Vela Stiniva is the fishing port for Zastražišće, which is an agricultural village in the hills above. Stiniva means “rocky”, and is a very apt description of the cove, with its high cliffs to right and left and you sail in. These are good cliffs for climbing, attracting locals and visitors to scale the heights. Somewhere on the west side is a cave, though we couldn’t see it from below.

Most of the buildings in Vela Stiniva are apartments to house summer visitors. There are a couple of restaurants here in season also, but if we want to eat here in February we’ll need to bring a picnic! There are a couple of well-tended vegetable plots and some beautiful daffodils and irises in flower.

Stiniva is a rather popular name for bays among the islands. The best known Stiniva Bay is on Vis, but there are others – the neighbouring islands of Korčula and Brač have one each, there’s one on Kornat further north, while Hvar has a total of three – Stiniva, Mala Stiniva and Vela Stiniva. As in, what’s that bay called? Rocky Bay, Little Rocky Bay, Big Rocky Bay!

It was so peaceful sitting on the dock in the sunshine, I even got my sketchbook out for a while…

I was in my element as we chatted to Rajko, and prepared for our flight around the local area. Then it was into the familiar cockpit of a Cessna 172M and off we go. The North-South runway heads straight for the canyon rim and glorious views of the Limski Kanal as we take off.

Right turn to head north up the coast towards Vrsar. The old town is on a small hill and dates back to pre-Roman times. The numerous bays are now popular with nautical tourists, and the nine islands and numerous rocks and reefs, in particular the island of Koversada, are a haven for naturists.

Continuing up the coast to Poreč we circled around. You can see the old town on its peninsula with the spire of the 6th century Euphrasius Basilica, the two tiny islands of Karbula and Barbaran, and the larger island of St Nicholas with its Valamar Miramare resort.

And so back southwards over some typical Istrian scenery and past the entrance to the Limski Kanal again….

Our furthest southern point was a circle around Rovinj for some fantastic views. Like Poreč, Rovinj sits on a peninsula that used to be an island surrounded by defensive walls. The tall spire of St Euphemia’s church dominates the skyline. Looks like we captured my old school at the right of the leftmost photo!

The peninsula nearby where I spent the first few years of my life exploring the coast and swimming in the sea….

And so on back to the airport for a photo with our pilot Rajko and sidekick Franjo.

The museum is a work in progress, with a selection of rescued oldtimer planes sitting on the grass in various stages of disrepair…

Most of the planes are accessible, and you can even get into the cockpit of a Mig 21. I had a great time climbing all over the planes.

Lovely people, great little airfield, definitely worth a detour. As well as the museum and flying lessons, there is parachute jumping and aerobatic flying. In 1998 the World Skydiving Championships were held here and the airfield was also the base for the 2014 and 2015 Red Bull Air Races,

After that exciting little excursion, we got back in the car and continued up to Poreč.

Vrsar Crljenka Airport, LDPV, Elevation 37m (121′),

Phones: +385 91 944 4110; +385 91 525 1109; email: aeroklubvrsar@gmail.com

Find out more…

Best of Istria: Vrsar Airpark

Facebook: Airport Vrsar

Wikipedia: Vrsar Crljenka Airport

CROControl official airport info

Deep in the forest of the south rim, there’s a glorious viewpoint over the canyon. It takes a bit of getting to, you have to know it’s there, and navigate the rough single track road in and out. The water below us was still and calm, a very deep blue in the sunshine. In October, there was only one boat making its way up the channel. The forest on the south rim is deciduous, while the north rim is covered in evergreens, and has several deep caves.

The bay is almost 13 km long and very narrow, giving its common name in Croatian as the Limski kanal. It isn’t of course a canal, but maybe a better translation is the Lim channel. In 1964, the landscape was designated a protected site of geomorphologic and hydrogeological importance. After taking in the overview, we headed down to water level for a different perspective. There’s a small community down there, with cafes and restaurants in season, and boat trips on offer.

