Ruski križ - Velika Martuljška Ponca

Access to the starting point:
First drive to Kranjska Gora, then continue driving towards the Vrh Leh pass just before the 3rd serpentine of the Ruska or vršiška road, you will see the Russian Cross on the right and a small parking lot on the left, where you park. As the parking lot is relatively small and quickly full, you can also park a little higher up in the larger parking lot just above the 4th serpentine (in this case we have to descend a little to our starting point at the Russian Cross).
The starting point can also be reached from the coastal side via the Vršič Pass.

Path description:
Just before the 3rd serpentine of the Ruska cesta, we will notice the mountain signs for Koča v Krnici along the road, which direct us slightly to the left to the wide cart track, which immediately starts to descend moderately. After a few minutes of descending through the forest, the path is laid and leads us to the dry Pišnica riverbed. Just after crossing the stream, the path turns slightly to the left and leads us out of the forest onto the vast grassy slopes of the mountain pasture in Klin, where we see a secluded hut on the right and the small memorial park of Mali Tamar on the left. The path ahead is completely laid out and then joins the forest road coming from the former Hotel Erika or the bridge over the Velika Pišnica. Continue right here and follow the relatively steep forest road all the way to Koča v Krnici, which is reached after about 20 minutes of further walking.
From the hut, head left towards Špik. After a few minutes you reach a torrential ravine along which you then climb. After a good hour's walk from the hut, the marked trail to Špik in Cirque crosses the ravine and then climbs up the left-hand side of the ravine. However, as the marked path leading to Špik moves away from the ravine, you will see a less well-trodden path climbing moderately upwards along the ravine at the foot of the scree. The path ascending the ravine is full of rubble and, due to frequent storms, full of unstable rocks. The path, which is slightly less visible in parts, leads us further along a slightly narrower ravine which splits into two parts higher up. Continue along and along the right-hand gully, which leads us slightly higher to the extensive scree below the northern wall of Škrlatice. Initially still quite visible, the path crosses these scree slopes slightly to the left and crosses them mostly at their foot (cross-climb northwards). Further on, the bivouac in Velika Dnina is soon visible on a small rise below an indistinct peak. If it is foggy and if we do not know the route, it will be difficult to find. We can climb further to the bivouac, which is a little off the trail, but an ideal place for a short or longer rest. If we decide to bypass the bivouac, we continue along a barely visible path that climbs up the increasingly narrow scree. The scree then ends and the climb continues up and along a distinct gully, steeper and steeper. The gorge is relatively difficult to cross due to storms, which often change its appearance. The climbing, which is on a crumbly terrain, exceeds grade 2 in places. In the upper part of the torrential ravine, we turn slightly to the right and, with some minor technical and orientation difficulties, we climb up a rather steep slope to the base of the summit slope of Velika Martuljska Ponca. In the last part, the steepness eases and the increasingly scenic "path" leads us to the vast summit of Velika Martuljška Ponce.
Due to technical difficulties approaching difficulty level 3, I recommend being accompanied by a mountain guide. Orientation is very difficult and almost impossible in the fog without the aid of a compass or GPS.

On the way: Koča v Krnici mountain hut (1113m), Bivak v Veliki Dnini (2180m)

We can extend the trip to the following destinations: Veliki Oltar

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