Hunting cottage Lipovec - Maceljska gora (western path)

Access to starting point:
A) From highway Ljubljana - Maribor we go to the exit Dravlje, and then we follow the signs for Šentjur and forward Rogaška Slatina. When we get closer to Rogaška Slatina we don't drive towards the settlement, but we continue in the direction of Rogatec. From Rogatec we follow the signs for Dobovec and Zagreb, and in Dobovec we turn left towards the settlement Trlično and we are still driving by the river Sotla. When we get to the hunting cottage Lipovec we park on a parking lot near the hunting cottage.
B) From highway Maribor - Ljubljana we go to the exit Slovenska Bistrica south, and then we follow the signs for Rogaška Slatina. When we get closer to Rogaška Slatina we don't drive towards the settlement, but we continue in the direction of Rogatec. From Rogatec we follow the signs for Dobovec and Zagreb, and in Dobovec we turn left towards the settlement Trlično and we are still driving by the river Sotla. When we get to the hunting cottage Lipovec we park on a parking lot near the hunting cottage.
C) Podravje highway in the direction of Croatia we leave at exit Zakl, and then we follow the signs for Žetale and forward Rogatec. From Rogatec we follow the signs for Dobovec and Zagreb, and in Dobovec we turn left towards the settlement Trlično and we are still driving by the river Sotla. When we get to the hunting cottage Lipovec we park on a parking lot near the hunting cottage.

Path description:
From the hunting cottage Lipovec we go on the left road which continues along the stream, which is the right tributary of Sotla. We few minutes continue by the stream and then the road becomes steep and from the gorge passes on slopes, on which we are for quite some time ascending diagonally. Higher the forest for some time ends and a nice view opens up on the nearby hills. At the end of the panoramic part we go at a smaller crossroad slightly right, and few minutes higher we go at the crossroad sharply right, both times in the direction of source of Sotla. After the second crossroad the road gradually flattens, and then in a gentle descent brings us to area named Pri češnji, where we join the eastern path.
Here we go sharply left in the direction of source of Sotla and we continue on a cart track which is at first gently, and then moderately ascending through the forest.
Few minutes ahead, the path once again splits, and we choose the slightly right path (slightly left - Rudijev dom and Donačka gora), which is further ascending diagonally towards the right. A little higher signs for source of Sotla from the cart track point us to the right, on a footpath, on which in a minute of additional walking, we descend to the source of Sotla.
From the source we return on a cart track, and there we continue right and we ascend to the national border. When the cart track reaches the national border, by the national border in two minutes we ascend on the ridge of Macelj, which we reach on a smaller saddle, by which there is a bench.
Here we go right (straight downwards - Žetale) and we continue on the pathless ridge and on the national border. In few minutes of additional walking, we get to the western secondary peak of Maceljska gora, and few minutes ahead on Maceljska gora.
Hunting cottage Lipovec - source of Sotla 1:15, source of Sotla - Maceljska gora 0:20.
Description and pictures refer to a condition in January 2023.

On the way: Source of Sotla (640m)