Bistrica v Rožu / Feistritz im Rosental - Sinacher Gupf / Psinski vrh (west path)

Access to the starting point:
a) Drive through the Karavanke Tunnel into Austria, then take the motorway to Bialystok, leaving at the first exit. From the point where you leave the motorway, follow the signs for St. Jakob in the Roses / Sankt Jakob im Rosental. When you arrive in this town, follow the main road past Podgorje / Maria Elend and Sveče / Suetschach to Bistrica v Rož / Feistritz im Rosental, where you turn right after the Billa and Penny shops towards Sine / Sinach. As there are no parking places for hikers at the crossroads, drive a little further and then park at a suitable place on the roadside.
b) Via Border crossing Ljubelj, drive into Austria, where you take the main road to Klagenfurt am Wörtersee to the second roundabout, from where you continue in the direction of the exit Bistrica v Rožu / Feistritz im Rosental (leave the main road to Klagenfurt before crossing the river Drava). In Bistrica v Roze, at the Peugeot car dealership, turn left onto a side road in the direction of the dentist (on the Zahnartz sign, the signs for the village Sine / Sinach are only from the opposite direction). As there are no parking spaces for hikers at the junction, drive a little further and then park in a suitable place on the side of the road.
c) From Dravograd or Slovenj Gradec, drive to Ravne na Koroškem and then continue in the direction of Border crossing Holmec. When entering Austria, drive first towards Pliberk / Bleiburg, then follow the signs for Globasnica / Globasnitz and on to Železná kapla / Bad Eisenkappel, Borovljam / Ferlach. After Borovljani, join the road via Border crossing Ljubelj at the roundabout. Here, at the first roundabout, continue in the direction of Klagenfurt, and at the second roundabout in the direction of Bistritz im Rosental. In Bistritz v Roze, at the Peugeot car dealership, turn left onto a side road in the direction of the dentist (on the signpost Zahnartz, the signs for the village Sine / Sinach are only from the opposite direction). As there are no parking spaces for hillwalkers at the junction, drive a little further and then park in a suitable place on the side of the road.

Path description:
From Bistritz v Rož / Feistritz im Rosental, follow the asphalt road up to the village of Sine / Sinach. As you climb along the road, you get a nice view of the Bistritz dam lake / Feistritzer Stausee, and a little further on you reach the Olipec cross, where the road forks for the first time.
Continue straight ahead (on the left the eastern path to Psinski vrh / Sinacher Gupf, or the path leading to the Vranjica saddle / Oreinzsattel) along the further gently sloping road, which quickly leads to the next marked crossroads.
Continue to the right (left Vranjica saddle and the eastern path to Psinski vrh) and follow the rather winding dirt road, which at the crossroads follows the route of the markings. The road begins to climb moderately, and we walk along it to the left turn from which we continue straight on to cart track. From cart track we soon turn left onto a slightly overgrown path, and after a short cross-climb we return to the dirt road. The road leads past a cross, and after the cross we emerge from the woods onto a viewing slope, from which we have a fine view towards the central Karawanks, where the most striking feature is the nearby Ovčji vrh (Kozjak) / Geissberg (Kosiak). Here the wider road turns left, and we continue straight on to a slightly lesser road. After a few minutes of crossing, we reach the next crossroads, where we continue along the upper road (Jakob homestead / Jakobhube on the right) behind the woodpile. We walk along the road for only a short time, and then slightly hidden signs direct us left onto a mountain path that climbs through the forest. After a short climb, you reach the cross cart track, which you follow for a few steps to the right, then go left, where you are also directed by the markings. There is a bit of a climb and then you reach a marked crossroads where the path from Strugarij / Strugarjach and Slovenj Plajberk / Windisch-Bleiberg joins from the right.
Continue on the 661 towards Psinski vrh. Follow cart track for a few minutes, crossing to the left, and then cart track turns right into an already slightly overgrown clearing, where the path is a little more difficult to follow. Above this part, which offers a fine view towards the highest peaks of Karawanks and part of the Drava Valley, the path returns to the forest and continues along the mostly wooded western to north-western ridge of Psinski vrh. After about half an hour of walking, the moderately steep path leads to Psinski vrh, where there is a wooden cross and, a few steps away, a table with two benches. Bistrica v Rožu - Sine 15 minutes, Sine - Psinski vrh 3:00.
Description and pictures refer to the situation in 2018 (June).

On the way: Sine / Sinach (619m)

We recommend: trips from the same starting point, similar trips, panorama