Life in the Kamnik Mountains

Zaprice Castle Museum and administration
When: For indefinite time
The permanent exhibition Na planincah luštno biti gives an overview of life in the Kamnik-Savinja Alps from the first archeological finds until today. Velika planina is the highest alpine pasture plateau in Slovenia, which has preserved its essence and tradition, and still lives on. The oval cottages and trniči (a special type of cheese), are not only a speciality of Velika planina but of the whole Alpine region, not to mention the endemic animals and botanical species that live and grow only in the Kamnik-Savinja Alps.

What was the first kind of human in the mountains – hunter, gatherer, miner or shepherd? To whom belong the numerous fragments of pottery, tools, jewellery? Through archeological finds we are discovering the shepherd's daily routine from ancient Roman times. The oldest-known ground plan of a shepherd's cottage on Velika planina is from the end of the 16th century. We can also learn about the dispute between Count Andrej Lamberg from Črnelo and the town of Kamnik, which arose due to the right to pasture cattle. It lasted for many decades. In a document from 1538 Velika planina is mentioned for the first time as the Great Horse Mountain Pasture.

Discover the life and work of shepherds in the summer months, their social life, creativity, and even their superstitions. Velika planina is alive even during winter time when it gets different visitors - hikers, skiers, cottagers. A chairlift and cable car from 1964 were vital for the beginnings of tourism, and the union-organised tourism too, which stopped in the late 1990s.