The picturesque village of Šmartno stands on a hill overlooking the Brda Region that surrounds it. Enclosed by walls and reinforced by towers, this medieval fortification and defence post against the Turkish invasions was built in the 16th century. After visiting the geographical centre of the Brda Region the road takes you to the village of Imenje and onwards to Gonjače where you can climb up a view tower. From the tower you continue for a short while on the main road. After 50 metres you turn right and follow the road through the village of Gonjače. Turn left into the vineyards and follow the signs for Kojsko. When the path brings you to the main road, turn left in the direction of Gonjače. After a hundred metres, you will reach the junction with the 6th stage of the Walk of Peace. Continue on this path, past the monument “The History of the Slovenes” in the direction of Mt. Sabotin. At a larger intersection, turn left onto a dirt road in the direction of a hunter’s lodge which you pass on the left side, and follow the markings until you reach a forest where the road narrows into a path. After about a two hour long hike up the path that takes you high above the Soča river it rewards you with views of the river and its surroundings. Finally, you reach the outdoor museum Sabotin. Mt. Sabotin was an important strategic point in the defence of Gorizia/Gorica. Austro-Hungarian soldiers built a system of fighting positions from where they repelled the Italian attacks until the Sixth Isonzo Battle when Italians managed to conquer Mt. Sabotin. Today this area is arranged into the Park of Peace and is, due to its turbulent history and natural particularities, an excellent tourist destination. When you take in the magnificent view, turn left behind the building and continue up along the boundary stones that mark the line between Slovenia and Italy. The path will bring you to the ruins of the Church of St. Valentine. From here, the path starts to descend down the right slope and brings you to the Sabotin/Osimo road which you cross and continue to a footbridge over the Soča river near the town of Solkan. When you cross onto the left river bank turn right and continue all the way to the main road (Cesta IX. korpusa Road). There, turn right and continue on this road until you reach the once border passing with Italy in Solkan, here you turn left on Kolodvorska pot Street and after a few hundred metres reach the finish of the seventh stage of the Walk of peace on the Piazza della Transalpina/Trg Evrope square. The square, shared by the Italian Gorizia/Gorica and the Slovene Nova Gorica, is a symbolic place on the Walk of Peace, bringing together Italy and Slovenia. The railway building is home to the Museum Collection Railway Station where you can visit an exhibition that presents the changes of the state border in the Goriška Region between 1945 and 2004.
Outdoor Museum Sabotin – The Park of Peace
A Guided Hiking Tour along the Walk of Peace
You are heartily invited to visit the House of Culture (Hiša kulture) and Brda House (Briška hiša) in Šmartno.
Under the road bridge in Solkan there is a World War I military cemetery, where lie the Austro-Hungarian soldiers who gave their lives in the first six battles of the Isonzo Front at the Gorizia/Gorica/Görz bridgehead. Not far from the cemetery stands the Solkan Railway Bridge, with its 85-meter span, it is the longest stone-arch bridge in the world.
Public transport:
Regular bus services:
Nova Gorica–Šmartno
Parking (start and end point of the stage):
Start: parking area by the main road in Šmartno
End: parking area by the railway station, Trg Evrope/Piazza della Transalpina square
Center za obiskovalce Pot miru, Kobarid
(The Walk of Peace Visitor Centre, Kobarid)
Gregorčičeva ulica 8
SI–5222 Kobarid
+386 5 389 0167, +386 31 586 296
turizem@potmiru.si, info@thewalkofpeace.com
www.thewalkofpeace.com
TIC Brda
Šmartno 13
SI–5211 Kojsko
+386 5 395 95 95
tic@brda.si
www.brda.si
TIC Nova Gorica
Kidričeva ulica 11
SI–5000 Nova Gorica
+386 5 330 46 00, +386 41 460 217
nova-gorica@vipavskadolina.si
www.vipavskadolina.si
