Zlatorog

Once upon a time the Triglav mountains were covered with meadows full of flowers. They were the home of the white fairies and their white goats. They were all protected by the white goat with golden horns - the invulnerable Zlatorog. If anybody should wound Zlatorog, a secret flower - “triglavska roža” would spring forth from his blood and cure him. Zlatorog’s golden horns were the key to hidden treasures under the mountain of Bogatin. All these secrets were known to a brave, young hunter who lived in these days in the Trenta valley. He was in love with a girl named Jerica. She was an innkeeper’s daughter, a lovely girl whom many young men waned to marry, but Jerica heartily loved the hunter from Trenta. He was the best hunter in the valley and people said he was under the protection of the fairies. One day a merchant from Venice came to the village where Jerica lived. He gave her a ring, earrings and other golden jewellry. Jerica took the gold from the foreigner. Being stung by the hurtful words of his beloved girl, who was enchanted with the presents that the merchant from Venice had given her, the Trenta hunter decided to find the Bogatin treasure. Sad and unhappy, he thought that the only thing he could do at that moment, was to kill Zlatorog, take his horns and open the underround cave under Bogatin where the treasure was hidden. Th hunter found Zlatorog and shot him. He wounded him, but from his blood the miraculous flower - triglavska roža - sprang up. When Zlatorog ate it, he became well and strong again. In hi srage he butted the hunter over the cliffs. The fairies and white goats then left our mountains. Zlatorog led them away, nobody knows where. But befor departing, Zlatorog devastated the sunny mountain meadows with his golden horns and turned them into a rocky wasteland, full of dangerous precipices. Many traces of his horns can be seen today in our mountains. We still have a little flower - “triglavska roza” - growing on the Triglav slopes. The fairy treasure is still hidden under the mountain of Bogatin. we still have a rocky path that traverses the Triglav north face - “Zlatorogove police”. We still have the wild besuty of the “Zlatorog kingdom” in the mountains of Triglav.