When it comes to town, it is still early, so we meet few people around the Lake which is perfect to take beautiful photos. All around the Lake is laid out so that you can enjoy the scenery “postcard”. There is even a photo in a heart enough unlikely but fun.

We also go up to the Castle but the entrance is a bit expensive (10 per person) for what there is to see (from others) so we prefer to visit a church that is your beautiful and walking on the trails bordering the Lake.

By walking, you start to get hot and hungry so you buy a local specialty “originalna blejska kremna rezina” cake or the Bled cream cake, which is a specialty of the Park hotel since 1953. After a good meal we go swimming in Lake bled in the face of the island. It is unclear if this is allowed to stand on the grass but Tampa water is so beautiful and attractive and certainly bearable heat we’ll be right in the water.

Arrived in Slovenia since the day before, we don’t hang out not to visit and wake up at 5:30 in the morning just to be the first to visit the Gorge of Vingtar, before the crowd. At 6:15 so here we are on the trail of the Gorge without paying because the wicket was still closed at this time but there is no barrier preventing access.

The trail that walks through the Gorge is half on wooden walkways hung in the cliff and half on a path. The river water is very blue and even different shades. The Sun has yet to go but it’s sublime and even more incredible in the shadows in the light reflections of the rays of the Sun on the water remove the small mysterious side of the mist that rises slowly and the coldness of the blue of deep water holes.

We also see lots of trout that are in the current to eat. There are many and they do not seem disturbed our presence. Around 8: 00 in the morning we meet others on the trail. This is the sign that the gitoune for the .tickets is open. Well we keep walking and we pass the counter seem like nothing and his person market challenges us and we leave by car.

We go back to the place where we slept the night before, which was really nice and we leave for Lake Bled which is only a few minutes by car.

You wake up with our German friends and we’re getting a big breakfast all together. Once it is sated each resumed his way with his “truck”. Them leave for the Italy then the Albania and for the Slovenia. We still hold meeting in Slovenia within 10 days on the way back.

Today it’s paragliding to the program but with a take-off and landing especially official and signposted. After the adventures of the day before, it’s safer.

On the road, going down to Villach, Nicolas spot in the sky of clouds of paragliding above the Lake of the Ossiacher See. This is the opportunity of would join the cluster and share a small flight with them over the Lake taking the lifts of the ski resort. We get a paraglider in stop and go take the cable car. Take another lift to reach the gap. The rise is expensive but like it’s our last day in Austria we say tamps and they pay 36 euros.

Nicolas is excited because after a careful observation of the clouds and the other paragliders, this day will be perfect for the cross. It is “small ulcs’ that show it.

Navy: “on takeoff, we deplit our sail beside the team Icaro and barely the time to put on our harness the veil lifts and we trained.” A boy takes in the lines finally he breaks free and after good running take off. We take directly a thermal and go up very quickly, very high. I feel not very uncomfortable because it moves a lot and because very quickly approaching clouds. Nicolas tells me which side I must look to wrap the thermal and the vario stop making beep beep. So meet at 2100 m altitude through clouds. That’s impressive. “After a one hour flight down gently to wing. Closer to the Lake and more I’m reassured. Asked on the aterro of acrobats doing a touch in water = Pan dragging his feet in the water and we put our satisfied material. »

NICOLAS ‘ after taking the cable because we meet at take-off at the top of Lake Ossiacher See.» He fat super nice and it’s really a steaming day we like. Take-off is a long grass strip very little steep. We spread the sail and expected to feel the heat for take-off. A good breeze front arrives and we upped the veil earlier than expected but it was attached and ready to take off so after that a little boy had managed to get out to see we keep a bit above our head to show the logo in the air to land and take off. After take-off we get to take a first thermal big that go us directly to cloudbase (cloud base) 200 metres above the take-off area. From here there are views of the Austrian Alps and I tell myself that must still be nice to cross in paragliding, but good it will be another story. We took the opportunity to have fun with the clouds. Then we head over the Lake to enjoy the view, do two three wings and eventually a big flare in tandem on the landing for the acrobats or a swimming pool at the top had been mit to do this. We then returned to pick up the car at 15 in a Volkswagen van. Finally it is not so different than at home with friends! »

Let’s visit the raptors to because they do not have them the chance to enjoy this steaming day in their cages. It makes us queasy to see them because they are so beautiful.

The streets are narrow what hardly to two cars in Slovenia. There are no cities in the sense where there are no buildings, not downtown. Everything is small. There are village houses flowering with very narrow roads and farms. The inhabitants are very nice it’s amazing. In fact we did not know ou overnight and it is very difficult in Slovenia to make wild camping because many wild campers vans price of fines according to what we read on the internet or on park4night.

So after eating in the parking lot of the falls of Vingtar, Nicolas will wash in the River look anything before leaving because can not stay here to sleep.  We drive but there is nothing. Fortunately, we met a lady in the street and asked him if she does not know a place that we spend the night. Very nice she proposes us to sleep in front of the barn they use for free. We thanked him a lot and then we will pesse store the car to not alert the neighborhood still.

USEFUL INFORMATION

How to mount at the top of the station to the Gerlitzen? 

Up at the top of the ski resort take the back mechanical: the first is called “Kanzhelbahn” (coordinated GPs 46.659690, 13.901654) and the second “Gipfelbahn”.

