Gone hiking. Dinara, here I come! (+ my first podcast)

Categories Exploring the Dinarides, Podcast
BLOG Gone hiking, Dinara here I come

It’s 00.27 my backpack is packed, GPS is up to date, launched my podcast and after this blog post I’m ready too. Ready for a little hike. Tomorrow I take the bus to Knin from where I hit the trail to Dinara. Gone hiking. Although I hiked across the entire Dinaric Alps, I haven’t been on Dinara yet. Or well, I was on the mountain, but not on the peak. A peak, the peak. Something to do with bad weather. I Thought it would be a nice way to open this years hiking season. Hiking Dinara. And when already I’m there, I might as well continue on the trail to Troglav and Kamešnica.

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Hiking Via Dinarica, crossing the Balkans on foot

Categories ON FOOT, Via Dinarica Inspiration, White Trail
BiH_MNE_Maglić_Prijevor_bordercrossing

Last summer I walked a new long distance trail through the Balkans, the Via Dinarica White Trail. A route that finds its way along countless different mountain ranges, ridges, cliffs, canyons, valleys, rivers, lakes and prominent peaks in the Dinaric Alps, Europe’s largest karst field. Hiking Via Dinarica. A great hike, a beautiful journey and an unforgettable adventure.

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Slovenia’s Secrets: Green Karst

Categories Adventures, Via Dinarica Inspiration, White Trail
GREEN KARST sLOVEnia's secrets | Hiking Via Dinarica White Trail

After I hiked more than 1200K through 4 different countries and added another 300K in Slovenia. The original Via Dinarica White Trail follows the Javorniki mountain range from Snežnik to Postojna. Although the forest up there is one of a kind, I decided to spend a bit more time in Slovenia, made a detour and set out an more ˝scenic route˝ through the beautiful Green Karst landscape. The last part of my Via Dinarica journey started in Ilirska Bistrica from where I headed back into the mountains, to Mašun, Sviščakih and Snežnik. I was blessed with fantastic weather. Cold, sunny and colorful. Autumn at its best.

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Incredible Croatian Karst

Categories Adventures, Via Dinarica Inspiration, White Trail
hiking_via_dinarica_croatia_balkans_white_trail

The Via Dinarica is a trail that is still in progress, only in Bosnia and Herzegovina the White Trail is officially open. In the other four countries the route is a combination of old existing trails that all together form a corridor through the Dinarides. With a distance of almost 600 kilometers, the Croatian section covers the largest part of the Via Dinarica. An absolutely beautiful stretch through the incredible Croatian karst mountains.

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4 Days in Paklenica NP

Categories Exploring the Dinarides, Micro Adventures, White Trail

Jeej, I got company! No, she is not really an hiker or outdoorsie type, but she is my oldest friend… Why is everybody asking? When are you a hiker? What is a real hiker? Are there any rules? Hmm, I think I actually don’t really care. After almost 900K of solo-hiking, my BFF Caroline joined me in Starigrad, super exiting. New company, new spirit, new challenges. New ADVENTURE. Paklenica, here we come!

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What I talk about when I talk about Hiking

Categories Musings, My Via Dinarica Journey, White Trail
painted-by-marit-dik

“I’m free, I think. I shut my eyes and think hard and deep about how free I am, but I can’t really understand what it means. All I know is that I’m totally alone. All alone in an unfamiliar place, like some solitary explorer who’s lost his compass and his map. Is this what it means to be free? I don’t know, and I gave up thinking about it. – Haruki Murakami, Kafka on the Shore.

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Dinara, to climb or not to climb

Categories Hiking Tales, My Via Dinarica Journey, White Trail
Dinara, to climb or not to climb?

I had a plan, I had maps, descriptions from other hikers and of course my GPS. It didn’t seem difficult to go to the top of Dinara, just a long “climb”. I had enough time, more than enough water and a plan that gave me the opportunity to spend an extra day on the mountain. Mountain Dinara. The only problem was that I was tired…

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Beautifully WILD Bosnia and Herzegovina

Categories Adventures, Via Dinarica Inspiration, White Trail
Zelena_glava_prenj_bih

Although nature does not know borders, borders are often formed by nature. Mountains, rivers and seas are natural borders between different regions, countries or continents. Within these borders, people seem to develop their own characteristic way of living full of local traditions and old customs. Along the Via Dinarica I crossed many borders. Some were natural, some were cultural and some were just lines on a map. Lines that create countries. It did surprise me that hiking through Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) felt so different from Montenegro. Different landscape, different mountain-rhythm, different weather and yes, different lives and lifestyles. I even got the impression that the way people express themselves differs from country to country.

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Descend from Prenj

Categories Hiking Tales, My Via Dinarica Journey, White Trail
Hiking_Via_Dinarica_White_Trail_BiH_Prenj_Bosnia_Herzegovina

“Bare in mind that you have still some challenging sections, particularly the descend from Prenj.” That was not the first time someone warned me for this part. Of course this became a big thing in my head. How difficult would it be? What if I can’t make it? What if I loose the trail again?

I felt nervous. It really took some time before I could enjoy the hiking.

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Planet Prenj

Categories My Via Dinarica Journey, Via Dinarica Inspiration, White Trail
Planet_Prenj_view

Prenj is absolutely one of my favorites along the Via Dinarica White Trail. Not just because of its ridiculously beautiful vistas and views, mostly because Prenj was a place where I had a good dose of fun. With two guys from Tuzla who I met on Boračko campsite, I hiked from Boračko Jezero up to the mountain hut Jezerce. A great new hut on a fantastic location. Perfect place to spend the night. Or two. I really enjoyed the company of the Tuzla-boyz and the weather was extremely good. There was not really a reason to rush on, so I decided to join them on a day-hike to Zelena Glava and stay an extra night at PD Jezerce before I went further on my own.

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Lost on the Via Dinarica, short cut vs wild nature

Categories Balkan Stories, Hiking Tales, My Via Dinarica Journey, White Trail
rakitnica_canyon_neretva_bih

Sunday I was supposed to meet some friends from Sarajevo at Boračko Jezero. Rewinding time! Instead I got wind up in thorny plants when I tried to take a short cut. Lost on the Via Dinarica. This is my story about what happened on the descent through the Rakitnica Canyon.

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WILD BALKANS: nature versus mankind, what do they teach me?

Categories Balkan Stories, Hiking Tales, My Via Dinarica Journey, White Trail
wild tea

Many many wild plants were in my way. If I had known which I could eat, I perhaps would appreciate them more. I’m a city girl, but I’m getting more and more used to the wilderness. Still most of the time, the plants are in my way. Wilderness. Wild Balkans. Of course I also feel thankful that nature actually allows me here. When it’s wild and rough, completely overgrown it shows who is the boss. And that is absolutely not me!

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Magnificent Mountains of Montenegro

Categories Adventures, Via Dinarica Inspiration, White Trail
montenegro_durmitor_np_Via_Dinarica

Montenegro or Crna Gora in Serbian. I have to confess that I didn’t know where the name comes from, I only know that it means ˝Black Mountain˝. I didn’t really see black mountains though. The mountains of Montenegro were green. Everything was green. Green valleys, green peaks, green forests, green fields… Green, green, green in all possible shades and shapes.

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