Which (and Where) Are the Alpine Lakes in Slovenia?

The Alps give numerous possibilities for building of the thermal bath, skiing and snowboarding resorts. One more thing is the picturesque lakes. Those ones that Windows put on your home screen wallpapers, where the water is crystal clear, and the lake is reflecting a mountain. Slovenia is full of such ones. 

The most famous alpine lakes in Slovenia are Lake Bled and Lake Bohinj. Lake Cernica, Black Lake, and Wild lake are also worth to be mentioned and explored by travelers interested in enjoying the alpine lake’s environment and landscape.

They are identical to the pictures you have on your computer screen as wallpaper, so vivid and colorful. Thus, let us tell you a little bit about the most beautiful Alpine lakes of Slovenia.

Lake Bled

One of the most well-known tourist destinations. It is located in northwestern Slovenia, near the town with the same name, Bled. Aside from its beauty, the lake has quite convenient touristically. There is only 35 km from Ljubljana International Airport as well as 55 km (34 mi) from the capital city itself. The easiest way to get there is from Lesce-Bled train station, that will take 4.2 km. 

The lake is used to be a place of the World Rowing Championships being held. It is a sport where a team of four or more people racing on a long canoe style boat. The championship is held at the non-Olympic years. Lake Bled was the place of it in 1966, 1979, 1989, and 2011.

Thus, it’s quite big. The surface area is 1.45 km2. The lake has mixed origin, glacial and tectonic. It is 2,120 m long and 1,380 m wide, with a maximum depth of 29.5 m. There is a tiny island situated in the middle of the lake. It is the most picturesque place in Slovenia, furthermore surrounded by mountains and forests. 

Lake Bohinj

The peculiarity of this lake is the fact that it is the largest permanent lake in Slovenia. The lake is the part of Triglav National Park, the only national park in Slovenia. Lake Bohinj is located in the northwestern Upper Carniola region, on the west of the country. The valley in the Julian Alps there has the same name, Bohinj Valley.

The lake is twice as bigger as Lake Bled, with the surface area of 3.18 km2. This is a glacial lake dammed by a moraine. This means that it is a relic of melted ice-filled in the depressions created by the glacier. The water there is so clear that it became a place of living of such species like brown trout, burbot, European chub, common minnow, and Arctic char, eight genera of mollusks, as well as of numerous algae species. 

Furthermore, this is the most popular destination for water sports and swimming. Here, you can experience mini rafting, diving, canoeing, canyoning, boating as well as many others. 

Lake Cerknica

This is the intermittent lake. We can say that it is the largest lake in Slovenia but taking into consideration the situation when it is full. Its usual water area is 28 square kilometers. On the other hand, after rains or show melting, the lake can reach up to 38 km2 in size. 

Lake Cerknica is a part of two Natura 2000 areas of protection. This means that terrestrial and marine nature protection officers are controlling the area. Therefore, the Habitats Directive and Birds Directive are the main conventions regarding this area. 

The intermittent behavior of the lake means that it communicates with surrounding hills via numerous paths. Rains and show melting are the most influential factors of its water level. In addition, changes in the level are very irregular. Sometimes the lake cannot disappear for decades. However, it happens that it can dry for two years. Such a situation happened in 1834 and 1835 relatively.

The lake is rich in fish. Therefore, when it dries, all of it disappears. On the other hand, they return with the water from the surrounding hills. This means that nature self regulates the region. In such a way, the change in water level leads to the change of surrounding vegetation. The species switch from terrestrial to marine ones.  

Black Lake

 There is a rocky valley in the Julian Alps of Slovenia, that is called “The Triglav Lakes Valley,” “The Seven Lakes Valley,” or “The Sea of Stone Valley.” The peculiar thing lies in the fact that there are ten but not seven lakes in the valley. Geologically, the valley’s origin is alpine karst. Therefore, the water made lakes flowing here for ages.

One of these lakes is the Black Lake. It is the lowest-lying lake in the Triglav Lakes Valley. The peculiarity of the name is the fact that its location, a basin in the middle of the forest, made a little of the sunshine going here. Therefore, for most of the day, the lake remains in the black color. 

As the Black Lake is the lowest, this is the warmest as well lake in the valley. Usually, its summer temperature is 9 °C, and the winter one is 3 °C. The lake is 150 m long, 80 m wide, and it can be up to 6 m deep.

Here, it lives the Alpine Newt (Ichthyosaura alpestris). It is the lizard-like animal that is endemic to the Alps. This means that there is no place in the world where it would be originated from. Later it was introduced to Great Britain as well as to New Zealand.

The cultural significance of The Triglav Lakes Valley for Slovenians lies in the fact that definitely this is imaged on the Slovenian coat of arms. Marko Pogačnik, the Slovenian author and artist, stylized the valley with two wavy lines under the silhouette of the mountain Triglav.

Wild Lake 

The lake is located near Idrija, the town in western Slovenia. This is the karst spring of the Vauclusian type. This means that all the water of the lake come upwards under pressure. Sometimes, this type is called the karst siphon lake. This is the reason why it has a relatively light blue color. Water goes from an underground tunnel source, which was explored only up to 160 meters. The volumetric flow rate of water going from there is 60 cubic meters per second. 

Thus, the lake is the source of the Jezernica River, a tributary of the Idrijca. This is the shortest river in Slovenia, with only 55 meters long. On the other side, when the lake is low, there is no water outflow from it. 

The lake was protected as a natural monument in 1967. Moreover, in 1972, it became the first Slovenian national museum. 

Benefits of a Mountain Territory

It’s a fact that Slovenia won an interesting lottery. Two centuries ago, the mountains were not so beneficial in terms of economy. You cannot grow a lot of food there. Forests are less easily accessed than forests on plain surfaces. The only plus for the country of such the location is the defense ability. Mountainous countries are usually hard to be attacked by big armies. For instance, this helped Switzerland to stay neutral even during World War I and World War II. 

However, the world has changed tremendously now. The global trade market is so developed today that the delivery of goods or food is not a problem anymore. Now, people are hunting emotions and impressions. The travel tourism field is definitely that can give this to people. Thus, mountains are an accumulation point of recreation resorts, therefore the point of emotion gathering. 

Slovenia is lucky enough to gain independence in the times of tourism renaissance. European Union and Schengen Area are the best places for developing tourism. People can go wherever they want and whenever they want as well. Moreover, the average European can afford a trip once per several months.

Fall in Love with Slovenia and its Lakes

Hence, Slovenian lakes became the places of people’s love. They are incredibly picturesque and even flabbergasting. They leave to remain in the hearts of tourists. Each of them has its own story as well as the origin. All the above-mentioned lakes are mush visit places. Moreover, hiking activity and fresh air will help the brain to produce even more vivid emotions. For lovers of extreme, it is the perfect place as well. All the types of mountain water activities are available here and waiting for you. Just try it once, and you will fall in love with Slovenia immediately.