The Ljubljana Marshes, a prehistoric lake turned into meadows

A lake that became meadows

The Ljubljana Marshes, Ljubljansko barje in Slovene, are the southern end of the Ljubljana basin. The Slovene Wikipedia puts them at 163 km², almost one per cent of the country, and reckons up to 80 km² can flood each year. The landscape park was created in 2008 and the area joined the Natura 2000 network in 2004. According to the park itself, it is Slovenia’s largest expanse of wet meadows with hedges, copses and water, and its wildlife owes much to late, light mowing.

Inside the park are several protected spots, such as the Goriški mah peat bog, the remains of an old raised bog with its peat layer, Lake Podpeč in the municipality of Brezovica, and the Ljubljanica springs by Vrhnika.

Pile dwellings and a 5,200-year-old wheel

It all began in 1875, when workmen deepening a roadside ditch near Ig hit stakes, pots and bones. Since then more than forty pile-dwelling settlements have been found across more than 150 km² of the marsh, lived in between 4600 and 1500 BC, when a large lake lay here. Two groups of these Ig pile dwellings became World Heritage in 2011, with 109 other sites in six countries around the Alps.

The most famous find is a wooden wheel with its axle, about 5,200 years old, now on show at the City Museum of Ljubljana. Wood, seeds and fibres have survived thanks to the water in the ground, and the park keeps an eye on its level.

Plečnik’s church at Črna vas

At Črna vas, out on the marsh, stands the church of St Michael, known to everyone as Plečnik’s church. The architect drew it at the request of the parish priest of Trnovo, the writer Fran Saleški Finžgar, and it was built in 1937 and 1938. It was meant to be temporary, with a stone base and the rest in timber, to be built higher later, something the war prevented. It stands on piles because of the soft ground, and inside Plečnik used sewer pipes as columns. Since 2021 it has been World Heritage along with the other Plečnik works in Ljubljana.

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Marsh trails and how to reach them

The park keeps several trails. Morostig, at Ig, runs 1.5 km to the rebuilt stilt village, open only on guided visits. The 1.7 km Barjanska okna trail shows the springs that rise where the gravel fan meets the marsh. The Goriški mah trail starts at Goričica pod Krimom, passes a bird hide and looks for amphibians and rare butterflies.

A bike is best, as the land is flat and distances from Ljubljana are short. By city bus, line 19I runs to Ig. Bring sun cream and insect repellent, as the paths have almost no shade, and bear in mind some stretches flood several times a year. I would ride them in April or May; here is what else spring in Slovenia has to offer.

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