Climbing Mt. Triglav in winter is truly a fascinating adventure. The landscape turns into a winter wonderland and the climb gets that extra challenging element only snow can supply. Our expert guide will ensure the trip is completely safe. All you need is some prior mountaineering experience of using an ice axe and climbing with crampons and you’re good to go. Join us!
Ascending the 2,863 m (9,395 ft) Mount Triglav is known among hikers and alpinists as a once-in-a-lifetime must. Especially in winter. It’s when the crowds are reduced to a fraction of their summer numbers, making the climb even more enjoyable. The countryside in the Julian Alps is transformed into a magical fairy-tale and a unique kind of surreal calmness sets over the land. With favourable weather conditions giving us the green light, the tour can commence and the thrills begin.
The beaten snow makes the ascent to the Triglav Lodge at Kredarica relatively easy. Stunning scenes of the valleys below and surrounding mountains give us the humbling impression of smallness as we enter the snow-covered Alpine kingdom. Even as a tour on its own, reaching the Kredarica hut in winter is an amazing hiking experience in the mountains. We gradually reach our first base, high above the world. The Kredarica Lodge is officially closed in winter. Only meteorologists call it their ‘permanent home’ during the cold season. Fortunately, these guys are a very hospitable bunch of mountain dwellers. They generously receive us and cook us a nice hot meal. Be warned, however, that the lodge isn’t heated in winter, so a sleeping bag is an obligatory companion, but you can get a blanket for extra warmth.
Early the next morning, our tour continues towards Triglav’s summit. Our guide will support you with climbing ropes and tips, as we make our way across the wild snowy and rocky terrain with our ice axes and crampons squeaking in the snow. As we’ve already mentioned, the weather conditions have to be right for both parts of the ascend to get the go-ahead. After a fun yet challenging climbing session, we finally reach the top, surrounded by the spellbinding wintery panorama. Breath-taking stuff that words cannot really describe! Slowly but surely, we then safely descend back towards the lowlands, one unforgettable experience richer.
NOTE: For experienced and quick mountaineers, the tour is also doable in 1 day if the conditions are right. Consult with a guide.
Distance: 18 km (11,2 mi)
Elevation: 1800 vm (5900 feet)
Itinerary
We will start our tour by picking you up and driving to Krma valley (45min from Bled). Our meeting time depends on the forecast and time of the year and will be set a day or two before the tour. After a quick gear check, we will start walking in the forest, quickly gaining altitude and reaching the Kredarica hut. Our time needed for the ascent largely depends on the snow conditions. It is also where we go through the basics of crampons and ice axe use.
At the hut, we can leave some stuff we will not need for the summit push and gear up with helmets, harnesses and via ferrata sets. The summit climb takes around 1.5h and about the same time back to the hut. According to the weather and how we feel, we can do the summit climb on the first day in the afternoon or on the second day early in the morning.
From Kredarica we have about 3.5h of hiking back to the car, where we arrive usually sometime early in the afternoon on the second day.
Accomodations
Triglavski Dom na Kredarici
