The Dreamy Beauty of Southern Carniola

River Krka, the largest river of Dolenjska - Lower Carniola - is the second-longest that flows in its entirety in Slovenia, and the largest tributary of river Sava in Slovenia.

Krka springs out of Krka cave at the end of a pocket valley near the village of Krka., and flows through Suha krajina region in a beautiful deep valley flanked by fields, meadows, vineyards and scattered villages.

Its name, Krka, is pre-Roman, either from krkā; 'swampy', or a simple onomatopoetic, mimicking its bubbly flow over cascades.

As a Karst river it is full of dissolved limestone, which in turn deposits on waterfalls as tufa (a form of travertine) - as the waters accelerates the dissolved carbon dioxide goes out, the pH drops, which reduces carbonate solubility, inducing precipitation. Tufa from Krka (lehnjak, in Slovene, meaning 'the light one' for it is a very porous stone) from Krka was used as a decorative stone since Iron Age.

This kite aerial photography session was done at Dešeča vas - its name may mean "Scented village" - on the plateau above Krka near Žužemberk (Eisenberg, 'iron hill' - there were numerous iron ore mines around here and the whole Lower Carniola was an important cultural centre during the Iron Age).

The dreamy green Krka flows slowly through the upper Krka valley from one tufa cascade to another, getting bigger and bigger from many karst springs along its course, Swans and ducks love it, beavers make their homes in its earthen banks, and fish thrive as there are no large settlements or industry around it. It's a perfect getaway just 30 km south of Ljubljana - great food, unspoilt nature, serenity ... get into a kayak and let Krka take you down its dreams.

All kite aerial photos shot with Canon A810 on The Spark Rokkaku. And special thanks to Rotary club Ljubljana 25!