Solkan Bridge

The Solkan bridge carries the Bohinj railway over the Soča on a single stone arch spanning eighty-five metres, which is generally cited as the largest stone arch ever built to carry a railway. It was finished in 1906 with 4,533 blocks of shelly limestone from the Cava Romana quarry near Nabrežina, badly damaged in the First World War and rebuilt to the same design in 1927. The whole viaduct is about 220 metres long. Steam excursions still cross it and the turquoise water runs directly beneath.

What to look for

• The arch - a single stone span of eighty-five metres, the largest built for a railway.
• The stonework - 4,533 dressed limestone blocks.
• The Soca beneath - the turquoise river running directly under the span.
• The steam excursions - heritage trains on the Bohinj line crossing the bridge.

When to go

Year round; the light on the river is best in the middle of the day when the colour shows. Steam excursion dates are published in advance and are mostly summer weekends. Spring meltwater raises the river.

Before you go

It is a bridge and the visit is a viewpoint and a photograph. The best views need walking down to the riverbank, which is steep in places. Trains cross infrequently outside excursion days.

Nearby

Nova Gorica is south, and the Soca valley runs north.

Key facts