Plitvice Lakes - Croatia

Plitvice is about 80 km south of Karlovac. Nested in the mountainous Lika region, half-way between the coast and the capital Zagreb, Plitvice Lakes National Park is, along with Dubrovnik, the single most visited site in Croatia.

Plitvice Lakes became a protected national park back in 1949, and since 1979 the place is also listed as UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The National Park covers an area of almost 73.000 acres. It consists of 16 lakes, over 90 waterfalls, many caves, caverns, and forests.

Lakes are divided into two groups: 12 Upper Lakes and 4 Lower Lakes. The Upper ones are larger than the Lower ones. Plitvice Lakes National Park is accessible on foot via dirt paths and walkways. Shuttle buses run every 20 minutes through the designated areas of the park. A visit also includes a boat ride. We had booked the 8am timeslot, so we could spend most of the day exploring the area.

Lower Lake Falls / Korana River

The 16 lakes are separated into an upper and lower cluster formed by runoff from the mountains. The highest point of the park is Seliski Vrh (1279 m), and the lowest point is the Korana Canyon (367 m).

Lakes lie on an altitude between 636m and 503 m, and cover a distance of some 8 km aligned in a south–north direction, with the water exiting from the lowest lake forming the Korana River.

The Great Waterfall at the Lower Lakes

The lakes are renowned for their distinctive colours, ranging from azure to green, grey or blue.

The colours change constantly depending on the quantity of minerals or organisms in the water and the angle of sunlight.

The lakes are all interconnected and follow the water flow. They are separated by natural dams of travertine, which is deposited by the action of moss, algae, and bacteria.

The particularly sensitive travertine barriers are the result of an interplay between water, air and plants. The encrusted plants and bacteria accumulate on top of each other, forming travertine barriers which grow at the rate of about 1 cm per year.

The lakes of Plitvice are a result of century-old processes and the sedimentation of chalk, which is abundantly available in the waters of this karst area. These sedimentations are called tufa or travertine (both are called sedra or tuf in the Croatian language. 

A distinctive feature of the Plitvice lakes is the fact that they do not represent separated, stationary waters. The lakes altogether have always been seen as one composed system of lakes.

The water masses reaching the lakes at the upper or lower part of the system are continuously changing the outlook of the lakes and the surrounding landscape.

They finally exit the lakes as river Korana. On the one hand, chalk tufa is being washed away partly. On the other hand, new sediments are continuously being formed. Thus, new waterfalls are being formed while others run dry. Nature itself is continuously adapting to these new conditions.

The Plitvice Lakes national park is heavily forested, mainly with beech, spruce, and fir trees, and features a mixture of Alpine and Mediterranean vegetation.

During the 1980s, tourism was booming in Yugoslavia. Plitvice Lakes National Park soon became one of Yugoslavia's most popular tourist attractions.

The beginning of the 1990s, however, marked another great turning point in the history of this national park. In March 1991 it became the scene of the Plitvice Lakes Incident (also called the "Plitvice Bloody Easter"), the first armed confrontation of the Croatian War of Independence that resulted in fatalities. The park was held by local Serb rebels backed by Slobodan Milosevic and the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), and suffered some damage in the process, with hotels and other facilities being used as barracks.

During the period under the control of Serb forces loyal to Belgrade, Croats were ethnically cleansed from the region systematically. The region was retaken by the Croatian Army in August 1995 during Operation Storm, and the majority of the Serb population was expelled.

During the war from 1991 until 1995, many buildings in the national park were destroyed or burnt down.

Plitvice Lakes National Park is accessible on foot via dirt paths and walkways. Shuttle buses run every 20 minutes through the designated areas of the park. A visit also includes a boat ride.

Upper Lake waterfalls

The colour of the water, changing from emerald green to aqua blue, is simply mesmerizing. And it's so clear that you can easily see through the water, and spot small fish.

There are as many as 8 different hiking routes (made up of four different Plitvice lakes hiking trails for each of two main entrances).



The shortest route takes 2 to 3 hours and the longest up to 8 hours. Although the routes are marked, they aren't always easy to follow. Sometimes the marks / directions aren't clear, so we made our “best guess”.

Upper Lakes Waterfall

We chose Route A, B and C. This took about 4 ½ hours and was about 8 kms. It was a moderate hike, and I was glad we brought our own water and muesli bars, as food and drink stations are virtually non existant. Also, we walked towards the waterfalls, if you do the routes starting at Proscansko Lake, and go in the opposite direction you would have to turn around to see the waterfalls.

Stream fro Proscansko Lake (Upper most lake)

Route A. Starts at the north entrance to the park (Entrance 1), descending down to lower lakes, and leading to the Great Waterfall.

You return a bit and then continue along lower lakes to the Kozjaka Bridge. From here you could walk uphill back to the Entrance 1 or you can also take a shuttle back. This route is 3,5 km long, it takes 2 to 3 hours, and it isn't physically demanding. However, you only get to see the lower lakes.

Route B. This continues across Kozjaka Bridge where you take a boat across the Kozjaka Lake. Once you get off the boat, you can walk back to the Entrance 1. This Route is 4 km long, and it takes 3 – 4 hours, and an easy hike.

Ferry boat on Kozjaka Lake

Autumn at Kozjaka Lake

Route C. This is extended route B. The first part is the same, but instead to return to the Entrance 1 after the boat crosses the Kozjak Lake, you continue the hike along the other three lakes to the southernmost Proscansko Lake. Route C is 8 km long, it takes 4 – 6 hours, and is a moderate hike. We caught the shuttle bus back to Entrance 1.

Lower lakes and broad walk

Looking down at the Lower Lakes

All that walking required some food. We tried some traditional food at the local gostionica. Three types of local cheese, tasted fantastic, and I devoured the lot!.

Erik tried the polenta in sour milk. 

Knedle s Sljivama was my main. -plum dumplings with sweet breadcrumbs.

Here is the link to the recipe croatian-plum-dumplings-recipe, and I have also copied below, if the link doesn't work in the future.

Croatian plum dumplings - knedle s sljivama - are made with mashed potato dough and can be eaten as a dessert when sprinkled with sugar, as a meatless main course, or as a starch accompanying a meat dish. Make wherever plums are plentiful. The small damson plum is preferable, but Italian prune plums will work fine.

Ingredients

3 medium potatoes (peeled, boiled, mashed and cooled)
2 large eggs (beaten)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups plain flour
16 damson or Italian prune plums (washed and pitted)
16 sugar cubes
4 tablespoons (50 gm) butter
1/4 cup bread crumbs
Optional garnish: granulated or icing sugar and cinnamon

Steps to Make It 

In a large bowl, combine potatoes, eggs, and salt. 

When well combined, add flour and mix until soft dough forms. 

Place a sugar cube in the center of each pitted plum. 

Place a large pot of salted water on and bring to a boil.

Using lightly floured hands, take a portion of dough and pat it flat in your hand. Place a plum in the center and bring sides of dough up over plum, enclosing it completely.

Moisten edges if necessary to seal. Carefully drop into boiling water. Repeat until all plums are in the water. 

Cook 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt butter in a small skillet,

add bread crumbs and brown.

Using a slotted spoon, remove dumplings to a colander.

Transfer to a serving platter and pour buttered crumbs over dumplings.

Dust with granulated / icing sugar and cinnamon, if desired.