E8 Trail

I have travelled to Slovakia for a two-day hiking trip. After arriving yesterday afternoon in Bratislava the public transportation was able to get me as far as the city of Spisska Nova Ves. For today I have planned to take the bus in the early morning from Spisska Nova Ves to my starting point in Stoss-Kupele. Unfortnately I am waiting at the wrong bus stop for the bus to Stoss-Kupele, so I miss it. I change my plans immediately, as there is always a plan B, and I catch the train to Kosice, from where I take a bus to Stoss-Kupele.

It is just before 9.00am when I start in Stos-Kupele. The weather is okay for October; there’s a little bit of sunshine, and the temperature is comfortable. The first part of the stage goes uphill, from 600 meters in Stos-Kupele to the top of the Kloptan Hill at 1453 meters. The Path is well to do, a bit steep in the beginning, and signs are clear and sufficient. On the top of the Kloptan there is a watchtower, including a visitorsbook. By the time I get up there the weather is not so great anymore. There is more overcast coming in from the north.

sunbeam

From the Kloptan it only gets easier, first gently downhill and later on a little bit less gently. Although the biggest part of today’s stage is leading through forrests there are some nice views towards the south now and then. The plains in Hungary look very close by. which they are, at a distance of 25 kilometers only. While climbing uphill towards the refuge Chata Erika I meet one of the very few people that are in the hills today. In the middle of the forrest, high up on an isolated hill, he is mowing the grass. When I ask him what it is for, he explains (with hand and feet, as he speakes no English) that he is preparing the slopes for the winter time, when this area seems to be a hotspot for cross-country skiing.

Autumn in the Kosicky Hills

In the afternoon I pass the refuge Chata Erika. It is closed for reconstruction, but it is not noticeable that there is anything going on. From the refuge the climb up to top of the Kojsovska Hola starts. It is about 150 meters uphill, from the forrest out up on the plain and open top. The Trail does not lead to the top, but continous southeastbound just below the top of the hill. The last part of the stage is downhill to the village of Zlata Idka. Some sections are steep, but in general the decent is easy to do. The weather is improving, as the sun is getting more and more its way through the clouds. Just before 5.00pm I arrive after an easy day in Zlata Idka.

I have a reservation in the only hotel that I could find on the internet. The receptionist of the hotel told me, when I made the reservation this afternoon (along the Trail), that they do not have dinning facilities tonight due to a big wedding party that they have. When I ask for directions in the village it turns out that the hotel is known under a different name, and that it is still a few kilometers to get there. Slovakian villages in this part of the country are extremely wide spread, and Zlata Idka is just like that. I have dinner in a place that has a sign “bistro” on the outside but that has no resemblance to any cosy and intimate restaurant in Paris. The owner of the bistro turns out to be an Olympian (1992 and 1996) who is proud of his pictures and souvenirs from his glory days. He gives the directions how to get to the hotel. The way to the hotel, still some 25 minutes walking, is along the Trail. The night falls and I find out that there are a few other places to eat in the village along the Trail. It is very dark by the time I get to the hotel. It is not big, it is situated outside the village on the eastside where the forrest begins. The wedding party is loud, but not irritating, and it is not keeping me from having a good night sleep.

Today is my last day of my three-day hiking trip. I am in good spirits when I wake up (again very early) but I have my concerns about the poor quality of the signs in this part of the Trail. I leave the refuge just before sunrise in order to be able to use the daylight to the maximum extend from the top of the Skalisko onwards.

