Slap Savice

Savice Waterfall


Useful Information

Location: From Bohinj lake 1 h walk, from Planinski dom Savica lodge 15 min walk.
From motorway 3 exit Lesce follow 209 through Bled to Bohinjsko jezero. Turn left on road 904 along the lake, at the end of the lake it goes uphill and ends at the Planinski dom Savica. (N 46°17'34", E 13°47'51")
Open: no restrictions.
[2020]
Fee: free.
[2020]
Classification: KarstKarst spring
Light: n/a
Dimension: H=78 m, A=894 m asl.
Guided tours: self guided
Photography: allowed
Accessibility: no
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As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then.
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History


Description

While the site is named for the waterfall Slap Savice, it is actually an important and interesting karst spring. Slap Savice is one of the most famous and popular waterfalls in Slovenia. The Slovenian poet France Prešernen wrote the poem Krst pri Savici and made it popular. It is simply named after the river Savica, which drops 78 m in a double waterfall.

The special thing with the waterfall is the bunch of karst features connected. The water sinks 500 m above the waterfall in the mountains, by flowing into a pothole. Then it follows a horizontal cave passage which opens to the cliff face. Here it springs and falls down the cliff face to form a 78 m high, almost straight waterfall.

But a part of the water flows again into a cave right at the spring, reappearing at a height of 28 m, and forming the second waterfall. This one is not a straight fall, the water flows through a ledge in the wall. The limestones are folded by the forces of the orogeny which created the Julian Alps and here the layers are turned almost 90°. A soft layer was deepened by differential erosion and the second waterfall does not fall, it flows through this channel almost vertical.

After heavy rains intermittent karst springs are reactivated, creating a much higher waterfall nearby. It is named Komarško slapišče and is actually a series of five waterfalls with a total height of 571 m. The water springs at an altitude of 1415 m asl, above the walls of Komarča. The catchment area is the karst area of Dol pod Studorjem.