Waterfalls, Brown Bears & Bullet Holes!

Hi there it’s that time of the week again,

We have now settled into Croatian life, it’s funny how after about 10 days you get to grips with new territory and it’s not so daunting and you start to enter your comfort zone again.  We forgot to mention in our previous blog that even the currency here is different, it’s the Croatian Kuna and to start with we didn’t have a scooby what a Kuna was or it’s value so  when we went to the cash point for the first time we didn’t really have a clue how much we were withdrawing but like everything you work it out and 100 Kuna equates to roughly just over £10 so really simple to convert once you get used to it.

We left the lovely site at Njivice with Plitvice National Park being our next destination and headed back across the Krk toll bridge (which is free when you leave, just like the Severn Crossing back in the UK) and as we felt more comfortable now decided to take the national road along the coast before heading inland and what a road it was too.  The views out over the coast and surrounding islands were just breathtaking and the Adriatic was just like a mill pond.  When we flew to Egypt in October last year we remember looking out of the window and seeing beautiful islands, mountains and turquoise waters below and said that it most have been Croatia or somewhere, we must have been spot on as we were now looking at it in the flesh, so so beautiful words cannot really describe.  It’s so nice having all the time in the world as that way we avoid the boring tolls roads and get to see so much more.

There aren’t that many sites that close to the Plitvice National Park, just one really, a Camping Cheque site called Camping Korana and what a perfect place too.  Although it’s a campsite there are no designated pitches you just check in and are told to go and park up anywhere, a mixture of grass or hardstanding but as the pitches are not marked some vans just park up together in line just like being in an Aire.  We found a nice little spot to ourselves away from the regimented vans and got set up.

The sun was shining although rain & thunder was forecast for that night and the following day so we went for walk around the site and as usual went exploring.  Along route we somehow acquired a little dog that at first we thought belonged to a fellow camper, it started to follow us and we took it back to the van where we found it but the guy said it was the “campsite dog” so that was that, it adopted us for the next hour or so while we went exploring, it actually took us for a walk to be honest as it knew exactly which path to take,  stopping every now and then with a glancing look back to make sure we were keeping up, we decided to call her JJ!!  From the back of the campsite there was a path down to an old water mill, JJ seemed to know exactly where we were going and happily trotted along in front leading the way.  The water mill was down in the valley of the Korana River and it was there that we got our first glimpse of the crystal clear waters.  From there we walked back into the campsite and followed another path again with JJ showing us the way, we came to an open area with a small wooden bridge and a large pool/lagoon which eventually flowed down to the mill, again the water was just crystal clear.  We sat just watching the world go by on the wooden bridge for a while and in the meantime JJ decided to head off so she had obviously got fed up with waiting for us I guess!

The weather forecast was spot on as that night we had an almighty thunder storm, first just constant lightning flashes in the distance and then it arrived directly overhead, we opened the blinds to see fork lightning illuminating the sky all around us and then the sound of mother nature flexing her muscles, the cracks and bangs were scary and even the cutlery in the drawer was rattling, we were so glad to be tucked up in the van and not the poor souls that were being lit up in their 2 man tents!!!  It must be a regular occurrence in Croatia as we have noticed that most buildings are laced with lightning conductors along the ridge tiles and guttering and we even noticed earth straps on the shower cubicle doors on the last campsite.

The weather was again stormy the next day which again we knew had been forecast so we planned to go for a cycle and there were a few routes directly from the campsite.  We went into the information centre on site to ask about the cycle routes, with that the lady promptly gave us a map with a few routes on but then in the next breath gave us a bit of a warning and said "not to go out on any of the long routes too late in the day as there are wild brown bears here" and on checking even on some routes they advise to go in groups not alone!  With warnings taken on board we headed off on one of the local routes early in the day not wanting to be bear bait!!! We set off along the trail following the Korana river below and came across this restored tower and many other lovely views and buildings.   One thing that I had also noticed was some of the older buildings were peppered with bullet holes and when you think where we were it was so close to the Bosnian border where it all kicked off back in 1991, The Crotian War of Independence.  We came across a Church which was derelict and had had it’s marble name plaque basically shot down and scenes like this where everywhere, pretty scary really to think what it must of been like back then, and in reality not that long ago.

