Setting off by car from Saronno, heading for Dreznik Grad, "Emanuela's house", to visit Plitvice park, then on towards the coast, destination Cres!
Departure from Saronno at 4 in the morning. Varedo northern ring road and onto the A4 up to Trieste, then SS14 and E61 to Slovenia (and so you don't pay the highway toll sticker) then Rijeka (first stop for lunch). A6/E65 toward Karlovac, A1 toward Split, at Otocac 52 toward the Plitvice lakes, then E71/1 toward Dreznik Grad where we've booked at the B&B at Emanuela's house.
Departure from entrance 1, because as the guide says, in the morning the highest and most beautiful waterfall is lit by the sun! We follow trail G, a stretch on foot, then ferry, then on foot again up to the upper lakes, then the little train to entrance 2 and back to entrance 1 on foot. The day is fantastic and the lakes are spectacular!
After the night's thunderstorm, we set off towards Cres. We follow the advice of the B&B owner and, to avoid the dirt road from Otocac to Plitvice, we head towards Korenica, take the 25 towards Licki Osik, then towards Otocac and then the 5140 towards Krasno and Senj. We should have found the rescue centre for orphaned bears in Kuterevo but alas the directions we were given were incorrect and so we only stop in Krasno to visit the Sanctuary (very evocative). The road is not the best but the landscape is truly beautiful. We arrive in Senj and stop for lunch, then we follow the coastal road (very busy) towards the bridge to KRK, then straight on to Merag to take the ferry to Cres (with no queue at all) and then straight on towards Cres town. The apartment is right in the centre (really nice), reachable only on foot, the car has to be left in one of the car parks (15 kuna a day).
From Cres we go towards Valun, a tiny fishing village with a equipped beach with a campsite on the right and a much more "natural" free beach on the left. The sea is beautiful, crystal clear! In the late afternoon, as suggested by the guide, we move on to Lubenice. A little village perched on the mountain from where you witness a breathtaking panorama! The road to get there is not the best (especially if someone comes from the opposite direction)
Visit to the southern tip of the island. Punta Kriza, where at the entrance of the naturist campsite we rent a boat and after 5 minutes of driving lesson we are ready for a little trip along the coast! In the afternoon we head towards Lussino, Velj Lossinj and Malj Lossinj, then dinner in Osor and back to Cres for the night
A rest day in Cres. Following the seafront we first stop on the concrete slabs and then, crossing the naturist beach, towards the rocks and the most beautiful sea!
A day dedicated to the village of Beli and the Griffin rescue centre. Here too the road is really quite bad but fortunately few cars in the opposite direction. The little village seems lost in time. From there some trails start towards the mysterious labyrinths (the "crop circles" of times gone by)... the signs leave something to be desired, but in the end we manage to find one!
The bay of Martinscica is truly spectacular, blue and crystal-clear sea. As usual, to get the best spectacle you have to move away from the centre. In the afternoon we pass through Belej and follow the little road that leads to the small beach below... the road is really scary, but the little cove is something breathtaking! even though the sea is a bit chilly, there are some really freezing surface currents.
From Cres we book the excursion to the blue cave. After about an hour of sailing we arrive in this little bay, below the village of Lubenice, in which you can swim into a cave where the sunlight, through an underwater passage, tinges the surroundings blue! Truly spectacular
We take the ferry at Porozina around 8.30 in the morning (without even much of a wait) and return to Italy, passing through Slovenia and then on the state road to Venice to avoid the queue on the motorway.
3 photographs · click to open them full screen
0 reader comments