Sveti Križ (Planica) - Ruška koča na Arehu

Access to starting point:
We leave the Štajerska highway at the Fram exit and follow the signs for Fram. When we reach the main road Slovenska Bistrica - Maribor, from the traffic-light intersection we continue straight and drive to the center of Fram. We continue through the settlement, and when we get to the parking lot below the parish church of St. Anne, we continue on the left road so that we bypass the church on the left side. A little further at the cemetery we go right, and then we begin to ascend more steeply. Higher we arrive at the settlement Kopivnik, and we follow the road towards the settlement Planica, where we follow the signs for the church of the Holy Cross, next to which we park.

Path description:
On the northeastern side of the church, left of the playground we notice a cart track, on which we start. After a few steps, we continue slightly left (on the right path we descend to the asphalt road by which we came to the starting point) and then for a few minutes we ascend diagonally through the forest. When we leave the forest, from the slope we pass into a smaller valley, and we continue along the left edge of the pasture and ascend next to it to the asphalt road, where we reach the marked path Fram - Ruška koča na Arehu and follow it to the left.
For a short time we continue on the road, and when the road makes a longer right bend we go from the road left onto the marked path, which ascends along the power line. Higher we reach a narrower asphalt road, where we go right, and at the intersection with the priority road we go left. The path ahead leads us past a smaller hamlet, then the road returns into the forest, where soon the blazes direct us right onto the footpath towards Areh. Through the forest at numerous junctions we follow the blazes, and the path first leads past a cross, higher also past the NOB monument, near which there is another cross.
Here we also step onto the asphalt road, which we quickly leave and continue right into the forest, where at junctions we follow the blazes, higher we reach the main asphalt road and follow it to the left.
On the main road we walk to the intersection, where to the right branches the road towards Hotel Zarja.
We continue slightly left on the marked path towards Areh (to the left the main road continues, right Hotel Zarja) and further diagonally ascend on a cart track. Higher at the junction we continue straight and still ascend diagonally, a little behind the hunting observatory we arrive at a marked junction, where we reach a wider path that leads from Mariborska koča towards Ruška koča na Arehu.
We continue left and mainly gently ascend on the macadam road, which leads us past some graveyards. After some time we return to the main road, along it we continue briefly, then we go slightly left onto the footpath, on which we quickly arrive at the church of St. Areh.
From the church we cross the meadow and we are already at Ruška koča na Arehu.
Description and pictures refer to the condition in March 2022.