At 4.15am I am again up at the Skalisko, next to the big rock. According to the map the Trail follows the sharp ridge of the Skalisko to the east, until the shoulder named Tri Cholare. In reality it is not so simple. The ridge is not sharp edged and narrow, like on big mountains. It is wide, sometimes even more than 100 meters, and there is lots of vegetation like trees, bushes, long grass, etc. There is no clear overview, so it can very well be that according to the map I need to walk 100% east, but in reality I have to go some hundreds of meters northeast followed by a section to the southeast. The descent from the Skalisko is well to do, although the many chopped trees that are blocking the path force me to make many d-tours. The weather is not so good; it is cold, there is a lot of overcast and sometimes it starts to drizzle and rain. At a small junction in the woods called Sedlo Krive I am not concentrated and I take the wrong direction. I find out five minutes later and go back, no big deal. Except that the hill in the direction where I should be going is completely ruined; the path vanishes into the forrest ground, all trees have been chopped and crushed. I walk a few times up and down the hill but I am not able to find any possbility to move on, or even any indication where to go to. I decide to go back to the point where I found out I was going the wrong direction, half an hour before, and make a short cut through the fields and woods to the other side of the hill. The first part of the short cut is well to do, but after a few minutes the soil gets wet and soft. Carefully walking up the hill it gets less steep, but in return the soil starts to look more like a indeep marsh. On the top of the sloop that I am climbing the visibility is poor again, due to the fog. Once I get to the other side of the hill, still carefully putting my feet on the “ground” I see a forrest ahead of me. This means fixed soil and dry feet, and I move in that direction, slowly step by step, to try to keep the water from floating my shoes. According to the map I should be heading straight for a path that is marked with yellow signs, but nowhere I can see any sign or indication that there could be a path or road. After 10 minutes I approach the first trees of the forrest, and all of a sudden I am standing on a forrest road, with yellow signs left and right of me. I am completely surprised, and happy! I follow the road to the south, and after only 100 meters I bump into the red/white signs of the Trail! Unbelievable that I was so close to the path, or where it was supposed to be, and that I was fighting through the bush and swamp! Without more complications I arrive at the Uhornianske Sedlo, where the Trail crosses the regular road. The Slovaks told me last night that the following section, to Stoss-Kupele, is also in “heavy condititions”. Considering i) the condition of the section that I have just finished ii) the fact that the signs are in very poor quality iii) that I am alone iv) my feet are soaken wet v) it rains and the visibility is poor, I decide to choose for health & safety and I will follow the regular road through Uhorna and Smolnik and catch up with the Trail at Stoske Sedlo. It is not a shortcut as there are many curves and turns in the road. The first section, down to Uhorna, is very steep for cars, and regular steep for hikers.

steep hill

After a few minutes of descending the trees on the right hand side have made way for a meadow, that allows some nice views into the valley and the low hanging clouds. I hear some mooing sounds behind me, like from a cow. My first thought is that it is much too steep here for cows to walk around. I turn around and see some 20 meters behind me a big deer jumping from the uphill side out of the trees on the road. Without stopping it turns its head in my direction and then jumps immediately off the road, downhill onto the meadow. It is being followed within a second by a huge wolf! I am startled and walk to the edge of the road to see if I can see how this piece of natural behaviour ends, but I can’t see any of them anymore. Without any other excitement I pass the small village Uhorna, where I have a break for some mueslibars as a late breakfast. It is raining constantly now but there’s no wind, so as long as I’m moving I’m warm. Following the easy road I pass the suburbs of Smolnik.

Smolnik

At the junction I follow the road uphill to Stoske Sedlo. At this point I pick up the Trail again. The signs are clear and it’s easy to follow them to Stos-Kupele, where I arrive at 11.10am.

Stos-Kupele is a very small village isolated on a hill at the end of road from Stos. On weekend days, like today, it is not easy to escape from Stos-Kupele. There’s a bus at 11.51 to the east to Kosice, and a bus at 11.57 to Spisska Nova Ves in the north. From both locations I can travel back to Bratislava easily. As I have always been trying at the end of all my E8-stages to travel backwards home, I choose for the 11.57 bus to Spisska Nova Ves, as I will not be crossing unknown territory by doing so. I will arrive in Kosice along the E8 in one or two stages from now. The first bus passes by at 11.50 without stopping. I get ready by putting my wet shoes on again, and folding my raincape into my backpack. At 11.58 the next bus stops. It turns out to be the 11.51 service to Kosice. The first bus was the bus that I was supposed to be in, but it was 8 minutes early. When I tell this to the driver he looks like he cannot do anything about this situation. “Ees toet mier leit”, he says, appologizing on behalf of the bus company and his collegue. Having no other option I take the bus to Kosice, and from there the first train to Bratislava. I don’t leave the bus & railway station to go into town or so. I am not supposed to be here, yet.

Today is the second day of my three-day hiking trip. During the night I was able to dry my clothes and shoes after yesterday’s drowning experience.

