While in Croatia, we visited Krka National Park which is located about an hour north of Split.
We could only spend a half day for this adventure so our goal was to see the Skradinski buk (the largest waterfall in the park).
Park Entrance
Once inside the park, we bought our tickets. We were there in September, so the entry fee was 110 kuna (about $17 USD) per person. This was discounted from the high season rate of 200 kuna (about $32 USD) for those visiting in July & August.
Incidentally, prices drop considerably when visiting from November to March to 30 kuna (about $5).
Hiking into the Valley
We read online the night before to save time by hiking down the 1 km path into the valley instead of waiting for the bus to fill and take you down to the bottom. They suggested taking the bus back up when you return but more on that shortly…
The 1 km hike to the bottom was more steep and rocky than I was expecting. I was wearing my Teva sandals and the trail was covered in sharp pointed rocks that were quite slippery in some places. However, we made it to the bottom unscathed and only took us 10-15 minutes to get there.
At the Bottom
Once at the bottom of the trail, we followed the road left and entered the one-way boardwalk system.
This boardwalk is very peaceful and serene. It leads you over and around some beautiful streams and mini-waterfalls. This 30 minute stroll is basically the appetizer to the big waterfall that awaits you.
I took these pictures along our stroll on the boardwalk:
Skradinski Buk
Once at the Stradinski buk, we dropped our belongings under a tree and hopped into the water.
Once again, my water shoes proved to be very helpful. In addition to protecting me from stepping on sharp things, they provided nice traction on the slippery rocks and tree roots.
The water in September was brisk so I tried to take my time entering the water and slowly getting acclimated. In typical fashion, I tripped and fell in almost immediately. This got me wondering if this is how I should always enter chilly water – the equivalent of ripping off a Band-aid!
We swam for 10-15 minutes and then found a patch of grass to relax and dry off in the sun. We also enjoyed a couple beers while relaxing. It was very peaceful and relaxing to hang out and enjoy the scenery. What a great way to spend our morning.
I took several pictures around Skradinski buk:
Lesson Learned
A few weeks after our visit to Krka, I learned the park officials announced they are banning on swimming in this location starting in January 2021 to help protect the biodiversity in the park.
This highlighted a very valuable lesson for me.
When we got to the Skradinski buk, I immediately noticed a lot of people struggling to get in and out of the water. They were struggling to keep their balance as they had to scramble over the slippery rocks and large tree roots. This made me very apprehensive about going in the water at all. Basically, I was scared to go in because I knew I had my own balance issues resulting from my brain tumor and got nervous when I saw so many other people struggling.
Fortunately, I got my “one second of courage” and asked myself, “Would someone like Beyoncé pass up a chance to swim in a beautiful waterfall in Croatia?”
I was certain she wouldn’t so I said LET’S DO THIS!
The swim was great and felt extra special because I overcame my self-doubt.
It became EXTRA special when I heard about the upcoming swimming ban!
My takeaway lesson from this is: many opportunities do not come around again so seize as many as you can.
In this case, even if I return again some day, I will not get the chance again to swim.
[If interested, you can read about the Krka National Park swimming ban by clicking here.]
Calling it a Day
After drying off and finishing our drinks, we made our way to the bus stop to catch a ride back up the hill. As we read online the night before, the bus was a much easier way to return to our car than hiking back up that same steep, rocky trail we hiked down a couple hours earlier.
To get to the bus stop, you walk up along side the big waterfall.
Before we headed up the side of the waterfall, I took this pic from the bridge looking away from the big waterfall. As you can see, it’s very pretty with lots more to explore:
I took these pics along the way up the side of the big waterfall:
I took these pics from a couple great overlooks from above the waterfall:
After seeing these overlooks, we made our way to the bus stop to wait for the next bus to come along.
As it turned out, we lost our patience waiting for the bus after about ten minutes and decided to just hike back up the steep and rocky trail instead of continuing to wait for the bus. It was a bit of a taxing hike going up but it was only about 1 km and we took stops to catch our breath as needed. Also, it gave me a small sense of accomplishment for the day!
Conclusion
I am really glad we visited Krka National Park especially glad we swam at the Skradinski buk. If you have time, I recommend checking out the rest of the park as we only saw the tip of the iceberg!
