Branik - Stjenkova koča on Trstelj (by cart track)

Access to starting point:
A) From the highway Ljubljana - Koper we go to the exit Senožeče, and then we continue driving in the direction of the village Štorje. In Štorje we continue right in the direction of Branik (straight Sežana and Trst) and further we drive through the villages Kazlje, Dobravlje and Ponikve. At the crossroad a few kilometers after Ponikve we continue right towards the village Kobdilj (left Kopriva and Dutovlje), from there we follow the signs for Štanjel and Branik. After a few kilometers of descent we get to Branik, where from the left also the road from Komen joins. Only a little further from the mentioned crossroad, on the right we will notice a larger parking lot, where we park (parking lot is located near the post office and Mercator store).
B) First, we drive to Ajdovščina, and then we continue driving on the old road towards Nova Gorica. When we get to the settlement Potoče we leave the main road and continue left in the direction of the place Branik. The road quickly brings us to the bridge over the river Vipava, after which it becomes gradually more winding. After a short ascent follows a shorter descent and we get to Branik. When we reach the main road we continue left and then after some 10 meters of additional driving we turn left onto a larger parking lot (parking lot is located near the post office and Mercator store).
C) From Nova Gorica or its surroundings we drive to Dornberk, and from there we continue driving in the direction of Branik. We park in the center of Branik on a larger well-maintained parking lot (parking lot is located near the post office and Mercator store).

Route description:
From the parking lot, we continue on a sidewalk, which leads us by the main road towards Štanjel, Koper and Sežana, and next to it we notice several monuments, including the monument to Simon Gregorčič. A little further on the pedestrian crossing we cross the main road, and then we continue in the same direction. On a somewhat larger crossroad we continue straight in the direction of Komen (slightly left on the main road Štanjel, Koper and Sežana), and we walk on the sidewalk for a few more minutes, and then signs for the railway station direct us to the right on a somewhat narrower road. On the road towards the railway station we walk to the first right turn, and from there we continue straight towards the furniture factory bor-Les.
From bor-Les we continue straight on a worse road, which quickly brings us to the foot of the railway track. Here the road turns left and for a short time continues parallel with the track, and then turns right, where it leads us below a separate bridge. Immediately behind the bridge we go right on a wider cart track, which a few dozen steps ahead turns left and starts to ascend transversely (the path to here has not been marked, further on "blazes" in the form of a red circle in the middle of which is a green butterfly will accompany us). Further we ascend transversely above the Petnik stream, and the path higher brings us to a ridge, where from the right another path from Branik joins (path past the hamlet Cvetrož). From the junction we walk on the ridge a few more steps, and then we arrive at the place where the cart track splits into two parts. We continue on the right cart track (the left leads directly to the village Pedrovo and is better marked), which immediately splits again. At the second junction we continue left, then somewhat higher slightly right (straight also possible). Further we moderately ascend through the forest on the cart track, which higher joins another cart track. Here we continue left to the nearby abandoned hut, where we notice a blaze. Behind the hut the cart track temporarily descends and again approaches the bed of the Petnik stream. We cross the mentioned stream in a long arc, and then on the other side we start to ascend transversely towards the village Pedrovo, which we reach after a few minutes of further walking. When we come to the village, we reach it at the last house, we continue right (left church of the Holy Spirit 3 minutes) and continue the ascent on a somewhat wider cart track, which gently to moderately ascends through the forest. Further the cart track splits several times, and we continue on the "main" or the marked one (the blazes are occasionally quite rare). Higher we reach a worse road (firebreak cutting - intervention road no. 14P), on which we start to moderately descend. Somewhat further from the slope we pass into a smaller valley, where we continue right upwards on an initially less pronounced cart track. The path ahead continues for a short time across a panoramic meadow, and then quickly brings us to the abandoned Slavčeva bajta. We bypass the mentioned hut on the left side and continue the path on a worse-marked cart track, which rises and descends several times. At the junctions we continue on the marked cart track, which after a while brings us to grassy slopes, from which a beautiful view opens up reaching all the way to the highest peaks of the Julian Alps. A somewhat steeper descent follows and the path brings us to Železnih vrat, where we cross the asphalt road.
We continue on the macadam road in the direction of Trstelj, and we walk on it to the power line. Immediately behind the power line we leave the road and continue the ascent left on the marked path, which starts to ascend more steeply. After a few minutes the path levels out and passes to panoramic and relatively gentle shady slopes. The path quickly returns to the forest and from the right the path from Renče joins.
We continue left in the direction of the hut, on the path which soon splits into two parts. We continue slightly right on the marked shortcut, and then we join a worse forest road, which we follow to the nearby Stjenkova koča on Trstelj.

Along the route: Sveti Duh (Pedrovo) (365m), Slavčeva bajta (395m), Železna vrata (445m)

The trip can be extended to the following destinations: Trstelj

We recommend: trips from the same starting point, similar trips, panorama, summit register