The Butori sinkhole and waterfall, a magical oasis of Istria

The Butori sinkhole and waterfall is one of the most magical places in Istria. It is easy to reach and sits right beside the road, yet once you climb down into its hollow you feel you are far from civilisation, in the middle of some sort of jungle. Butori is one of the “tougher” waterfalls, one that keeps flowing when most of the others have dried up. For instance, at a time when Benkovski slap, Copot above Buzet and most of the falls on the well-known Seven Waterfalls Trail were dry, Butori was still running. In the midday heat Butori’s green oasis offers the refreshment and relaxation you crave like few other places in Istria. The waterfall probably does dry up during the summer, which can be read between the lines of a number of comments online dating from September.

If you are driving the road between Oprtalj and Buje, whatever you do, do not forget to turn off onto the local road that brings you within a few metres to a small car park. The picturesque landscape of meadows, a little stream, an old mill and scattered clumps of trees gives no hint at all that you are standing right beside the hollow of a sinkhole. The hollow itself is fenced off with a metal railing, and a well-trodden circular path runs round the outside of it. The whole site is no bigger than 50 x 30 m. You enter the hollow through a gate on the far side, diagonally opposite the car park.

The descent into the hollow is at your own risk, as the sign will warn you. During the rainy season it is probably fairly muddy and slippery here, but the descent is not steep and is secured along its whole length by a metal handrail. The descent is some 50 metres long with a height difference of 16 metres.

The sight that greets you is spectacular! Through the dense vegetation a striking waterfall appears, where the Jugovski stream comes crashing down onto the rocks, forming a small lake of a beautiful green colour.

The water drains out of the lake between fallen rocks into a sinkhole 223 m deep, the deepest in this part of Istria. Although it sounds terrifying at first, the sinkhole is well protected and poses no direct danger. Most people do not even know it is there and take the hollow itself for the sinkhole. That is the only way we can explain the carefree bathing of high-spirited tourists. Even if the first part of the lake with the waterfall is probably perfectly safe, the simple fact that there is a 223 m deep sinkhole nearby swallowing the lake’s water does not sound at all reassuring if you fancy a swim in it 🙂