Inspired by the freshness of the green expanses of the Debeli Rtič Landscape Park, ascend to the prehistoric home of our ancestors in Elerji. From there, the path continues to Socerb, where the Karst passes into the picturesque Šavrini hills. Indulge in the most beautiful views of the sea that are offered during your wanderings around the Karst edge and discover the treasures of the heritage of the Istrian countryside in the stone clustered villages of the Koper hinterland. After watching the Dance of Dead in Hrastovlje, be sure to toast to life at the first wine fountain in Slovenia!
9.00 Ressel grove
Take a walk along the Jurjev hill – one of the best preserved areas with an autochthonous forest, where there is also Ressel grove and a forest educational trail.
10.00 Park in stare Milje
Just a stone’s throw from the border with neighbouring Italy, on a 170-metre-high hill, is the Stare milje Park, which combines an archeological site and a shrine – a church. From here, there is a beautiful view of the sea. Various cultural events also take place in the park.
10.45 Kaštelir nad elerji
The highest peak of the Milje peninsula and one of the largest prehistoric forts in this area – Kaštelir nad Elerji. In the Middle Bronze Age, it was the latter among the most important in the eastern part of the northern Adriatic.
11.15 Socerb
Due to its strategic location, Socerb Castle was extremely important in the past, but today it is home to a restaurant. Below the castle there is a view of the Holy Cave, from the location there are beautiful views of the Gulf of Trieste and Koper.
Lunch
13.30 Črni Kal
Črni Kal – a village with a rich history, important archeological sites and cultural remains from the Paleolithic period. The history of free climbing in Slovenia was written in the sunny limestone walls above the village, and today there is a modern climbing area.
15.00 Kubed
Kubed, which the locals call “Čubed”, is known for the preserved part of the medieval fortress and the church of St. Florian from 1860, standing on a steep rocky hill above the village.
15.30 Podpeč
The village, which from a distance looks like a furnace, has historically been an intelligence and security station on the route that crosses the Karst edge. Today, a 17-meter-high defensive tower can still be seen here.
16.15 Zanigrad
An Istrian village without permanent residents is strongly connected to the Karst edge. Here we find the remains of a castle, which once represented the highest fortress above the valley of the river Rižana. It is from the fort that its name ‘last castle’ (the last fort) originates.
16.45 Hrastovlje
A Mediterranean village internationally known for the frescoes of a local church called the Dance of Dead. The painting inthe church ranks at the very top of the rich treasury of medieval wall paintings in Slovenia.
17.45 Marezige
The wine village with its beautiful view of the sea and the next destination on the list also boasts the first wine fountain for wine tasting in Slovenia. There are several archaeological sites in the village.
If you want more active discovering, you can also go on a trip with electric bikes.
