Among Slovenian rivers Ljubljanica is something special. It is supplied with water from many karst influent streams - this is why it is also known as The River of Seven Names. Its path is long and exciting. It vanishes into the ground and comes to the surface many times along its course, each time with a different name. From its source in the foothills of Mount Snežnik it is known as Trbuhovica, then later as Obrh, then Stržen, Rak, Pivka and Unica rivers, until it rises to the surface for the final time near Vrhnika as Ljubljanica. There are three major groups of springs: Močilnik, Retovje and Bistra, but you can also discover many other springs, wells and affluents.
In Retovje Valley, slightly hidden in the wooded foothills of Raskovec Hill and Ljubljana Peak, are the springs of Big Ljubljanica (Velika Ljubljanica), which join the Little Ljubljanica (Mala Ljubljanica) from Močilnik after about 1 km in Verd. From here on, the river is called Ljubljanica. There are number of springs in the valley: ‘Pod skalco’, ‘Pod orehom’, ‘Malo okence’ and ‘Veliko okence’. The springs of Big Ljubljanica produce the greatest volume of watter of all the Ljubljanica springs and in the 19th century more than 10 water powered sawmills were located here.