Trate / Johannsenruhe - Vertatscha/Vrtača

Access to starting point:
A) Through the Karawanks Tunnel, we drive to Austria, and then we drive on the highway towards Beljaku, which we leave on the first exit. From the point, when we left the highway, we follow the signs for Šentjakob v Rožu / Sankt Jakob im Rosental. When we get to the mentioned settlement we drive on the main road past Podgora / Maria Elend and settlement Sveče / Suetschach to the settlement Bistrica v Rožu / Feistritz im Rosental, where before the stores Billa and Penny we turn right in the direction of the valley Rute / Bärental. About 100 meters after we leave the main road we continue left, after that on a little narrower and ascending road we drive to a large parking lot (parking lot is located near a meadow named Trate / Johannsenruhe). From the store Penny to the starting point, there is approximately 9 km narrower asphalt road, macadam is only in the last part. From the entrance in Karawanks Tunnel to the starting point, there is approximately 38 km.
B) Through a border crossing Ljubelj we drive to Austria, where on the main road towards Celovec / Klagenfurt am Wörtersee we drive to the second roundabout, from where we continue driving in the direction of exit Bistrica v Rožu / Feistritz im Rosental (main road towards Celovec we leave before we cross a river Drau). In the mentioned settlement immediately behind the stores Billa and Penny we turn left on a road in the direction of the valley Rute / Bärental. About 100 meters after we leave the main road we continue once again left, after that on a little narrower and ascending road we drive to a large parking lot (parking lot is located near a meadow named Trate / Johannsenruhe. From the store Penny to the starting point, there is approximately 9 km narrower asphalt road, macadam is only in the last part. From the entrance in Ljubelj tunnel to the starting point, there is approximately 32 km.
C) From Dravograd or Slovenj Gradec we drive to Ravne na Koroškem, and then we continue driving in the direction of border crossing Holmec. When we drive in Austria at first we drive towards Pliberk / Bleiburg, and then we follow the signs for Globasnica / Globasnitz and ahead Železna Kapla / Bad Eisenkappel, Borovlje / Ferlach. Behind Borovlje at the roundabout, we join the road through the border crossing Ljubelj. Here in first roundabout we continue in the direction of Celovec / Klagenfurt, in the second in the direction of Bistrica v Rožu / Feistritz im Rosental. In the mentioned settlement immediately behind the stores Billa and Penny we turn left on a road in the direction of the valley Rute / Bärental. About 100 meters after we leave the main road we continue once again left, after that on a little narrower and ascending road we drive to a large parking lot (parking lot is located near a meadow named Trate / Johannsenruhe. From the store Penny to the starting point, there is approximately 9 km narrower asphalt road, macadam is only in the last part. From the border crossing Holmec to the starting point, there is approximately 71 km.

Path description:
At the beginning of the parking lot, we will between the road which is closed with a gate and a parking lot notice the beginning of the marked path which leads towards Celovška koča / Klagenfurter Hütte, Stol, Svačica, Ovčji vrh / Geissberg and other destinations. The marked path a little further joins an unmarked path which leads from the upper part of the parking lot and we few steps ahead join the macadam road which leads towards the already mentioned mountain hut. The road then leads us through riverbed of a torrent and only a little further brings us out of the forest on a meadow (Trate / Johannsenruhe), which is from the starting point only few minutes away. From the meadow a beautiful view opens up and the road then returns into a lane of a forest. When the forest for some time gets thinner in a gentle left turn in the direction of straight unmarked "shortcut" continues. We continue on the road, where a yellow mountain sign point us to. Only about a minute ahead "main" road turns right, and "side" road continues straight. From the mentioned crossroad, we continue on a footpath which continues between the both roads and is further ascending with the road which leads towards the mountain hut Celovška koča. For some time we are ascending diagonally over occasionally steeper slopes, and then we return on a wider macadam road. Further, the marked path few more times crosses the road, and then at the bigger rock or boulder with memorial plaques splits into two parts.
Right leads climbing path on Stol, and we continue straight in the direction of the mountain hut Celovška koča. The path ahead few more times crosses the road, and higher from occasionally thin forest brings us on grazing slopes of the mountain pasture Mačenska planina / Matschacher Alm (cottages on the mountain pasture are few minutes to the left from the marked path). From here follows a light ascent and the path or road in few minutes takes us to the mountain hut Celovška koča.
At the mountain hut, we go right in the direction of the mountain hut Prešernova koča na Stolu. The path ahead at first crosses grassy slopes, and then it slightly descends on a small indistinct saddle. The path ahead starts to ascend steeply on the scree to a little grassy part of the path. A little further while crossing a steeper slopes we get help from a steel cable, but this part of the path in dry doesn't cause problems. Further, we are again ascending on the scree all the way to the border.
From the saddle Belščica, from where the path on Svačica branches off to the left, we continue straight and we continue in the direction of Vrtača, mountain hut Prešernova koča and Zelenica. Few minutes we cross grassy slopes, and then we get to the spot, where caption on rock for Vrtača points us left (straight downwards Stol). Next follows few minutes of relatively easy walking, and then we get to a short but steep grassy slope, on which we diagonally descend. When the descent ends, we get to an ample scree, over which we start in a semicircle ascending. Further worse beaten and on many spots to falling stones exposed path higher few times steeply ascends, and then it turns a little more to the right and brings us on southwestern shoulder of Vrtača, where we join the better beaten path from Ljubelj and Završnica.
Here we continue left and we start ascending steeply on very steep and for slipping dangerous slopes. Higher, the path brings us on the main ridge of Karawanks, where it flattens. Next follows approximately 20 minutes of walking on and by the ridge, which is in parts slightly exposed, and in the entire part dangerous for slipping. This panoramic path we then follow all the way to the top of Vrtača.
The starting point - Celovška koča 1:30, Celovška koča - Vrtača 2:30.

On the way: Klagenfurter Hutte/Celovška koča (1664m), Sedlo Belščica (1840m)