Soča
The Isonzo/Soča (Slovene: Soča; Italian: Isonzo; Friulian: Lusinç[3]) is a river that flows through western Slovenia and northeastern Italy.
| Soča/Isonzo | |
|---|---|
 The Soča near Bovec | |
| Location | |
| Country | Slovenia, Italy |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| - location | Julian Alps, west of Triglav |
| - elevation | 876 m (2,874 ft) [1] |
| Mouth | |
| - location | Adriatic Sea, near Monfalcone |
| Length | 138 km (86 mi) [1] |
| Basin size | 3,400 km2 (1,300 sq mi)[2] |
| Discharge | |
| - average | 172 m3/s (6,100 cu ft/s)[2] |
An Alpine river in character, its source lies in the Julian Alps in Slovenia and enters the Adriatic Sea close to the Italian town of Monfalcone.
Geography
changeThe Soča river has a length of 138 kilometres (86 miles), 96 kilometres (60 miles) in Slovenia and 43 kilometres (27 miles) in Italy.[4]
Its drainage basin has a pronounced mountainous character with an average elevation of about 599 metres (1,965 feet) above sea level,[5] and an area of 3,400 square kilometres (1,313 square miles), 2,250 square kilometres (869 square miles) (66%) in Slovenia and 1,150 square kilometres (444 square miles) (34%) in Italy.[5]
The watershed of this river is one of the few places where the marble trout (Salmo marmoratus) is found.[6]
Course
change
The source of the Soča lies in the Trenta Valley in the Julian Alps in northwestern Slovenia, at an altitude of 876 metres (2,874 feet).[4] The river flows through the western part of Triglav National Park. Then it flows to the south past the Slovenian towns of Bovec, Kobarid, Tolmin, Kanal ob Soci and Nova Gorica (where it is crossed by the Solkan Bridge); here, at an altitude of 56 metres (184 feet),[4] the river crosses the border and gets into Italy.
In Italy, the Soča, now called Isonzo, flows through several comuni of the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region. Theses comuni are:
- Province of Gorizia: Gorizia, Savogna d'Isonzo, Farra d'Isonzo, Gradisca d'Isonzo, Sagrado, Fogliano Redipuglia, Villesse, San Pier d'Isonzo, Turriaco, San Canzian d'Isonzo, Staranzano, Grado.
- Province of Udine: Only one comune, Fiumicello; the river flows through a small part of this comune that borders with the province of Gorizia.
Finally, it flows into the Gulf of Trieste (Adriatic Sea) in the Riserva Naturale della Foce dell'Isonzo ("Natural Reserve of the Mouth of the Isonzo"), to the southwest of the town of Monfalcone.
Main tributaries
change- Left tributaries
- Idrijca - 60 kilometres (37 miles) long;[4] it joins the Soča river in Most na Soči, a town in the municipality of Tolmin.
- Vipava - 49 kilometres (30 miles) long;[4] it joins the Soča river in the municipality of Savogna d'Isonzo, Italy.
- Right tributaries
History
changeThe valley of the Soča river was the place where several battles were fought in World War I between May 1915 and November 1917, in which over 300,000 Austro-Hungarian and Italian soldiers lost their lives.[8]
Gallery
change-
The Soča river in the Trenta Valley. -
Aerial view of the Soča river to the south of Tolmin. -
Satellite image of Soča (Isonzo) estuary. -
The Soča river at dawn.
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Related pages
changeReferences
change- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Rivers, longer than 25 km, and their catchment areas, Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Drainage Basin of the Mediterranean Sea" (PDF). Second Assessment of Transboundary Rivers, Lakes and Groundwaters. United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. August 2011. p. 159. ISBN 978-92-1-117052-8.
- ↑ "Denominazioni toponimiche ufficiali in lingua friulana" (PDF) (in Italian). ARLeF. 9 February 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 October 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 "Reke, dolge nad 25 km, in njihova padavinska obmocja" [Rivers, longer than 25 km, and their catchment areas] (in Slovenian and English). Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia. 2002. Archived from the original on 20 October 2007. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Drainage Basin of the Mediterranean Sea". Second Assessment of Transboundary Rivers, Lakes and Groundwaters (PDF). United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. August 2011. p. 159. ISBN 978-92-1-117052-8. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
- ↑ "Marble trout (Salmo armoratus)". Balkan Trout Restoration Group. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 4 September 2014.
- ↑ "Torrente Torre" (in Italian). Fiumi Italia. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
- ↑ "The Battles of the Isonzo, 1915-17". Firstworldwar.com. Retrieved 4 September 2014.
Other websites
change
- Soča River - The Official Travel Guide by Slovenian Tourist Board. (in Slovene)
- Autorità di bacino Isonzo, Tagliamento, Livenza, Piave, Brenta-Bacchiglione Archived 2014-10-31 at the Wayback Machine. (in Italian)
- Laboratorio Isonzo Archived 2015-02-18 at the Wayback Machine. (in Italian)
- Soca Valley: Kobarid and Tolmin
- Soca River Whitewater Rafting Archived 2014-02-07 at the Wayback Machine
- Kajaking in the Soca river (in German)