Soča

The Isonzo/Soča (Slovene: Soča; Italian: Isonzo; Friulian: Lusinç^[3]) is a river that flows through western Slovenia and northeastern Italy.

Soča/Isonzo
The Soča near Bovec
Location
Country	Slovenia, Italy
Physical characteristics
Source
- location	Julian Alps, west of Triglav
- elevation	876 m (2,874 ft) [1]
Mouth
- location	Adriatic Sea, near Monfalcone
Length	138 km (86 mi) [1]
Basin size	3,400 km2 (1,300 sq mi)[2]
Discharge
- average	172 m3/s (6,100 cu ft/s)[2]

An Alpine river in character, its source lies in the Julian Alps in Slovenia and enters the Adriatic Sea close to the Italian town of Monfalcone.

Geography

The Soča river has a length of 138 kilometres (86 miles), 96 kilometres (60 miles) in Slovenia and 43 kilometres (27 miles) in Italy.^[4]

Its drainage basin has a pronounced mountainous character with an average elevation of about 599 metres (1,965 feet) above sea level,^[5] and an area of 3,400 square kilometres (1,313 square miles), 2,250 square kilometres (869 square miles) (66%) in Slovenia and 1,150 square kilometres (444 square miles) (34%) in Italy.^[5]

The watershed of this river is one of the few places where the marble trout (Salmo marmoratus) is found.^[6]

Course

Course of the Soča/Isonzo

The source of the Soča lies in the Trenta Valley in the Julian Alps in northwestern Slovenia, at an altitude of 876 metres (2,874 feet).^[4] The river flows through the western part of Triglav National Park. Then it flows to the south past the Slovenian towns of Bovec, Kobarid, Tolmin, Kanal ob Soci and Nova Gorica (where it is crossed by the Solkan Bridge); here, at an altitude of 56 metres (184 feet),^[4] the river crosses the border and gets into Italy.

In Italy, the Soča, now called Isonzo, flows through several comuni of the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region. Theses comuni are:

• Province of Gorizia: Gorizia, Savogna d'Isonzo, Farra d'Isonzo, Gradisca d'Isonzo, Sagrado, Fogliano Redipuglia, Villesse, San Pier d'Isonzo, Turriaco, San Canzian d'Isonzo, Staranzano, Grado.
• Province of Udine: Only one comune, Fiumicello; the river flows through a small part of this comune that borders with the province of Gorizia.

Finally, it flows into the Gulf of Trieste (Adriatic Sea) in the Riserva Naturale della Foce dell'Isonzo ("Natural Reserve of the Mouth of the Isonzo"), to the southwest of the town of Monfalcone.

Main tributaries

• Left tributaries
  • Idrijca - 60 kilometres (37 miles) long;^[4] it joins the Soča river in Most na Soči, a town in the municipality of Tolmin.
  • Vipava - 49 kilometres (30 miles) long;^[4] it joins the Soča river in the municipality of Savogna d'Isonzo, Italy.
• Right tributaries
  • Torre - 70 kilometres (43 miles) long;^[7]

History

The valley of the Soča river was the place where several battles were fought in World War I between May 1915 and November 1917, in which over 300,000 Austro-Hungarian and Italian soldiers lost their lives.^[8]

Gallery

• 
  The Soča river in the Trenta Valley.
• 
  Aerial view of the Soča river to the south of Tolmin.
• 
  Satellite image of Soča (Isonzo) estuary.
• 
  The Soča river at dawn.

Related pages

• List of rivers of Italy
• List of rivers of Slovenia