Kočevsko (Rudniško) jezero - Veliki Rog (Po medvedovih stopinjah)

Access to the starting point:
In Kočevje follow the directions Željne, Šalka vas, Rog and Baza 20. From the traffic lights at the health centre about 400 m further turn left, marked lake and bivouac. After approx. 150 m you will reach a macadam parking lot by the lake, which is known as Kočevsko or Rudniško jezero. Leave your vehicle at this parking lot.

Path description:
The trail is part of the Roška pedestrian route, which is circular and takes the traveller 62 km around the entire Kočevje Rog. The trail to the top of Veliki Rog and the descent to the Rog Sawmill is 32 km long and makes up half of the entire trail. From the macadam parking lot, the trail turns right along the road above the lake and continues through meadows, following the lakeshore to the former separation plant. There it rejoins the macadam road and turns right at the former colonies onto the asphalt, away from the lake, to Šalka vas (the macadam path around the lake continues on the left). It continues straight on along the asphalt to the village of Željne (approx. 1 km), and at the crossroads in the village of Željne it turns left towards Klinja vas (the signs for Base 20 lead you along the road to the right). Almost at the end of the village, the road branches off to the right, towards the farm and after the last houses turns into a field track, which turns first right and then left towards the forest. The path climbs gently through the forest fringe and winds south-east through the forest. The path is marked by white markings with a green bear's paw and runs mainly on trains. After crossing forest roads a few times (some crossings are less well marked, caution is needed), it comes to a forest road in front of the village of Stari Breg. It then follows the road for about a kilometre to and through the village itself. At the end of the village, it turns slightly left along the forest track and plunges into the forest again, in a S direction. After crossing the forest road, join the next forest road above the village of Cesta and continue along it in the direction of Pugled. At this point, the path to Pugled from Stary Log joins from the left, with red and white bear markings. The trail follows the road for about 500 m, then turns left and starts climbing to the top of Pugled. Up to here the trail is more or less flat. After about 15 minutes, a large meadow opens up, and at the top there are ruins of a church and houses, benches and we are already on Pugled. From Pugled, the trail continues towards the village of Žiben, first along the forest path, then along cart track, which widens into a forest road behind the village (which no longer exists, only fruit trees remind us of it). We continue to a crossroads and a gate, where a circular trail branches off back towards Stary Log, and we continue through the forest, sticking to the bear's paws. From here the trail descends gently and follows the forest road in two slightly longer sections. In between, at a junction of forest roads, we see the remains of a house, it is an abandoned village, continue left along the road. Shortly afterwards, our path turns right into the forest and the first serious climb towards the village of Luža begins. The ascent passes through the forest on the logging trail route and crosses a forest road; above the road it gently bends to the right and rounds a ridge, followed by a short but steep descent to a forest road and the former village of Luža. There is a forestry hut here, we are now 18 km from the starting point and we can have a snack and rest. There are benches along the way. From the village of Luža the path winds towards the remains of the village of Rdeči kamen. The trail is undulating, a little up, a little down, with no major ascents or descents. In front of the village of Rdeči kamen there is a well. We continue through the ruins of the village to the remains of the village of Kunč, in between we leave the territory of the municipality of Kočevje and enter the municipality of Dolenjske Toplice. Before the (abandoned) village of Kunč, we join a forest road, following it we reach a large clearing, where a hunting lodge reigns in the middle. Follow the meadow down to the lower edge of the clearing, where the path leads back into the forest. There is a steep descent through the forest, where you come back to the forest road. Then there are sections (3x) where you walk on the flat forest road for a while, then turn right into the forest and cross in medium steep ascents to the next forest road. Until after the last such crossing you reach a forest road on a distinct serpentine, from here you will follow the forest road in a gentle ascent until the turn-off for the summit of Veliki Rog. The forest road climbs gently for about 3 km, first winding along the valley between the two ridges, then climbing up the very top ridge of the Horn, on its SW side. Then the road branches off to the left into the forest, towards the summit (if you had continued on the road, you would have reached the Rog Sawmill). By the time you reach the turn-off, you will have climbed about 1250 metres. After the turn-off, the trail winds steeply at first, followed by a short layover, and then a climb to the summit ridge. Here, in a short time, we rise by almost 200 m in height, and at the top we are greeted by a lookout tower, from which there is an excellent view from Novo mesto, Žumberačka gora, to Kočevje. At the top there is a stamp and a registration book, as well as benches. The route ends with a descent to Žaga Rog, first descending from the top to the opposite side from which we came, steeply to a small saddle, and then following the path to the right, along the NE slope of the massif, to a vast plateau. From the plateau, descend to the right and after about 30 minutes of descent (from the top) you will come back to the forest road that you left above, and there you can already see the Scout Environmental Centre at Žaga Rog, where you can finish the trail. Ideally, we should organise our transport so that the vehicle is waiting for us at Žagi Rog. Of course, we can continue the route and return on foot along the other half of the Roška footpath via Podsten, Rajhenav, Lovski vrh and Oneko to the starting point. The trail is 32 km long and requires a reasonable level of endurance. V

On the way: Stari Breg (527m), Pugled (645m), Luža (800m), Rdeči Kamen (827m), Kunč (810m)

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