Kras, Limestone karst plateau between Vipava Valley and Gulf of Trieste, Slovenia and Italy.
Kras is a limestone plateau in the Slovenian Littoral between the Vipava Valley and the Gulf of Trieste, extending across the border into Italy. The terrain shows open fields with white rock, cave entrances and sinkholes where rainwater dissolves the limestone and forms underground rivers.
The forest on the plateau was cleared during the Middle Ages to build Venetian warships, which created the open landscape seen today. Later, local communities planted vineyards and low stone walls to slow the wind and enclose animals.
The name comes from the Slovene word for stony land, which describes the rough surface that farmers have worked for generations. Today many winemakers grow vines here that thrive in the red soils between rock formations.
Marked hiking trails connect villages, caves and viewpoints throughout the area, with some routes offering flat terrain and others climbing over rock formations. Visitors should wear sturdy shoes as the surface can be uneven and slippery in places.
Geologists coined the term for this type of rock based on features observed here, which are now used worldwide to describe similar formations. The red color of the soil comes from iron-rich deposits left behind after the white limestone dissolves.
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