Petra guided us for three days in the Kocevje region, in August 2022, during which time she showed us lots of different places in the area, including virgin forest, rivers, lakes, tiny villages and farmhouses. At each place Petra would tell us about the area, with a focus on the large carnivores, as well as the local history, during WWII and the Yugoslavia era and how that has shaped the forests. Her knowledge was incredible, full of interesting facts and insights – she was able to answer all our questions across a huge range of topics. Best of all was Petra’s personal experiences of the large carnivores in the area, which she shared with a detail and passion. Although we weren’t lucky enough to see bears, wolves or lynx ourselves, we were shown their lives through footprints, scratching posts and other signs of their presence, along with descriptions of Petra’s encounters in each location. Her approach to guiding is sensitive, ensuring we did not disturb animals and respected the forests as wild untouched places. Petra also gave us a lunchtime picnic, prepared by herself, and eaten in a beautiful spot. Each day there was different food, some of it from her own garden or made by herself, enabling us to experience delicious typical Slavonian food. Each evening, Petra arranged for us to eat a Slovenian dinner often in a remote farmhouse, prepared by the family living there. Petra ate with us, explaining what we were eating and sharing Slavonian life in the region with us, including how farmers live alongside bears and wolves. It was evident that Petra had put a huge amount of work into preparing for our three days with her before we arrived and continued to do so during our visit. We were extremely well looked after and, through Petra, were given a unique insight into the beautiful forests and animals living in them that brought the forests alive for us. Thank you Petra for a wonderful experience!
