Plave - Sveta Gora (via Kuk and Vodice)

Access to starting point:
A) First, we drive to Nova Gorica, and then we continue driving in the direction of Bovec and Tolmin. Further, we drive through the valley of the Soča, and on the main road we drive to the settlement Plave, where at the crossroads, where the road to Paljevo branches off to the right, the described path begins. Because at the starting point there are no arranged parking spots, we have to park somewhere else, best at some suitable spot along the road before or after the settlement, or on the other side of the river Soča near the little church or somewhere on the edge of the village.
B) We drive to the settlement Most na Soči, and from there we drive towards Nova Gorica. When we arrive at the settlement Plave, or at the crossroads where the road towards the settlement Paljevo branches off to the left, we are at the beginning of the described path. Because at the starting point there are no arranged parking spots, we have to park somewhere else, best at some suitable spot along the road before or after the settlement, or on the other side of the river Soča near the little church or somewhere on the edge of the village.

Path description:
From the settlement Plave we continue on the asphalt road in the direction of Paljevo. The path first leads past a few houses, then quickly brings us to the left hairpin turn, where on a smaller building there is a NOB marker. We continue on the fairly panoramic road, which past the bench brings us to the right hairpin turn, where straight ahead a footpath to Prižnica (elevation 383) continues, and we continue right, further on the road. Further, for some time we cross the slopes to the right, then, a little after crossing the torrent stream, in the hairpin the road turns sharply left. From the road, along which we continue walking, a nice view opens towards Korada and Prižnica. When the road from the slopes almost transitions to more level terrain, on the right side we notice a cart track and beside it unofficial signs for Kuk (signs for Kuk are made with spray).
The path ahead runs through the forest, leading us across several junctions, where we follow the signs for Kuk or the dots on the trees. On sections somewhat more overgrown, the path, which for most of the time ascends moderately, higher up flattens completely, then gradually turns a little to the right, where it begins to ascend ever steeper. A few minutes of steep ascent follow, then the path brings us under the forested ridge, where it continues to the left. A few minutes of easy walking right under the ridge follow, then the path brings us out of the forest to the panoramic takeoff site of Kuk, where there is also a small shelter.
Further, the better-trodden path continues left of the shelter and traverses under the summit of Kuk. At the place where we approach the summit of Kuk most closely, we can leave the trail and in a minute ascend to the forested Kuk, otherwise we continue on the path, which begins to descend transversely. After a few minutes of transverse descent we arrive at the macadam road, which we reach right at the marked junction.
From the junction a path branches off sharply to the left towards the settlement Paljevo, to the right the road continues, by which we can reach the settlements Zagora and Zagomila, and we continue straight past the monument, which was erected in June 1916 for the commandant of the 1st Mountain Brigade FML Guido Novak von Arienti. Behind the monument the road turns slightly left, then after a few minutes brings us to the hamlet Vodice. Behind Vodice we leave the road and continue the path right in the direction of the monument (inscription on the sign). The path ahead turns even a bit more to the right and brings us out of the forest onto a grassy hayfield, where it continues along the outer edge of the pasture fence. With nice views of the surrounding hills and the Julian Alps, we return to the forest in a few minutes. The path continues through the forest, mostly only gently ascending, then flattens even more and brings us to the forest road, which we reach near the information boards.
At the information boards the forest road continues to the left, leading towards the saddle Preški vrh, a little further on and then right a path leads to the nearby monument pri orlih, further along the worse road the path continues towards the summit Vodice and the mausoleum on the summit. From the information boards to the summit Vodice it is only about 2 minutes of walking.
From Vodice we continue on the marked path, which begins to descend towards the southeast. The path, which descends moderately, only occasionally more steeply, after approximately 15 minutes of descent brings us to a worse forest road, which we follow to the right, and in a few steps we arrive at the marked junction on the saddle Preški vrh.
On the saddle there is a marked junction of several roads, and we continue straight in the direction of Sveta Gora (left Grgar, right Zagora). Approximately 20 minutes of ascent with occasional nice views follow, and the path brings us to the large parking lot below Sveta Gora. From the parking lot we continue on the stone steps and ascend to the summit of Sveta Gora on them.
Plave - Kuk 1:35, Kuk - Vodice 45 minutes, Vodice - Sveta Gora 45 minutes.

On the way: Kuk nad Paljevim (612m), Vodice (555m), Vodice (651m), Preški vrh (504m)