Slovenia – Lake Bled in Autumn, October 10th

Autumn colors are great for landscape design in photography. Slovenia is one of the best travel destinations in October to paint your photos with the amazing colors. We went to 3-4 days trip to Slovenia, mainly to Lake Bled and Škofja Loka in the Upper Carniola region of Slovenia. Lake Bled is one Alpine paradise spot and St Marys Church sits on the huge rock on a tiny island. Castle Bled, is situated on a 130 meter cliff for more than a thousand years.

Photo: Lake Bled, St Marys Church in the island with Autumn colors

I arrived to  Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport via LOT Polish airlines. It is a relatively small airport and there are few bus connections to Ljubljana. I had a shuttle bus transfer to Lake Bled, costs 36 Euro ad takes around 30 minutes.

First impression after arrival to Lake Bled is great, it is amazingly calm, peaceful town with very clean lake and surroundings. The lake lies in a picturesque environment, surrounded by mountains and forests. Medieval Bled Castle stands above the lake on the north shore and has a museum. The Zaka Valley lies at the west end of the lake. 

There are several different accommodations options, we preferred a Rental apartment from Airbnb right in the centre, next to the lake and Hotel Villa Bled. The apartment has its own car parking as we will need a rental car to drive to Skofia Loka and to Dolomites from here.

The first discovery walk was around the lake, as the pedestrian path continues all around 9-10 km. I discovered the good photography locations such as a wooden bridge near to Hotel Villa Bled and the camping area. You will have both the tiny island with church and castle Bled in your frame. The best times are always sunsets and sunrises. There is a lovely and mysterious fog over the lake in the mornings.

Photo: Lake Bled with Castle behind

Photo: Sunset, evening photography walking around the lake side, light reflections to the lake at blue hour

OJSTRICA is a great View Point,  you need to hike uphill around 20 minutes, relatively medium difficulty. The rocks and the tree roots can be slippery in this season. If you arrive by car, you can park by the Camping area near the lake (3EUR per hour).  Then you walk back towards Bled center and you’ll start to see the arrows indicating the places. 1st point was OJSTRICA.

Photo: Lake Bled from OJSTRICA view point

Then we continued to climb another 30 minutes, a much better view Mala Osojnica. We missed the signs, but there are many people hiking around, so you will find the way somehow. Going down is a path closer to the camping area, with many metal steps.

Photo: Lake Bled from Mala Osojnica view point

Another activity here is rowing on the lake and make a short visit to the island. There are small boats to rent, suitable for 4 people, 1 hour costs 20 Euro.

Photo: Small boats in the lake

Bled castle, opens at 08:00. You can either climb by stairs or drive up to the castle by car. Entrance fee is 11 Euro. We had a coffee latte and a cream cake with amazing Lake view.

Photo: View from Castle Bled

What to eat:

Cream cake is a typical desert from the region, it has crispy upper part, creamy mid part and a cake in the bottom

Best Seafood Restaurant (Italian) Ostarija Peglez`n

A day trip to Sveti Tomaz Church

We woke up early; around 05:30 and drove 1 hour before sunrise. Our destination is to Sofia Loka, one of the middle age towns at northern Slovenia. Near to this town, there is one magical photo spot, Sveti Tomaz, Saint Thomas Church which was built in 16th century:  there is amazing Alps mountain view in the background. The Sveti Thomas Church sits on a small hill backed by the beautiful Kamnik Alps and is a truly unique scene in the morning sun. Slovenia offers a lot for Autumn Photography.

Photo: Sveti Tomaz church in the morning

Photo: sunrise in the area Sofia Loka

Feeling to be above the clouds, at a very quite and peaceful area, makes this morning very special.

After photo shooting around the Church area, we drove to Triglav National Park. Lake Bohinj, the largest natural lake in Slovenia, is located in a glacial valley in the heart of Julian Alps.

The most extensive and highest mountain range in Slovenia is also the most south-eastern part of the Alps.

Lake Bohinj is perfect for water activities all year round – from swimming, boat riding, wind surfing, kayaking or canoeing, fishing and diving in warmer months, to (sometimes) even ice skating in winter. Visitors can also take a wonderful tourist boat ride or simply go for a relaxing walk along the shore. 

Photo: Bridge and Lake Bohinj

There are always reasons to go back to Slovenia, which is beautiful every season. Slovenia Lake Bled Autumn Photography is just great.