Of caves and cavemen

Unlike in the past years, I took my summer holidays seriously this time - partly by realizing some of my crafting projects and partly due to short escapes from the city. Lately, it was time to visit Radensko polje again. With temperatures above 30°C, it made sense to seek cooling in the system of caves we used to visit when we were kids. It is located in the southeast part of the karst field and represents the underground flow of the karst rivers that come to the surface after 10 kilometers as part of the Krka spring. 
Our goal: Zatočna jama, which under normal conditions takes in water from the Šica creek, Lazarjeva jama, which serves as the water's second route in case of heavy rain, and Viršnica, which is located above the two and is never reached by waters. 
After a seemingly endless walk past harvested fields and mown grass, we reached the alledged area of the caves. Unsure of their exact location, we kept walking some more until somewhere between the trees something metallic caught our attention.

Turns out it was the huge metal barrier covering Lazarjeva jama that was set up to prevent the clogging of the drainage system with branches and grass during floods.

Due to *small* orientation problems (i.e. not listening to auntie as she was explaining the way) we landed slightly above the entrance of the cave, meaning we wouldn't visit its interior.

Instead, we took the stairs to the upper jama Viršnica that might not look like accessible from above. However, it would soon prove us wrong.

Through hordes of mosquitos, we descended into the depths towards the entrance. Only when the thick layer of stone and soil was above us, I realized how big the opening actually was.

Once inside, it soon became pitch dark. With the help of a flashlight-app, we had a brief look at the walls of the entrance hall and found stairs that lead to the main underground corridor. 

Due to lack of nuts and proper flashlights, we decided not to go any further. However, the main corridor measures about 1200 meters of length, connecting the three caves. It hides stalactites and underground waters that flow into underwater siphon lakes, as well as animals such as the olm/proteus.

After another mosquito walk, the rest of the day was filled with less bloody animals :)

Until it was time for the day to end and us girls to go to bed. All of us girls together at last, aiming to get up early. Because the new day was about to bring a new adventure...

Emerald river

Another one-day trip, another part of Slovenia discovered. It has been my wish to go to the Soča valley for ages, but due to time and mobility issues, I never made it. 
After my positive experience with tourist agency travel, I thought I might just repeat it. In the last moment, my little sister joined in and off we go towards the West. 
A rather shy Triglav hiding in a cloudy layer.

Špikova/Martuljška skupina

On the way to the Trenta valley - the 50 impressive hairpin bends stretch across 24 kilometers, connecting Kranjska Gora with Log v Trenti, reaching its highest point on the Vršič pass. 
First stop - the Russian Chapel built in 1916 in memory of Russian prisoners of war who were killed while improving the road during WWI. 

Prisankovo okno, a natural opening in the Julian Alps

First view of the Trenta valley - accompanied with unfriendly, cold wind...

... and a glimpse at the emerald Soča - accompanied by goosebumps.

What looks like a cottage by the roadside, turns out to be our next stop: Juliana. Founded in 1926 by Albert Bois de Chesne, it is Slovenia's first Alpine botanical garden, covering about 2500 m² and is home to more than 600 Alpine flowers and plants. Arund them, hundreds of bugs and butterflies didn't seem to bother about the cloudy, windy weather.

Slightly downhill, a quick stop in a local church decorated by Slovene painter and sculptor Tone Kralj.

And after a while, an interesting visit to the Triglav National Park Infomation Center in Trenta. Beautifully set up, great guided tour and definitely worth a visit!

An easy early afternoon walk by the Krajcarca river towards the back side of Triglav...

... and back to the info center again

Next stop: the small village Soča by the homonymous river, home to another Tone Kralj church and an Austro-Hungarian cemetery - one of many in the region of the Isonzo Battles.

And another view of the emerald beauty as it runs towards its most impressive part.

The Big Troughs of the Soča, stretching over 750 meters in form of a 10-15 m deep gorge that is less than 2 m wide in some places. The power of the crystal-clear water can be seen in the erosions it formed in solid rock.

Somewhere on the way back home, another beautiful green hillside...

... and one of the most famous ossuaries, built in 1938 around the church of St. Anthony in Kobarid for more than 7000 Italian WWI soldiers.

All in all: a beautiful piece of heaven on earth, and certainly a valley I will want to visit again some time soon. Preferably with a couple of days of hiking :)