Primeval Forest and Waterfall Šumik

Be enchanted by the most remarkable natural attractions in the Pohorje Nature Park, which can be reached by numerous hiking trails.

Along the Lobnica stream spreads 19 hectares of untouched Pohorje primeval forest (the steep right slope above Lobnica), where beeches, spruces, and firs have found their hidden refuge, together with habitats of rare plants. After a short descent among the steep slopes along Lobnica, you will reach Waterfall Veliki Šumik, one of our most powerful waterfalls, and a little further on the Waterfall Mali Šumik. The trail between Veliki and Mali Šumik is considered very demanding.

How to reach the Pohorje primeval forest and waterfalls?

• From Maribor through the Drava Valley from Ruše towards Smolnik. Two kilometers further on, past the road section towards Gornjak, there is a signpost to the waterfalls on the left.

• From Maribor through Hoče to Areh, from where a local road leads to Šumik.

Then follow the marked trail from the Šumik plain or Pri Bajgotu, a pleasant excursion point with a rest area located at the confluence of the Črnava and Majland streams, which together form the Lobnica stream. From here, it is only half an hour’s walk to the primeval forest.

Waterfall Šumik is located in the Lobnica Gorge, within the protected Šumik primeval forest. It is 24 meters high and the largest waterfall in Slovenia on a non-carbonate (non-limestone) base. Due to its width and abundant water flow, it is exceptionally picturesque. The Lobnica Valley played an important role in economic activities in the past (two hundred years ago). It was a valley of sawmills and mills, a wooden flume known as the Ruše or “Lobnica” flume (“riža”) was built there, and glassmaking as well as blacksmithing were developed.

Primeval forest Šumik is a strictly protected forest reserve. It covers 15 hectares and has never been logged. It has been preserved thanks to its inaccessibility on the steep slopes of the Lobnica. In 1967 it was declared a protected forest with a special purpose: as the only Slovenian primeval forest on a silicate base and one of the rare remnants of Pohorje’s natural vegetation. In the primeval forest, in the Lobnica Gorge, and beside its waterfalls, hikers can experience pristine mountain wilderness.