Pri Mlinču - Mangart (italijanska pot)

Access to starting point:
A) Via the Rateče border crossing we drive into Italy, then in Trbiž / Tarvisio we turn left in the direction of Predel / Cave del Predil. After a few hundred meters we turn left again in the same direction, then at the intersection by Rabeljsko jezero / Lago del Predil we continue straight on the main road in the direction of Slovenia (right Nevejski preval (Na Žlebeh) / Sella Nevea). There follow a few hairpin turns and driving through the tunnel, then we arrive at the Predel border crossing, after which we drive into Slovenia again. We then start descending, and before the bridge with the largest arch in the Julian Alps (bridge over Mangartski potok (marked on the road sign as bridge Predel 129 m)) we turn left in the direction of Mangart. Immediately after the intersection a side branch of the road branches off, where there is a marked parking lot.
B) From Primorska we drive to Log pod Mangartom, from there we continue driving towards Italy. Before we reach the Predel border crossing, after the Predel bridge (bridge over Mangartski potok) we turn right in the direction of Mangart. We park immediately after the bridge on the marked parking lot by the side branch of the road.

Path description:
From the starting point we continue on the asphalt road leading towards Mangartsko sedlo, ascending along it to the first right turn, or to the spot where it crosses Mangartski potok. At the mentioned turn, before crossing the bridge, we continue straight on the footpath in the direction of Mangartska planina. We continue the path with a nice view of Mangart, on the path ascending parallel to the stream, and a little higher we also cross the Stože landslide, which occurred in November 2000. When we leave the landslide area we gradually enter the forest, through which we moderately ascend to the western edge of Mangartska planina.
When we step onto the mountain pasture we walk to the nearby shepherd hut, behind which we continue on a somewhat overgrown path leading across the mountain pasture. After crossing the mountain pasture we arrive in a belt of forest, then quickly reach a narrower belt of meadow, along which the old abandoned road continues (up to here it is also possible if on the mountain pasture we continue on the road and then at the first junction left towards Mangartsko sedlo). The poorer road or cart track ascends gently, then, when we cross the torrent, it finally turns into a mountain path. There follow a few minutes of moderate ascent, then we cross the asphalt road. On the other side of the road we ascend on gentle steps, then reach a clearing where the path turns left and begins to ascend relatively steeply. After a few minutes of ascent we cross the road again, then only a few steps higher we reach it once more.
Here the marked path continues right (left unmarked path over Gladki rob) and with nice views of Loška stena brings us to a smaller tunnel. Behind the tunnel an even nicer view opens towards Mangart, then, when we arrive in the belt of larch forest, we leave the road and continue left on the marked path that cuts the bend. When after a few steps we step back onto the asphalt road, we merely cross it and continue the ascent on the marked path, which first ascends moderately, then levels out and continues traversing to the right. During the traverse we first arrive at a smaller gully, then also at the torrent gully Nakel (gully Nakel starts already on the border ridge itself, then descends steeply all the way to the river Koritnica (in the lower part the stream flows under the name Ilovec)). We exit the gully traversing to the right, then the path turns left and begins to ascend steeply. We ascend steeply for a few minutes, then approach the torrent again, where the path turns right and ascends traversing over a shorter drop. Behind the drop the path levels out somewhat, then across a mostly grassy slope, with nice views of the surrounding mountains, brings us back to the Mangartska road, which we follow to the right. Soon after stepping onto the road the path brings us to the last tunnel, which is quite long. Since the road is fairly busy, it is good to use a light in the tunnel so that other participants can notice us more easily. Behind the tunnel we cross one more gully, then arrive at a smaller intersection, where we continue left in the direction of Mangartska koča at Mangartsko sedlo. From the intersection there follow only a few minutes of walking and we arrive at the mentioned mountain hut.
Behind the hut we look for the continuation of the marked path leading towards Mangartsko sedlo. The path ahead first ascends gently, then moderately across a panoramic grassy slope. Higher we reach the asphalt road, stepping onto it right at the intersection where the one-way road begins. We continue on the upper right road, from which we soon go left onto the marked footpath (we can also continue on the road and ascend to the border ridge or the traverse path below Travnik from the left serpentine a few minutes away), along which past the lesser-known two-thousander (Rdeča glava 2043 m) we ascend to Mangartsko sedlo.
Before reaching the saddle we cross the road once more, then, upon reaching the ridge, we continue right. The path ahead leads us with nice views towards the Mangartska (Belopeška, also Klanška) lakes and other surrounding mountains, with the view reaching all the way to the Carnic Alps, Gailtal Alps and High Tauern. There follows a few-minute traverse, then from the right the previously mentioned path joins, which bypasses Mangartsko sedlo. After traversing Travnik or Strmi nos, there follows a traverse below the steep Rateški Mali Mangart, then we quickly reach the marked junction where the Italian and Slovenian paths separate.
We continue left on the technically easier Italian path, which after a short ascent passes to the Italian side of the Mangart massif. Further on we first ascend only moderately, but already after a few minutes the path becomes quite steep and brings us to smooth rocky slabs, where some fixed protections, mainly cables, assist us. After this section the path turns somewhat to the left and passes onto steep scree, where in early summer snow patches still linger (ice axe, crampons). Across the scree we ascend traversing, and the path continues turning more and more to the right. The path, which for most of its length is also exposed to falling rocks, higher passes to the eastern side of the mountain, where there is a marked junction.
We continue right in the direction of Mangart (left Jalovec, Vevnica, Tamar) on the path which continues turning to the right. Higher we cross one more gully, then begin ascending quite steeply on a steep slope which due to considerable traffic is additionally exposed to falling rocks. When the path levels out after a few minutes, only a few dozen steps separate us from the summit, amid exceptional views of the near and far surroundings.
Pri Mlinču - Mangartska planina 35 minutes, Mangartska planina - Mangartska koča 1:45, Mangartska koča - Mangartsko sedlo 25 minutes, Mangartsko sedlo - Mangart 2:00.

On the way: Mangartska planina (1295m), Mangartska koča mountain hut (1906m), Mangartsko sedlo (2055m)