The next stage of the SNP Heroes’ Trail,was taking us from the Štós Spa to Dobšinský Kopec. A long stage lay ahead, compounded by a lengthy drive that required a very early start. We left Bystrica at 4:30 AM, and I enjoyed my breakfast and morning coffee in the car along the way. We arrived at the Štós Spa at 7:15 AM, and just a few minutes later, we were already jogging along the red-marked trail.
The air warmed up quickly, and after just a few kilometers, I was already changing from my jacket into shorts. There were supposed to be plenty of springs along the route, so we were each carrying only two half-liter bottles—supplies that were disappearing very fast. The first water source was supposed to be at the Pipitka hunting lodge, but when we ran up to it full of hope, there wasn’t a single drop of water. We quickly scanned the map for the next spring, as we were down to our last two deciliters of water. Fortunately, the nearest spring was only 3.5 km away, so we pressed on.
At the SNP Úhorná shelter, we run into two guys who spent the night there and ask about water. They tell us that while there is water at the Smolník spring, it’s only a trickle; they had placed a cut-off bottle there the day before, and we are welcome to take whatever has collected in it. They saved us at least half an hour of waiting for the water to drip into all our bottles (thanks to them, we filled five out of six very quickly). And while we wait for that last half-liter, we snack on bread rolls and refuel.
We are crossing the Úhorná Pass, and halfway to Skalisko we meet Jožko, who had driven the car to the finish point and was running back to meet us. He is much faster than we are, so we have covered almost the same distance—he has 30 kilometers, and we have 31.
We head down from Skalisko to the Volovec mountain hut—partly for a radler, and partly because we’re running out of water again, with the next supply 15 kilometers away. The radler is wonderfully refreshing for all of us, and after half an hour, we’re back on our feet, heading toward Súľová Saddle.
From the saddle, one more nasty climb awaits us, and after that, they say it’s just rolling hills. Well, you need energy for rolling hills, too! 😀
Along the way, we pass the Gálová shelter—a beautiful spot with a stunning view—though the cabin was closed for disinfection.
Next comes a run down a forest path—finally a more relaxed stretch leading to the Suchý Vrch lookout tower, where we leave the cycle path and have to start climbing uphill again. Honestly, we’re pretty worn out; we’ve got over 50 kilometers in our legs, and every little hill is starting to feel like a challenge.
We finally reach the Kruhová saddle—a spot we already know, having run the next section from this point—and thanks God, there are only 5 kilometers left. We’re out of steam, so we walk the rest of the way as the sun sets. Even so, we’re all happy we made it.
