Slovenian Mountain Trail on Slovenian Sports Day

The Alpine Association of Slovenia, the largest sports organization in the country, proudly celebrates Slovenian Sports Day, also with a thought for the maintenance of the network of hiking trails, which is the largest sports facility in Slovenia. The first among them, the Slovenian Mountain Trail, the most popular long-distance trail in our country and one of the oldest in the world, maintains its original form ahead of its 70th anniversary, and contributes to the unforgettable mountain experience with the new graphic design of the SMT, information boards, pictorial display in maPZS, and regular maintenance work on the trail.



The Alpine Association of Slovenia, with more than 58 thousand members in 293 clubs, is the largest sports organization in Slovenia, which maintains a network of hiking trails totaling more than 10,000 kilometers. Along these hiking trails, which represent the largest sports facility in the country and are freely accessible to everyone, one could circle Slovenia along its state border more than seven times. They are maintained by path markers, members of alpine clubs who are custodians of the hiking trails. Currently, 885 PZS path markers are registered, who voluntarily lengthen, mark, clean, and maintain the hiking trails for the benefit of all of us.

The most popular long-distance trail in Slovenia and one of the oldest in Europe and the world is the Slovenian Mountain Trail (SMT), which was opened in 1953 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of organized mountaineering in Slovenia, on the initiative of its conceptual father Ivan Šumljak (1899-1984), a geography professor, chronicler, versatile mountaineer, and active path marker of PD Maribor Matica. The Slovenian Mountain Trail is marked by the number 1 and the Knafelc mark (red circle with a white dot in the center), which will celebrate 100 years next year of tireless guidance of hikers; like the SMT, the mark is also a protected trademark.



The Slovenian Mountain Trail runs from northeast to southwest Slovenia mostly through mountainous areas - from Maribor across Pohorje, Kamnik-Savinja Alps, and Karavanke to Mojstrana, where it enters the Julian Alps and ascends some of the highest Slovenian peaks; then it heads west and south to Debeleg rtič at Ankaran on the Adriatic Sea. Its popularity is also evidenced by the fact that more than 200 thousand Logbooks of the Slovenian Mountain Trail have been issued, and to date, 10,656 hikers have completed it entirely, including many foreigners. The book guide Slovenian Mountain Trail in Slovenian and English has also become recognizable among users.

On the occasion of the approaching 70th anniversary of the legendary trail, which we will mark in 2023, the Alpine Association strives for greater recognition and maintenance of the SMT, which received a new graphic design in spring 2020. Following the example of modern hiking trails emerging abroad and at home, the umbrella alpine organization installed information boards about the Slovenian Mountain Trail at all key points along the trail in 2021 and additionally marked the trail on the ground, with an update and upgrade of the website spp.pzs.si also promised. The SMT has a pictorial display in maPZS this year, which can help even on the terrain during the hike with a smartphone. In the summer, it also established an Instagram page Slovenian Mountain Trail, which promotes the trail through photographic material in English and invites visitors to an Unforgettable Mountain Experience in the Slovenian mountains, which is also the trail's slogan.



PZS has received comments from the field several times that the trail to Razor is too demanding to be included in the Slovenian Mountain Trail. "The technical team of path markers inspected the trail and, under the direction of Jože and Juri Vidic, installed additional foot pegs this year on the most demanding section to aid progress. Nevertheless, the trail from Planja saddle to Razor remains a very demanding hiking trail, such as those encountered on many sections of the Slovenian Mountain Trail. However, upon inspection after the action, it turned out that the trail from Planja saddle to Mlinarica is in poor condition and must be closed for safety reasons. The action will have to wait until next year," explains PZS professional collaborator Katarina Kotnik. If the weather allows work on the terrain this year, the path markers still have to repair the trail from Ledine to Koroška Rinka, which is also the worst hiking trail of 2021. Due to the exposure of the terrain and natural influences, it will also need to be relocated in the upper part.


For the second year, blind and visually impaired persons are setting off on the SMT as part of the action Blind and Visually Impaired on the Slovenian Mountain Trail, prepared by the Committee for Persons with Disabilities/Special Needs, which operates under the auspices of the Alpine Association of Slovenia. Last year and this year, the blind and visually impaired have thus collected 24 SMT stamps and four extension SMT stamps together.



In recent years, several proposals for the expansion and extension of the SMT have emerged in public, which Damjan Omerzu, General Secretary of the Alpine Association of Slovenia, comments on: "Occasionally, ideas emerge in Slovenia to extend the Slovenian Mountain Trail, perhaps even to establish a circular trail, which was one of the ideas at its inception. But the Slovenian Mountain Trail is almost 70 years old, ingrained in people's consciousness, running from Maribor through the Slovenian mountains to our sea. More than ten thousand people have already walked or run it, and as such, the Slovenian Mountain Trail is one and only, so the Alpine Association of Slovenia as the bearer of the SMT does not support major changes and will not implement them. We assess that Slovenia has perhaps even too many circular trails or transversals, as the situation shows that maintenance and marking are financially and personnel-wise very demanding, and many have been neglected and poorly marked just a few years after establishment. Of course, it is always possible to chart a new loop or connection on the map in Slovenia; the possibilities are practically unlimited. However, it is more sensible to direct tourism development funds to existing trails, raise them to a higher level, and ensure continuity and coexistence with the local environment through which they run."


The Alpine Association of Slovenia will also co-shape the European Week of Sport this year, both through sports-recreational events of numerous alpine clubs and at the market of the Olympic Committee - Association of Sports Federations and the Olympic Festival. On Slovenian Sports Day on Thursday, September 23, PZS at the market in Ljubljana's Tivoli prepares educational workshops for children on the theme of mountaineering: a large puzzle with a mark that reminds to take trash back to the valley, and getting to know equipment for visiting the mountains. At the Olympic Festival, which will be on September 25 and 26 at Kongresni trg in Ljubljana, visitors will be able to try sport climbing.


What do we need to know about the Slovenian Mountain Trail?

• Its length is 617.5 km,

• it runs from Maribor to Debeleg rtič,

• it is marked with the red-white Knafelc mark and the number 1 next to it,

• it has 80 checkpoints,

• it connects at least 55 mountain huts,

• it ascends at least 35 mountain peaks,

• it is divided into 43 stages,

• 48 alpine clubs are custodians of the trail,

• there are 5 larger places, 5 cities, and 3 museums on the trail,

• the elevation difference is around 37,300 m ascent and 37,600 m descent,

• an average hiker needs 37 days for it,

• Marjan Zupančič set the record in 2020: 6 days, 12 hours, and 58 minutes.