Here's a post i've been meaning to write for some time but haven't gotten around to.
As i'm working on the new ethic of "Work like a Professional" (as oppossed to an artist) for all tasks, here it is done at last.
A search for "Croatia" on the forum prompted me to begin thinking that some pics and details of this wonderful destination are in order as the summer holiday season is here. Aside from a few posts up till now there hasn't been much on the site.
Notably see here, here and here.
Wiki details for Croatia.
The laws in Croatia are somewhat different from those in the UK with regard to camping and bushcraft, mostly camping is restricted to registered offical camps, but it is possible to stay on private land for a short stay by agreement with the land owner. Camping in national parks is prohibited. In summer fires are often prohibited also due to the risk of forest fire. Last week it was 38C here, which is not unusual in summer, woodland is often tinder dry - exercise caution.
Having said that there's still alot of fun to be had as can be seen below....
Last year i took my first river trip to begin practicing my canoe skills with my wife and some friends. Our destination was the Zrmanja river near Zadar, a friend of ours who is a registered travel guide offered to take us, he provided the boats and selected the route.
The canoes we used were the robust sit on top kind which i found fine for my first outing. You can see some here on the top of the van.
I believe i remember a post of John Fenna's describing this area from before (which i couldn't find when searching), it is truly breathtaking.
Darko, our friend and guide is great fun, if you're thinking of visiting Croatia he leads cycle tours, single or multi day hikes, canoe and white water rafting trips as well as arranging transfers. He also arranges custom packages to meet your particular needs.
You can see his website here.
The trip on Zrmanja was just a day, 6 hours of paddling with some small (to 2 metre) waterfalls to negotiate, which added some challenge to the trip, and made for some welcome opportunities to cool off.
1 Larger waterfall we bipassed, that was more in the region of 6 metres, braver paddlers jump it ...... apparently.
We spent the next few days hiking in the local area and paddling in hidden lakes and rivers in the steep canyons which fill this coastal area of Croatia.
We didn't bump into any tourists on our trip in the surrounding area, it was roasting hot in the canyons but caves and streams provided some shade and a chance to cool off.
NOTE: Don't forget to put sunscreen on your ankles when canoing. (especially if you've only got meindl Borneo's with you and no trail shoes!!) The waters cool but the sun is strong.....
Croatia has a vastly smaller population than the UK and although in summer the coast is often heaving with tourists, if you manage to get away from the honeytraps it isn't hard to witness the varied wildlife and enjoy the tranquility.
NOTE: In tourist season there can be alot of traffic on the Zrmanja river with competing tour agencies all having their groups on the river at the same time (up to 60 canoes at the same time with 2 or 3 in a boat!!)
As i'm working on the new ethic of "Work like a Professional" (as oppossed to an artist) for all tasks, here it is done at last.
A search for "Croatia" on the forum prompted me to begin thinking that some pics and details of this wonderful destination are in order as the summer holiday season is here. Aside from a few posts up till now there hasn't been much on the site.
Notably see here, here and here.
Wiki details for Croatia.
The laws in Croatia are somewhat different from those in the UK with regard to camping and bushcraft, mostly camping is restricted to registered offical camps, but it is possible to stay on private land for a short stay by agreement with the land owner. Camping in national parks is prohibited. In summer fires are often prohibited also due to the risk of forest fire. Last week it was 38C here, which is not unusual in summer, woodland is often tinder dry - exercise caution.
Having said that there's still alot of fun to be had as can be seen below....
Last year i took my first river trip to begin practicing my canoe skills with my wife and some friends. Our destination was the Zrmanja river near Zadar, a friend of ours who is a registered travel guide offered to take us, he provided the boats and selected the route.
The canoes we used were the robust sit on top kind which i found fine for my first outing. You can see some here on the top of the van.

I believe i remember a post of John Fenna's describing this area from before (which i couldn't find when searching), it is truly breathtaking.

Darko, our friend and guide is great fun, if you're thinking of visiting Croatia he leads cycle tours, single or multi day hikes, canoe and white water rafting trips as well as arranging transfers. He also arranges custom packages to meet your particular needs.
You can see his website here.
The trip on Zrmanja was just a day, 6 hours of paddling with some small (to 2 metre) waterfalls to negotiate, which added some challenge to the trip, and made for some welcome opportunities to cool off.
1 Larger waterfall we bipassed, that was more in the region of 6 metres, braver paddlers jump it ...... apparently.

We spent the next few days hiking in the local area and paddling in hidden lakes and rivers in the steep canyons which fill this coastal area of Croatia.


We didn't bump into any tourists on our trip in the surrounding area, it was roasting hot in the canyons but caves and streams provided some shade and a chance to cool off.


NOTE: Don't forget to put sunscreen on your ankles when canoing. (especially if you've only got meindl Borneo's with you and no trail shoes!!) The waters cool but the sun is strong.....

Croatia has a vastly smaller population than the UK and although in summer the coast is often heaving with tourists, if you manage to get away from the honeytraps it isn't hard to witness the varied wildlife and enjoy the tranquility.


NOTE: In tourist season there can be alot of traffic on the Zrmanja river with competing tour agencies all having their groups on the river at the same time (up to 60 canoes at the same time with 2 or 3 in a boat!!)
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