We cannot even tell you the number of times we have been lucky enough to drive alongside the uberstunning Soča river on the way up to any number of different Green adventures, but we always wanted to try out the tantalising new bike path that runs on the other side of the Soča next to the train line from Nova Gorica to Kanal..

One sunny September morning, the time had finally come to throw the E Bikes on the back of the car, invite some friends to come along with us and find out what this new Bike Path is all about!

And we were not disappointed.. In fact, we can tell you it was one of the top Green highlights of our year and now, yet another one of those very special Secret Places to Visit that we have to go see or do at least once a year from now on, it is simply that good!

From the Bike Bridge looking over the Soca to Nova Gorica, where the river leaves Slovenia and joins Italy..

If the SOCA RIVER is not the most beautiful river in Europe, then please tell us which one is better.. Even our Australian guests tell us they have seen nothing quite like it and they come from a very pretty island indeed!

But there is a strong chance you have not even heard of the Soca river at all, even worse, you may completely miss out on it when you do finally come visit Green Slovenia..

Stunning view of the river, the train line and the new Bike path, wow, what a bike route..

And this uber beautiful river is easily missed, cos if you base your Slovenian hollibubbles in the overmarketed Bled, Ljubljana or Piran.. as the internet will tell you to do so, then you will almost certainly miss out on the Soca river! It just won't make any logisitcal sense to drive over the Alps to see it from Bled and it is simply too far from the capital city or the coast for an easy day trip..

But not from the Lodge.. We were excitedley unloading our bikes and standing right next to the Soča river after just a 40 min whizz up the motorway through the stunning Vipava Valley to Nova Gorica!

You see, we noticed, (as you will too when you finally come here), where all the best Green bits are,(there are a lot of them) so we deliberately located our Lodge between the Mountains & the Sea, so EVERYTHING worth seeing is possible from here in simple daytrips, including beautiful Bled, lovely Ljubljana and perfect Piran, by the way..

On the way back you can get off here for a photo back to Plave..

Why is the Soca River so Amazing..

Water as blue as a dragon's eye bursts & springs from high up near the Alpine Vrsic Pass, as the Soca River runs down the Upper Soca Valley past Bovec, Kobarid and Tolmin, before squeezing under the sensational arched bridge at Kanal in the Lower Soca Valley and flowing on to Nova Gorica at the tip of the Vipava Wine Valley, one of Green Slovenia's 7 wine regions and then off into Italy to reach the Adriatic sea..

The colour of the water is indescribeabubbly beautiful, especially further up into the Alps where the turquoise, emerald or blue or green or aqua crystal clear water seems to just slide across the white rocks and white pebble beaches..

The Lower Soca Valley is NOT a wine region, but try telling these riverside grapes, maybe they think they are just inside the border of BRDA..

And despite this ice cold water flowing down from the Julian Alps, the Soča valley is Mediterannean.. Just ask anyone from Tolmin if they get any snow and you won't believe the answer when you see the high Alps flanking every viewpoint..

Most of the best waterfalls, gorges and lots of other Green adventures await visitors all along the Soca River in the Upper Soca Valley and this is where a lot of kayaking takes place too..

View from the cafe terrace of Kanal Upon Soca..

However the river opens out much wider in the narrow Lower Soca Valley between Kanal and Nova Gorica, developing a stunning dark green emerald colour as the main road gets wedged in to the cramped space next to the river and below the mountains.

The great thing about this Lower Soca stretch is you get to drive right next to the river, with fab views for the lucky passengers, but this is still a busy main road and you will also be teased with glimpses across the river of that new bike path that we are gonna tell you all about!

Driving along, you can only imagine what it must be like to ride a bike over there, on the other quiet side of the river, stopping to take photos whenever you want, discovering little villages and exploring..

This Bike path is so wonderful for enjoying the Soča river, cos you would never want to cycle over there on that busy main road..

The 3 Soca Bridges at Nova Gorica / Solkan..

