Žiri - Sivka (via Vrsnik)

Access to starting point:
A) From Železniki, Kranj or Medvode we drive to Škofja Loka, and from there we continue driving in the direction of Gorenja vas in Poljanska dolina and Žiri. From Žiri we continue towards Logatec, and then still before the end of the settlement we arrive at the inn Gostilna Lenger and a few tens of meters further to the crossroad, where the main road towards Logatec turns left, and straight ahead the road continues towards Idrija. We park in a suitable spot at the crossroad. A large parking lot is at the inn Gostilna Lenger, but it is polite to ask the employees beforehand if we may park on the mentioned parking lot.
B) From Horjul or Polhov Gradec we drive to Šentjošt above Horjul, and from there we continue driving towards Smrečje. When we reach the main road Podlipa - Žiri, we follow it to the right to Žiri. When in Žiri we reach the main road Škofja Loka - Logatec, we follow it to the left past the parish church and the inn and pizzeria Lenger to the crossroad, where the main road towards Logatec turns left, and straight ahead the road continues towards Idrija. We park in a suitable spot at the crossroad. A large parking lot is at the inn Gostilna Lenger, but it is polite to ask the employees beforehand if we may park on the mentioned parking lot.
C) From the highway Ljubljana - Koper we take the exit Vrhnika, and when we reach the old road Ljubljana - Logatec we continue towards Logatec but only briefly, since at the next crossroad we continue right towards Horjul. The road ahead leads through Vrhnika for a short time, later through the outskirts of Stara Vrhnika, and then soon we leave the road towards Horjul and continue slightly left towards Smrečje. After Smrečje the road starts descending towards Račeva and Žiri. When in Žiri we reach the main road Škofja Loka - Logatec, we follow it to the left past the parish church and the inn and pizzeria Lenger to the crossroad, where the main road towards Logatec turns left, and straight ahead the road continues towards Idrija. We park in a suitable spot at the crossroad. A large parking lot is at the inn Gostilna Lenger, but it is polite to ask the employees beforehand if we may park on the mentioned parking lot.
D) From the highway Koper - Ljubljana we take the exit Logatec, and when we reach the old road Logatec - Vrhnika we follow it to the right (first exit from the roundabout), but we drive on it only briefly since signs for Rovte and Žiri then direct us left. After Rovte the road starts descending towards Žiri, and when we reach the mentioned settlement, the road towards Idrija branches off to the left. We park in a suitable spot at the crossroad. A large parking lot is at the inn Gostilna Lenger (the inn is located a few tens of meters ahead from the crossroad towards the center of Žiri), but it is polite to ask the employees beforehand if we may park on the mentioned parking lot.
E) From the road Idrija - Spodnja Idrija, immediately after the end of Idrija we turn right (if coming from the direction of Spodnja Idrija, we turn left before Idrija) over the bridge across the river Idrijca towards the Eurospin store. On the other side of the bridge we arrive in the settlement Mokraška vas, and we stick to the main road leading towards Ledinsko Razpotje and Žiri. Higher up the road takes us through a few hairpin turns, and then we arrive at the settlement Ledinsko Razpotje, where the road gradually flattens. After the neighboring settlement Govejk the road starts descending towards Žiri, and after a few kilometers of descent we arrive in Žiri and shortly after at the crossroad where we reach the main road Žiri - Logatec. We park in a suitable spot at the crossroad. A large parking lot is at the inn Gostilna Lenger (the inn is located a few tens of meters ahead from the crossroad towards the center of Žiri), but it is polite to ask the employees beforehand if we may park on the mentioned parking lot.

