A cycling route that has to be on on every cyclist bucket list. For me and my riding friends, this was a day to remember !

You will climb in the Julian Alps on the highest road in Slovenia, the Mangart Saddle (2.072m) with 2 other challenges in the menu: Vrsic Pass (1.611m) and the less known Predil Pass (1.156 m) in Italy.

A 106km bike ride with ~ 3000m total elevation gain. It is probably the most beautiful cycling route in Slovenia on some of the prettiest roads in the world

Start your day in Kranjska Gora . Map, altitude profile and .gpx track file download from here (starting point is right on a public parking where you can safely leave your car):

https://www.bikemap.net/en/r/9358293/#10.89/46.4218/13.6756

https://www.strava.com/activities/5584547915

Vrsic Pass is 10 km long, with 711m elevation gain and 6.9 % average slope (one of the Strava segments). Don’t let that average 6.9% fool you. There are some steep sections on the way, with 11-12%, and some of them exactly on the 24 cobbled hairpins. That’s why I suggest you to ride this loop clockwise (Vrsic first, Mangart second) as it is better to climb the cobbles rather than descent them.

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Right on the top there are some huts and places where you can stay for a cold drink or eat something.

13km of descent and you reach Trenta village and join the famous Soca valley. This is a very popular place for all sorts of outdoor activities (hiking, rafting, kayaking, via ferrata) so it is for sure on my list for future holydays.

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Ride about 25km on flatter roads until you reach the Log Pod village, the starting point of Mangart climb … or at least i consider it to be even if the first section is part of Predil Pass climb.

There are 16km from here to the top of Mangart with 1.324 m of elevation gain and 8.2% average slope (Strava segment). There are some really steep sections on the way (15%-16%) … just so that you know that it is not an easy climb.

The Mangart Mountain Road is the highest asphalted road in Slovenia (2.072m of altitude). 13 hairpins and 5 tunnels to get there on this majestic landscape:

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There is nothing really on the top besides the amazing views all around you. So have enough calories packed in your jersey pockets as you will not find any restaurants or shops on the way up 😉

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The climb up to Mangart Saddle is a dead end road so, after climbing it, you will descent the same way you climbed (not all of it, just until you get back to the Magart Viadukt)

Around 21km total descent until Tarvisio in Italy , with a short 2 km climb in the middle (Predil Pass). The last part of the day is on a very popular bike lane, build away from any car traffic, that connects Tarvisio with Kranjska Gora (13km).

I really hope that if you are reading this I’ve convinced you to set Mangart and Vrsic as your next cycling destination. Let me know if you gave it a try and tell me if you enjoyed as much as I did riding this loop.

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If you liked the video on top of this article and wandering how I did it: I’ve used a 360 camera, the Insta360 One X2 . I think this is the best action camera for cycling videos as it deletes the selfie stick from the image and it looks like a drone is following you around.

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