Hell Gorge ( sl, soteska Pekel) is a gorge in central

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

, located near the settlement of Ohonica, southwest of the village of Borovnica and from

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the are ...

. Borovniščica Creek has created many erosion features such as pools, rapids, and

waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in severa ...

s, of which five are extremely beautiful and well known because they plunge from . It has been proclaimed a natural value of national significance.

History

The word ''pekel'' ' hell' has been generalized in Slovene to refer to secretive, frightening, isolated, hard-to-reach places, such as gorges and caves, where the

Devil A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of ...

and other imaginary creatures are believed to live;Snoj, Marko. 2009. ''Etimološki slovar slovenskih zemljepisnih imen''. Ljubljana: Modrijan and Založba ZRC, p. 303. compare also Hell Cave. The first footpaths through Hell Gorge were made over one hundred years ago by charcoal burners collecting wood for charcoal. There were several mills and sawmills above and below the inaccessible gorge; some remains of these can still be seen today. The first records about Hell Gorge as a tourist attraction were published in 1897 by Josip Ciril Oblak, who named it "a tourist heaven." At that time organized groups of hikers also started coming to Hell Gorge. It was officially opened to the public on June 29, 1904, after the original footpath that leads to the second waterfall and a wooden ladder to the third one were created. The complete footpath, including bridges and ladders, leading through the gorge was finished in 1925 and later renovated on a regular basis.

Geology

The deeply cut bed of Otavščica Creek flows down into the

Ljubljana Marsh The Ljubljana Marsh ( sl, Ljubljansko barje), located south of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, is the largest marsh in the country. It covers or 0.8% of the Slovene territory. It is administered by the municipalities of Borovnica, Brezovica ...

(335 m) from the Bloke–Rakitna Plateau (650 m) and changes its name to the Borovniščica. The gorge is carved into layers of

dolomite Dolomite may refer to: *Dolomite (mineral), a carbonate mineral *Dolomite (rock), also known as dolostone, a sedimentary carbonate rock *Dolomite, Alabama, United States, an unincorporated community *Dolomite, California, United States, an unincor ...

. The steeply cascading tectonic fault in this area indicated the way for the water to flow. Intensive tectonics caused the formation of several geomorphological curiosities: a solitary mountain named the Devil's Tooth (), a natural window (the jag in the Devil's Tooth), and precipitous rock walls. Fossils of some seashells and snails can be found in the gorge.

Biology

Both Alpine and Dinaric vegetation can be seen in Hell Gorge, including the endemic Carniolan primrose ('' Primula carniolica''). There is also a large variety of tree species. One can encounter chamois and the

white-throated dipper The white-throated dipper (''Cinclus cinclus''), also known as the European dipper or just dipper, is an aquatic passerine bird found in Europe, Middle East, Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent. The species is divided into several subspec ...

, which also nests in the gorge.

References

External links

* {{coord, 45.891113, N, 14.374259, E, display=title, source:dewiki Tourist attractions in Slovenia Canyons and gorges of Slovenia Waterfalls of Slovenia Municipality of Borovnica Valleys in Inner Carniola