Hrastnik (Podkraj) - Sveta Marija (Ključevica)

Access to starting point:
A) First, we drive to Litija, and then we continue driving in the direction of Trbovlje and further towards Hrastnik. When we arrive in Hrastnik, we do not continue left on the main road across the bridge over the Sava River, but continue straight ahead, and about 10 meters further, turn right in the direction of the Podkraj industrial zone. Between the industrial zone and the settlement of a few smaller blocks, the described path to Kum begins. We park in a suitable spot nearby; if there is enough space, we can use one of the parking areas near the blocks.
B) From the Ljubljana - Maribor highway, we take the Trojane exit, then continue driving in the direction of Zagorje ob Savi. Through Zagorje, we follow the signs for Litija, then after the bridge over the Sava River, we continue left towards Trbovlje (Litija right). We continue on the main road all the way to Hrastnik, where we do not continue left on the main road across the bridge over the Sava River, but continue straight ahead, and about 10 meters further, turn right in the direction of the Podkraj industrial zone. Between the industrial zone and the settlement of a few smaller blocks, the described path to Kum begins. We park in a suitable spot nearby; if there is enough space, we can use one of the parking areas near the blocks.
C) First, we drive to Celje, then continue driving in the direction of Laško, Rimske Toplice, and Hrastnik. Through Hrastnik, we follow the main road, and when we cross the bridge over the Sava River, we continue left in the direction of the Podkraj industrial zone. A few meters further, the road turns right and takes us between the industrial zone on the left and the settlement of a few smaller blocks on the right, where the described path to Kum begins. We park in a suitable spot nearby; if there is enough space, we can use one of the parking areas near the blocks.
D) We drive to Radeče, from where we continue towards Zidani Most, and there we turn left towards Hrastnik. Further on, we drive on a narrower road that leads along the Sava River, then, upon arriving in Hrastnik, we first continue left (right is the center of Hrastnik), and when we cross the bridge over the Sava River, turn left again in the direction of the Podkraj industrial zone. A few meters further, the road turns right and takes us between the industrial zone on the left and the settlement of a few smaller blocks on the right, where the described path to Kum begins. We park in a suitable spot nearby; if there is enough space, we can use one of the parking areas near the blocks.

Route description:
From the starting point, we continue in the direction of Kum, and we quickly leave the dead-end road, as the signs for the path via Matca direct us onto a footpath that after a short ascent brings us to gardens; a few steps higher, we also cross an asphalt road that leads to the nearby water tank. We bypass the water tank on the left side, then through the forest we follow the frequent signs for Kum. When we step out of the forest, the path leads us in a traverse ascent across a panoramic hayfield, from which a beautiful view opens towards part of Hrastnik and the surrounding hills. Higher up, the path returns to the forest and gradually transitions to more picturesque and steeper slopes. A wide path leads us across the steep slopes, so that in snow-free conditions the ascent does not pose greater danger, but in snow there is a risk of slipping in several places. When higher up the steepness eases, we gradually step out of the forest at the edge of the hamlet Matica, where the path leads us past a few houses. We quickly leave the road, then briefly continue along the edge of the meadow. A little further, we cross a poorer macadam road, then through a strip of forest we ascend to another asphalt road, which we follow left in the direction of Kum. After a short ascent along the road, at a small junction we continue on the right road towards Kum for pedestrians only. When after a few meters the road enters the forest, we leave it as the signs for Kum direct us right onto a footpath that continues through the forest, and just a little higher crosses an asphalt road. After the crossing, we step out of the forest and ascend beside a pasture to the next hamlet, where we follow the road left; at the marked junction by the houses, sharply right onto the road that leads past the farm building. Behind the house on the left, we continue left onto the path that ascends across an increasingly panoramic hayfield, higher up entering the forest through which we then ascend. At junctions, we follow the signs for Kum; when the marked path crosses the macadam road, we follow the road left (straight on the marked Kum path).
We continue on the macadam road, which gently ascends for a while longer, then gradually begins to descend. When the descent ends, the road starts ascending again, gradually transitioning onto the slopes of the peak Ključavica, where a marked path from the starting points in Zidani Most and Radeče joins from the left. From the junction, we walk along the road to a sort of level area, where we continue right in the direction of Sveta Marija and the sacristy, which we bypass on the right side. From the sacristy follows approximately 5 minutes of ascent on a well-followable but unmarked path.
Description and pictures refer to the condition in 2016 (March).

Along the route: Matica (662m)

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