There are three completely different bridges leading from Nova Gorica across the Soca River and the main road bridge leads you directly up into the steep BRDA wine hills that completely flank the other side of Soca river.

These hills are called the Goricia Wine Hills or BRDA, another one of Green Slovenia's 7 wine regions and they are covered in vineyards, cherry trees and cute little villages on top of hills.

Stunning view from the Bike bridge up the Soča river and Kayak centre to the Solkan railway bridge..

The second bridge is called Solkan, the longest stone arched railway bridge in the world and is only used by trains, we suspect you will enjoy looking at this bridge and you can only get a fleeting glimpse from the main road..

And the third bridge is a brand new suspension bridge built just for cyclists & hikers to access this new Bike route which goes all the way along the other side of the Soca river to Kanal!

This sparkling new Bike Hike bridge crosses the Soča river at the start or End of this Path..

the Key Bits for this Ride..

Like many Green adventures in Slovenia you can try to research for them using Google, but in such a green country, this will only help you a certain amount and might even lead to confusion.

We have noticed so many pretty springs & smallers rivers, tracks, caves and secret routes simply not on Google Maps when we know full well they are there, so this is another reason we go into extra detail in these Secret Place to Visit articles to help make your day go smoother!

This is the Soca Aqua Park and maybe you could park over there and start the ride from here..

OK, we all now know there is a bike path leading from the other side of the Soca river from Nova Gorica to Kanal.

You can either bike over the road bridge to join the bike path OR start at the "very start" of the trail at the new Bike Bridge, which can be found at the "Soca Park" also being a Kayak Centre..

You actually cycle through here past the restaurant at the start of the bike ride..

With some very handy local advice, we decided to drive directly to and park in another little car park next to a riverside restaurant called OSTERIJA  ŽOGICA and we booked a table for 3 and a half hours or so after we left on the bikes to return and have a late lunch!

The sparkly new bike path runs from Nova Gorica to Plave with 2 newly surfaced lanes, wooden protection barriers and beautiful quiet river side views..

The newly built Bike path runs between Nova Gorica and Plave..

At Plave the new bike path finishes and you join a collection of Bike Signposted local roads, lanes and tracks, which mainly hug the river & train line to Deskle, Anhovo and on to Kanal.. in total, just 20km, but wow, what a trip!

Then you bike back the same way, so Kanal to Anhovo, Deskle, but after Plave MAKE SURE you really hug the river, cos ON THE WAY BACK you can turn to join another one way track right next to the river through a picturesque little village called PRILESJE to reach that brand new Bike path again for the home run to Nova Gorica..

This quiet village road can only be used one way on the return ride from Plave to the new bike path..

So maybe this whole ride is just 40km in total, with a coffee & gelato stop in Kanal overlooking the arched bridge and a late lunch by the river at the end of it all.. 

What about that! Anybody else coming? Ok, so now it is time to put your sunglasses on, jump on your bike and join us on the epic Soca Bike Path ride..

Even if you have just been cycling for a minute or two, there is always time to stop for a photo..

Riding the new Soča Bike Path to Kanal and Back..

After booking our table, we biked off from the Osterija, (this is just another name for restaurant) full of excitement and then immediately stopped and HAD to jump off our bikes, cos the largest stone arched train bridge in the world appeared right in front of us and we had to take a photo!!

We will discuss other options for this bike ride at the end, but we decided to cross the river on the road bridge first and joined the new bike path following the red signs to PLAVE.

The Solkan Bridge is the longest stone built arched railway bridge in the world..

We were riding with 5 lovely German friends who stay for a few weeks every year and bring their E Bikes to go exploring mainly around the epic Green Karst bike tracks completely circling the Lodge, so this was another new E Bike adventure for everyone!

