Gozd - Tolsti vrh (Ovčja pot over Kriška gora)

Access to starting point:
A) From the Ljubljana - Jesenice highway, we take the Kranj - west exit and follow the road ahead in the direction of Golnik. Only a little after Golnik (more precisely after the settlement Senično), a steep road branches off to the right uphill, which leads towards Zgornje Vetrno and Gozd. After the village Zgornje Vetrno, the road mostly continues through the forest, and we follow it to a marked parking lot, which is located right next to the shelter Zavetišče v Gozdu.
B) From the Jesenice - Ljubljana highway, we take the Podbrezje exit, then continue driving towards Ljubelj and Tržič. Before the Petrol gas station in Bistrica pri Tržiču, we turn right and then drive into Tržič. When the road descends into the valley, we continue sharply right in the direction of Pristava and Križe, and further we drive on the main road which leads towards Zgornje and Spodnje Duplje; we leave the mentioned main road at the settlement Retnje, where we continue left in the direction of the settlements Križe and Golnik. Further, we drive towards Golnik, and after the settlement Križe we soon arrive at a smaller crossroad, where to the left branches off a steep road which leads towards Zgornje Vetrno and Gozd. After the village Zgornje Vetrno, the road mostly continues through the forest, and we follow it to a marked parking lot, which is located right next to the shelter Zavetišče v Gozdu.

Path description:
From the shelter, we walk to the nearby church, then we arrive at the marked junction, where the path from Golnik joins us from the right. We continue left uphill along the increasingly poor road, which brings us to a junction in a few minutes. Here we take the left path (right Tolsti vrh, Mala and Velika Poljana and Storžič), which goes past the water catchment and continues along a cart track. Just a few meters further, the cart track brings us to the next junction. We continue straight along the cart track in the direction of Kriška gora (forest path), right the usual marked path. Here at the junction, the information board informs us that we will continue on the path which in winter is exposed to snow avalanches. The cart track ascending through the forest brings us after 20 minutes from the junction onto grassy slopes. A shorter ascent follows to the place where the path brings us onto the panoramic side ridge of Kriška gora. Here we encounter an orientation loop. We continue on the right path, which ascends along the indistinct side ridge on the southern slope of Kriška gora. A little higher, the path brings us to the place where with a slight ascent we cross grassy slopes, after which the path brings us into a short stretch of forest. A little further, we come to a clearing, above which we notice the route of the cargo cableway. The path ahead ascends under the cableway all the way to the hut on Kriška gora.
From Koča na Kriški gori, we continue along the marked path towards Tolsti vrh. The path just a few meters behind the hut turns slightly left (slightly right Gozd) and begins to ascend gently across the grassy slope. After three minutes of walking, the path to Grahovše branches off almost unnoticeably to the left, and we continue along the well-trodden mountain path which continues along the main ridge of Kriška gora. Further on, the path retreats from the ridge several times to the right side, but the panoramic path mostly leads us across grassy slopes. A little further, the path returns to the ridge, which we reach right at the distinct notch, where a pathless path to Grahovše branches off left downhill.
The path ahead leads us over a grazing fence, then bypasses Vrata (1591 m) on the right side. Higher up, the path returns to or along the ridge and for some time only ascends gently. After a few minutes of traversing, we arrive at the place where the path begins to ascend steeply towards the forepeak of Tolsti vrh. From the forepeak, a nice view opens up on all sides, and the path ahead leads us along the narrower ridge for a short time. A short descent through the forest follows, then the path begins to ascend again. Higher up, the forest thins out, and the increasingly panoramic path brings us to Tolsti vrh.
Zavetišče v Gozdu - Koča na Kriški gori 1:30, Koča na Kriški gori - Tolsti vrh 1:00

On the way: Koča na Kriški gori mountain hut (1471m)