Biking in Slovenia » Vipava Valley » Exploring the Ressel Trail
The edge of Gora (plateau high above Vipava Valley) is full of fantastic vista points. A few of them are reachable with a road bike; we’ll visit the westernmost one and explore an ancient dirt trail laid out by Josef Ressel on the way back of the ship propeller fame.
At a Glance
- Difficulty
- Somewhat steep asphalt road. Optional dirt trail descent.
- Altitude
- 895 m
- Average time
- 3 h
- Elevation gain
- 730 m
- Distance
- 20 km
- Coordinates
-
Start: 45.902235,13.881650
Notes
- There’s a large parking lot next to the church in Lokavec
- From the parking lot, turn right toward Predmeja
- Follow the main road until you reach Predmeja
- Turn right (direction Col/Otlica)
- In a few minutes, you’ll arrive at a tiny clearing. Enjoy the view!
Returning to Vipava Valley
- If you had enough, turn around and enjoy the long descent toward Lokavec.
- If you’re on a road bike, you might want to traverse Gora and return to Ajdovščina/Lokavec via Col.
- If you happen to be of the downhill persuasion, use the old road built in the 1830s (laid out by Josef Ressel when he was working there as a forester) to get back to Lokavec.
The Ressel Trail
- From the vista point, follow the blue signs onto a challenging narrow rocky dirt track (you might want to skip that part and join the Ressel road further downhill).
- The dirt track merges with the asphalt road you used to ascend.
- Follow the road until the first hairpin, where the blue signs send you onto a comfortable gravel road.
- Keep going straight until you reach Gorenje.
- Find your way through the narrow streets of Gorenje, veering toward the right. Once you reach the main road, turn right, and you’ll get back to the Lokavec-Predmeja road in no time.
Map of the Route
The map shows the path we took as recorded by the GPS receiver. Never trust a GPS track wholeheartedly; rely on your senses and maps.
