Lake Bled is the most popular tourist location in Slovenia, and was our base for our 10 days holiday. The Lake is quite small at about 2km long and 1km wide, and with good paths around the lake, it is easy to walk around it in a few hours. The small town of Bled lies at the east end of the lake, but there are also plenty of hotels and cafes dotted around the lake.

The main feature of the lake is Bled Island, situated towards the western end of the lake. The Church of the Assumption of Mary, dating from the 17th Century is located on the island, together with numerous other buildings. Another interesting feature is Bled castle, which stands on a clifftop overlooking the lake. There has been a castle here since at least the 11th Century, and up until the early 19th Century was under the rule of the Bishops of Brixen.

Pletna On Lake Bled

Bled Island can be reached by hiring a rowing boat, or taking a trip in a Pletna – an unusual type of wooden boat with colourful awnings, propelled by a standing oarsman using a pair of oars. This type of craft is similar to a Venetian gondola, and has been used on the lake since at least 1740, when a group of families were awarded the right to transfer pilgrims to the island by Maria Theresa of Austria.

There are two locations on the lake where Pletna can be hired, either from the town of Bled itself, shown in the image above, or from a jetty towards the west end of the lake, which gives a shorter crossing. Usually the boatmen wait until they have a full boatload before setting off, to maximise their income from each trip.

Bled Island

Whilst Bled Island is in view from all around the lake, the main viewpoint for photographers is from the west end of the lake, where the path follows a wooden boardwalk along the edge of the lake. Sunrise is the best time for this location, with the light of the rising sun behind the island. From this location, the church sits in a dip in the distant mountains, making for a perfect composition. It is necessary to arrive early to bag your spot, as this is a very popular location for photographers.

For most of the first week of our stay at Lake Bled, the weather was overcast, with no opportunity for an interesting sunrise. However part way through the second week, the clouds cleared and we enjoyed a lovely sunrise. There is really only one view from the boardwalk, but there are options to take a wider or narrower shot.

We also visited the boardwalk on the following morning hoping for some mist on the lake. Unfortunately, it was more like fog, and after a brief view of the church before sunrise, the fog thickened, completely hiding the view of the church.

We went out again later in the day when the sun was burning off the fog. Although there was no sunrise colour, this still gave quite an atmospheric view.

As most of our first week at Lake Bled was overcast, we also took plenty of pictures of the island under cloudy conditions.

Bled Castle

We did not visit Bled Castle, however it is in clear view from the waterfront at the town of Bled. Standing high on its clifftop, it is rather reminiscent of something out of Dracula – especially when it is lit up at night.

A wider view shows the location of the castle relative to the lake, as seen from the waterfront at Bled.

A longer telephoto shot shows the castle lit up as the sky darkens towards nightfall.

Finally, as the castle looks like something out of a Dracula movie, a simple composite with the moon enhances the vampire theme.

Church Of St Martin

The main church in Bled is the Church of St Martin. Whilst a church has stood on this site since the 11th Century, the current church is much more recent, having been built in 1905. Scenically it cannot compete with the church on Bled Island, however it still makes for a pleasant shot rising behind the autumn trees on the shores of Lake Bled.

Ojstrica

Ojstrica simply means Sharp Peak in Slovenian, but is the name of a hill overlooking the lake. The summit can be reached by a fairly short but steep hike through the woods, starting from behind the boardwalk at the west end of the lake. Although it is said to take about 20 minutes to climb, we spent rather longer, stopping to photograph some mushrooms as an excuse to take a break on the climb.

From the top of the climb, there is a fine panorama over the lake, which shows its setting, with the mountains in the distance.

A common feature in pictures of the view from Ojstrica is a slightly rickety bench. As the spot is quite popular, it took quite a while before we got a shot of the bench without anyone on it.

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