Žovneško jezero - Holy Mother of God on Čreta

Access to starting point:
A) From the Ljubljana–Maribor highway, take the Vransko exit, then continue driving on the parallel old road in the direction of Celje. A little after the place Kapla, leave the main road and continue driving left in the direction of Braslovče. Further we drive through Gomilsko, following the road towards Braslovče to the spot where signs for Žovnek Castle direct us left. Further, we drive on a somewhat narrower road beside Žovneško Lake to the spot where on a power line pole we notice trail markers for Žovnek Castle. Because at the starting point there are no appropriate parking spots, it is better to park already a little lower at an appropriate place by the road, or we can drive higher towards Žovnek Castle along the road and then park there at an appropriate place by the road.
B) From the Maribor–Ljubljana highway, take the Šentrupert exit, then continue driving in the direction of Mozirje. At the place Parižlje leave the main road and continue driving on a local road towards the place Spodnje Gorče. Here we cross the main road Gomilsko–Braslovče and continue driving in the direction of the village and Žovnek Castle. Further, we drive on a somewhat narrower road beside Žovneško Lake to the spot where on a power line pole we notice trail markers for Žovnek Castle. Because at the starting point there are no appropriate parking spots, it is better to park already a little lower at an appropriate place by the road, or we can drive higher towards Žovnek Castle along the road and then park there at an appropriate place by the road.

Path description:
From the power line pole we head right across the meadow to the edge of the forest, where on a tree we notice a somewhat larger blaze. Here the path enters the forest, which begins to ascend relatively steeply. The path soon levels out and leads us to a wider cart track along which we walk to a smaller junction. Here we continue left uphill (the right path bypasses Žovnek Castle) and continue the ascent along a steep path, along which after 2 minutes of further walking we arrive at Žovnek Castle.
At the castle we step onto the road down which we descend to the first junction; there we continue along the upper right road, which we follow for only a few steps since the blazes then direct us left onto an ascending cart track. Further on we ascend transversely for a while above the torrent gully, cross it higher up, then climb to the nearby macadam road, which we follow to the right. The path continues past the NOB monument and the hunting lodge Lovski dom pod Grmado to a junction, where we turn sharply left towards Čreta. Further on we ascend for some time along a relatively scenic road, then signs for Čreta direct us sharply left onto a cart track or wider path, which higher up crosses the macadam road. The path continues ascending briefly through the forest before leading us to a grassy hay meadow, across which we climb to a solitary homestead.
Above the homestead we reach a small monument and chapel, where the path turns right into the forest. We climb through a belt of forest and scrub, the path returns to the road, which we follow to the right. Further on we walk along the road for some time; it takes us past a larger monument and later a small hamlet to a marked junction.
We continue along the left road (straight to Dom Dobrovlje, Bezovec and Letuš), which we follow for only about 10 steps, since signs for Čreta then direct us left onto a marked cart track. The path ahead ascends gently to moderately for some time, then leads us to the next NOB monument, after which the path begins gradually to descend. After a short descent we reach a small hamlet, which the marked path bypasses on the left side, then in a moderate ascent over an increasingly panoramic slope we climb to the church of the Holy Mother of God.

On the way: Grad Žovnek (409m), Lovski dom pod Grmado (510m)

Trip can be extended to: Dom na Čreti ( 10 min) , Vrhe ( 5 min)