Off to the Plitvicka Lakes and a wee bit of Official Camping .. the 1st time so far !!

Our trip to the beautiful and majestic Plitvicka lakes was to be our first Croatian inland excursion. Once away from the coast we quickly came to understand the mountainous roads and the stark landscapes of Croatia. All pretty mind you, but stark none-the-less.

On arrival at the Lakes it became apparent that Wild Camping was a No-No and that we would need to book into a Camp Site of which where were three to chose from within the Nature Reserve area. Two of which were land owners simply offering up space to pitch a tent and enjoy the basic necessities while waiting to visit the lakes, which was perfect. The other being a commercial venture closest to the action, having swimming pools, restaurant, laundry and other such luxuries available.

Although we stayed at the fancy joint (it was closest and not much more expensive then the others) we still washed our laundry  manually. It was here that we filled the bucket and rolled it down the hill to wash and rinse... funny really.

As neither one of the above Camp grounds were that close to the Lakes area it meant we had to catch a bus (very limited service) in the morning with the hope of one being available once we had completed with our Lakes visit.

The lakes were spectacular to say the least. Absolutely clean, clear and sparkling waters flowing all around. We soaked up the spray on our way through what can only be described as a wonderland of rivers, inlets, small lakes, etc while negotiating the many suspended wood bridges along the way. We could have quite easily have ventured into a Disney script. A most pleasant day was had, with our aches and pains taking 2nd place to the feast of the eye.


Having now completed our adventurous tour it was time to locate the elusive Bus service which was no where to be found, ..... our solution was to walk back to the camp. B was sure that it wasn't that far away anyway. Ha, ha, were we in for a surprise. After about 45 min of fending off the wild antic's of tourist travellers on the narrow road and being forced to dive into the shrubbery and thorny bushes I was adamant that another plan needed to be made pronto!!. Much to B's disgust I began using my Thumb to hitch a ride. Cursing and swearing under my breath after every mean bugger passed without stopping and until final success. A mid twenties couple ( tourists)  skidded to a halt while cars hooted and dashed past on the wrong side of the road. To our credit we were in the car in a split second and away we went.

Thank goodness we managed to hitch a ride as the ride took another 20 minutes while we chatted and laughed with our benefactors.

Next day we were off, once again returning to the much more appealing coastal areas. Our mission today was to travel about 300 km while stopping along the way at those "must see spots" Never once were we disappointed !! Each location we visited was just another feast for the eyes.

Wow this trip was going so well, and being such an adventure !!!.