St. Roch's trail 702
Trail marked with number 702
Start: Pićan
End: Slap Sopot
Length:7 km
Difficulty: Easy
Altitude: 57 m
Highest point: 371 m
Lowest point: 98 m
Duration: 2:00 h
Since 2022, the trail has been transformed into a circular trail with a total length of 7 km.
Trail of St. Roch, marked with the Istra trails mark 702, is an easy trail that starts in the town of legends - Pićan, just below the children's park near the city gates. Next to the church of St. Roch you will find on a board with the path and a description of its main sights, created by the Adris Foundation in cooperation with the Municipality of Pićan. The first part is a descent on an asphalted road (about 1 km), then in a bend between two cypress trees, turn left onto a macadam road. The path leads further through the forest, where you can also find the source of St. Nicephorus.
The next attraction on the trail is the Fairy builders Rock, for which legend says that the rock fell on the trail during the hasty carrying of stones for the construction of the Pula arena. At sunrise, the rooster crowed, so the fairy couldn't pick it up and continue her work...
Soon you will arrive at the Sopot waterfall, one of the most beautiful in Istria, 24.5 m high, which delights with its turquoise color of the lake at the foot.
There are 2 viewpoints next to the waterfall: the Old Slavonic god Perun, who, as the ruler of the sky, is in a position right above the waterfall, and the viewpoint of his wife, the goddess of fertility and protector of women - Mokoš, which is located halfway down the west side towards the lake. Her position was always at the border between the earth, the underworld (god Veles) and the sky (god Perun). Because of her indecision, she lived underground in winter and in the sky in spring.
What makes the area around the waterfall even more special is the centuries-old bridge - built in Napoleon's time which connects the surrounding villages and Pićan. Water damaged this bridge several times, but the locals rebuilt it again and again. The last renovation was in 1953. Not far away is a table with benches for a rest or a picnic, and you can choose whether you want to return to Pićan or continue towards Gračišće, along the footpath of St. Šimun (Istria trails 701).
If you return to Pićan by the same path, you can rest at the viewpoint of St. Jelena, in the shade of a linden tree, with a beautiful panoramic view of the protected landscape of Pićna and the largest mountain in Istria, Učka.
