In 2019, I met for the first time mountain running. It happened while participating in the trail “Goverla Trail Race”, the route of which passed through the Ukrainian Carpathians, through such well-known peaks as Petros and Hoverla. I really liked the mountain trails, but after that I never got the chance to participate in such competitions again. So, I had to settle for various urban trail runs. But this year I set myself the goal of taking part again in some similar and interesting mountain trail.
So, while looking for something similar, I quite by accident came across a Croatian trail series held in the vicinity of Rijeka called the “Kvarner Trails Series”. I was immediately interested in this series, especially the mountain trails it consists of. Therefore, I decided to take a closer look at it and separately at the trail races included in it.
In particular, “Kvarner Trails” includes 4 trail races:
- Name: Hahlici Trail
- City: Dražice
- Distances: 22, 12 km.
- Total ascent: 1345 m.
- Max. height: 1186 m.
- Min. height: 289 m.
- Price: from 27 €
- Month: May
- Type: mountain trail
- Website: kvarnertrails.com
Mountain trail race, which takes place every year in the city of Dražice in mid-May. Halychi, or the so-called Tomb Alps, is the most beautiful part of the western plate of Gorski Kotar, which consists of a large number of different peaks, each of which has an unparalleled appearance. The ascent to Halica leads through picturesque grassy plains with views of Kvarner Bay, the islands and the Mudna Dol Canyon.
- Name: Risnjak Trail
- City: Crni Lug
- Distances: 30, 17 km.
- Total ascent: 1,733 m.
- Max. height: 1,505 m.
- Min. height: 679 m.
- Price: from 27 €
- Month: July
- Type: mountain trail
- Website: kvarnertrails.com
“Risnjak Trail” is a cross-country running competition that takes place every year in July and takes participants through the most beautiful corners of Rysniak National Park. Dense forests of Gorsky Kotar and its most picturesque peaks are what you can see on the route. Crny Lug, the start and finish of the race are a few minutes' drive from the sea.
- Name: Ucka Trail
- City: Moschenytska Draga
- Distances: 42, 31, 16 km.
- Total ascent: 2,417 m.
- Max. height: 1,396 m.
- Min. height: 1 m.
- Price: from 27 €
- Month: September
- Type: mountain trail
- Website: kvarnertrails.com
Another mountain race, which is part of this series. It takes place in September in the city of Moschenytska Draga. Participation in this sports event is a good opportunity to enjoy the beauty of the surrounding nature, the natural landscape park of Uchka. It is a unique combination of mountains and sea, Mediterranean climate and diverse flora and fauna. Athletes can enjoy a beautiful view of Kvarnenka Bay, islands and Istria in the west.
- Name: Malinska Trail
- City: Malinska
- Distances: 24, 14 km.
- Total ascent: 425 m.
- Max. height: 143 m.
- Min. height: 1 m.
- Price: from 27 €
- Month: November
- Type: mountain trail
- Website: kvarnertrails.com
The fourth and final trail race of the series, which takes place in November in the city of Malynska. They can not only test their strength on the route, but also enjoy the beauty of the western coast of the Krk mountain range.
At the end of each mountain race of the series, the participants are awarded points corresponding to their result in each individual race. Points are awarded to the top 30 participants, 1st place - 100 points, 30th place - 2 points and separate points for mountain race difficulty (RDP), which is calculated by the formula trail length + total ascent / 100 = RDP (all participants). The final rating of the series consists of the sum of the points that the participants received during each trail. The awarding of the best participants of the trail series "Kvarner Trails" takes place after the end of the last trail of the series, namely "Malinska Trail".