We carried on our cycle and then the heavens opened so we found some shelter under some large trees but once they had given up their cover we thought we are going to have to carry on regardless, funny as while we were under the tree I said to Julie I bet there’s a bus shelter around the corner but we both said no not out here but bugger me 100m round the next bend there was a lovely large wooden bus shelter, sods law I suppose as we could have sheltered there and stayed dry!! We did sit it out there for the hell of it for 20 minutes or so but it showed no sign of stopping so it was head down all the way back to camp.  We were soaked through by the time we got back but knew a nice hot shower was waiting for us as the facilities at the campsite were fabulous.  We did see JJ again that day going from camp to camp making new friends and getting some fuss made of her but we also adopted a cat that afternoon too, a young female which we called Pickle due to her colouring and after our shower we put the heating on in the van as it was really quite cold but after all the site was about 1,279m above sea level so not surprising that it got a bit chilly without the sun making an appearance.  We had a nice cup of tea and Pickle decided that she too would settle in for the afternoon with us!!

After a bit more rain overnight we woke up to a beautiful sunny day and were looking forward to going to Plitvice Lakes & National Park just a few kilometres down the road.  The National park is world famous for it’s lakes arranged in cascades.  Currently there are 16 lakes which can be seen from the surface which are separated into an upper and lower cluster formed by the run off from the surrounding mountains, they are all interconnected and follow the water flow.  They are separated by natural dams of travertine which is deposited by the action of moss, algae and bacteria.  It is the largest of Croatia’s eight National parks and was proclaimed a National park back in 1949 making it the oldest National park in Croatia and in 1979 was included in the UNESCO list of World Natural Heritage sites.  We also found out that their was an armed clash here on 31st March 1991, Easter Sunday, which marked the beginning of the Croatian War of Independence, they called it “Plitvice Bloody Easter”, so surreal to imagine that such a beautiful and tranquil place had been a scene of such tragedy too.

So as it’s such a major tourist attraction we had read that it was best to arrive early as it can get very busy with day trippers that arrive by coach so we jumped on the bike just after 8am.  It was a bit chilly to say the least so we put our waterproof trousers on over our shorts and our cycling wind jackets to keep the chill off which was definitely a good move.  We arrived well before the coaches and sailed straight in via entrance one and OMG the first thing you see is the VELIKI SLAP, the big waterfall, which is 78m high and as you can imagine is absolutely breathtaking.  

We set off long the main footpath and headed down towards the VELIKI SLAP.  Once you are down at water level the whole park is made up of  a series of pebble footpaths along the edges of the lakes and wooden boardwalks across them, it’s been really well done and ensures that you can get up close to the lakes and cascading waterfalls.  As there had been heavy rain about a fortnight ago and we had the the big thunder storm too some of the paths were actually closed off.  If you didn’t mind getting your feet wet it wasn’t a problem so we said come on let’s just walk through the water as we had our walking boots on and it was only water at the end of the day and our boots would dry out in the sun, to come this far and be denied of what this place had to offer wasn’t an option so we walked across the first boardwalk across the last lower lake and then followed it round very carefully towards the VELIKI SLAP as in places the water was literally rushing over the boardwalks.  I followed it round carefully to check it out first and then beckoned Julie to follow, it was amazing we were right underneath the falls and getting sprayed with the water mist (we now appreciated our waterproof cycling jackets even more!),  something we will never forget.  

We then headed back round and carried on up another boardwalk, again a flooded one, we had only been there 10 minutes and our boots and feet were soaked through but it was well worth it.  We followed more flooded paths (the flooded paths were great as there was no-one else on them except for a few other hard core explorers & crazy people like us!) until we ended up at a large lake, JEZERO KOZJAK, where you jumped on an electric boat to the far end which took you up to the remaining upper lakes and falls again criss-crossed by boardwalks with literally a waterfall around every corner.  The water was so clear and full of an array of fish that just hung around on the surface.  There was also a shuttle bus option that you could use too, both the boat and the bus were included in the price of the ticket which was real value for money at 110 Kuna each so just over £11 each for the day and worth every penny.

