Račja vas - Orljak (Čičarija)

Access to starting point:
We leave the Primorska highway at the Kastelec exit and follow the signs for Podgorje. Over the Podgorje border crossing, we enter Croatia. We drive through Jelovice to Vodice, where we turn right. Then we drive through Dane to the next crossroad, where we turn left toward Račja vas. We drive through Rašpor and soon arrive at Račja vas, where we park in a suitable spot by the church.

Path description:
From the starting point, we go across the road to the signposts and continue towards Orljak. We walk on a cart track past a few houses to the next crossing, where a path branches off to the left towards Gomila and Sveta Jelena. We continue on the cart track, which slightly ascends. We walk along it for approximately 20 minutes, when it makes a turn, and we pass into a small, indistinct valley, then cross an edge and arrive at a plateau. We soon reach a crossing where another path branches off to the left towards Gomila, and we continue slightly to the right. The cart track ascends a little more steeply a few times, and we are again at an unmarked crossing below Vidonj vrh, where the path branches off to the left toward Mocvil. We continue on the cart track over a short steep slope and are again at a crossing, where we turn right onto a rougher cart track and soon turn right again onto a logging trail. We ascend through the forest, then the logging trail turns to the left and crosses the slopes. The logging trail soon turns into a path and leads us above a cave, where there is a danger of slipping, as indicated by a warning sign on a tree. Beyond the cave, the path begins to ascend steeply and makes a turn. After approximately 15 minutes of ascent, the path flattens and emerges from the forest, where we can already see a cross at the top, from which a view opens up.
The description and pictures refer to the condition in October 2024.