Day 22. Wednesday 22 April.

Plitvice Lakes today and forecast is COLD.

A 0830 bus means an early start, which in turn usually means a restless night. We are at least consistent.

Arrived at the bus station at 0730 – D had, of course, arranged an early Uber, and the Uber driver was early. Bus loaded and departed on time.

The driver mostly drove one handed, occasionally no hands, but never two hands. He manipulated his mobile while driving, having a first conversation continuously for about an hour, the second for about half an hour, and four smaller ones. However, we arrived safely and the thermometer sat on 7. T was surprised that there were so many visitors already, tour groups and student groups and a trio of sweet young things had clearly not previewed the weather forecast, arriving in shorts & singlet tops, then gasping at the cold.

Coffee, entry, and then the park spoke for itself. Plitvice Lakes is the oldest and largest national park in Croatia, situated 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 southeast.

The park is primarily covered in beech 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. It is impossible to do the whole complex justice in a few photos! As with Krka National Park, the boardwalks were narrow, mostly without rails and in this case the rushing, gushing, icy water splashes up & onto the timber path. Not sure how parents manage their little ones & would hate to deal with summertime visitor numbers. And it was a bit disconcerting having people walking in the opposite direction! The boardwalk timbers were of different and irregular widths, so T was extra cautious. It was ‘surround sound’ & visually jaw-dropping.

Met up with an Aussie couple from Mollymook – Sue and Greg – both retired school teachers, and shared some part of the way, after agreeing on the correct route. Their son is teaching music at Deakin High (but we didn’t get to surnames). They are also independent travellers, but with an arranged itinerary.

A beer at the end was a perfect end, then to the bus. Same driver, same situation. Alighting the bus D booked an Uber to get back to the apartment, and we were picked up by Ivana, an engaging and industrious young woman. We got the full story – divorced, two kids (12 & 5), kindergarten teacher with three other jobs to make ends meet! She was a new uber driver (one week in) & had come to this new part-time job after previously child-minding (too much like her kindergarten stuff) & apartment-cleaning (causing back and shoulder problems). It’s a 7-day week working lifestyle, as costs are steep but she was optimistic…’this brings positive energy’ & she certainly had it in spades. T felt very humble.