We walked around the upper lakes stopping only to tip the water out of our boots and wring our socks out every now and then before finding a lovely spot for lunch tucked away on top of a rock off the beaten track overlooking the lakes and falls. 

After lunch we carried on walking around the upper lakes along more flooded paths and decided not to take the boat back but to follow yet another flooded path next to the lake.  It was a truly fantastic day and after 6 hours we made our way back to camp for a very well earned beer or two.  It really is a place to tick of the “bucket list” so if you are ever in Croatia put it on your list, we guarantee you won’t be disappointed.

We have now moved further South and are at a place called Nin which we will tell you all about in our next blog as I am sure you are bored to tears by now.  We are then heading to the Krka National Park which again has lakes and waterfalls but is apparently different again although they have the SKRADINSKI BUK falls so it will be nice to see them and compare notes.  We then have a couple of nights on the island of CIOVO before getting a ferry from Split to Ancona (Italy) on 30th.

Before we go, one story that we forgot to mention in the last blog was about a elderly couple from Germany who turned up late afternoon with an estate car and small caravan.  After  they had walked round and picked a pitch (just opposite us) the wife stood on the pitch while the elderly husband went back up to reception to fetch the car & caravan, well with that he came flying down the tarmac access road straight past his pitch & wife (who was looking a bit confused) and came to an abrupt stop at the end as the road then turned into the beach footpath. What came next we just couldn’t believe, he carried on and tried to turn the car/caravan combo round half on the footpath and half in the entrance to the beachside bar.  The large lamp post was the first thing that he hit with the caravan, then with the wife shouting STOP, STOP, STOP he then proceeded to put the car in reverse and hit the opposite caravan corner on a low stone wall again with the wife shouting STOP, STOP.  With that into 1st gear and you guessed it he hit the front corner of the caravan on the opposite low stone wall, so by this time the caravan was wedged in-between two stone walls with the car at a jaunty angle.  We just couldn’t believe what we were seeing as the car/caravan were almost new.  After all the shouting it brought out quite a crowd of fellow German campers who then proceeded to unhitch the caravan and man-handle it to their pitch, I think to save any more damage to the campsite and caravan and in fright of him hitting anybody else’s campers.  It really was taking people watching to the extreme and entertained us no end!!

Anyway that’s it for now.

J&J

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Slovenia to Croatia

 Dobardan from Croatia,

As we said at the end of our last blog update we are now in Croatia after a 2 night stopover in Ankaran, right down in the South West corner of Slovenia.  Once again it was weird crossing the border from Italy into Slovenia, but especially as it was totally new territory for us with another language, different road systems and also because it’s not your typical tourist destination for most.  The weather wasn’t great either with grey skies and low cloud and a chilly 17-20 degrees but we found our campsite right next to the sea and got settled (you may have noticed that everywhere we go is near water!!) but it felt really strange.  The next day we planned to visit some local caves but overnight the heavens opened and it didn’t stop raining, torrential at that, all night, and all day the next day, it felt like being back at home on a Winters day, we even had to put the heating on in the van, the first time in months!!!  We spent all day in the van but it wasn’t wasted as we spent the day researching sites in Croatia, catching up with our diary and typing up the blog and then watched a film.  It was a real shame as we did want to go out and see what Slovenia had to offer but it wasn’t to be.  We took a couple of pictures but it was so grey and overcast.

We left Slovenia heading for the Croatian border which wasn’t far at all and our first site was to be at Rovinj on the West coast and only a 55 mile drive from Slovenia, great we thought, we’d be all settled in and set up by lunchtime, how wrong could we be!!  We arrived at our first site, Camping Colone, and after checking in and being given our pitch we spotted a camper van wash area so decided to give the van a jet wash off as the roads on route had been wet after early rain and the rusty red soil of Croatia had made it’s mark on our shiny clean van.  All washed off and sparkly clean again we headed for our pitch along a tarmac road which must have been a good half a mile from reception, we then turned down the stone track towards our pitch which looked a bit overgrown with a mixture of grass & rusty coloured mud which didn’t look too bad so I proceeded with caution but this still resulted in me coming to an abrupt halt in the mud half on and half off the pitch.  As with any campsite anywhere you go a new arrival like us always brings out the locals to judge your manoeuvring/pitching skills so with that and not to be beaten by the mud and not to look like complete novices out came our two tried and tested bristle door mats which I put under the front wheels and with Julie pushing at the back I eventually got the van back on terra firma at the far end of the pitch, thankfully with nods of approval from the locals!!!  Now all I had to do was reverse it back off using the same technique which was surprisingly uneventful too and find a more suitable mud free pitch. So with the van back on the stone track we rang reception (as it was so far away) and asked if they had any other pitches but they weren’t that helpful and after looking around most of the other pitches were the same so we decided to find another site but before we collected our documents, yep you’ve guessed it, it was back on the camper wash to get the mud off that we had just plastered the van with!!!  First impressions of Slovenia & Croatia were not brilliant but we knew it could only get better.