We were all fully loaded up on E Bikes and even on this first stretch we were extremely grateful for the extra push the E Bikes can give you, cos there is quite a lot of very steep uphill to start with and you need to consider, when on holiday, do you want to enjoy the day with a bit of exercise too.. Or are you going on a gruelling training ride!!

Today we were on holiday, thank you very much!

The car park next to the river at Osterija Zogica and almost ready to roll..

The new bike path is very impressive indeed, fully tarmacked with two lanes and wooden posts ALL the way, next to the river.

You should stay right and will encounter the odd local whizzing past on a road bike for a training run, but otherwise we tended to overtake the few other cyclists we met.. Cos we had E Bikes..

It is only when you really get started and your legs start pumping that a massive grin appears on your face as you fully appreciate how magical it is on this side of the river.. You can see the main road on the other side of the river, but it all feels like a distant world away..

A very beautiful Bike Ride indeed, Also running next to the railway line..

Generally there are trees on your left and river on your right, but the scene is ever changing, also encountering the mysterious other side of the Solkan rail bridge and sometimes biking directly next to the train line.

There are a couple of fab rock tunnels running under the tracks to bike through and do be aware there is one quite steep drop with set of ramps & stairs and a warning sign that might be better to get off the bike and walk down, but you will see it in plenty of time!

Time to bike under the railway and get riverside..

There are plenty of signs to follow once you have completed the new bike track section on to the next destination of Plave and there is a little stretch here where you are biking right next to the river, just heavenly.

Make sure you stop at the road bridge in sleepy Deskle to get a look from the middle at a white pebble island in the middle of the river in the shape of a heart! 

Now biking riverside and the mood lifts to another level, wow..

We said we would go through some more options for this day out at the end, but just imagine stopping for a bit on this island, maybe having a swim, a snooze or a picnic..

The local roads do twist and turn nicely through some very pretty smaller villages that you just wouldn't get to see if you drove on the main road and there is a train track junction in Anhovo, but this part of the ride is punctuated with some extra special gravel track, forest track and country road bits too, so a really pleasant mix for a bike ride..

How about chilling out on this little island in the river shaped like a heart in Deskle..

Probably the only unpleasant thing about this whole ride is when you roll past a gruesome set of enormous factory buildings blocking the river from sight completely, (which we think is a cement producer or something like that), but it really is shocking to see something like that in a place otherwise so incredibly beautiful.

Kanal comes up almost by surprise and we know a fantastic cafe there called Rafaelos which has an outside terrace with amazing views over the river to the medieval old town buildings, bell tower and uber stunning high arched bridge..

Stepping out onto the terrace at Kanal..

Kanal is one of the most beautiful little villages in Green Slovenia, (and that is saying something) as the river forms a narrow canal to squeeze through the giant rocks on either side of a bridge that might remind you a wee bit of that Bosnian Mostar bridge.

The water is 10 metres deep here, with places to dive in and huge Soča trout swim around in the shade under the bridge and for us on this prticular bike ride.. there is no better place to sit and enjoy a well earned ice cream than this particular cafe terrace..

How could you come to Green Slovenia and NOT see Kanal???

Kanal is one of the prettiest villages in Green Slovenia and that is saying something..

With that we jumped on the bikes and cycled back the same way, but often the return journey can seem very different indeed as you spot little details missed on the ride out..

Leaving Plave, just next to the road bridge, make sure you take the track on the left that leads directly to the river and you get to go close & personal with the Soca for a while through Prilesje (don't think this is Slovenian for Elvis Presley) and magically join up again with the new bike path!

The path cannot always be next to the river, but it is a very nice contrast to roll through sections of forest too..

We decided to bike back to the very end or "start" of the bike path at the Soca Park (we would call it the Soca Aqua Park or Soca Kayak Park, if anyone asked us) and were very impressed with our first view of the spectacular brand new bike bridge built over the Soca..

There are stunning views either way, especially upriver to the Solkan bridge and that slight wobbly feeling that makes you slightly nervous to bike or even walk over!

