The stage 7A starts in Plave where you can visit the Church of St. John the Baptist built in the neo-Romanesque style. Cross the bridge over the Soča river and the main road Nova Gorica–Tolmin and continue in the direction of Paljevo. At the second turn you take the footpath that brings you to the first point of interest in this stage – the Italian water trough. The footpath is an old military supply road built by the Italian soldiers and takes you past a number of remains from the Italian and Austro-Hungarian first defence line (huge Italian cabins and the cave of the Avellino Brigade, dressing station, a complex of smaller caves and fortified positions). On top of Mt. Prižnica (Hill 383), which has witnessed harsh battles between the Italian and Austro-Hungarian armies during the Isonzo Front, you can still see the remains of the Austro-Hungarian trenches and fortified positions. Descending Mt. Prižnica down the “Austrian” part of the road brings you to the remains of Austro-Hungarian caves and to the Church of St. Quirinus, a simple single-nave church built in 1513. In the altar niche stands the statue of St. Quirinus with the statue of St. Teresa on one side and the statue of St. Anthony the Great on the other. From the church continue your journey along the ridge above Plave, past the former Austro-Hungarian military cemetery towards the outdoor museum Vodice. At the site of the former military cemetery (Novak Platz) stands a statue erected in the honour of the Austro-Hungarian Major General Guido Novak von Arienti.
The circular path along the outdoor museum Vodice guides you through the trenches and multistorey caves. Located on the top of Mt. Vodice is the mausoleum of General Maurizio Ferrante Gonzaga. He wanted to be buried on the spot where his soldiers had died during World War I. World War II started before the mausoleum was finished so the General was never buried inside. From Mt. Vodice, a well-marked path takes you past Mt. Preški vrh and onwards towards Mt. Sveta Gora. Here you can take in the splendid view and then continue your journey past the Franciscan Monastery down the steps on the right to the main road. Follow the marked road which in some parts takes you off the road to a path below the road and finally brings you to the Memorial to General Boroević on Mt. Prevala. From the memorial you begin to climb up to the area of the outdoor museum Škabrijel, where you can explore the Austro-Hungarian defence positions. From the top (646 m) you descend down a well-trodden path to the town of Solkan and follow the Cesta IX. korpusa Road to the former border crossing with Italy in Solkan. Here you turn left on Kolodvorska pot Street. After a few hundred metres you arrive at the finish line of the stage, the Trg Evrope/Piazza della Transalpina square. The common square of the Slovene Nova Gorica and Italian Gorizia/Gorica is a symbol of unification on the Walk of Peace from the Alps to the Adriatic trail. In the railway building you can visit the exhibition titled State Border in the Goriška Region 1945–2004.
The Underground Labyrinth on Mt. Vodice
The Mysteries of Mt. Sveta Gora
Outdoor Museum Prižnica – Memorial Park
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.
If you take the exit for Solkan in the roundabout on the Prevala Pass, you can visit the Memorial Park of the Fallen Hungarian Soldiers, located at the parking area under the restaurant Panorama.
Public transport:
Railway connections:
Jesenice–Most na Soči–Plave–Nova Gorica
Regular bus services:
Tolmin–Plave–Nova Gorica
Nova Gorica–Grgar
City bus service in Nova Gorica
Parking (start and end point of the stage):
Start: the parking area by the railway station in Plave
End: parking area by the railway station in Nova Gorica, 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 Kanal
Pionirska ulica 2
SI–5213 Kanal
+386 5 398 12 13
info@ztkms-kanal.si
www.tic-kanal.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
