Field Journal

In Conversation with Rok Rozman on his new guidebook about paddling the Soča River
Written by Carmen Kuntz // Photography by Rožle Bregar and Rok Rozman // Video by Matic Oblak

To protect a river, you must know the river. This idea, humble yet complex, has become a compass needle for Rok Rozman’s life. We catch up with the author and producer of Soča from Source to Sea – Paddling Guidebook, to learn why this small team created a guidebook about paddling the ‘emerald beauty’ from its source, in the Julian Alps of Slovenia, to the Adriatic Sea in Italy.

As a biologist, professional whitewater kayaker, filmmaker, river defender, fly-fishing guide, and even as an Olympic rower, Rok Rozman got to know a lot of rivers – and encouraged others to do the same. Now, as an author, he is using words and stunning photography to prompt paddlers to get to know one special river. When asked why he wrote a paddling guidebook for the Soča – one of Europe’s most famous rivers – this saying popped up again. ‘To effectively protect a river, you must know the river.’

The idea to write a paddling guidebook for the Soča had been brewing for a long time. After years of fighting to protect rivers in the Balkan Peninsula, Rozman’s extended back yard, he gained some insight and first-hand experience about what it takes to save a river. His river conservation NGO Leeway Collective created the largest river conservation movement in Europe: Balkan River Defence, which aims to dispel the myth that hydropower is green energy, and help locals protect the last free flowing rivers in Europe. These rivers are being targeted by EU Green Deal energy production initiatives.

But after years of organising direct actions throughout his home country of Slovenia and the Balkans, he realised that he needed to extend his reach and help people – including paddlers – deepen their connection to rivers, and broaden their understanding of how a river functions. Film and book publishing provided that opportunity.

The Soča is a supermodel within the paddling world. Emerald-tinted, gin-clear water draws in paddlers of all vessels and abilities. The river has a paddling stretch for everyone. Class 2 moving water on a SUP, or a packrafter honing their skill on grade 3+, the river is a magnet for paddlers. But Rozman observed that most paddlers only know the river’s most popular whitewater sections, between the towns of Bovec and Kobarid.

‘Some people don’t even know that the Soča starts as a trickle from a tiny crack in a limestone wall deep in the Julian Alps and winds through stunning gravel bars, ancient villages, and through rich farm fields until she meets the Adriatic Sea in Italy,’ Rozman says. There is a lot to this river – different faces, moods, flow, and feelings – to be explored if you paddle the Soča from source to sea. So, he paddled it with friends, brought along a photographer and videographer, and wrote a guidebook.

The book presents otherwise heavy information in an informative, entertaining, and even humorous fashion. ‘The reason I created this guidebook was to present the river as a whole, so that no matter what kind of vessel someone paddles, they can understand how the river functions and deepen their experience on it.’ Rozman shares some of the river’s secrets, but not enough to spoil the adventure of discovering it yourself. ‘A river is like a tree. If you only know one little branch, you don’t know the whole tree,’ he says. ‘The guidebook focuses on the main trunk, but it mentions all the major tributaries, the general geography, and the flora and fauna that weave together forming the whole river catchment and ecosystem. And how they contribute to the river that people come to paddle.’

There were other motivating factors to creating the guidebook. To disperse the pressure on the Soča, from the most sensitive and highly visited areas, to the whole river. Encouraging paddlers to get to know other sections of the river is a solution of sorts to the ongoing controversy about charging paddlers – but not bathers or swimmers – for river use. And to educate people on how to behave on, in, and around the river.

This book gives the reader an in-depth perspective of the river. From technical details like put-ins and take-outs and the difficulty of rapids, to details on when and where specific fish spawn or how particular plants survive the harsh conditions of gravel bars. ‘The reader will learn about the incredibly rich biodiversity that can be found in and around the Soča River, and also about how to notice it – how to be observant – and through this behave in a way to minimise disturbance,’ says Rozman. ‘If you don’t know a fish is spawning or a bird nesting, then you don’t know that you are causing a problem. I hope the books open paddlers’ eyes, to see that there is more than just whitewater in a river.’

‘The first time I paddled the Soča from source to sea was the result of an impromptu late-night bet. There were no smartphones, and I basically put on the river with the approach of “if the water gets to the sea then I’ll get there too”. It was a simple, small, yet logistically quite complex adventure that opened my eyes and had a lasting effect.’

The river changes as it flows from the mountains to the sea, both geographically and anthropologically. ‘You really get an insight into how we utilise rivers, as a society,’ he says. ‘The first 60km are wild but experience big pressure from tourism. The middle stretches illustrate what river engineering looks like, how hydro production changes the river and its surroundings.’ Portaging around dams is a necessity and illustrates the challenges wildlife face. ‘I don’t want to tell people dams are good or bad, but rather see that people create their own options through first-hand experience and the stark contrast that Soča provides.’

He adds: ‘After the dams, the river comes alive again because the water quality improves after the reservoirs and the riverbed has the space to meander, to create and move gravel bars which filter water and provide an incredible and yet increasingly rare ecosystem in Europe.’ The guidebook ultimately presents the river as a whole, catered toward people who can see it from a self-propelled vessel. ‘It is a special experience to travel from high mountains all the way to the sea, via your own means. And there aren’t many rivers in Europe where you can still do that, at least not in style. They tried to tame the Soča – and even with seven dams in place, they didn’t succeed. Its torrential nature and annual high waters still reset the ecosystem on a regular basis. And somehow, her waters still reach the sea.’

But don’t take his word for it. Go see it, go explore it, for yourself. ‘Ideally, after finishing the book, if the reader is not already a paddler, I hope that they have a desire to become one – or at least get to know the Soča better. And if they are a paddler, I hope they have a desire to go and check it out, to paddle this river to the sea and see if what they read is really true.’