We’ve been moving across Europe from France to Belgium…The Netherlands…Germany…Czech Republic…Hungary…and then Croatia. Up until our move to Croatia we’ve spent most of our time in cities and towns. That all changed when we went to the Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia. We stayed in a very rustic cabin in the mountains that was close to the national park (and I should add that using the word rustic is being kind and generous). That aside, we were all energized by spending an entire day surrounded by trees, running water, a few hikers, and the odd animal. I’ve copied some information about the park from the Croatian National Park website (see below).

As nice as the old cities and towns are, they do tend to look the same after 2 months. It was nice to mix it up a bit. Luke said it was his favourite day of the trip so far, and it was mine too (narrowly beating out the thermal baths in Budapest). Spending time in nature is energizing. It is good for the body and mind.

We took the GoPro with us through the 6 hour walk. It is so small that you can still enjoy all the scenery and sounds while at the same time capturing some footage to share or have as a memory. Another fun thing about the day was meeting another travelling family from Montana. Their kids heard our kids speaking English in the parking lot and they struck up a conversation right away. It was nice to connect with others who’ve decided to chase a dream and compare notes.

Hope you enjoy the video.

Shawn

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Plitvice Lakes is the oldest and largest national park in the Republic of Croatia. The park is located in the mountainous region of Croatia, between the Mala Kapela mountain range in the west and northwest, and the Lička Plješivica mountain range to the south. Administratively, the park falls within two counties: Lika-Senj (90.7%) and Karlovac (9.3%).

With its exceptional natural beauty, this area has always attracted nature lovers, and already on 8 April 1949, it was proclaimed Croatia’s first national park. The process of tufa formation, which results in the creation of the lakes, is the outstanding universal value, for which the Plitvice Lakes were internationally recognized on 26 October 1979 with their inscription onto the UNESCO World Heritage List. In 1997, the boundaries of the national park were expanded, and today it covers an area of ​​just under 300km2.

The park is mainly covered in forest vegetation, with smaller areas under grasslands. The most attractive part of the park – the lakes – cover just under 1% of the total park area.

The lake system is comprised of 16 named and several smaller unnamed lakes, cascading one into the next. Due to the geological substrate and characteristic hydrogeological conditions, the lake system has been divided into Upper and Lower Lakes. The twelve lakes forming the Upper Lakes are: Prošćansko jezero, Ciginovac, Okrugljak, Batinovac, Veliko jezero, Small lake, Vir, Galovac, Milino lake, Gradinsko jezero, Burgeti and Kozjak. These lakes were formed on impermeable dolomite rock, and are larger, with more indented and gentle shores than the Lower Lakes. The Lower Lakes, consisting of the lakes Milanovac, Gavanovac, Kaluđerovac and Novakovića Brod, were formed in permeable limestone substrate, cut into a deep canyon with steep cliffs. The lakes end in the impressive waterfalls Sastavci, with the Korana River springing under the base of the falls.