We usually have a contingency plan and there was another site about 5 miles up the road so we set off to Camping Polari, what a difference, a large site but no mud in sight so after walking and then cycling around (it was that big) to find a pitch we finally got ourselves set up and settled, so much for a little 55 mile drive, we were both exhausted and it was now late afternoon so we had a late lunch, a well earned beer and a walk down to the beach before dinner and a glass of wine. We would go exploring tomorrow.

The site was only a few kilometres south of Rovinj and there was a beautiful cycle path from the site along the coast all the way with some stunning scenery along the way, our first proper glimpse of Croatia and it’s many Islands, there are over 1,000 Islands some inhabited and some not.  We followed the cycle path through the pine trees along the rocky coast next to the crystal clear waters until we reached Rovinj a lovely little fishing village with the Church of St Euphemia up on the hill looking down over the village and harbour.  The sun was shining again so we stopped in a local bar overlooking the harbour for a large beer before heading back to camp.

The pebble beach at the campsite was opposite a couple of small uninhabited islands so we wanted to have a paddle board but it was a bit breezy when we went but it was nice to get out on the Adriatic sea and it’s clear waters, again new territory for us but I am sure there is better to come the further South we head.  Usually we find a friendly campsite cat but since we were in Barcelona and mentioned “Campsite Cat” for our weekly blog we haven’t seen any but at this campsite we did gain a pet, Sid, a huge seagull of all things!!!

After 3 nights we left Rovinj and Camping Polari and drove the 30 odd miles further South past Pula and it’s Roman Amphitheatre to Premantura at the very tip but the campsite was very unlevel and on very rough rocky terrain so after a quick look round we decided to head round to Camping Pomer a few miles away which was beautiful and we bagged a lovely pitch overlooking the Adriatic and it’s beautiful sunsets.  

From here we went to Pula and found the Roman Amphitheatre constructed in 27BC to 68AD which was quite amazing and is the only remaining one to have four side towers with all three Roman architectural orders entirely preserved and is among the sixth largest surviving Roman arenas in the world, a rare example of the 200 Roman surviving amphitheatres.  It is built from limestone on the side of natural hillside and has three storeys on one side and two on the other and in it’s day seated 23,000, hard to believe what it would have been like.

We had a day out exploring the surrounding area including Medulin before heading off up the East Coast towards to the Island of Krk, one of the most Northern, largest and most visited islands in the Adriactic and only one of a few reached by an accessible mile long (toll) bridge.  On route we went along the main coast road and got some fantastic views of the what Croatia and it’s many islands has to offer.  

We arrived at Njivice on the Island of Krk to a lovely campsite, Camping Njivice which must have been refurbished fairly recently and for a change the touring section is excellent (not a scruffy seasonal pitch in sight)  with a lovely new shower block and large pitches under old oak trees with small rustic rock walls separating the pitches.  There is a great footpath next to the waters edge that takes you out of the site and into Njivice itself which has small bars/restaurants and a small marina, it’s a great location.

We have been walking, cycling, paddle boarding, swimming and snorkelling in the crystal clear waters of the Adriatic, quite scary on the paddle boards as when you look down it's just like a window to the bottom of the sea.

Oh and no seagulls here, look what Julie found, a "Campsite Cat" for you!!

Croatia is starting to tick all the boxes and as we have said apparently it gets even better the further South you head.  Next stop is the Plitvicka National Park which we are told is beautiful so look out for our next blog.

That's all folks.

J&J

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