In 1980, the bay was declared a special marine reserve. One particular feature of the bay is the lower salinity due to the submarine fresh water spring at the top end. That allows the growth of plankton, fish and shellfish, especially mussels and oysters. Tony’s Oyster shack is famous for its fresh oysters, and it was extremely popular the day we visited, even in late October!

Having enjoyed a glass of wine and a plate of mussels and oysters, we headed up the valley on the north side, and found our way to Aeropark Vrsar. It’s a small private airfield that offers flying lessons and air tours, with a collection of old planes that they are working to restore. We took the flying tour of the local coast, himself well happy to be back in a small plane again! At the end of the runway is the edge of the Lim canyon, so very quick to get airborne! I’ll write a separate blog on the aeropark and the flying, but for now, I’ll leave you with a few photos of Lim bay from the air.

Read more…

Vrsar Tourist Board: Lim Bay

We went as a day trip, but there are hotels to stay in and villas to rent, thanks to wealthy Austrian industrialist, Paul Kupelwieser, who bought these islands in 1894 and developed them as a holiday resort for himself and his rich friends. The estate included first-class hotels, restaurants, villas, casinos, a golf course and yacht harbour. Until the First World War, it was extremely popular with the Viennese upper class and members of the European aristocracy. Between the wars, the general decline in world economics led to the estate becoming run down, until Tito made his official summer residence there, the island once again hosted heads of state and celebrities.

You can buy your tickets online and download the Brijuni Guide App to your phone. It’s a great pocket guide, with good descriptions and a handy map to follow. Our tour was mostly archaeological sites, with some gardening and cultural interest thrown in. First up, the Boathouse, which turned out to be a rather beautiful architect-designed family residence for the island doctor, combined with a surgery and pharmacy. Dating from 1901, it reminds me very much of the style of Charles Rennie Mackintosh who was designing buildings in Scotland at around the same time.

Veliki Brijuni has been carefully landscaped with rolling grassland and trees. It has the feeling of a parkland as you follow the pathways and watch the herds of deer stepping across the grass. From the harbour, we walked over to see the old olive tree, reputed to be over 1600 years old. It still produces 30 kilos of olives each year, which is good going!

From there we wandered along Pine tree alley to the Mediterranean garden, which I have to say I found a little disappointing, as there was more information about the various gazebos than the plants. I had been hoping for some ideas for what to plant in our own garden! And then again, perhaps it’s just not at its best in October?

Next we headed for Verige Bay, with a detour up the nearby hill to see Gradina, a Bronze Age hill fort. During Kupelweiser’s time, trees were cleared to make a horse racing track around the site, which actually helps you to see the extent of the ancient ruins. Impressive walls, but hard to see anything of the enclosed dwellings. Of course, maybe those were only of wood, so not much will remain. We had the place to ourselves, with the exception of a small party of deer.

Down the hill to the remains of a large Roman villa which lies around the rather lovely Verige Bay. The site is extensive, this was clearly the luxury residence of a prosperous Roman family. Again, we have the place to ourselves as we wander up and down steps, deciphering where the rooms were amongst the colonnaded walkways. The views over the bay are just beautiful. What a glorious place to live! There was a full working harbour here, some of which is now underwater. 

Our next target is the Byzantine castrum on the west coast, so we set off across the rolling grassland in the right general direction. Originally the site of a Roman villa, the buildings on Madonna Bay grew into a small fortified town during Byzantine times up to the 5th century AD. The high wall surrounds a warren of houses all huddled together by the bay. Next to it is a more modern villa with protective fencing and warning signs to keep out. The Croatian government still keeps some private properties on the island for its own official use. 

Nearby are the remains of the Basilica of St Mary, deep in the forest. This little church may be one of the earliest in Istria, constructed with stone from more ancient buildings on the island.

From there we walked back along a shady tree-lined alley to the harbour area, where we enjoyed a cold drink on the waterside in front of the hotel while waiting for our boat back to Fažana. All in all, we walked over 5 miles, and were wishing that we’d taken the option to rent bikes or a golf cart so we could have gone further. October was a beautiful time to visit, as we had a lovely sunny day and peace to explore all these interesting sites.

