Minčol

Minčol is a 1,364-metre peak in the northern, so-called ‘Lúčanská’ section of the Malá Fatra range. It stands in the main ridge about four kilometres north of Veľká Lúka. The summit area is covered with upland meadows dotted with patches of bilberry scrub. Lower down the slopes are almost entirely clothed in forest. During the last winter of the Second World War the ridge and lower slopes were lined with trenches, shelters and field fortifications built in spring 1945. An artillery display shows the weapons used by the First Czechoslovak Army Corps. In April 1945 its units fired on German positions in the Žilina Basin and helped free the town. Six waymarked hiking trails lead to the top. The red route along the main ridge of the Malá Fatra is the most popular. From the summit there is a wide view over the Žilina Basin, the Turiec Basin and both the Malá and Veľká Fatra ranges.