Veľká Fatra Mountains: Slovak treasure

„After all… tomorrow is another day“, said Scarlett O´Hara, and with flaming eyes gazed in the
future.
As Josephine Cochrane did, as she invented the first commercially successful automatic dishwasher.
And what would the modern mother do without a waterproof disposable diaper, the invention of
Marion Donovan.
In a visit to New York City in the winter of 1902, in a trolley car on a frosty day, Mary Anderson
observed that the motorman drove with both panes of the double front window open because of
difficulty keeping the windshield clear of falling sleet. In November 1903 Anderson was granted her
first patent for an automatic car window cleaning device controlled from inside the car, called the
windshield wiper.
Through the years, women from different generations and locations have proven their strength and
independence.
And Izabela Textorisová, the first Slovak female Botanist, discovered on the Tlstá Mountain an
interesting thistle, later named after her – Carduus Textorianus Marg. And a planet was named after
her. And her portrait was placed on a stamp.
Welcome to Veľká Fatra Mountain Range! Blatnica village is located at its heart, just a minute from
Martin, just two minutes from Kremnica and 2,5 hours’ drive from Bratislava.
And let´s explore its amazing history and treasures!
Discover Bronze and Stone Age artifacts, Celtic and Slavic settlements, ruins of the Blatnica Castle
from the 13th century, the museum of Karol Plicka, a famous photographer and ethnographer
located in a Baroque-classicist manor house, a late Baroque manor house from the 18th century,
traditional houses with arches, where producers of healing oils made from drug plants used to live.
Blatnica village is the birthplace of Maša Haľamová, a Slovak poet. Blatnica village was an asylum for
partisans in the Slovak National Uprising during World War II.
Nowadays Blatnica village is a fantastic starting point for many hiking and cycling routes. A  hiking
path of Janko Bojmír, named after the local activist and tourist guide, runs to Ostrá and Tlstá
Mountains.
A hiking path through the rough forest bends near a stone cirque, the Mažarná Cave. In this 130m
long fissure cave, Stone and Bronze Age people used to sit around the fire, the partisans used to hide
during the Slovak National Uprising. And in winter, the chiropterans spend nights here.
Mud, stones and chains bring you to the deforested flat mountain, a plus-size-model Tlstá Mountain.
A striking ridge with gorgeous views ends on Ostrá Mountain, a supermodel of the Veľká Fatra
Mountains. A break-neck hiking path with chains and wooden stairs, takes you to the top to see the
sky above clouds. And on the road back, a Byron view, shows you the Tlstá Mountain again.
The Turiec Region used to be characterized as a treasure of Slovakia. Is it so? Go and check it out
yourself!

Veľká Fatra
Na Tlstú a Ostrú.