Here’s my sketch for the day – Verige Bay, with the site of the Bronze Age hillfort (and race track) in the background…

Find out more….

Brijuni National Park website

Arriving in Bale, we take a little time to find the La Grisa hotel, so well does it fit into the old town. Composed of a series of renovated stone houses clustered around a courtyard, it’s stylish and very much of its place. Our room is on the third floor, almost a tower, with lots of space, and a jacuzzi in our room! On the first floor is an indoor pool, which is a very peaceful place to hang out, with a sauna and a selection of hot drinks to enjoy as you sit on the recliners. It’s a great place to relax after a day sightseeing! The gourmet restaurant is certainly a cut above your average hotel restaurant, with some great choices for a veggie! The waiter, Bogdan, is very friendly and introduces us to some fine local Istrian wines to pair with the food. Chef Nikola Vuković comes out to chat and have a photo taken with us! 

Bale turns out to be a lovely little town with an ancient double-walled citadel that has grown into a medieval town. Castello Soardo-Bembo is a fine 16th century building, originally built by the Soardo family. later owned by the Bembos. The young Giacomo Chevalier De Seignalt Casanova stayed here several times back in the 1740s, apparently visiting a lady of the Soardo family.

Sadly, the castello wasn’t open for visiting at this time in this season, but it was fascinating to wander around the circular streets of the old town. There are clearly artists here, and even in October there are flowers everywhere, tubs and window boxes. In the main square there’s even an old truck used as a floral display! Under the porch of the town hall, there’s a stylish cat house for the resident mouser, with a log to run up and his name – Gatto Pardo – above the door.

We circumnavigate the old town. inside and out, enjoying the gardens and views of the Bale skyline. The olive oil places are rather busy in October, so we don’t get a tasting at short notice. We’ll arrange that another day. Around the town are vineyards and olive groves, and this is a good place to try Istrian olive oil.

Here’s my sketch of the Bale skyline…

Find out more…

Bale Valle Istra

On Monday, our explorations of Rijeka were strictly outdoors on an October day which kept threatening to rain, but never quite did. On the positive side, those heavy dark clouds made for a dramatic backdrop to our photos! We set off to climb the 561 steps of the Petar Kružić staircase up to the Trsat fortress overlooking Rijeka. Built in 1531, the stairway was intended for pilgrims on their way to the church of Our Lady of Trsat. It’s an interesting, if fairly strenuous, ascent between some lovely large houses, and is quite breath-taking!

At the top, we headed first for Trsat castle, enjoying the spectacular views over Rijeka and the Rječina canyon below. This 13^th century castle is one of a series of Frankopan fortresses defending territory along the Kvarner coastline. By the 17^th century Trsat was in a bad state of repair, not helped by the major earthquake that hit the Rijeka-Bakar region in 1750. During the Napoleonic wars, the castle was given to Laval Nugent, an Irishman who was a Field Marshall in the Austrian army. He used the castle as his residence, and restored it with some neo-Gothic styling. These days it’s a popular excursion for Rijekans and tourists alike, complete with bar and restaurant in the courtyard where you can sit and enjoy those stunning views.

After our tour of the castle, we wandered into the tiny medieval town of Trsat. The single open restaurant we could find for lunch in October had only 4 dishes on the menu, all of them fish. But oh boy, did they cook them well! I had a superb orada (sea-bream) gregada, and himself tucked into a plate of small grilled fishes. And it was just as well we’d arrived early, as it proved to be a popular lunch spot!

Other notable buildings in Trsat are the church of Our Lady of Trsat, with its associated Franciscan monastery, to the rear of which is an impressive sunken garden. We visited those briefly after lunch before heading back into downtown Rijeka. This time we avoided the long straight stairway and opted for the smaller series of steps and paths that link the loops of the winding mountain road.

The next morning we woke to the sound of pounding rain. It was absolutely tipping down, with thunder and lightning and the whole show. We opted to have a quiet morning on the botel, before packing up and checking out just as the rain eased off. Rijeka certainly is the city that flows!

