Paklenica National Park

There was a sense of sadness at returning the yacht after an amazing 12 day cruising trip.  It had been a highlight of our travels, however we then had five days of road tripping with Neville and Diny (Lucy's folks) ahead of us.  Zadar was hot, the road was hot, everything was hot- but at least we had air conditioning in the car. 

The coastal landscape north of Zadar is wild and harsh. We never expected to find lush forests and cool streams...

As we left the City, Neville commented on how barren the coastal mountains looked, Geoff mentioned that this impression is superficial as there are reportedly substantial forests with beautiful gorges running through them. So, as we passed signs to the Paklenica National Park, Neville suggested we pop in to see what it was about.  From the hot coastline we entered a deep gorge where we learnt that the park offered flowing rivers, deep forests, caving and was the best centre of sport and big wall climbing in Dalmatia, if not in the whole of Croatia. Geoff was intrigued and as a group we decided to come back to spend the following day exploring the park.

The access to the climbing is really easy. We didn't have our climbing kit with us though so could only look!

This 650m face is one of the main climbing attractions to the park and hosts one a European big wall speed climbing competitions annually in May. Most of the routes are bolted.

The park had excellent trails with a great compromise between limestone viewpoints and the deep forest.

Accommodation was easy to find in Starigrad and we enjoyed one of the most beautiful sunsets of the trip as the sun transformed to a vivid red globe on the horizon. There was a vibrant nightlife and we explored the bustling markets after dinner before retiring for the night.

Up at sparrows we raced through to the park and were having breakfast in the gorge by 7am watching a poor donkey being loaded with goods headed to the mountain refugio. Our tactic was simple - get there early and gain altitude before it got hot. However even by 9am it was already above 30deg and we were on the sunny slope climbing a steep path to the cave. Neville had opted to stay low down as he hadn't been feeling strong, but we took regular breaks on the hill and we noticed a figure charging up behind us. Neville "Tank" Norton at full speed - clearly he had decided he wasn't so tired after all!

The park has had an interesting history. Shortly after the formation of Yugoslavia it was closed to the public for 5 years as the government developed a system of underground bunkers to serve as a refuge in times of war. Presently these are being redeveloped into visitor facilities. 

Lucy in forest with a view to the big wall.

The cave system is only 135m long, but it comprises an enormous dolomite cavern with huge limestone features including fins, terraced pools and rose crystals in addition to the columns, stalactites and stalactites. These features have effectively subdivided the huge cavern into three distinct zones.  Access is with a guide only and the caves are lit by solar powered lights. The reduced lighting created a very strong contrast of light and shadow which we felt enhanced the cave experience even more. Our guide was a charming young lady with a masters in natural science who explained a lot of the geological phenomena we saw. Geoff couldn't help but envy her day job - hiking 1.5hrs up to a stunning cave system to guide tourists for 3hrs then home! The best part about the caves was that they were a consistent 10 deg C in contrast to the 35 deg C outside!  We didn't want our tour to end!

Photographs never really do justice to caves. We had the system all to ourselves and loved it!

As we sat outside the cave, Diny pointed out to Geoff on a map board that if he continued up above the Cave he would be able to summit the nearby peak and do a solid loop back to meet the others at the refugio. The guide confirmed this would be tough in the heat but was manageable in 3 hours at a brisk pace. With the gauntlet now down Geoff wasn't going to say no and after checking he had enough water and the emergency rescue phone number he set off. His hot ascent was compounded by the direct sun, and reflections from the white limestone. Additionally stopping was difficult due to the mosquitos. However he summitted and raved about the wildly beautiful limestone and alpine terrain and forest he had all to himself when we met up again. No doubt the icy swim in the river back at the refugio was a welcome relief.

From the summit of a peak you can see the jagged limestone and  forested valleys below.

Panorama from the summit

A well deserved swim

The afternoon was spent exploring the extraordinary forests of the park, and swimming in the fresh streams. Paklenika National Park is well worth a visit and we were very glad we had made the effort.

Leaping Lucy at the refugio and mountain hut at the head of the valley.