The Sotla River, by itself, is interesting to observe, as it frequently changes its character and surprises us with animal and plant species that make their home along its banks and stream, however, throughout the long centuries, it has manages to create some unusual natural areas. Areas that leave us speechless and watching in amazement.
Zelenjak Canyon is one such area – an area of green nature, an area of silence, but also an area of a centuries-long border. The extremely narrow canyon, mercilessly carved out of rocks by the Sotla River, is in fact the narrowest area between two neighbouring countries, and, as it separates Slovenia and Croatia nowadays, it used to separate Austrian Styria and Hungarian Croatia. But borders are actually in the minds of people, not in the will of nature. And even though this beautiful part of our walk was once ruled by unrest due to national borders, nowadays, this narrow, hard-to-reach world is a true sanctuary.
Steep slopes, forests, lone rocky mountains, and karst phenomena provide shelter for many animals, like chamois, bats, owls, woodpeckers, diverse butterflies, beetles, beavers, birds of prey, otters, and many more. Hikers, who also like to venture into the canyon during the wild garlic season, can discover lush plant life: elegant, tall ferns, medicinal greater burdock (arctium lappa asteraceae), Slovenian small orchids called forest orchids, rockfoils growing in rocky crevices, Jovibarbas, and many other plants.
Zelenjak Canyon was declared a natural monument, and is already protected as a natural site of national importance, due to its rock compositions, water characteristics, and important habitats for local life. It will captivate you, trust us!
