Last year we traveled through Croatia and got a bit of a weather surprise when we arrived to Plitvice Lakes National Park. It had just turned November and it snowed so much unexpectedly, we couldn't get our car out of the parking spot!
In my earlier post about Krka it was mentioned that Plitvice was actually our first stop on this road trip. My, were we surprised along our drive as it slowly dropped a few degrees at a time and then welcomed us with a full winter wonderland! After pulling into our apartment we'd be staying in for a few nights, our host greeted us and was even more shocked than we were about the weather. Being a local to the area, she said this weather- and the mass amounts of it- was totally unexpected.
We were not expecting snow either, and definitely not this much! Thankfully, we had layers and just bundled up for our exploration into the park. I felt like the weather enhanced the beauty of the park. A true winter wonderland! Not to mention, snow is RB's favorite season so he loved to jump around into snow piles and trot along the snow brushed paths.
We pretty much had the place to ourselves and wandered along paths at our leisure. We climbed down into some caves and came out to some that seemed to be floating above the water. We continued walking with the water rolling under our feet and saw a few brave ducks floating by.
At one point we took a boat from one side of the lakes to the other, and saw waterfalls around every bend. Because it was 1. low season and 2. such unexpected "bad" weather we weren't able to explore the entire park. We were totally okay with this because as I mentioned, we didn't exactly have our winter puffer coats on for this adventure. Our toes had lost some feeling and were ready to be warmed up fireside.
We enjoyed spending a magical day in this wonder looking over edge we could to see who could spot the most waterfalls. They were all so dreamy! Walking alongside them was an added bonus! There were points we could feel the water as it splashed off rocks onto the paths. It was quite warm and refreshing. RB wanted so badly to go for a swim (and mostly he wanted to chase the ducks.) The only downside is there is no swimming in Plitvice as there is at Krka. It is understandable to preserve the natural wonder of the area, sorry bud.
Next to the crunch of fresh powder under our boots, the falls had a tranquil soothing sound worthy of any noise machine. It was a huge check off the bucket list, and I feel lucky to have visited with weather allowing us a VIP experience. If it's possible, the water was more blue and clear in person. I wonder what everything looks like in summer? A different kind of beautiful, no doubt. When you go, let me know!
As we were on a road trip through Croatia, we made a few more stops. After Plitvice we headed to Krka and the town outside of it Skradin, then on to Split and Trogir, back up to Zadar and finally Zagreb before heading home. We had enough time in each stop to explore and take in the local delights. Below are some other shots of our explorations, they're a little more unique (than dare I say typical) Croatian adventures.
This ancient Roman city sits just outside Split and was quite a fantastic surprise for me! I love old things! After a daring traverse in our car up a steep not-so-sure-this-is-a-road road and a few OMG-it's-a-two-way-road?! moments, to come across this expanse of history was amazing. Thanks to our bartender from the night before giving us this must-do travel tip!
Again, thanks to the off-tourist-season, we had the place to ourselves. It was actually borderline eerie, were we actually allowed to be here? It was basically someone's side-yard. Walking along these ruins, walking ON the ruins, this was one of our first times being so close to history and not being told, "don't touch!" Man, I love Europe for this. Yes of course, some history should be preserved, but sometimes letting it tell it's own story- naturally- may be better. This was one of the best stops the whole family enjoyed. RB thought it was easily the best dog park ever. 10/10 would recommend!
Ooh, lucky you! I couldn't for the life of me remember the name or location of this place. But I dug deep into my archives and found this pic below! Now you know where to go!
Moving along on our road trip, here's some snaps from Trogir. During this trip we actually stayed in Split and made the day trip to Trogir to explore but I fell in love and have been back to stay a few days since. I think it has more charm than it's more touristy sister Split and such a beautiful coastline (usually filled with yacht after yacht-- ooh fancy!) Trogir also has a beautiful maze of walking streets within the city walls filled with delicious dalmatian food and of course, shopping! My mother in law and I stayed here, what do you think we did?
I'll end where my Croatian posts began, just outside Krka National Park in Skradin. I also have been back here since this trip, and again I love how it is so close to a more visited area but holds a little more true to feeling "real," and not so touristy. I prefer to find my own version of what's beautiful and not visit somewhere because everyone else is doing it. I mean, look at the last pic! The view is incredible! And I didn't have to share it with anyone else. Well, just the hubs and the pup but they're excused I guess.
For someone who loves ducks and birds, he sure didn't know what to do with this white one swimming towards him- they were almost the same size!
We stayed in a charming family owned apart-hotel and had beyond delightful personalized service. The people were so welcoming! Part of what makes traveling so rewarding is the learning experiences you get from other cultures, towns, or even just cuisine. (Can we pause to talk about truffles? Because, YUM!) And now that I'm craving some dalmatian truffles (not a dog/ not a chocolate) let's go back to our little apartment. We had our own balcony and looked to our left from it to see this lovely church. I just had to snap a pic of it before we left. How majestic does it look?
Now, excuse me while I go make some truffle oil gnocchi.
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