SUMMIT TO SEA
Rocky gorges, Alpine lakes, forest-clad slopes, rugged karst badlands and coastal trails
THE VIEW FROM SREDNJI VRH stretches across the valley of the Sava Dolinka to the Martuljek Group, a sweep of jagged peaks centred on the grey pyramid of Špik, which together form the north-east corner of the Julian Alps. Forest clings to the lower slopes, hiding the silver thread of the Martuljek waterfall, and pausing here beside a lone wooden cottage I can hear the sound of cattle grazing in the lush pastures nearby. So begins the first stretch of the Alpe Adria Trail through Slovenia.
ALPS TO THE ADRIATIC
The Alpe Adria Trail (AAT) is an epic 750km hike through Austria, Slovenia and the north-east corner of Italy, beginning at the foot of the Großglockner, the highest mountain in Austria and the Eastern Alps, and ending on the waterfront in Muggia, on the shore of the Adriatic. On its way it winds through a huge variety of landscapes – from the jagged high peaks of the Hohe Tauern to the rolling wine country of the Italian-Slovenian border, crossing the Karavanke and meandering through the exquisitely beautiful scenery of the Julian Alps, and taking in rocky
