Day 6: Trenta to Bovec Slovenia

Fourth day on the Alpe Adria Trail!

Our stay in the tiny village of Trenta was wonderful! How can it be anything but wonderful when you wake up to this mountain view?

We walked from Trenta to Bovec today, covering 14 miles, mostly downhill.

We grabbed breakfast and trail lunch at the corner (only) grocery store in Trenta—our typical fare of cured meats, bread, and cheese.

Our hot lattes came from a vending machine outside the store. They were good enough that we went back for seconds!

Our trail followed the Soča River all day. The river is unbelievably clear, and the white river rocks give the water a stunning aquamarine hue.

Can you believe this color?! Looks like it should be tropical, but we checked and it’s quite brisk! We took so many photos of this hypnotic river today…I’ll spare you all and only show a couple.

We crossed some cable bridges where we could see where the river had made narrow cuts through the rock. The gorges were only 6 ft wide in places

We stopped for lunch along the riverbank and enjoyed our meats and cheeses… well, most of the cheese. As many of you know, I have an affection for stinky cheeses, but today I reached my limit. This came in the form of a tiny, innocent-looking brick of cheese from the grocery store. Google Translate told me it was “fresh,” so I expected something soft and spreadable for our bread.

Cute package … little blue elepant. It must be good!

When we stopped for lunch, I unwrapped the cheese and was surprised to find it had a slightly brown rind.

I wasn’t deterred by brownish rind—Norwegian cheese and Limburger are both brown-tinged, after all.

I cut the brick in two to share with Bob, and we took a bite at the same time. It was foul. The texture wasn’t like cheese at all—crumbly, chalky, and downright gross. We both spit it out and tossed it into the river. It would have made excellent fish bait.

I looked forward to writing about the terrible Slovenian cheese for tonight’s blog, but when I looked it up online, I realized Slovenians actually make excellent cheese. It turns out I had translated poorly. The package said “fresh,” but the second word wasn’t “cheese”—it was “yeast.” If you’re ever tempted to snack on a slice of fresh yeast, Bob and I encourage you to pass! From now on, Bob and I will refer fresh yeast as “blue elephant cheese”.

Ok- just two more water pics. We took a lot of quick breaks just to stop and admire the stunning water color.

Bovec is a charming alpine town with winding streets. We’re staying in a wonderful apartment close to the center of town. Our host greeted us warmly and made sure we were settled in. A short while later, he returned with some homemade schnapps to share. What a welcoming place!

Such a great host! And a lovely apartment !

When we started looking for a spot for dinner, we noticed that nearly every restaurant in town had “burgers and fries” as their specialty. Suddenly, that’s all we wanted! We ended up sharing a table with a fun Scottish-German couple and had a great time swapping travel stories. It turns out we’ve been to some of the same places, including a tiny resort where Bob and I honeymooned in the Cook Islands. BTW - The burgers and fries in Slovenia are fantastic!

We learned that a large portion of tomorrow’s 14-mile trail to Drežnica, Slovenia, is closed for construction. We’ve been advised to take a bus to another town and hike an alternate, much shorter route to Drežnica. Our feet are really looking forward to a short day!

That’s all for now!