As Tone already wrote, we set off Saturday morning to traverse the ridge from Goličica to Planja. It took us 3 full hours to the top of Goličica. For Tone and the other three, the ascent dragged like chicken guts mainly because my walking pace was much slower than what they are capable of.
At the top we geared up and went to find the first belay. Right from the top we turned into the first right gully and went up its right side. When we couldn't go further, we crossed to the left side over steep scree and bushes. Down the shoulder about 20 meters and below it we found the first belay attached to strong bushes. Anže immediately prepared two 60m ropes for rappel. Anže went first, then me and Tone after Lea and Nejc checked us. From Goličica to the base of Germlajt there are three successive rappels of about 40 meters each. All three took us an hour and a half. Then from the gully we climbed up grass next to the rocky ridge to green Germlajt in half an hour. The mountain has a completely grassy south slope at 30 degrees and quite flat. On the ridge it drops vertically to the side gully Mlinarice. Germlajt summit is rocky, then the ridge continues with three or four green hillocks.
We also rappelled into the notch towards Kanceljni. The first belay is right under the second hillock, midway on the wall about 30m lower there's another. Since we had 60m ropes, we could rappel to the ground in one go. Then followed descent down the right gully. After about 50 meters I reached a spot where I'd probably descend unroped 'with full pants'. But with son Anže belaying me, I descended without issues. These two belayed sections together took a good hour and a half. From here on, no sensible passage was visible. Tone unfortunately didn't remember anything from seven years ago when he traversed the ridge with Dragot. Then Nejc stepped in with his phone. He had all Filip Culjak's photos from 2020 loaded. He figured out that photos 28, 29 and 30 were taken exactly from where we stood. Hats off to him. Carefully we climbed up the narrow ledge left around the shoulder of Veliki stolp Kanceljnov and on to the hardest part of the ascent. That's the gully on Tone's photo No. 43. Climbing to here should be 2nd-3rd grade, this gully 4th. That probably holds, as I climbed to the gully unroped without problems. Midway in that gully I somewhat 'froze'. Once roped, I climbed that part with a bit more effort without help. The gully ended on the ridge where a 20m steep descent followed immediately. With great care we could probably all descend unroped, but since the rope was at hand, we belayed. Twenty minutes later we were already at the top of Kanceljni.
It was half past four, ahead of us the toughest nut - Prevčev stolp (Tone calls it Grdoba). Kanceljni are connected to it by a narrow 10m long ridge. Right after it we reached a point from where there's no way further. Anže suggested direct up the vertical wall, which definitely didn't appeal to me. Luckily Nejc spotted the right way again. To the right a horizontal, barely visible ledge led, above which Nejc also saw two bolts for clipping. Nejc made a belay on the first bolt, Anže climbed a narrow vertical crack 5-10m with two ropes and then easier slope to where he could belay more comfortably. I climbed after him. According to Mihelič the route should be 4+ to 5-. Over this though, without son's help and without one grip of the gear, I probably wouldn't have made it. Completely exhausted I sat for a few minutes, then climbed over the summit ridge to the top. After me Nejc with two new ropes, at the end Tone and Lea. Then followed the rappel into Hruška. For it you need two 60m ropes, otherwise you have to make another belay in the wall. We didn't see any made. Since time was running out, Lea and I continued right after the rappel towards Planja, as we knew the other three could catch up. During our ascent fog started descending. At the top of mala Planja we waited for the other three, then together descended scree into the saddle between Planjas. No easy path to the big one. You can go into the first gully and a few meters higher cross right into the second, or straight into the second where above a jammed rock you reach the same spot. From there another good ten meters of crumbly scrambling and you're at the top. When we stood on top the fog cleared and the last Saturday rays shone on us. We took a few more photos and hurried to Pogačnik. Twenty to ten we were at the hut.
The whole tour took 15 hours. Ropes rappels took 5 hours, two belayed ascents one and a half hours and rests on summits a good hour and a half. As Tone wrote, we must nicely thank our young companions, without them we certainly wouldn't have accomplished this feat. Anže led all the pitches ahead and belayed us and set all belays, Nejc was infallible navigator and belay dismantler, Lea meticulously checked if Tone and I were safely roped. She cared for us as if we were her fathers. Thanks to all three.
Mihelič wrote in Slovenske stene that this is our most demanding ridge. I fully agree. Most demanding and wildest. The most beautiful for me remains the ridge of Bavški Pihavci.