asphalt | gravel | road |
This demanding yet memorable connecting trail between the town of Kobarid and the city of Cividale which leads across the top of Mt. Matajur, the symbol of the Venetian Slovenia has been attracting even the most demanding mountain bikers for quite some time now. Its first part includes two separated ascents, of which the first, leading to the village of Livek located on the mountain pass between Mt. Kolovrat and Mt. Matajur, will make you really push hard, whilst the second one which follows the forest road from the village of Avsa brings more joy as it is routed along the ridge of Mt. Matajur. After crossing the former border crossing, the road past the junction towards the mountain pastures of Mt. Matajur slowly turns into an old military mule trail leading to a top of a grassy mountain pass with breath-taking views over the endless Friuli lowland and the Gulf of Trieste. At the same time, you will cycle along the footsteps taken by the general Erwin Rommel during the attack of his troops on the Italian military positions in World War I. At the end of the ascent, you will arrive to the high altitude mountain hut under Mt. Matajur, but if you will push your bicycle all the way to the Chapel on the top of the mountain, you will be rewarded with splendid views of the other - Alpine side.
The descend along the trails to the village of San Pietro al Natisone is demanding, but certainly one of the finest for miles around. From the Dom na Matajurju mountain hut you will descend slightly to the right to the crossroads on the Mersinska planina mountain pasture and turn along the »sentiero« 749 trail to the Glevizza mountain pass where you will cross the paved road towards the village of Matajur. On the following crossroads simply follow the up-and-down route 749 leading past the village of San Giorgio which will make you step down from your bicycle on some of its sections. The trail then continues past the village of San Canziano and in its lower part allows several options to join the main road. It is worth to continue cycling all to the gravel road leading to the church in the centre of San Pietro al Natisone where you will be only a short section of the valley cycling connecting trail away from your well-deserved refreshment in the marvellous city of Cividale.
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