I’m very happy to report that we have officially slowed down. After 4 blissful nights looking out over the quiet harbour of Cres, we’ve then spent 4 beautiful days island hopping in Kvarner and Northern Dalmatia.
The first two days were exceptionally easy. A whole 18 km the first day: 15km to the ferry (albeit including a 350m high ascent) and an additional 3km to our apartment for the night (on Krk). We arrived at our apartment just after lunch, and was greeted by an eccentric couple that ran the place. The lady was especially chatty, and plied us with schnapps, including a 500ml takeaway bottle (despite our best efforts to refuse) and talked at us at a million miles an hour in broken English, German and Croatian (we may have understood every third thing she said). We finally managed to escape, and filled in the extra time that afternoon by going for a luggage free cycle and having a swim in the clear blue Adriatic sea.
The following day was another hard one. 3km back to the ferry, then 18km cycling the mostly flat road to Rab town.
We spent the afternoon having a lazy stroll around the old town. It was stunning, with the sun shining and the limestone buildings set against an azure sea. We followed up with the most delicious dinner we’ve had out to date: grilled squid and scampi with butter potatoes and spinach, followed by pancakes with wine sauce (think champagne custard).
The final two days were a little harder, with some large hill climbs coming as a rude shock after our easy week.
We we’re particularly caught out by the monster climb leading up the main road on the mainland after leaving Pag (particularly as we’d only allowed two hours to the next ferry). Although the climb was hard, it was incredibly rewarding, with the section being one of the most scenic of the entire trip.
Its hard to describe the sheer beauty of this area (and our photos certainly don’t do it justice), with towering rugged limestone mountains looming over the highway and the Adriatic shimmering hundreds of metres below.
The road back to the coast was a little hair raising, with a steep descent through a series of switchbacks, and a race to make the ferry (we could see it pulling in just as we started the descent!).
A short ferry ride later, and we arrived on the moonscape that is Pag island. Apart from a large stone cross, the entire hillside is completely bare, with not a single piece of green anywhere to be seen.
We found a great little spot for lunch and a swim, taking on some much needed fuel for yet another climb. The afternoon sun, bare landscape, and earlier mornings efforts made the climb a little of a challenge, and by the time we’d cycled on a further 15km on to where we had planned to stay for the night, we were both ready for an early one.
We stayed in the Simuni Camping Village – a mammoth establishment that had literally thousands of camping plots and cabins. Although being the offseason the place was virtually empty. We had been toying with the idea of camping until we saw that the weather forecast was predicting rain, and realised that 25 euros would get us a simple little cabin, complete with separate bedroom, a patio, bathroom and kitchen. Tough call.
We woke to the patter of rain, warm and dry in our cabin, and set out into the drizzle for the final leg to Zadar. Believe it of not, after the sun burnt moon the day before, the rain actually helped the 66km to Zadar pass a little easier, stopping us from overheating as we tacked the smaller yet still unrelenting hills.
The final stretch to Zadar passed in a rush of busy traffic and a 6km continual downhill stretch almost all the way to the old town and our apartment.
Here’s where we went if you’re interested:
4ks an hour 