Almost back in Goriza at the new Bike Bridge..

There had been a lot of rain in the days before, so this can often mess with the water colour and turn the lower wider section of the Soca river a bit milky, but here by the new bridge the water had transformed back into the turquoise colour that we know and love.

We did mention you could even park up here at the Kayak centre car park, but then you would not get to eat at Osterija Žogica! 

You do need to know that from the Bike Bridge there is a bit of a maze like route back to the far edge of Nova Gorica, with a few bike path signs to help you get back to the riverside Solkan Bridge path and the restaurant, but nothing impossibubble..

If you started your ride directly from the Bike Bridge there is a car park here by the Kayak club..

If you ever see a restaurant called Osterija in Slovenia, then we strongly recommend you go eat there, as from our humble experience the food is always extra amazing at places with this name and we gladly lifted our bikes onto the backs of the cars to return and sit down next to the river for a fully deserved local lunch..

EVERYONE quite rightly wants to find the amazing LOCAL Slovenian food when you visit the Greenest little country in Europe, not necessarily the Michelin Hubba Bubba, but you need to know, there are really a LOT of excellent LOCAL restaurants here that you will only likely find TODAY, if you ask a LOCAL person, not an out of date book, computer or phone review!!

But Wow what a day, what a Green adventure, what a river, what a meal and what a bike path!

We booked a table here at the riverside restaurant Osterija Zogica for our return..

Other Options for this Bike Ride..

Visitors to Green Slovenia are often obsessed with how many KM's it is to the Castle or Secret Forest WW2 Hospital or wherever, but most times the KM can be misleading as the only flat bits here in Green Slovenia are the far north east next to Hungary and the promenades right next to the Mediterranean sea!

So a Slovenian KM might seem a bit longer or trickier than one of your KM's or MILES from home!

Yep, there are a lot of very pleasant flat bits on this bike route, but some very steep rises too, so this is exactly why we brought our E Bikes and why we recommend them here on this epic ride.

Bike path, Soča river and main road on the other side of the river..

This is a ride to enjoy, not to race, there are plenty other places you can do just that, but you could give this ride a go with regular mountain bikes if you prefer, then maybe you would need an extra hour or two on top of the two or so it would take you to go to Kanal and back with E Bikes.

Maybe you will just go to Plave and back, but really that would be a wasted opportunity and you would miss so much if you did not push on to Kanal..

There are several different eating options along the way and back in Nova Gorica, but for us, we know just how fantastic the ice cream cafe is at Kanal with that view and we got a hot tip how good the Osterija is next to the river too, so our rerfeshment options were pre decided and we were so happy our friends loved them too!

Not the most beautiful, but very handy picnic tables line the new bike path..

But you do have lots of other options to eat and drink here and there are even basic picnic tables along the new bike path.

Returning to the Lodge through the heart of the Vipava Wine Valley also opens up numerous options for dining & wining on the way home!

E Bikes are best for this trip with a lot of up and down..

We mentioned a few secret spots along the river where you might decide to dip your toes, but we should make it clear that after Kanal the river descends under high cliffs until Tolmin, so we think your only option to continue biking would be to use the narrow, fast main road and this is not an option we would take..

By the way, there is even a fantastic new "fake" sandy beach at Kanal for a bit of a swim, but maybe avoid weekends, when the locals go and find your own quieter spot instead!

In theory, you could also hike on the new bike path between Gorica and Plave, but with all the bikes whizzing along, we would say this is better left as a biking route.. Maybe just hike on the local roads and tracks from Plave to Kanal, but there is no shortage of other amazing hikes all over Green Slovenia!

Really great to go through a few lovely little villages too on the quiet side of the river Soča..

The only question left for you to answer now is whether you are you gonna make sure you have time in your Green Slovenian itinerary to go see the most beautiful river in Europe and if you love cycling then this is one bike ride not to be missed.. You could do it in half a day or take the whole day.. The choice is yours!