If you would search for the
list of the Slovenian lakes online, you would be really amazed at the
300+ hits you'd get in return. 321 to be exact. And if you are willing to paddle all of them there're some really obscure trips waiting for you.
First it would take you to
numerous wetland 'lakes' that are as big or as small as 20m2.
As the name wetland implies, gum boots are a must. Also you would
need a decent sweep stroke because 20m2 is
not very big. Then you would have to carry your
kayak up to the Triglav lakes, there are seven of them, and the
highest lies at an altitude of 2006m. I hope you're a playboater with
strong legs. Bad for you if you're carrying a family canoe. If you're
like me and have a tendency to drop things into the lakes (electronic
equipment mostly) then make sure you stay on 50cm deep wetland
territory and avoid the Družmirje lake with its impresive depth of
85m. 'Wild lake' (Divje jezero) would also be a bad choice in that
case because of its sifon that was explored to a depth of 160m so
far. And of course there are the elusive karst lakes that could be
dry in the summer with a modest stream at best or frosen in the
winter, but if you hit a sweet spot after the extensive rainfall in
early spring or late fall, the Cerknica lake (Cerkniško jezero)
fills up to its impressive 25km2 (up
to 38km2)
surface area.
So would I paddle all
Slovenian lakes? No, not really. After using some common sense I
limit myself to lakes that are big enough to make a short trip
interesting and photogenic enough to please the eye (and the lens).
If you're at a specific lake for the first time it's always useful to
ask the locals if paddling there is somehow regulated. They can also
point you to other interesting sights.
Since I spend a lot of time in Velenje it has become my no.1 destination for paddling. There were no lakes before the area of Šalek lake (Šaleško jezero) began to sink slowly just before World War 2 as a result of the coal industry. The second lake is Velenje lake (Velenjsko jezero) and the third is Družmirje lake also called Šoštanj lake (Družmirsko jezero/Šoštanjsko jezero; The village of Družmirje began sinking around 1975). Digging is continuing so the size of the lakes is not definite. The biggest of the three is Velenje lake, it has a perimeter of about 5km. Because it's one of the biggest lakes in the country it's interesting for recreational use. Sailors, divers and wind surfers are regular guests there. SUP, kayak and canoe paddlers share the water with them as well as fisherman, swimmers, swans and cormorants. The northeastern bank was and still is forest and as it sinks it forms a very special sight, the sunken forest. You can paddle above and touch the highest trees that still point out of the water. It's hard to stay unaffected if you paddle there in the evening light and have a bit of imagination. Once you have enough of the sunken forest maybe it's time to take a brake on the Floating city. This unique structure is a system of four geodesic domes made out of wood that was built by a group of local craftmen/artists better known for their Ondu wooden pinhole cameras. The platform is very cozy and if you end up there out of swimming season you have a good chance to be alone.
Ptuj lake (Ptujsko jezero) or the so called Sea of Ptuj (Ptujsko morje) is on the Drava river
which has many dams that accumulate the water for power plants. One
of the dams forms an impressive artificial lake that has an even more
impressive backdrop, namely the oldest town in Slovenia, Ptuj. Ptuj
was known as the roman town Petovia, but findings have shown that it
was already inhabited in the stone age. The source doesn't say if the
first settlers were using stone kayaks but you could ask in the
tourist information centre. I'm sure they'll point you in the
direction of the recreational centre which has a good approach to the
water. Make sure you read and understand the zone and time chart as
the area is divided into three sections - A, B and C. Zone A can be
paddled from the 1st
of June to the 1st
of October and lies downstream from the put in ramp. Zone B is open
from the 1st of
May to the 1st of
October and will take you upstream under the highway bridge and to
the city of Ptuj. Zone C is closed for all crafts and spreads on the
right riverbank 50-350m from the shore and in 100m radius from
ornithological islands and electricity poles. Although you might wake
up early, the birds were there before you so make sure you keep away
from them. Once on the water you'll share the lake with flatwater
racers, sailers, motor boaters, water skiers and wake boarders so
take care in the high season. In case you get tired of paddling you
can choose from running, cycling, beach volleyball, bird watching,
culture or coffee. My suggestion would be paddling and coffee.
Cerknica lake (Cerkniško
jezero) is (occasionally) the biggest lake in Slovenia, however you
wouldn't believe it if you would visit it in the dry season. The
terrain goes from forest, to thick grass, to a swampy plain, with the
narrow stream Cerkniščica in the middle. Cerkniščica is the only
surface inflow of the lake. Its flow is to small to fill up the
entire lake of course but this is where the complex system of karst
springs jumps in. The water comes in from several springs and after
flowing underground for kilometers. It all sums up into a beautiful
lake with the alps in the background. It's interesting that there's
no outflow as the whole water sinks through the sinkholes again and
returns to the ground. The local road goes around the lake so it's
easy to choose where to put in your boat. When the water is high the
roads just disappear into the lake. At the middle level (lets say
'normal' water level) you'd push yourself away from the shore and
once you've freed yourself from the ground and grass contact you'd be
free to find a way slightly above the vegetation that let's you
imagine where the Cerkniščica is normally making its turns. When
you cross it it looks like you're hitting an impermeable wall of
speargrass still rising out of the water up to 2m high. But once you
hit it the bow of your kayak opens a passage and the grass wall
closes again at the stern. Only a bunch of surprised insects that
fall on your foredeck and head are the witnesses that a kayaker went
through. Another lake with similar character is Planina lake
(Planinsko jezero). It's not full so often because the water
progresses faster but when it fills up it gives you a unique view
because of the trees that point out of the water. Sadly it had a very
high water level this winter because of the icy rain storm that broke
almost all the trees that provided enough surface for the ice coat to
build on. The branches accumulated around the sink holes and
prevented the water from flowing out of the field and the level rose
up dramatically, flooding the houses and forcing people to move out
for weeks, leaving the whole area without electricity. The firemen
and the army had to intervene and the works are still going on. In
the first weeks approaching and paddling was prohibited because of
the number of curious people that stood in the way. Now that its all
settled down the water will probably stay there until the early
summer but the word 'discretion' comes to mind if you plan to paddle
there.
The lakes of Slovenia seem to represent the country as a whole, not very big in size but definitely worth exploring either from the shore or from the paddlers point of view. There are so many gems waiting for you that you could spend years to get to know the majority of them. So why not start now? And let me know when you finish.
gz
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