Today, the upper Soča is considered one of Europe’s last untamed rivers. Yet just a few decades ago, this enchanting world could easily have been lost forever.

Plans for huge dams and reservoirs came one after another, as did the courageous individuals who stood against them. Through an extraordinary sequence of events and acts of resistance, they succeeded every time.

But the battle is far from over. Dams have given way to mass tourism, unregulated land use and interests that see the river and its valley above all as an opportunity for easy profit. The Soča survived the plans that would have drowned it. Can it also survive the weight of fame and greed?