I leave just before 4.00am, before sunrise, as the first kilometers are along the regular road up to the pass Sedlo Besnik. Exactly when the daylight breaks the night I arrive at the pass and go right into the woods. The weather turns out the very nice in the early moning; clear blue sky, temperature still low, the forrests awakening. I enter now the area that is named Slovakian Paradise. It is a national parc, with small hills, hardly any infrastructure and lots of peace and silence. Wonderfull! I see many animals, haze, deer and even wild horses. After approx. 18 kilometers the Trail leaves the lovely nature and crosses the road between Dobsina and Dobsinska Lavoda. There is a nice window between the trees to the village of Dedinky and its lake.

Dobsina and its lake

Shortly after I arrive at the Dobsinsky Kopec, where some local roads are crossing. Until this point the signs along the Trail were good. At this crossing I follow a sign that indicates some jumping and crawling to continue on the other side of a gutter. After ten minutes I am stuck between bush and no indication of any path, I realize I am on the wrong way and I go back. It turns out the road sign should be read as “first 80 meters in the other direction, and then to the left”. It’s not ruining my good mood. Looking back to where I come from the peak of the Kál’ova Hola is still attracting the clouds and bad weather, just like yesterday.

looking back to the Král’ova Hola

I continue crossing the forrest along gentle hills. At one point the path that the Trail uses gets lost in the woods on a crossing of 6 roads. I try most of them with no avail and decide to follow the compass, straight through the wood and the bushes. I enter into a field with grass up to 1.20 meters height and I see in the far distance a sign that is painted on a tree. I am on the right track again. Some 20 minutes before I should arrive on the pass Pod Stromisom the signs on the Trail indicate in a different direction than what I expect and where the map shows me to go. I decide to disregard the signs and to follow the map; at least then I know where I am going to. There are no more signs in the next 1.5 kilometers. I check the map and the compass continuously and I realise that this road, and its direction, are not on my map. I decide to go back to the unexpected junction and go the way that is indicated. The Trail goes east, and crosses a plain valley to end up on the ridge. Of course there are no signs for more than a kilometer. Following the compass I make sure where exactly I am on the map and than I decide to make a shortcut through the wood straight to where I expect the Trail to be. After three minutes only I cross indeed the Trail, clearly marked. Altogether I have lost more than one hour in this small section of the stage. I follow the Trail uneventfull to the Sedlo Sulova, where the Trail crosses the regular road. There is a complete set of signs on the Sedlo for all paths that cross this point of the road, except the sign indicating in the direction where I am going to; it has been removed. Using the map I find the red-white signs easily enough and follow my way. A few minutes later the wood lightens up as I approach a section of the hills where all trees have been chopped. I pass a few junctions where no signs can be found. Walking up and down a bit, trying to find a clue where to go to I loose again time and energy. It’s not fun anymore, to walk this stage. Further up the hill many trees have been crushed and leftovers are covering the entire hill side including the path and make it next to invisible.

difficult to find the way

I arrive at Sedlo Volovec, just below the peak of the Skalisko hill. The signs here are clear and I hope I can follow them easily towards the peak. Unfortunately, the signs stop in the woods, the path ends at some point halfway the peak and I have to use my compass again to find the direction again. The weather is not so nice anymore, by now. There are many clouds, the wind has started blowing again, and it’s chilly. The top of the Skalisko looks like a huge plains of some hundreds of square meters. All of a sudden a 10 meters high rock appears from the fogg, which is the real peak of the hill.

From here I follow the green signs to the southwest where I arrive after 10 minutes in the refuge Chata Volovec. It’s 5.15pm. Fortunately the refuge is open, there is a keeper who prepares a simple dinner for me; again bread with sausages and soup and omelet. It’s enough, the taste is good and it’s cheap.

at the Chata Volovec

After dinner two more hikers arrive in the refuge. They are Slovaks and they have started 8 days ago the Slovakian part of the E8 at the Polish border. They follow the Trail in the oposite direction, from east to west. The amazing aspect of their trip is that one of the guys is completely blind! We exchange experiences of our stages of today. They tell me that the stage that I am planning for tomorrow is also dominated by missing signs and paths that end in the middle of nowhere. “We had to use all our eyes to move on”, the blind guy says. Also in some sections many trees have been chopped or crushed. The remainders are blocking the path as well which can create difficult situations for hikers. I go to bed early. Tomorrow is going to be another tough day.

