Derek and I spent 4 days in Croatia starting in Dubrovnik, the southern tip, and flying out of Zagreb, the capital city in the north. Our tour of Croatia involved hiking, sea kayaking, and driving the coast line. We even spent a day at the national park in the mountains dividing northern and southern Croatia. Though the highest point is only about 2500 feet, the temperatures over a year fluctuate about 125 degrees.
The Croatian coast line is scattered with lots of small medieval towns but Dubrovnik is the only one with its outer wall still intact. Dubrovnik has experienced two major earthquakes which destroyed most of the buildings inside the wall but the wall has stayed whole. The greatest damage Dubrovnik has seen was during their most recent war with Serbia.
Dubrovnik’s old town is built in a bowl on the side of the sea walls. There are more than 5000 stairs inside the medieval walls. There was no way to walk them all. Many locals still live within the old town.
Dubrovnik functioned as a city state, stand alone government, until the early 1800’s when Napoleon stopped to get supplies for his troops and didn’t leave for 5 years. Napoleon’s army is the only military force to ever penetrate the outer city walls. And he only did this by trickery.
Hiking Srd
Srd is the mountain that stands directly behind the old town of Dubrovnik. It is almost 1500 feet tall. During Napoleon’s time Fort Imperijal (not a typo) was built on top to establish a better view of the Dalmatian Islands and Adriatic Sea. There is a cable car to the top or you can hike it using stairs followed by a bunch of switchbacks. We opted to hike.
Walking the Walls
The wall around old town is continuous and in great shape. Takes about 2 hours, including stops to take pictures and eat ice cream. The square towers were built before the 15th century. The round towers were after. The invention of gun powder made the round towers a better option.
We decided to end our wall walk with the big tower which dates back to the 1300’s. This would have to be our tower climb for Dubrovnik.
Escaping the Heat
While hiding out in the air conditioning in our Airbnb, Derek found a tour which started in the walls of the big tower and continued into a medieval foundry discovered under one of the playgrounds. It was all underground and surrounded by stone walls. It had to be cool. We loved the eroding brick ceilings from the 1300’s. They had stalactites everywhere.
Sea Kayaking in the Adriatic Sea
As soon as we arrived, I booked us on a 3 hour kayaking adventure which included cliff jumping, …
snorkeling, …
a sunset, and a glass of wine. One of my favorite things all vacation.
Driving the Coast from Dubrovnik to Split
Based on a recommendation from Rick Steve’s office in Edmonds, we rented a car and drove the coast line. We passed through many little sea side towns. The road curves back and forth following the edge of the Biokovo Mountain Range which has its share of rock climbing. This drive included the added bonus of crossing through Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Hiking in Plitvice Lakes National Park
Plitvice Lakes National Park is famous for its waterfalls. The main walking trails which make up 15 miles of hiking boardwalks work their way through the 9 lakes connected by waterfalls. Since there is no fishing, swimming, or feeding the wildlife, the ecosystem here is alive and well. Not sure which got more attention from the tourists, the waterfalls or the fish.
It is a complete miracle that neither Derek nor I fell off the wood walking track and into the water. Everyone knows neither of us can walk a straight line. Especially when we are enjoying the views.
Cave in the National Park
Since there was obviously no tower in this park and no hill tops with views, Derek and I decided to settle for climbing into a cave.
