This walking holiday in Bled, Slovenia, started with a flight from Stansted.

We arrived at Pension Villa Kolinska in time for a late meal of delicious barley soup and platters of bread, cheese and ham. Marjan, our delightful host, made us very welcome as always.

As we'd arrived too late to explore the small resort town of Bled, we did so this morning before setting off on our first walk.

It was a lovely day and a break near the lake for coffee and cake (for some) gave us a gentle introduction to the town.

Although the holiday is made up of a gentle and low intermediate option each, the whole group walked together today to allow everyone to get a feel for the grade they wanted to walk.

The walk to Koritno was, as always spent enjoying the clear blue sky and the wonderful views of the mountains.

After leaving the main road we dropped down into the pretty valley of the Sava Dolinka where we wandered down through peaceful meadows towards Sobec.

After a stiff pull up out of the valley we strolled along the pretty lanes to reach the village of Peceh with its medieval church of St Lenert.

This year we were able to gain access to the church after getting the key from a nearby farmhouse.

The ancient church is covered with frescoes both inside and out.

After a good look round, we climbed up to the giant cross on the knoll behind the church for a fantastic outlook across the valley. Here we had our lunch.

After a relaxing break we continued down to Sava Bohinska, crossing the bridge over this lovely river.

We meandered through woods to reach the river again, watching fishermen in the river, then stopping for a short relax in the sun.

We then wandered up the hill into the village of Ribno and along a rather hot lane back into Bled.

Some of the group headed off to explore the castle and the town.

In the evening we went to the local Union restaurant which has been popular with previous WalkingWomen groups.

Unfortunately some women had to wait for a table so we planned henceforth to split into smaller groups and eat at several restaurants...

Today we set out in 2 groups at staggered times to walk to the Vintgar gorge.

The Low Intermediate group, led by Sarah first followed the paths through the fields towards the village of Zasip.

The route followed the edge of the slopes down to the river and the views of the woods and river were beautiful.

We by-passed the village and followed a lane which wound up through the forest to reach the pretty church of St Katarina, where we stopped for a break at the bar nearby.

As we were settling down for coffee and creamy hot chocolate the gentle group, led by Donna arrived after taking the shorter minor road from Zasip - and joined us for a well deserved rest and refreshments.

After our rest we separated again to continue our walk at different paces through the beautiful beech woods to the Vintgar gorge.

At the foot of the gorge we stopped to enjoy views over the edge of the Sum waterfall. The water level at the falls was low this trip but it is still a beautiful sight.

The Vintgar gorge is the narrow channel where the emerald green River Radovna flows between steep rocky slopes and precipitous cliffs.

The path crosses back and forth across the channel via bridges and decking.

Lots of stops were made to enjoy the views, the fish and the aerial displays of the dippers.

After a break for lunch at the top of the gorge, the Low Intermediate walk returned to Bled via St Katerina while the gentle route was more direct.

We all enjoyed the autumnal views across the fields.

In the evening we sampled different restaurants in smaller groups - trying local dishes, pizza, pasta and fish.

All appeared to have been successful with much better service than the night before.

Rain had started over dinner last night and was still torrential at breakfast.

A trip to Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, was suggested and went down well. (This was something we'd thought to offer on the last day due to our relatively late flight home).

We travelled there in different ways. Some booked a couple of minibuses for a guided tour, while the rest of us went by bus or by train.

A few stayed in Bled having a relaxing day at the hotel with a quick dash into town between the showers!

Ljubljana is a beautiful small town with a mixture of stylish Art Nouveau buildings and pretty medieval streets.

The mini bus group were given a tour by their drivers who took them up to the castle and then brought them back into the centre of town.

They were also given recommendations on where to have lunch, which was much appreciated.

Everyone got back to a wet Bled having enjoyed a fairly dry day in the capital city.

In the evening most of us ate out in small groups, while those who'd enjoyed a large lunch in Ljubljana had a relaxed evening at the pension.

Due to the reshuffling of walks, our trip to Bohinj today - usually the finale - was no longer going to be the last walk of the holiday.

We were collected by 3 taxis and driven to Ribcev Laz at the foot of Lake Bohinj. It weather was grey but fortunately stayed fine all day.

We set off along the far shore of Lake Bohinj, and much appreciated the atmospheric views of the lake and mountains clothed with mist and beautiful autumnal trees.

At one point we spotted a beautiful salamander.

The water level of the lake was much higher than usual. Beaches that we have picnicked on in the past were all submerged.

However, we in no way anticipated as we neared the end of the walk that a river bed that is usualy bone dry would be filled with a raging torrent, and there was no question of us crossing it.

This river only emerges from the mountain side only after very heavy rain when an reservoir inside Prsivec - the mountain overlooking the lake - fills and suddenly overflows. This torrent has been known to raise the level of the lake by 6cm an hour!

Needless to say we were forced to turn back and appreciate the views in the other direction!

Some women still wanted to go up in the Vogel Cable Car however - despite the low clouds.

So after a brief picnic beside the lake and a foray into the large hotel at Ribcev Laz to try the cakes (truely horrible!), we re-arranged the taxis so that some women could brave the clouds.

As they neared the bottom cable car station the weather started to clear, and as they rose they enjoyed a spectacular view of the Julian Alps emerging into the sun!

Back in Bled the weather was also beautiful. Some of the party took advantage of our early return to row to the church on the island in the centre of Lake Bled.

For dinner we enjoyed a second delicious meal at the Pension prepared by Marjan and his team - allowing us all to eat together for this last night.

Our last, longer than normal day, dawned clear with beautiful blue skies. Marjan kindly allowed us to keep our rooms all day, so our packing could be left till later.

The Low Intermediate walk was taken by Sarah.

After descending through beautiful woodland we reached the pretty village of Mlino and headed along lanes and through alpine meadows towards Selo.

From Selo we walked through the valley to the Sava Bohinska river for a short break before climbing through the woods to Kupljenik.

This was our most strenuous climb of the holiday (200m), but we reached the viewpoint relatively quickly and looked out across the valley. There was no sign of the gentle group on their walk.

Soon we came to a lovely alpine meadow and wandered through the fields to the pretty village of Kupljenik.

Everyone really enjoyed their lunch after the climb, sitting in a field and taking in the beautiful view.

We descended into the valley again, crossed the river, then headed back to Lake Bled via the village of Spodnji Vas and more stunning beech woods.

Fortunately the bar beside the lake was open to provide essential beers, coffees and cakes to revive us!

Our route now took us back beside the lake into Bled for a last wander round the shops.

The gentle walk with Donna had taken a shorter stroll into the woods and explored the hillside behind Mlino.

After climbing steeply up the hill they found themselves at the top of Bled's ski run.

For lunch they enjoyed a spectacular view over the lake.

Later they descended into Bled with some of the group escaping to the shops and cafe's whilst the rest took a turn around the lake.

It had been a great last day with time to shower and finish packing before the taxis arrived to take us to the airport and back to Stansted and home.