I have travelled to Slovakia for a three-day hiking trip. After the disappointment of last time (more than one year ago!) I am now back in the middle of summer. No chances for any snow where I will be hiking this time! Last night I took the last bus from Brezno in Zavadka nad Hronom. It goes through a quite mountain valley, passing some small villages. Some of them have a very typical scenery: when the bus approaches the village it first passes one or two backstreets where gipsies live in houses without windows or doors. The next minute the bus passes some streets with regular Slovakian houses, followed by the centre of the village with a church or town hall. Then the bus passes again some streets with regular Slovakian houses, followed by again one or two backstreets where gipsies live in worndown houses. When I left the bus in Zavadka I smelled a very strong scent of flowers, coming from the gardens of the houses, and from the fields surrounding the village. It is clear that the air over here is so much cleaner than it is back home, that your sense organs give very strong impulses to your brain about what they sense.  It’s a special experience. In the very early morning I am back at the Sedlo Oravcova where I had to quit the last time. In order to be able to find my way without problems I wait for the sunrise. At approx. 3.30am a huge thunderstorm crashes its way into the Lower Tatras, leaving everything shocked and wet.

 The distance that needs to be covered today is long (including the section from Zavadka up the mountain to my starting point). Also the many meters climbing and descending will not make it easier. In addition the weather forecast for today is not so good. At 4.15am I start my hike, for which I have been mentally preparing for a long time now. Due to the thunderstorm and rain all the grass, bushes and trees are wet. The Trail follows a path that is very narrow. Passing trees without touching them is impossible. At 4.25am, only 10 minutes after my start, I am soaken wet from my toes up to my waist. Completely soaken wet! I do my best to maintain a constant pace. After two hours I pass a shelter that is situated just behind the top of the Vel’ka Vapenica. It is robust, dry and there’s nobody around. I take off my shoes and socks and try to get them to dry a little bit.

Andrejcova Bivouac

After the short break I continue my way. It starts to rain and the visibilty, which was okay so far, is getting less and less. The Trail follows the main ridge of the Lower Tatras, which looks simple on the map but is not so easy in reality. Many turns and curves, even with compass at hand, make it very difficult to find my way. Fortunately there are many signs, mostly on big rocks along the Trail, as well as on sticks of 1.5 meter height. The fogg gets thicker while I am climbing up to the top of the Orlova, where the highest section of this part of the Lower Tatras is situated. I follow the signs, not being able to see beyond 20 or 30 meters. All of a sudden I realize I have seen a certain rock with signs before. My compass confirms to me that, indeed, I am not going eastbound anymore, but west! I turn around and carefully make sure I stay on the right track. After the Orlova, at 1800+ meters altitude, the wind is blowing fiercely, the visibility is next to nothing, and the rain is pouring down constantly. I can follow the Trail without difficulty and when I pass a big rock I almost bump into two hikers that are going in the oposite direction. They are starteled as well and after a short “good luck” we continue our ways. The top of the Kral’ova Hola is right in front of me, I know, as I can see it on the map. Only four minutes before I pass the huge broadcast tower I start to see it through the fogg.

four minutes to go to the Král’ova Hola

Funny that I saw it when I was 40 kilometers further away, but hardly today, even when I am passing it at some 50 meters distance! The wind (storm?) and the rain really make this a horrible place to be right now. After passing the top the road goes down and after a few minutes the Trail leaves the road and crosses some lovely meadows and fields. Lovely on a bright summer day, but today everything is wet and slippery.

the Trail, slippery when wet!

I manage to find my way down, but I can not avoid for my trousers to get covered with dirt and mud. The closer I get to the village of Telgart, down in the valley, the better the weather gets. There is no more wind, and halfway down the mountain it stops raining. An hour later, around 2.45pm, down in the valley, the weather is almost summerlike, with a some clouds along the blue sky. Looking back up the mountain the peak is still covered in clouds, and it looks like there’s still a storm going on up there.

Telgart is only a very small village, so when I pass a very small grocery shop I go in and buy some snacks and food for tomorrow’s stage. I continue my way to Pension Telgart, which is situated directly along the Trail, and where I stay for the night. The owner of the pension gives me all the old newspapers that he has so I can try to get my shoes dry before the morning.

remainders of map nr. 123

Today is the last day of my two-day hiking trip. Although this is an official mountain refuge any West-Alpine situations are unheard of. No climbers that get up at 1.00am or 2.00am to prepare for their big climb. Over here the breakfast is served as of 8.00am. Today, I am the first who gets his. I only have a short stage ahead of me, going down to the pass of Certovica, where the next bus stop is situated. I would have time enough to do some more kilometers, but after Certovica the Trail enters into the eastern part of the Lower Tatra, which are not so well exploited as the western part. Between Certovica and Telgart there are almost 40 kilometers of the Trail to be done, but without break or return possibility along the trail. I will have to leave the eastern part of the Lower Tatra for the next trip.

