Plitvice Lakes NP, A Day in Paradise!

A map of the area to give an idea of the scope.

The first viewing of the 'Big Falls' on the lower lakes.

A day of stunning views.

The ferry across Jezera, the largest of the lakes.

A panoramic shot from the view point.

Amanda, our guide and Angie from Calgary.

Not just lakes and waterfalls, but forests and the beginning of fall colours.

One of many happy hikers.

 Sunday, September 29th.

We woke up this morning to blue sky! Not that it’s been awful, just that today of all days, we all want sun… we’re off to Plitvice Lakes, one of the most beautiful, natural places in Europe. 

We departed Zagreb at 8:30 and made for Plitvice, where 16 lakes, each at a different level, join each other in a series of cascading waterfalls. ‘Surrounded by dense woods, this is a region of unique beauty. The travertine terraces have been continuously reforming themselves over 10,000 years as calcium carbonate dissolves and settles, forming barriers and cascades. The lakes are also home to a huge variety of flora and fauna including 120 species of birds and a variety of mammals and fish species. The park opened to the public in 1949 and thirty years later the entire area was protected as one of UNESCO's Natural World Heritage Sites’.

We drove along a two lane highway through beautiful forests covering low mountains until we arrived and met our local guide at 11. She gave us the lay of Plitvice Lakes National Park and gave us some options on where to go and what to see. Some people picked the easier half day guided tour, but most of us chose that plus 5 hours of free time for hiking and exploring this beautiful park. The guided part was on the lower lakes, then we took a 15 minute ferry boat across the largest lake to reach the other side where we caught the shuttle bus to the top of the series of lakes and made our way back down through the woods and around the lakes and myriad of waterfalls. At one point I spotted a lookout up on a ridge over the path and shortly afterwards I saw a sign indicating it went up to the lookout. Amanda had not told us about it and I wasn’t really sure if we had enough time or frankly how long it would take, but I couldn’t resist an overlook of the area. I coaxed Shayna to come and Angie joined us. It was a fairly steep climb for about 15 minutes to the lookout and then another 15 down the other side to complete the loop. We all agreed the view was worth the effort.

Then we walked back down for a couple of hours enjoying all the views that are in the photos above and plenty more. We met Amanda towards the end and walked with her to the exit and a hotel where we had a drink and waited for everyone to arrive. We were all impressed with not just the natural beauty but the way that the park has been designed and maintained. The water is crystal clear and the enirnoment and flora and fauna well protected.

Then we boarded the bus and headed to our hotel for the night. The drive up the mountain was amazing. It was a narrow road with big drop offs and which was not really designed for our large coach. But our driver did an amazing job getting us up there and passing the cars coming the other way, which required slow maneuvering and some backing up of the cars as we tried to get past. Finally we arrived at an amazing place. We are staying at a rustic little resort that almost resembles a camp. Our room is in a two story cabin with wood walls, wood ceiling and a bathroom equipped with modern fixtures including a glass shower and raised sink. It has a restaurant and a petting zoo area and a playground for kids. It was dark when we got here so I didn’t see much, I’ll check it out more tomorrow. We had a good group dinner and a few good laughs before bed.