After just 1 night in Split we were once again on our way to visit the Plitvice Lakes.
A view of the beautiful Croatian Coastline
We made an early start in lovely weather as we had a few stops on the way one of which was the ancient city of Trogir. It is situated on one of the many islands off the Croatian coast about 20kms north of Split, has an urban history of over 2300 years and is very well maintained. While walking around Trogir many of us agreed that it would have been a much better place to have spent the previous night giving us more time to explore. We made the most of the hour we had enjoying the narrow streets and the beauty of the wharf at the end of which was one of the original watch towers from the 12th Century.
A beautiful fresco
A narrow street in Trogir
Old and new blend together
Sign at the entrance to the Sacred Art Museum
A UNESCO sign showing Trogir to be a World Hetirage Site
Thereafter it was back on to the bus to continue our journey up the coast. We had a short stop at a beautiful spot at the Krka River. The views from here were stunning with the river coming down from 2 lakes, only one of which we could see, and a village down in the valley. There were a number of pleasure boats sailing up and down entering the Adriatic Sea by going under the beautiful bridge which spans the river. Lots of pictures were taken.
A span of the bridge over the Krka River
Map of the Krka River showing a lake from which it flows
View of the village of Zaton from the bridge
We continued on our way to Plitvice making a short lunch stop at a self-service restaurant. We also had time to wander around the property and were pleasantly surprised but also saddened to see 2 brown bears, 3 wild boar and a number of goats in pens. Having not seen a brown bear before it was an experience but it was really sad seeing them in what was for them small pens which were seriously muddy as Croatia, Bosnia and Slovenia had received an inordinate amount of rain. This was really brought home to us when we visited the lakes.
A Wild Boar
A young Black Bear
It was just another 20minutes to our hotel and once we had booked in and had a brief moment to clad ourselves in warmer clothing as we were travelling into higher land, we were driven to the entrance of the lakes area and then had a 45minute walk to the lakes themselves. Boy, was that an experience as everything was very WET!! The level of water was very high with water pouring down the banks. There was one bridge at the bottom of the hill which we had planned to walk along but it was closed to human traffic. Of course, there were some people, not only youngsters, who had to go down through the barrier. There always has to be someone who believes they know best.
Our hotel
A map of the lakes
The bridge we could not cross with water flowing over it
We continued along the path with the intention of getting to the higher lakes but after about 10mins it was clear that the ground was more mud than anything else so we retreated. One member of our party decided to go it alone without even informing our guide. It was only when we were about to board the boat to take us across the lake that it was realised that he was not with us. It seems as if he is one of the type mentioned above. An hour after we had returned to our hotel he sauntered in as if nothing was wrong. He soon learnt differently from our Tour Guide!
Looking upstream
As we sailed on the lake we saw water cascading by the gallon down the banks. Fortunately they were well grassed so there were no mudslides. I was in my element as I just love moving water – waterfalls, fountains, garden water features and anything similar. The sun was shining brightly glinting off the fast flowing water.
Water just poured down the banks
A whole uprooted tree flows downstream
The water flowed down the bank and under the pedestrian bridge up the bank
Fifteen minutes later we were at the jetty on the far side of the lake ready to spend an hour or so wandering about the island but the ground was so muddy and decided to return to the hotel. To get there we had to go up 260 steps and emerged at the rear of the hotel. After a beautiful day of sunshine and lots of water we were taken to a local restaurant for dinner.
