Opening of the new European long-distance path E12 in Slovenia

The Commission for European Long-Distance Paths in Slovenia (KEUPS), in collaboration with the Coastal Mountaineering Association Koper and the Municipality of Koper, invites you on Saturday, December 10, 2016, to the official opening of the European Long-Distance Path E12 SLO, which runs from Škofij to Sečovelj. Hikers will gather at 11 a.m. at Titov trg in Koper, where they will be greeted by representatives of the KEUPS founding organizations, the local community, the coastal mountaineering association, hikers from Croatia and Italy, and a representative of the European Ramblers' Association. After the opening, they will set out from Koper along the new section of the European long-distance path E12 SLO past Izola to Strunjan.



Twelve European long-distance paths run across Europe, three of which also pass through Slovenia: E6, E7, and E12. The European Ramblers' Association takes care of the European long-distance paths. The paths total around 60,000 kilometers and most originally connect Europe from north to south or from east to west, inviting us to walk through hills and valleys, from region to region, from homeland to homeland, from country to country... and all this without borders. In Slovenia, the Commission for European Long-Distance Paths in Slovenia (KEUPS) takes care of 1,000 kilometers of European long-distance paths; it was founded by the Association of Forestry Societies of Slovenia, the Slovenia Forest Service, the Alpine Association of Slovenia, and the Tourist Association of Slovenia. "The mission of the commission is to integrate Slovenia into European flows through rambling along European long-distance paths, to promote public and state interest in European long-distance paths in Slovenia, to spread the idea of walking in nature in the form of rambling and tourism, to acquaint travelers with Slovenia's natural, ethnological, historical, and cultural landmarks and tourist offerings, to popularize Slovenian forests and their importance for tourism, to contribute to the promotion of rambling and the stimulation of marketing in rural tourism, to contribute to rural development, to popularize the protection of nature, the environment, and property in the natural environment, to collaborate in the mutual acquaintance of people at home and people from other countries for coexistence, understanding, and peace in the world, and to promote the European long-distance path as a component of tourism," explains KEUPS President Jože Prah.



European long-distance paths were brought to Slovenia by foresters as early as 1975. The European long-distance path E6 (Ciglarjeva pot), which runs from the Baltic to the Adriatic, passes through Slovenia from Radlje on Koroško to Strunjan on the Adriatic Sea and along the sea past Portorož to Sečovelj. It was opened on May 24, 1975, at Mašun. It is just under 400 kilometers long and can be walked in just over 14 days. It has 39 checkpoints and stamps. The European long-distance path E7 (Naprudnikova pot), which connects the Atlantic and the Black Sea, crosses Slovenia from Robič to Hodoš and was opened on September 12, 1986, at Mačkovec. The Slovenian section of the path is just over 600 kilometers long and has 42 checkpoints with stamps. It can be walked in just over 30 days. E6 and E7 meet in Slovenia not far from the bear tracks in Predgozd, near Mačkovec and Sel pri Robu, in the midst of magnificent forests. The new European long-distance path E12 comes from Spain, France, and Italy to the Slovenian and Croatian Adriatic coast, Montenegro, Greece, and further into the eastern Mediterranean. In Slovenia, it runs along the Coast from Škofij to Sečovelj and will be opened on December 10, 2016. The Slovenian section is just under 50 kilometers long, takes two to three days, and has three checkpoints with stamps - in Ankaran, Strunjan, and Sečovlje. With the help of KEUPS, the caretaker of the new European long-distance path will be the Coastal Mountaineering Association Koper. E6 and E12 meet in Strunjan and continue together to the Croatian border. European long-distance paths in Slovenia are marked with yellow-red trail markers.



In the land of hikers and mountaineers, which attracts more and more foreign visitors with its beauties, the new European long-distance path is also a valuable tourist asset. "The new path will also contribute to the development of the area's tourist infrastructure and the promotion of the tourist region, as it will take hikers through three coastal towns and past numerous tourist facilities that are indispensable for this type of tourism," emphasizes the President of the Commission for European Long-Distance Paths in Slovenia, Jože Prah, who is confirmed by the President of the Tourist Association of Slovenia, Peter Misja: "Slovenia is a hiking destination that offers a range of quality tourist products. TZS with its associations wants to make the hiking product even more alive and interwoven with stories. We are pleased to be opening the new European long-distance path E12, which will connect us even better with Europe."



"By arranging the new European long-distance path E12 from the Italian to the Croatian border and extending E6 from Strunjan to the Croatian border, we have fulfilled international agreements and thereby enabled Croatia and consequently other Western Balkan countries additional connection to the wide and branched network of European long-distance paths. In Slovenia, we have thereby further expanded the offer for hiking and mountaineering, which are very popular forms of leisure activity for both Slovenes and an ever-increasing number of foreign tourists. I thank the Coastal Mountaineering Association Koper for all the volunteer work done to arrange the new European long-distance paths on the Coast," sends off on the E12 path the President of the Alpine Association of Slovenia, Bojan Rotovnik, while the Director of the Slovenia Forest Service, Damjan Oražem, adds: "There are many paths in the forests. Forest roads built by man alone in Slovenia are more than 12,000 kilometers, more than 100,000 kilometers of forest tracks, and even more other paths that serve many purposes, some of them only for travelers. Animals also have their paths in the forest. The essence of moving along any forest path is to respect its purpose, its users, and to preserve it for those who would like to use it after us. What applies to the path itself also applies to the forests that surround the path and give it charm, because of which many people set out on it. On the paths, we sometimes stop, look around, enjoy. But at the same time, we remember that the path is basically intended for walking, driving, or logging. In any case, as the famous saying goes: Even if you are on the right path, you will be run over if you just sit on it."