Location: |
Near Vrhnika.
A1 exit Vrhnika, left on 409 through Vrhnika. Turn right to Lintvern, single lane road. |
Open: |
no restrictions. [2020] |
Fee: |
free. [2020] |
Classification: | Karst spring |
Light: | n/a |
Dimension: | |
Guided tours: | self guided |
Photography: | allowed |
Accessibility: | no |
Bibliography: | |
Address: | |
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info. |
The river Ljubljanica, which flows through Slovenian Capital Ljubljana, is the river with seven names. A complex system of caves and poljes is the source of this river. It is called Ljubljanica when the water finally reaches the Ljubljana Marsh (Ljubljansko barje) near Vrhnika. Here is a huge number of springs, where the limestone ridge ends and the impermeable flysch plain begins. The four most important springs of Ljubljanica are Retovje, Močilnik, Bistra, and Lintvern.
Lintvern spring is the source of the Bela rivulet. It is a typical karst spring with a variable yield. After snow melt or heavy rains the water gushes out with great force. But in dry seasons, after periods of drought or generally in autumn and winter, the spring completely dries up. Nevertheless, the water of the Buna was used to power a water mill named star maln (Old Mill). There is only a dam and the old mill wheel, but there is also a lodge and the place is quite popular. The lodge is run by the Tourist Association Blagajana Vrhnika and is a nice, shady place to spend a hot summer day.
Most karst springs are intermittent springs, which means they are not perennial, they do not produce water all over the year. But most springs are simply seasonal, which means they produce water in the wet season or snow melt and are dry in late summer. But this spring is different, it is of the ebb and flow spring or tidewell type (Intermittent Spring). How this works is explained on a sign at the kiosk, unfortunately only in Slovenian. If you want the long explanation, please follow the link, otherwise, here's the short explanation: An upside-down sump is dry most of the time, the water flows continually through crevices. When the amount of water increases and the crevices are not big enough, the water level inside the cave rises, until finally the sump is completely filed. At this moment the water starts to flow through the inverse sump until the level is low enough and air enters the sump ending the process. In other words, the spring does not simply start to flow, it flows in a mesmerizing rhythm of massive production, and low production. Unfortunately, the source is walled-in with concrete and access locked because its water is used for water supply. As a result, the ebb and flow effect is obstructed.
The historical importance of Lintvern is the fact that it was visited by the Slovenian naturalist Janez Vajkard Valvasor. In 1689, he wrote that the Lintvern Spring spews out baby dragons. These dragons were olms or human fish (Proteus anguinus).