Banská Bystrica, Hiking Denied!

 There is a bear problem in Slovakia. Well there is a human problem with bears because bears are just being bears. A recent bear attack near Detva, near Banská Bystrica has lead to the government authorizing the military to cull 350 Brown Bears, almost 25% of the recorded brown bear population in Slovakia. Why is this an important story for me. I travelled to Banská Bystrica with the purpose of doing some hiking in the low Tatras mountains and I was inspired by the number of great recommended hikes in the area. Normally this type of story would not bother me but something odd happened on my first short hike to get a feel for the area. There is a short walk from the hostel where cross the river that runs alongside the town. You follow a fairly steep side road up for about 20 minutes where you come to an intersection. 

Post short hike cafe view Cafe view of the town square. 

One way leads to the Calvary with Chapel and the other keeps going, which is the way I took. My way ended at an open field where the path went up about 200 metres which leveled off. Now to the right was an open meadow which was flat, and I was a bit huffed from the climb. It carried on to the church, so that little circuit was complete. Easy enough, so I went back to the clearing and looked up. The path went up quite a ways and there were lush green forests at the top. This was the the start of the Serpentines Urpin Trail. The reviews were great and the photos highlights were inspiring. It was a 2 to 3 hour loop and as I had just arrived I took a few steps forward. Then it happened, the spidey senses said "slow down big boy." Using a bit of logic I thought, my phone was only at 40%, I had no water or supplies and I was already 3:00 in the afternoon, not late as sunset is 8:00 but just late enough to add to the "turn back and return tomorrow column." However, I just felt something else was off, and with that turned around, visited the church again and went back to town.

The view back into town. The trail up to the Upril Trek was directly behind me.

I had a beer at a cafe in the colorful town square then decided to grab a few cans at the local supermarket and get cleaned up. The hostel manager was puttering about so I offered him one of the beer and we sat and chatted, mostly using google translate. This is where I learned about the "bear issues." I mentioned the things I wanted to do in the area and the first was to hike the Uprin trail. He immediately said NO! Noticing how serious he was (again this is all through google translate) I asked why not and he explained that he was up there last week and he met a bear on two different occasions. "Not same bear, different bear."  He told me about the military shooting many bears near here so NO, do not hike there. Then he added, "it is mushroom season" so bears are acting a bit crazy. I think he was referring to magic mushrooms but I did not force the question. I quickly scanned the news wires and found the various stories to collaborate his concerns. So, that made that choice an easy one. I finished my beer, said thanks and headed out to the Museum of Slovak National Uprising. Yet another dark chapter from WW2 lay before me.

Banská Bystrica was the scene of large battles between the Nazis and the liberating Russian army. There is a plaque commemorating the towns liberation on the Russian Memorial at Slavin in Bratislava that I mentioned in a previous post.

During World War II, Banská Bystrica in Slovakia became a crucial location for the Slovak National Uprising, a significant anti-Nazi resistance movement. The uprising, launched from the city on August 29, 1944, aimed to overthrow the Nazi-aligned Slovak government and its alliance with Germany. While the uprising was ultimately suppressed by German forces by October 1944, Banská Bystrica remained a symbolic center of the resistance and a testament to Slovakian resistance against the Nazi regime. -- Wiki

The Museum of Slovak National Uprising gave me incredible insight into the Slovak uprising against the Nazis. It is also when I learned about Kalište and Kremnička, two places of Nazi atrocities near here and I made a mental note to visit both locations. I added a link to a wiki page for each if you so choose.

Here is a link to the Museum from the Dart Tourism website.

The museum had an incredible interactive display including a room that is set up as a trench. When you enter there is a movie playing, of soldier in the trench, and it is filmed so you are beside them at eye level. It was so well done and I had never seen anything this creative in any of the War museums I have been to all over the world. 

The mid afternoon sun was shining and the skies were clear. After a day of short hiking and museum exploring that only meant one thing. Time to find a cafe and just chill, and it was so.

11% Alcohol is not so much chill if you have not eaten anything.