Path description:
If we have parked at the inn Gostilna Lenger, we first walk to the crossroad where the road towards Idrija branches off from the main road. From the mentioned crossroad we continue left towards Logatec and continue along the main road, where the path first leads past a religious symbol (cross), and then across the Osojnica stream. Along the main road we walk for a few minutes, then on the house with the address Logaška cesta 46 we notice signs for Vrsnik pri Vidicu, which direct us right onto a somewhat narrower asphalt road that starts ascending initially still between a few houses. After the nearby old bunker the compact settlement ends, and the road gradually turns left, where it subsequently crosses the slopes to the left. The asphalt ends quickly, and the road then leads us below an old quarry, along which a few minutes higher we arrive at the Plesk farm.
After the farm we continue along a grassy cart track to which the markers direct us, along it we walk only about 30 m, then at a smaller right bend we continue left onto an initially worse cart track, which soon turns into a footpath. We continue along a fairly steep path, which soon crosses another cart track, and in summer also a quite overgrown path, with a view of the surrounding hills, brings us to the next cart track crossing, after which through a strip of forest we reach a macadam road. We ascend gently along the road, which on a smaller leveling turns slightly left. From there we walk along the road only briefly, as the markers then lead us right onto a path that quickly widens into an old forested cart track. After the well-preserved border stone of the old Rapallo border from 1920, we also leave the cart track and continue somewhat more to the right onto a well-marked footpath that proceeds along an indistinct ridge. Higher we reach the summit, on which stands an old enclosure, and inside it a newly built structure (on maps the name Vidicov dom appears). When we bypass the enclosure and house on the left side, we step onto the road, and on the trunk of the nearby tree we notice the registration box.
When we step onto the road, we continue in the direction of Ledine. After crossing a strip of forest, we will notice on the right an old Italian structure from the time of the Rapallo border, ahead of us we see the surrounding hills and soon also the church of St. Tomaž, which is located on a scenic elevation between Spodnji and Gornji Vrsnik. When somewhat lower the road turns right, we can go straight ahead in a few minutes across pathless terrain or hay meadows to the church of St. Tomaž, but this approach is not desired, especially during the grass growth period, as we would thereby cause some damage to the farmers (the arranged path to the church leads from the village Gornji Vrsnik). The road ahead also leads past a watering place for animals, then we gradually arrive at the first or last houses in the village. At the first crossroad we continue right (left St. Tomaž 10 minutes) and continue along the asphalt road through the village. At a few smaller crossroads we follow the marked road, at a somewhat larger crossroad already on the other side of the village we continue slightly right in the direction of the marked path towards the village Ledine. A light gradual descent follows, and a fairly scenic road brings us to the place where we join the main road Idrija - Žiri.
We follow the mentioned road to the right, along it we walk only some 10 m, or to the marked junction at Govejk, from which we continue left in the direction of Ledine, to which we have less than an hour of walking left. The path ahead leads past a few houses and a larger enclosure, then after a short ascent it levels out completely. At the next crossroad, where we notice signs for Ledine, we continue right, some 10 m further near the "last" house again right onto the cart track. We continue along the cart track, which after a few minutes from the meadows enters the forest. When after a few minutes we emerge from the forest the path widens into a drivable cart track, somewhat further we also join a somewhat wider road. Along the macadam road in a few minutes we reach an asphalt road, along which we soon arrive at the marked crossroad where a marked path from Ledinsko Razpotje joins from the left.
We continue in the direction of Sivka along a gentle road that gradually brings us to the village Ledine, where on the right we notice Jurečeva šupa (museum collection), on the left on the bus stop shelter attached registration box, in which there is a stamp and logbook.
The path ahead leads through the village, after the end of settlement Ledine sign we continue right, where the markers also direct us. The path then quickly ascends above the village, from where there is a nice view over part of the plateau, on the left along the path we also notice a smaller park or NOB monument.
The asphalt road then moderately ascends over initially still quite scenic slopes, from which a nice view opens up reaching all the way to Trnovski gozd. Higher the road enters the forest, where it leads past a smaller religious symbol, which we notice somewhat to the right off the path. A meadow crossing follows, then we ascend through the forest for a few more minutes. The main road higher brings us out of the forest, where in a few steps we arrive at the marked junction by the chapel.
From the mentioned junction we continue left (right Bevkov vrh, Ermanovec and also Mrzli vrh, for the latter there are no signs at the junction) and continue along a gentle macadam road, which we follow only briefly, as the signs for Sivka then direct us slightly right onto a footpath that after a few steps enters the forest. When we enter the forest the path ascends moderately and after about 5 minutes of further walking brings us to the summit of Sivka, where the registration box is located.
Description and pictures refer to the condition in 2015 (January).

On the way: Vidicov dom (764m), Gornji Vrsnik (715m), Govejk (710m), Ledine (790m)