This is about to get real…slippery

Wednesday, May 21, 2025

Stage 9 of the Juliana Trail

Podbrdo to Grahovo ob Baci ~ 35,000 steps

Today was a very big day.  In terms of mileage, the day does not seem so big, but when you factor in the elevation gain and loss, it was very big indeed.

It’s also our 21st wedding anniversary!

We woke up about 6 am and slowly got ready. We fixed breakfast from the self-service pantry and from items we picked up from the market. Farm fresh eggs, yogurt, and a doughnut, plus Nathan fixed us espressos from the machine in our room.

As we left our apartment, it started to rain, and by the time we got down to the ATM, we decided to put rain jackets on. It’s not so much of a rain as it is a slow, persistent drizzle. I decided to run back to our room, where our bags are waiting for the luggage transfer, and grab my rain hat.

As we left Podbrdo, the climbing began. The path was really quite steep, and quite slippery with the moisture.

The elevation gain was substantial, 975 M up, and 1179 M down throughout the day, and so steep.

We walked straight up, no switchbacks, all under a light drizzle. The temps were in the 50s, but with all that exertion, and our rain jackets on, we were super sweaty.

The views were not as spectacular as if it had not been rainy, but the clouds were gorgeous hanging out over the valley.

We saw a bunch of wildlife on the trail: a salamander, a huge black snake, a wild boar piglet, another smaller snake, and numerous snails and slugs.

The plant life is similar to the other days: stinging nettle (I can confirm it!), wild oregano by the roadside, ferns and numerous wildflowers.

The drizzly rain stopped by mid morning, and we spent most of the day hiking under overcast skies.

We sat and had lunch on a rock wall, and by now I’m pretty certain we’re running behind. We keep hiking, and its primarily downhill, with some uphill sprinkled in.

By 2:30, we’re no where near where we need to be, and we try to hustle, but the downhills are still quite slippery, and there are a number of places where trees have fallen or water has washed out the path and we need to take care to not fall.

We passed through the last town on today’s stage, get a little turned around, but manage to find our guesthouse with the help of some locals. Another kilometer down the way, and uphill…I did not sign up for this.

We finally find our place, Hisa Brdo guesthouse, and ring the bell. We point out our muddy boots, and they have us take our shoes off outside, and put on slippers. Roger and Louise show us to our room, and ask if we’d like our dinner at 6 or 7 pm.

Our bags have arrived, so we take time to shower and freshen up, before we join Roger and the other guests down on the terrace for a drink and socializing.

Dinner is served at 6 pm, and we enjoy the company of Roger and the other guests over our pesto pasta, salad, and garlic bread.

At the end of our meal, Roger brings out the local schnapps to celebrate our anniversary, and we say good night to everyone.

There is a thunderstorm overhead, and the view of the storm and the valley from our room is magical.