Trenta, the valley where the Soča is born

How to reach the source of the Soča

Water collecting beneath Jalovec, Šite, Travnik and Mojstrovka emerges from a cave with a small underground lake and runs through a narrow gorge before opening out into the valley. It’s one of the cleanest karst springs in the Julian Alps and the start of a 138 km river, covered in the guide to the Soča river. A folk tale tells how three gods, Triglav, Jalovec and Mangart, tied up an evil water spitter who flooded the villages inside that cave, leaving his mouth slightly open to water the valley.

You reach it by turning off at hairpin 49 towards the hut at the source, and from there the trail takes about 15 minutes. The upper part is protected with pegs and wire rope, so it isn’t for everyone.

Down the valley on the Soča Trail

Heading down towards Bovec, the Soča Trail links the source, the Alpinum and the Great Soča Gorge, whose pools only show themselves at a few points along the path. Alongside open the Lepena valley, the starting point for Lake Krn, and the Šunik water grove, another of the corners the Soča Valley Tourist Board recommends. On a longer trip, such as two weeks in Slovenia, I’d give Trenta at least one night.

The Kugy monument and Alpinum Juliana

Beside the same hairpin stands the bronze monument to Julius Kugy, lawyer, mountaineer and writer who, with the help of local guides, was the first to climb many peaks of the Julian Alps. He was drawn to Trenta by the search for a mysterious flower, Scabiosa trenta, which turned out to be a hoax, and his statue gazes at Jalovec, the mountain he loved most.

A little further down, at Pri Cerkvi beside the church of Our Lady of Loreto, is Alpinum Juliana, the oldest alpine botanical garden in Slovenia. It was founded in 1926 by the Trieste merchant Albert Bois de Chesne, advised by Kugy, and named after his wife. Its 2,572 m² hold more than 600 species, including Slovenian endemics, the lady’s-slipper orchid and Zois’s bellflower.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Bovec before prices climb.

Dom Trenta, the park centre

Dom Trenta, at Na Logu, is the cultural centre of the valley and an information point for Triglav National Park, Slovenia’s only national park. It has a museum on Trenta’s daily life, ethnology and alpine heritage, a multivision show on the park’s nature and an eight-screen installation on the Soča’s underwater world through the four seasons. It’s accessible for visitors with disabilities and hosts concerts, theatre and photography exhibitions through the season.

If you would rather have a local show you round, book a guided tour in Bovec and choose by the reviews.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Bovec before prices climb.