Ljubotić (Sv. Ante) - Debeli Kuk (čez Bristovac)

Access to starting point:
We leave the Adriatic Highway in the village of Tribanj, where shortly before the church we continue left towards Ljubotić; if coming from the direction of Zadar, we turn right after the church. The sign is not immediately noticeable. The steep, narrow and winding ascending road leads us up through a barren slope. Soon the bends end and we ascend past several insignificant junctions to a marked intersection, where we continue left, straight ahead to Mirila and the start of the path to Stap via Zagon. We park at a larger gravel parking lot by the church of Sv. Ante.

Route description:
From the parking lot we return to the road, which we immediately leave and turn right onto the gravel road. The road ascends steeply and descends in places. The road crosses the valley between Obljak (449 m) on the left and Strmoglavica (435 m) on the right. In between, a somewhat closer but very overgrown western path towards Stap branches off almost imperceptibly. At the junction we can cut the bend of the road and arrive in the abandoned village of Livardica and after a few steps on the gravel road we also arrive in the likewise abandoned village of Bristovac. From the starting point to here it is 3 km of walking. It is also possible to get here by car. At the abandoned stone house the markings lead us slightly right into the forest. The first 15 minutes the path is very overgrown with thorns and we step from rock to rock. Extra caution is needed not to step into some hole between the rocks. Then we emerge from the forest onto a kind of mule track that ascends in loops to the edge, east of Velika glavica (664 m). The path levels out and ascends gently to a small saddle between Splovak (705 m) and Ploča (769 m). From the saddle we descend slightly and then cross the eastern slope of the mentioned peak Ploča. Then we ascend again on a rocky path and then descend to a marked junction, where the previously mentioned overgrown path and the path via Zagon join from the right. We continue left and soon arrive in dense forest. The path is laid between rocks and over smooth slabs. Later we walk through less rocky terrain through the forest, in between we have numerous short descents into sinkholes and some undemanding rocky sections. After 45 minutes of such path through the area called Sjauševac, we arrive at a marked junction, where the path to Kamene galerije and Stapina via Vratarico branches off to the right. The path becomes rocky again, soon we cross the edge and arrive at a large grassy field called Stap. After 15 minutes we arrive in a belt of low shrubbery and after a few steps to a junction, next to which is the bivouac Tatekova koliba.
For Debeli Kuk and Panos we continue left. Right Stapina and Visočica.
The path leads us through a short belt of forest to a larger clearing. Then we cross a belt of forest again to a larger gravel area. Then we ascend on a rocky path to the junction for the chapel, which is a few minutes from the path. The path winds along the edge of the small valley and turns left over a small saddle and descends into another small valley, where the path via Čučavac branches off imperceptibly to the left. The mentioned path is abandoned. After a gentle path through the forest with a shorter steep rocky section we reach the junction at Donjih Njivicah, where we turn right in the direction of Debeli Kuk and Jelova Ruja, straight Panos. The steep path leads us through the forest and in 15 minutes we are again at the junction. Straight ahead the path continues towards Jelova Ruja, but we turn left in the direction of Debeli Kuk. At first we walk a few more minutes through the forest, then we step onto the grassy slopes of Debeli Kuk, where in front of us we see the wall of Kuk Čučula. Somewhere here the path towards them branches off imperceptibly, from where it is also possible to reach Debeli Kuk. We follow the well-trodden one that crosses the meadow, then for a short time returns to a belt of low shrubbery, then finally leaves the forest and we ascend steeply across the grassy slope to the foot of the wall. Here the previously mentioned path via Kuk Čučul joins from the left. We continue right around the wall to the technically more demanding part of the path a little below the summit. In 3 minutes of easy scrambling we arrive at the stamp and the registration box. The summit is to the left, from where views open in all directions.
The description and pictures refer to the situation in June 2026.

Along the route: Livardica (330m), Bristovac (330m), Sjauševac (750m), Planinsko zavetišče Tatekova koliba (860m), Donje Njivice (972m), Gornje Njivice (1077m)

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