At 8.30am I leave the refuge. The weather is again very nice, lots of sun, not too warm, gentle breeze. Descending is not my favorite activity, so I keep any easy pace, having no need to rush downhill. I pass the Dumbier, the highest peak of the Lower Tatras. It is an extra hour to climb this peak as well, which is not worth it to me. The view from the Chopok yesterday was superb, matching the Dumbier’s. In addition I have to catch a bus at the Certovica pass, and I don’t want to rush, so I continue my way down. South of the Dumbier I pass the refuge Chata Generala Stefanicka.

Chata Gen. Stefanicka and the Dumbier

Also on this side of the mountain range there are many tourists on their way, even in the morning. After a short break I continue my way down. The view straight ahead is magnificent, with it the far distance the enormous tower on top of the Král’ova Hola. The soil here is very dry, even between the bushes. Only dry sand and dust. Further down the slope there’s also grass. Just above the pass Certovica the slope gets steep and the descent is uncomfortably and requires attention and energy. At 11.20am I arrive at Certovica.

signs at Certovica

Certovica is the name of the pass, where some worndown buildings are situated, plus a pension that is still in business. In the past, when the roads in Slovakia were not of high quality this used to be a common break during a one or two-day trip across the country. Nowadays one drives in 6 or 7 hours from one side of Slovakia to the other, and the pension/restaurant at Certovica is only used for a small stop. The bus picks me up exactly according to schedule. A great trip is coming to an end.

I travel to Slovakia for a two-day hiking trip. Yesterday I came to Kremnica, where I had a reservation in a local hotel. There was nobody around when I called at the front door, so I decided to go to one of the B&B addresses that I had with me. The owner was friendly and we had a chat about being outdoors. He showed me his wounds and bruses that he got last week when he crashed with his ATB in the hills. He was riding straight down the hill without braking, after drinking half a bottle of vodka . . . .  He was kindly enough warning me for bears that live out here in the woods, and what I should be doing if I have the bad luck to meet one. As I am planning a big day for today I take the first bus that drives from Kremnica to Kremnicke bane. When I leave the B&B at 5.45am (on a Sunday morning) I find that there are already many people out. Many cars are driving, pedestrians are everywhere, it looks like life has already begun a few hours ago! The bus takes about 10 minutes to drive to Kremnicke Bane. The road is full of curves and unexpected steep sections.

A few minutes after the start I pass already the first highlight of today. The chapel and memorial rock that indicate the Centre of the World. In the late Middle Ages the centre of the maps of the world, as it was known at that time, was this location.

centre of the world

The weather is great, clear blue sky, early morning sun shining bright and a slight gentle breeze. I pass the village of Krahule. The focus of the attention of this village is the winter season; there are some ski facilities, like in many other villages in the hills in Slovakia. I continue my way up the hill, towards the top of the Skalka.

The climb coveres some 400 meters, and it goes straight up the hill. On the upper part of the hill there are, again, ski facilities that should comfort winter tourists. A huge hotel is being constructed when I pass along. There are a few other tourists up here, but no others hikers. Large sections of the north and east side of the Skalka are cleaned from trees in order to create skislopes. Further along the Trail the path is crossing dense forrests that block any potential view in all directions. Too bad, in the east the city of Banska Bystrica is situated, one of the biggest cities in the country. The Trail continuous its way northbound. After the hill Svrcinnik the map indicates that the path goes down to the pass Sedlo Maly Sturec, where the main road is crossed. Unfortunately the path has many short climbs and desecents that are too little to be identified on the map, but they are big enough to break my pace and energy. Long before arriving on the Sedlo Maly Sturec I hear noises of motorcycles pulling up and slowing down. By the time I reach the Sedlo I find out that these are guys that come racing from down the valley up to the pass, turn around and race down again. There are many of them, racing for several hours. I continue my way up the hill, northbound. I take a short lunchbreak when I arrive in the shade again. The temperature is getting hot, and I do not have much drinking water with me today. The half a liter is perhaps sufficient on an average day, but today I have to make a lot of efforts to go up and down the hills of the Velky Fatra, in the warm summer weather. After the break I continue my way up to the refuge Kralova Studna in a modest pace, trying to use as much as possible the shades. The final part of the stage, the last climb to the refuge, is inconvenient; I feel light and dizzy in my head, my lips and mouth are dry and it’s about time this stage comes to an end. At 2.55pm I arrive in the refuge.

