Libeliče - Sveti Urh (Strojna)

Access to the starting point:
a) From Slovenj Gradec or the Mežiška Valley, drive to Dravograd, then turn left before the bridge over the Drava River in the direction of Črneče and Libeliče. Cross the Mežá River first, then go through Črneče and later through Gorce. After Gorce, you arrive in Libeliče, where you turn right at the chapel, then turn right again and park in the large asphalted parking lot next to the Libeliče fire station.

b) Drive to Dravograd, then continue driving towards Slovenj Gradec. Shortly after the bridge over the Drava River, turn right towards Črneče and Libeliče. Cross the Meža River first, then drive through Črneče and later through Gorce. After Gorce, you arrive in Libeliče, where you turn right at the chapel, then turn right again and park in the large asphalted parking lot next to the Libeliče fire station.

c) Via Border crossing Ljubelj or Jezerski vrh drive into Austria, then follow the signs for Pliberk / Bleiburg and then Labot / Lavamünd. Before Labot, before crossing the River Drava, signs for Potoče / Bach and Libeliče / Leifling direct you to the right onto a slightly narrower road. Continue through Potoče, and shortly afterwards, via Border crossing Libeliče, you will arrive in Slovenia, where you will park in the parking lot next to the fire station in Libeliče.

Path description:
From the fire house, the first ascent is to the parish church of St Martin, located in the north-western part of Libeliče. In front of the church, where the 11th-century ossuary is located, there is a well-trodden path on the left before the walls, which ascends crosswise into the woods.

As we climb through the forest, we are initially accompanied by signs for the nearby Ethnological and Natural Heritage Libeliče, which we follow in the opposite direction, so that the numbers on the signs become smaller. Through the forest we mostly climb on forest trains, but higher up we climb along a boardwalk to a homestead where there is a viewpoint.

Continue through the courtyard, and from the crossroads behind the farmhouse, take the road to the right, which leads you past a sign. There is a cross-country climb with fine views from Golica / Koralpa via Huhnerkogel to Pohorje, and then cart track takes you into the forest, where you reach a macadam road. Follow the road to the right, and after a left serpentine, leave it and continue slightly right on cart track, which leads past a hunting observation post to a large clearing. On the other side of the clearing, we return to the forest and the path leads us to the border with Austria. We climb along the state border to a point where the state border turns sharp right, and we follow a track through hay fields to the next farmhouse, which we pass on the left and at which we cross another road at the next sign. We climb up to the woods, taking in the beautiful views. In the forest, the cart track forks, and we take the left, more difficult cart track, which then crosses the eastern slopes of Požegovo vrh in a gentle ascent. During the crossing, the path leads past an older cross and over a small spring, and then soon reaches a macadam road, which is reached at the crossroads to the Jorgač farm.

Follow the road to the right, then cross the road and climb up to a slightly larger crossroads by the NOB (National Liberation Monument), where you turn sharp right in the direction of Strojna. The way forward leads us out of the forest and onwards, with beautiful views of Uršlja gora and other surrounding peaks. Higher up, we pass the Požeg farm or the Kupnik estate, and after a few more minutes' walk we reach the Janež farm, an outstanding example of 17th century vernacular architecture.

At the farmhouse, where there is a well-preserved black kitchen, continue straight on (slightly right on cart track Pokeržnikov vrh) and follow the road for a few minutes to St Urho's Church in Strojna.
Description and pictures refer to the situation in 2019 (February).

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