Tehnical heritage

How did they once mine lead in the Peca mountain range, forge steel, mill wheat or make rafts? Learn about the tradition that is well-preserved in the museums and ethnological monuments.

See how the machines and other devices for lead mining at the Peca mountain range were operated, and how the tools were used in ironworks in Črna, Mežica, Ravne na Koroškem, and elsewhere. The amazing industrial heritage provides evidence of many technical and technological achievements that changed the lives and customs of the people. By inventing railway tracks, the Prevalje ironworks has become known all over Europe. Quality and precious iron alloys from Ravne are still known all around the world. The preserved facilities in Hudi Kot reveal how they once melted glass. Large volumes of wood and available water sources contributed to the use of water-driven sawmills that became an integral part of the wood processing industry after World War II.

Peca Underground Tourist Mine and Museum

Between Mount Peca and Mount Uršlja Gora ore sites were discovered already by the Romans. The first written records on the exploitation of lead ore date back to 1665 which is the year we commemorate as the beginning of mining under Mount Peca. During the years of mining, mine workers made 1,000 km of mining tunnels in Mount Peca. After the mine was closed, one part has remained open for visitors who can experience it in an interesting way by riding a genuine mining train, exploring it on foot, riding mountain bikes in the tunnels and excavations, or using a kayak to row the submerged sections. Today, the Peca underground is one of the most important tourist attractions in the Karavanke UNESCO Global Geopark and provides unique underground adventures and experience.

The Peca underground is a place of unique underground adventures and experience for different groups of visitors with various points of interest.

Train mining tour

Visitors equipped with mining helmets and coats are taken to the heart of the mine on a genuine mining train. After a 15-minute ride the train stops in the Moring section, 600 metres below the surface. An experienced tour guide then leads the way through the mine and presents the miners’ work in different historical periods.

Bicycle mining tour

Mountain bikes are made for riding mountain paths, but in Mežica it is also possible to ride through the mountain, down the abandoned and mysterious mining tunnels beneath Mount Peca. Visitors equipped with torches and accompanied by a tour guide safely cycle over five kilometres of a unique underground path from one valley to the other and experience an unforgettable adventure.

Kayak mining tour

The path of the underground adventure begins in front of the mining museum in Glančnik, Mežica, where visitors board a genuine mining train that takes them to the Union section. Then, they descend 95 meters on foot down to the water level and use kayaks to oar the tranquil and clean water, and explore the underground labyrinth of tunnels and excavations.

Adrenaline mountain bike route

The route takes you to deserted tunnels of the Mežica Mine. Vast chambers, excavated by our ancestors through centuries, used to be filled with tonnes and tonnes of lead ore and are today explored on mountain bikes. The path descends over more than five horizons, approximately 150 metres of difference in elevation.

Museum collections and adventure park

The old mining administration building from 1927 houses museum collections testifying to the life and work of miners and unique creations of nature, such as ores, minerals and fossils. More information on the origin of ore deposits, geological past of the area and who was King Matjaž is available in the adventure park near the Information Centre.