The third day in the east, where we had covered more than 80 kilometers in the last two days, was slower. In the morning we start from the same point in Bardejov where we finished yesterday’s stage.
By the way, Bardejov Town Hall Square is one of the most beautiful in Slovakia. It is a great pity that the SNP bypasses it, it is definitely worth making a small detour.
The square is rectangular and is surrounded on three sides by a row of typical narrow townhouses. On the north side of the square is the dominant of the city – the Basilica Minor of St. Egidius, connected to the Renaissance building of the former city humanities school.
The indescribable atmosphere of Bardejov Square is enhanced by its representative town hall building from the 16th century, built in the Gothic-Renaissance style. It houses the exhibition of the Šariš Museum dedicated to the history of the city.
We pass through the picturesque village of Mihaľov and continue to Hervatov, running for a surprisingly long time on asphalt roads, which is significantly faster, but less fun :).
In Hervatov there is a wooden church of St. Francis of Assisi and it is surrounded by a stone wall covered with wooden shingles. This church is also on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It was built at the end of the 15th century in the Gothic style and is our oldest preserved wooden church in the Gothic style. Its exterior has remained almost untouched even after more than half a millennium. However, we were unable to get inside.
We leave the asphalt and start climbing a really steep dirt road to Žobrák Hill. At its top there is a small chapel and a little further on there is a shelter and a lookout tower.
We continue through Bukový vrch to Čergov, which is the highest point of today’s stage. Around Bukový vrch we still found remnants of snow cover.
From Čergov, all that’s left for us is the descent to Terňa, it’s starting to get warm, we only have a pinch of water left and we’re already looking forward to the radler that we have left in the car at the finish line 🙂
