Planina Blato - Mala Zelnarica (via Štapce)

Access to starting point:
From the Ljubljana - Jesenice motorway, take the Lesce exit and follow the road towards Bled and further towards Bohinjska Bistrica. Continue towards Lake Bohinj (Ribčev Laz), where you reach an intersection and continue right towards Stara Fužina. In Stara Fužina, at the intersection near the chapel, turn sharply left onto the ascending road towards Planina Blato, Planina Vogar and Voje Valley. The road then takes you to the place where toll and parking fees are collected, follow it further to the next intersection, where you continue left (right Voje). Then follow the road to the next intersection (driving quite a while), where you turn sharply right towards Planina Blato (straight Planina Vogar). Follow this road to the parking lot above Planina Blato.

Route description:
From the marked parking lot in front of Planina Blato, return slightly back and head to the wide and initially also steep cart track, along which there are signs for Planina pri Jezeru. After about ten minutes of ascent, you reach a marked junction, from where you continue left towards Planina pri Jezeru (slightly right Planina v Lazu and also a steep path towards Planina pri Jezeru).
Continuing along the less steep cart track, which still leads through the forest, a little further a marked path joins from the left, leading past Kosijev dom na Vogarju, and you continue right along the cart track. Higher up, the path leads through a small narrowing, then cross quite steep slopes where there is great danger of slipping on ice and snow, otherwise the path is not difficult. At the end of the steep slope, the aforementioned steep path joins quite inconspicuously from the right, the cart track turns left here and passes into a rather cold Pungrat valley, where you ascend through mostly spruce forest. When the path levels higher up, a path leading past Planina Vodični vrh joins from the left, keep slightly right and continue walking along the cart track along which the forest begins to thin. Followed by just a few minutes of easy walking and you step onto the pastures of Planina pri Jezeru, where Koča na Planini pri Jezeru stands on a small rise.
At the hut, the path to Planina v Lazu branches right, continue left of the hut and descend to the marked junction where there are also some shepherds' huts.
Choose the wider right path along which there are signs for Planina Dedno polje and Koča pri Triglavskih jezerih (slightly left Pršivec, Planina Viševnik and Črno jezero).
Continuing to ascend along the cart track, which is quite rocky in steep places, after about ten minutes of ascent you reach the place where the path over Krištofojca branches left towards Planina Viševnik, continue straight along the gradually less steep cart track leading through gradually sparser forest. Followed by some easy walking along the path, which later turns slightly right, when the path turns back west you reach the edge of Planina Dedno polje, from where there is still a walk to the central part of the pasture, where next to the shepherds' huts there is also a marked junction.
Bypass the shepherds' huts and cheese dairy on the left and continue straight towards Koča pri Triglavskih jezerih (right Za Kopico valley). From the pasture onwards you begin to ascend moderately, almost imperceptibly a path from the nearby hunting hut joins from the left. A little further the path passes another branch towards Planina Viševnik (path along Griva (1758 m)), and in the next few minutes you reach the upper edge of the spacious Planina Ovčarija, from where a beautiful view opens onto the Bohinj-Tolmin mountains, sometimes called the Lower Bohinj mountains. From here a short descent follows and you reach the junction on the northeastern part of the pasture.
Continue slightly right towards Koča pri Triglavskih jezerih and Mala Tičarica (left Planina Viševnik), and the path soon splits again.
From the split follow the signs for the path via Štapce (straight path via Prode), both leading to Koča pri Triglavskih jezerih, the right one, on which you continue, also towards Mala Tičarica and Zelnarice. Soon leave Planina Ovčarija and the path ascends moderately to steeply through increasingly sparse forest, which higher up is replaced by dwarf pines. After a half-hour ascent, the path levels and brings you to Štapce, where there is the next marked junction.
At Štapce continue slightly right towards Tičarica and Zelnarica (slightly left Koča pri Triglavskih jezerih) and continue the ascent on the path that first climbs through a belt of dwarf pines, then leads to a short steep and especially when wet dangerous-for-slipping jump. Above the jump the path levels and transitions to moderately steep grassy slopes, along which in a few minutes of further walking you ascend to a small saddle, where a marked path to Mala Tičarica branches left, about ten minutes ascent.
Continue towards Zelnarica on a relatively gentle path that first crosses the slopes of Mala and then Velika Tičarica. Just a few dozen meters past the sign "Do not pick flowers!" (sign on the wall) a passage opens left towards Velika Tičarica, about 15 minutes demanding ascent, continue straight on the marked path which north of Velika Tičarica reaches the main ridge.
Past Velika Tičarica the path transitions to a wide grassy ridge along and on which you then ascend. After a few minutes of easy walking, the path begins steeply ascending a partly grassy slope. The steepness soon eases, the path leads to spacious meadows south of the precipitous and overhanging Kopica. Across the spacious meadows walk to the foot of the summit slope of Kopica, then, reaching the cliff edge, the marked path turns right and ascends transversely over a small scree. Behind the scree the path turns left, then begins steeply ascending in a transverse climb. The marked path near a small indistinct depression approaches the ridge and turns slightly right.
At this point a passage opens left to Kopica, to whose summit is about five minutes, continue on the marked path which approaches the ridge and turns right. Ahead the path gradually transitions to a very steep and slip-dangerous slope, after about 30 meters of somewhat exposed section the slope becomes somewhat less steep. Follows a transverse ascent right, the path leads somewhat below the ridge, a bit further you reach the summit slope of Mala Zelnarica. Here the path again begins to ascend more steeply and after about 15 minutes of increasingly scenic walking brings you to the summit of Mala Zelnarica, from which an exceptional view opens towards the Triglav Lakes Valley.
Starting point - Planina pri Jezeru 1:00, Planina pri Jezeru - Planina Dedno polje 0:30, Planina Dedno polje - Planina Ovčarija 0:45, Planina Ovčarija - Štapce 0:35, Štapce - crossroads below Mala Tičarica 0:25, crossroads below Mala Tičarica - turn-off for Velika Tičarica 0:20, turn-off for Velika Tičarica - turn-off for Kopica 0:50, turn-off for Kopica - Mala Zelnarica 0:45.

Along the route: Razpotje Pungrat (1255m), Razpotje pod Vodičnim vrhom (1449m), Koča na Planini pri Jezeru (1453m), Razpotje Krištofojca (1512m), Planina Dedno Polje (1560m), Planina Ovčarija (1660m), Štapce (1851m), Razpotje pod Malo Tičarico (2008m), Odcep za Veliko Tičarico (2020m), Odcep za Kopico (2168m)

The trip can be extended to the following destinations: Velika Zelnarica

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