Cycling in Slovenian littoral
Slovenian coast offers a very interesting bike tours at sea and in the hinterland. Cycling is possible due to the mild climate all year round. Road gradients are just right so long and steep for good as well as less prepared riders. Mountainous of Slovenian Littoral and good interconnectedness with asphalt's roads, offers a beautiful bicycling opportunities through Italian, Slovenian and Croatian Istria. If you wil drive only a few kilometres from the main connecting roads to secondary roads you will find local roads with very little of traffic there, but very idyllic landscape. Cycling in the area is suitable for both road and mountain bikes as well.
From Trieste to the border between Slovenia and Croatia
Description of the line:
Cycling tour describes the trip that is suitable for road bikes. Start of the trip is located in the village Crogole on the outskirts Italian city of Trieste. The track passes through the hilly villages of Slovenian coast and the goal of the tour is the medieval town of Oprtalj Croatia. The entire trip is about 150 kilometres long, where you have to overcome more than 2700m of elevation.
From the village of Crogole you will climb to the the Slovenian karst plateau. From afar fortress of Socerb wil be visible. The trail goes down to the village Črni Kal and village Kubed (at 18. km). Here begins hilly landscape of the Slovenian littoral. The trail starts with a 15% climb in order to know how the trail would proceed. From here the tour try to keep up the ridge, which of course means that you constantly descend and climb again. The path followed through the villages Kubed, Dvori, Kavaliči, Marezige, Pomjan, Šmarje, Puče, Nova Vas, Sveti Peter and finily to the Dragonja river and border with Croatia. Close the village Sveti Peter is a part of tour with macadam road. You can bypass this part by shortcat on the right side. Finally we descend to the salt pans and border with Croatia.
Cycling to the Oprtalj village
The complete cycling tour is due to a number of climbs and descents pretty difficult. It could be divided into several stages. In the last stage of cycling tour certainly belongs the part from the Slovenian-Croatian border to the medieval town of Oprtalj and back. It is located 378 m above sea level. Oprtalj attracts many visitors with its picturesque appearance. Every year in Oprtalj in July, a festival called “Alpe Adria Folk Fest” is held where folk orchestras from Italy, Slovenia, Austria and Croatia perform. You can cpice the last part of cycling tour with a short climb to the small town of Motovun. Both medieval towns Motovun and Oprtlaj are suitable for the rest and lunch and for sightseeing around the area. Return to the Slovenia - Croatia border run through the valley of the Mirna River at an altitude of only a few meters above sea level. At this part of tour we caught wind that usualy blows in the chest. There is still a long but not steep hill to the city of Buje and descent to the Dragonja valley.
Return to Trieste
Those cyclists who want to ride all the tour at one, here at this place begins last part with three ascents. The first at about 110 km of drive in the village of Parecag, starts the most difficult ascent of the tour with more than 20% inclination and about 300 meters length. To the end of tour it remains yet cycling to the Capodistria - Koper town and long but not steep climb towards the Črni Kal and Socerb village.
The tour is suitable especially in spring, autumn or even in winter season. In the summer - especially at high temperatures is extremely strenuous biking.