ranyhyn - Recent messages

Today up the SW gully and past Kališče back to Povelj.
Started early (5:20), because I didn't know how long the gully stays in the shade or how long the conditions would be ok. Snow (avalanche debris) starts a bit below Planina Javornik. It was mostly hard and frozen, but not icy. I stayed in the shade all the way to the exit from the gully.
Before heading toward the valley (at 9:30) I checked the gully once more, which was still completely in the shade at that time.

The path to Kališče though... In places the snow had softened enough to be a slide. In other places still hard, in the last part (before reaching Bašeljsko sedlo) it sank up to my hips in spots. I was very glad to have the ice axe.

Hi Matej,

I was there on Sunday and didn't see any windbreaker, though I wasn't specifically paying attention to it.

Also, I'd ask some good soul who knows the best passages well to tell me where to go at that main 150m tower. I went quite left of the central chimney/crack, which was quite demanding (ran into two older pegs). I'm attaching a picture of the tower for a better idea.

Hi ssssssss,
what is demanding and what not is very relative. Since quite a lot has been said on this topic, maybe I would highlight another thing, namely that you mention a summer tour but nothing about when in summer. If you really extend via Kotlice, in early summer watch out for possible snowfields under Brana. True this year there wasn't much snow but in those gullies it can stay quite long.
Good luck!

Yesterday (2 May) climbed this part of the ridge.

My personal opinion is that it can be a bit too hard for the average pathless lover - descent from Kamniški Dedec is very demanding, finding best passages/directions requires lots of experience, some climbing details (up and down) reach (or even exceed) II grade.

Pictures are of great help, but true, pictures 23,24,25,26 and 27 are a bit less useful because taken backwards.

Last two towers are also one big "ruin", where the alpinist joke that in certain directions you have to push holds into the rock comes true.

At the end it awaits you (unless I missed something) breaking through dense bushes. Basically I followed the "path" which is now completely overgrown, but it seems it was more passable in the past, as some branches look cut some time ago.

But the day was exceptionally well used, as it's a ridge worth its name.

The forum post inspired me to "knock out" this loop today. The first part, to Vrh Velikih Gač, was phenomenal for me - very nice ridge, nice scenic path... really super. I took a direct approach, leaving the clearly visible trail and moving left onto the bare ridge right after passing all the bigger drops. That way I went past the upside-down blue bucket and (seems like) former viewpoint, which is overgrown.
The return ridge (over Čisovec, Šobrove čeri and Ukanov Štruc) personally impressed me much less. Yes, the terrain is wilder, but I didn't see any standout there. Definitely more exciting than the marked path below But on the pathless ascent to Šentanski vrh I stumbled upon a very concentrated auricula patch.

Maybe this about the location of Mali vrh... GPS showed me it's the scenic peak with 3 cairns up there.

I was up there yesterday - conditions very summery, no traces of any snow, not even on the north side.

Has anyone been up there in the last week? What are the conditions?

Yesterday on MMP - first time in this area and first time on these paths (up via Kotle and down past 3 larches). And completely alone.

As for conditions - towards the notch in the last part still snowfield, which could probably be bypassed, but allows by far the most convenient ascent (on left, facing up, from it all loose and crumbly, on right locally the gully so deep and close to wall that hard to pass).

Regarding the path - maybe fog affected my ascent via Kotle (somewhere from 1000 to 2000m altitude) so harder to find right path, but locally due to multiple trodden "paths" hard to tell which is right, especially when path hits/among rocks or scree. Missed several times by few meters (corrected with digital map and drawn route). Most critical to me the passage to middle kotel (or around pic 39 in this description https://www.hribi.net/izlet/gozd_martuljek_na_peceh_cez_kotle/1/1384/2314). Just before you go around small sinkhole under walls and can easily miss that from there need to descend a bit - again due to well-trodden "path" climbing through grass towards scree. I continued there too until so high that descent back maybe even more dangerous and then extricated via scree past rock edge, climbing few meters down very exposed terrain and ascent via small (steep exposed) gully. That I'm not the only one who "succeeds" proves the cairn waiting at gully exit.

So lots of caution to all first-timers on this path!

Olševa?

Trobec, you're right, this is Kalški greben

Not Karavanke

Neither of these two. I've never seen more than 10 people up there at once before, but then there were cca 40 of us, more than half touring skiers.

Also not.

No and no. But Begunjščica is at least the closest by air distance.

Not Rodica.