we used the steel rungs to easily cross. We finished off our day with, you guessed it, another ascent upon loose scree. We were happy to call it a day at 8 miles and checked in at Planika Lodge, where we would be sleeping. 

There is much to say about our first night. The dinner was an absolute delight and included 4-5 choices for a meal. Carly and I decided on the vegetable stew and settled in for a lovely chat with other travelers staying in the lodge. Many people were surprised to see two American girlies on this hike, and it was a fun story to tell them how we settled on such a vacation. It was an invaluable experience to get off the beaten path and be surrounded by people who do not speak the same language and come from different backgrounds. Most Europeans were doing these hikes on their own without a guide. We cherished their stories and laughed alongside them at their various adventures in the Alps. That being said, these hikes are not for modest or the faint of heart! There is no running water, and the bathrooms are two porta-potties on the side of the mountain. We look back and laugh, remembering how we used baby wipes to clean our sweat and gave each other the “I guess we just change here?” look before we quickly stripped and threw on our pajamas in the packed 18-person co-ed room. We had decided to do a sunrise summit the next day, so the group was keen to get to bed by 8 PM. Carly and I followed suit. Laying in two top bunks next to each other, we attempted to fall asleep. However, the mixture of the wind, the anticipation of the hike tomorrow, and the relentless cycle of having to pee every 2 hours (the German grandmas below were not too happy with us) kept us from getting much shut-eye. In fact, when our guide’s alarm went off at 4 AM, we just so happened to be the first up. 

Day 2:

As the only ones in our 18-person bedroom rising that early, our roommates were not the biggest fans. It was a struggle to find my clothes in the pitch black, but once they were on- we quickly packed, threw our layers on, and harnessed up. We began the hike at 4:30 AM, with our headlamps illuminating the way up the trail. We did most of our rock scrambling in the dark, stopping a few times to get advice from our guide about foot and hand placement. We stripped a layer as we got to our via ferrata portion and began clipping into the side of the mountain. The sun emerged behind the peak, illuminating the summit with a warm, golden glow as we reached our destination. It was the most picturesque sunrise I had ever seen. The brightening sky silhouetted the mountains, and we savored being some of the only people to share the view. The summit was significantly colder than where we left from the hut and highly exposed, so we bundled up and took photos before we began our descent back down to Planika Lodge. Carly and I had become used to, and less scared of, via ferrata at this point and were able to move down the peak at a quicker pace. We arrived at the hut at 9:30 AM, catching the last of breakfast. While that may sound like enough for one day, we had another 6-7 miles through the Seven Lakes Valley before we arrived at our destination of Triglav Lakes Hut. However, this time, the hike would primarily be a descent. We thought this would be a piece of cake compared to day 1, but we were mistaken! The constant downhill motion on the loose rock was taxing on the knees and made me yearn for the days of uphill climbing. Our Slovenian friends were much better at hiking this terrain and were patient, waiting for Carly and me to catch up. Again, the views were absolutely incredible, and we lunched at a pristine glacial lake before we made it to our hut at 3 PM. 

We refer to this hut as the “party hut.” Schnapps is the drink of choice in Slovenia, and we only had 5.5 miles to go on day 3, so why not celebrate? And celebrate we did. After we “baby-wiped-off” and changed, the group partook in a round of shots on each person. And for good measure, our bartender, Dragon, also bought us a round. That would be 6 shots, folks. I had thought we spread them out far enough, but when Carly and I checked into our room, I thought the front desk woman was asking for a “kiss” instead of “keys.” An honest mistake of the accent, really. After some explanation, we did get our keys and settled into our room for the night. It was a room for 2 this time, so the sleep was a bit better. 

Day 3:

We woke on the last day to fog and a heavy sky. With the threat of rain hanging in the air, we scarfed down breakfast and headed out on the trail as early as possible to avoid any bad weather. The terrain on the last day is predominantly downhill and heavily wooded. We were about 45 minutes from the end of our hut-to-hut experience when it started down pouring. There was no in-between phase of light rain showers; we were dry one second and completely soaked the next. Descending our final stretch became about 5 times harder on slippery mud and sore knees. Nonetheless, we reached the end of our hike, rain jackets no longer assisting us, and we waited for our shuttle to take us back down to the base. It was a certified adventure.

How we packed: 

Packing proved to be one of the significant difficulties of this trip. It is recommended that you don’t bring more than a 30-liter bag for the hike. Since Carly and I had much larger backpacking packs, we ordered smaller bags for the trip. Carly purchased the 28L Dell Dia from Cotopaxi, and I bought the 30L Terravia Pack from Patagonia. Both were perfect for what we needed; however, we slightly overpacked since we were packing for a hike in the Slovenian Alps and a beach trip to Croatia within the same vacation. If you book this trip with a guide, they will provide your helmet and harness, so be sure to leave room in your pack for those essentials. Here is a suggested list for a 3-4 day hut-to-hut hike outside of what you may typically need:

• Limited Toiletries (no running water throughout the hike)
• Rain gear for yourself and your bag 
• Cash for food (huts are cash only) 
• Head lamp 
• Gloves for grabbing rocks 
• Light insulated jacket 
• Trekking poles (This was a necessity) 
• Baby wipes (makeshift shower)
• Water bottle in addition to your hydration bladder