The price is € 19 for the driver and € 17 for the passenger rise up to the Gerlitzen (GPS coordinates: 46.695433, 13.913580).

Where to eat, where to walk? 

The gerlitzen, it is possible to eat at the shelter or go hiking back down. Upstairs, there is a great view on the Ossiacher See Lake and the city of Villas as well as the Castle Burg Landcrown (coordinated GPS: 46.641950, 13.896785)

To visit the Castle and see the Raptors we Park up the road in the parking lot of the restaurant either you park in the parking lot before Mr. toll and you go up on foot (about 10 minute walk to save 3 euros).

To attend a delivery of 40 minutes (only in Austrian language) raptors, it cost 10 euros per adult and must respect the following times: 11 h, 14 h 30, 17 h 30.

Today is a beautiful day to fly. We therefore pay a cable car and the program, we must take three chairlifts to arrive at the top of the next to Lienz ski resort to be able to make a superb flight of more than 1500 vertical meters. It is on paper because in reality only a chair lift is in service so we walk up the rest. Fortunately we are well equipped with our light Kortel material that allows us to start to climb on foot on the mountain to the peak of Hochstein.

The path is rather steep, winds through the forest of FIR. It is already very hot but we are very happy to return to the market and flight.

After 2 hours of walking and 1000 m covered we are on top of the station. We have an incredible view to 260 degrees of Lienz, the lakes and the surrounding mountains. We’re looking for the official launch, which lies at the foot of the happened a chair lift at the top of a ski slope which is perfect for a nice decoration.

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The flight is going perfectly, there’s time to admire the landscape and make great photos. Things get worse when land because we found no official landing and made us we decide to see what fields the better. We’re not agree with Nicolas: I prefer land next to the hut of packages while Nicolas prefers to take a more isolated fields. After a few rounds over the fields of a castle, you can see a dog that run like crazy for us to bite the ass as a sign of welcome. We therefore change my mind and choose another field at the last minute to ask us.

Barely there touches the ground with our feet we hear a shot fired in our direction, then a second. We hurry from falling out and here, a third shot is heard. We run with the sail and the harnesses to hide and we fold in 2 minutes. Then we run through the Woods. Ants we rise everywhere and we bite and then the nettles bite us the legs. It’s crazy we were very scared.

We hurry along the road to return to the car without being seen and set off at full speed. After all these adventures there some pancakes to regain strength and swimming at Lake Weissensee.

At the Lake, we met a very nice German couple with whom we decide to spend the evening and look for a place to sleep together. They’re called Kim and Markus. They are also on a road trip with a van going to Albania. We spend the evening to talk about our travels and our projects under the starry sky and then go to bed in his “House on wheels.”

USEFUL INFORMATION

When hiking in the vicinity of Lienz?

The lifts to go to the peak of Hochstein hut: GPS coordinates: 46.830903, 12.753412

Where to sleep? 

It is very difficult to sleep at the edge of the Lake of Weissensee (like others) because the Austrians are not happy to see trucks moving along the roads and make it known.

As for the park for the night, all mobile app which is offered by the app is close to campsites off we did not disturb so we have preferred to sleep away from the city on a car park with picnic tables on the road between Greifenburg and Spittal.

This time, it’s the road that we discover the Austrian Alps as we go to Lienz. We drive to Zeel am See so until France to take the mythical road 107 of the Grossglockner.

This panoramic road of 48km through the Park’s Hohe Taurne and allows to have a fantastic view over 30 of summits, culminating at more than 3000 meters above sea level. This road is paid is very crowded in the summer so we got up very early to be the first to drive in order to stop often to enjoy the views.

The landscapes are breathtaking: of major mountain peaks of more than 2000 m, flowing glaciers on the mountains but also of the vast green meadows. The contrast between these colors makes these landscapes breathtaking.

We do breaks from each point of view to observe these Alps which fascinate us so much they are immense. Marmots, very curious come greet us.

From the point of view called “Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe” we have amazing views of the Großglockner (3 798 m) and the glacier Westerndorf. The katabatic wind (of glacier) we cooled but the view is so beautiful is engulfed in tunnels dug into the mountain to get a bit of the glacier. It’s amazing. Feels tiny in the face of these immensities.

Pieces of road are paved which brings out the corners among the greenery. Nicolas pilot Partner as in a video game so these landscapes are unreal. Further, we meet big trucks on the side of the road that make us little landscape and then our car gets arrested on the side of the road by men in black with earpieces. We wonder what is happening. No one tells us but we understand more than this day there, turns a film or an advertisement for BMW. What luck, we are on the set and, by dint of stopping everything the two pure meters take pictures, the Partner has been found. Yes, because in fact, believing that we were out shooting has taken with the BMW coming down at full speed the turns and another car who was filming her. Suddenly the car stopped neat also surprise us to see, then the producers made us a head, which meant that they were not happy to find us there, oops.

Late morning we leave the Grossglockner road and you arrive at Lienz. It’s a beautiful day and there is a paragliding site which can be accessed with the lifts and a small walk. We then put our shoes and you start with our bags without suspecting what was going to happen to us… 😉 see next article. 

USEFUL INFORMATION

Borrow the road of the Grossglockner?

The Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse is a toll road. It cannot be borrowed during the opening and she is paid.

In high season (mid June – mid September), we can circulate from 5: 00 a.m. to 9:30 pm knowing that the last car admission is at 20:45 maximum.

The price of the toll is € 35 for a car.