refuge Kralova Studna

The refuge is situated just above the trees, at 1300 meters. The view to the south is very nice. The refuge is being reconstructed, and it is only partly available. The diningroom is situated on the first floor, and it is crowded with hikers and some day tourists. The number of besd that are available is limited, but I get a single room with my own bathroom. It is still partly under construction but it is comfortable. I drink a lot of mineral water to recover from the thirst. Later, during dinner, a big group of hikers arrive in the refuge. It is an international group of students, including some Dutch people. They turn out to be students from the university in Nijmegen, situated only 40 kilometers from my home town. It’s a small world.

Today is the last day of my four-day hiking trip. I leave my luggage in the hotel in Turcianske Teplice, as I plan to be back here tonight. I take an early bus from Turcianske Teplice back to Jasenovo, and I walk up to the pass on the side of the (very!) busy road. When big trucks are passing there’s hardly enough space for me to step aside.

The weather is totally different from yesterday: rain, wind, and of course fog. From the Sedlo I go up the hill past a farm and through the woods up to the Vysehrad hill, which is 250 meters higher than de pass. The visibility is zero and the wind makes it very unpleasant to be up here. I follow the Trail to the south, and later to the southeast. My feet are hurting, the weather is bad, and it’s cold. The Trail is very well hidden between the trees, and it is no big fun to be out here, today. One of the Trail signs that I pass on my way indicates the way, but ignores the hikers as the sign is not readable from the path. I have to leave the path and go between the trees in order to be able read what’s on it.

road sign, ignoring the hikers

 After a few hours I pass the village of Sklene on my left hand side. It’s 12.45pm, I take a lunch break and I consider my options. I am not amusing myself up here, and I could go to Sklene and take a bus back to Turcianske Teplice. The alternative is to stick to the plan: follow the Trail to the village of Kremnicke Bane and take a bus or train from there. I decide to use the few hours of daylight that are left to get as far as possible. Today is my last day of this trip, and it would not be motivating to break off early on your last day and take that as a memory with you for the time (next year?). In addition, Sklene would be not an easy start location for the next trip, as it is hidden in the hills, with only a few buses per day that go there. I decide to continue my way. After climbing the first hill I manage to keep a steady pace, as the Trail is not climbing or descending anymore fopr a few kilometers. At the Sedlo Pod Vysokou the Trail changes its course and goes straight east. After 20 minutes the Trail leaves the forrest and continues in a meadow or field. The visibility in this section is really poor, some 50 meters, and there is nothing to see. It’s a huge plain field that I am crossing. There are no Trail signs visible and by using the map and compass I am able to walk east, without seeing any landmark. After half an hour I cross a fieldroad. It is marked on the map. If the map is really acurately drawn, then some 100 meters north of me there should be a tree. I decide to check this in order to make sure where on the map my current position is. After 2 minutes I see indeed a tree popping up in the fog. And in addition, it has a Trail sign indicating that I was right on the Trail. I continue my way with more confidence than before. After another half an hour I cross a road, and a Trail sign that indicates that I should follow this road to the village of Kunesov. The small village is situated only five minutes further, and I continue along the regular road to Kremnicke Bane. Walking on concrete I am able to increase my pace a little bit, and finally at 4.40pm I arrive in the village of Kremnicke Bane.

On the map this village looks medium sized, so I hope to find a shop there, for some snack or refreshment. The village turns out to be another Slovakian example of lack of land use planning. In a wide area of some square kilometers there are all kinds of houses built, with much unused land in between. There is also a church and in my Western mindset this is usually the centre of the village. Over here it is on the side of the village, in the middle of much unused land. There is also a gasstation where I buy some chocolate bars. The railwaystation is situated north of the village. I have to wait more than two hours for the next train to Turcianska Teplice. I have the feeling I am really far from home, now.