Friday 9th June
An early start, up at the crack of dawn to avoid all the queues. Well, on the road at 9.45am is getting quite a challenge these days !
The effort was well worth it, out on the first boat of the day. We also lucked out, as we had the happiest crew in the whole park !
The “joie de vivre” that the captain and his first mate exuded inspired K&V to reenact a scene from Titanic. This even had the first class passengers laughing on their deck !
Our first port of call was the Visovac Monastry which is on an island in the middle of the lake. A truly lovely place for meditation and prayer (neither of which we participated in)!
Even with several boat loads of tourist you could still enjoy the tranquility.
We stopped at the far end of the lake for a picnic lunch, and a half hour walk around some stunning waterfalls.
The banks of the river were teeming with dragon flies, their vibrant colours reflecting on the crystal clear waters.
This was the quietest part of the park, as not many people had bothered with the boat trip; they had gone straight to the main waterfalls. We had seen all this beauty and although we didn’t really know it, we still had the jewel in the crown to come !
The trip back to the main falls was lovely and you get a sense of the wilderness that surrounds you. Whilst driving we have seen signs warning us of wild boars, wolves and bears !
After an hour on the boat we were back, ready to see the main falls. The water here was again so clear you could see the fish, and they looked so cool it would have been great to jump in and join them !
It’s not only the sights that amaze you, it’s also the sounds, from complete silence to this little fellow singing his heart out !
The main series of falls were coming into view, and we were promised the opportunity of a dip in the largest of them .
What a terrific experience swimming in the refreshing waters as they came cascading down. There was a line to stop you swimming too close, however we did find a small waterfall to stand under, and the power was phenomenal!
We were lucky again with weather, blue skies and bright sunshine.
We were also blessed with the lack of people, and we were able to enjoy the tranquillity of such a special place.
So at the end of a busy day, we all set of back to the caravans !
Looks very nice there (have to find words other than “amazing” and “spectacular”, although it’s hard to find anything that expresses it as well). The power of a waterfall can’t be under-estimated, as I found out many moons ago in Tahiti. We walked half a mile through the jungle in heat and humidity that resembled the steam room at Virgin on a good day, and the view of the waterfall was well worth it. However, trying to get close to it in the water, the rocks were sharp and painful to scramble across, and the closer you got the more aggressive the mosquitoes became. Finally got to the bottom of the falls, with scraped feet and eaten alive, only to find that sticking your head underneath practically broke your neck, not to mention that the water was freezing, despite Tahiti being a small island (albeit with mountains in the centre). I will be more careful next time.
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