Find out more…

Visit Rijeka website

Wikipedia Trsat Castle and Petar Kružić staircase

Science Direct: Evidence from the 1750 Croatia earthquake

The road was planned to connect towns and improve access for industry, not as a scenic coastal route. But the completed Magistrala became very popular with tourists, especially in summer, when everyone and their caravan would head for the coast. Classed as one of the top ten most beautiful roads in the world, it also ranks as one of the most dangerous. It’s best to heed the speed signs as you swoop your way round the curves of the bays and headlands. Your GPS, of course, will want to put you on to the more recently-built motorways for a speedier journey, and we had a constant struggle with Google maps to reject all its suggestions of a “better” route. Partly because of that, of course, the Magistrala on a sunny October day is a peaceful drive, and the scenery simply glorious.

Heading north from Lake Vrana, we kept to the Magistrala at Posidarje, and headed left towards Starigrad on the seaward side of the magnificent Velebit mountain range. This definitely reminds me of the Californian coastal highway – a great wall of rock on one side, and the blue of the Pacific stretching out on the other. In this case, it’s the more turquoise Adriatic, with islands floating out there.

Very shortly, we come to the Paklenica National Park, a pair of deep canyons cutting into the Velebit mountain range. These are the valleys of the Velika and Mala Paklenica rivers and the area was designated a National Park in 1949 to protect the surrounding forests, the best preserved natural forest complex in Dalmatia. The park covers 95 square kms, and includes the highest peaks of Velebit, Vaganski vrh (1752m / 5748 ft) and Sveto brdo (1753m / 5751 ft). The karst landscape contains a range of interesting geological formations, both above and below ground, and a diverse collection of plants and wildlife, many not found elsewhere.

Seven years ago, we hiked up Velika Paklenica, the big canyon, on a rather hot May afternoon. This time, we thought we’d explore Mala Paklenica, the more southerly, smaller valley. Unlike its larger neighbour, rock-climbing is not allowed, leaving a more peaceful natural environment for birds and other wildlife. It was a nice day for a walk, although the ranger was a touch discouraging about the state of the trail. He told us that the path is reasonably good for some way, but then it gets harder and becomes increasingly technical. If you have 7 hours to spare (and better equipment), you can hike up this valley, across the high plain and back round by Velika Paklenica.

Not for us today! We walked up as far as the path allows without wearing serious hiking boots. To our right was a dry stream-bed, unlike the other canyon with its tumbling stream and waterfalls. The path is mostly through pine forest, with terraced fields on one side. I’m glad to see so many Dalmatian black pines here, along with oaks and junipers. The harder section turned out to be an old rock fall, where we had to clamber over large boulders, following the Croatian mountaineering club trail red and white markers. After that, the path was fine again for a short while, but suddenly turned right across the stream-bed and became a vertical climb up the other side. OK then, that’s our turning point, back to the car!

The Magistrala heads roughly northeast in a series of sweeping curves. Off the coast we pass the exposed rocks of Pag and Rab, the bura winds keep these islands scoured of vegetation on this side. Next we see Goli otok (barren island), where political prisoners were kept. It’s an impressive sight, looking almost like a large whale out there. Past Senj, with its fortress overlooking the town, and then it’s the island of Krk off the coast. This island is nowhere near so barren, and even has a bridge at the northern end. We’re getting close to the city now, the bay at Bakar shows signs of industry. There once was a ship-building yard here, now refurbishing boats. A loop around the last peninsula and we arrive into Rijeka right on the waterfront to park next to our hotel. It’s a botel, the former ferry Marina, now docked permanently in the harbour. It’s in a great central location for exploring Rijeka!

Here’s my sketch of today’s walk up Mala Paklenica…

Next, we’ll be exploring Rijeka, though the weather forecast is not promising…

Find out more…

Paklenica National Park website

Croatian Mountaineering Association (Hrvatski Planinarski Savez) Interactive hiking map

Botel Marina, Rijeka

So this year, as we planned a road trip up the Croatian coast, Maškovića Han was high on our wish list to visit. This time, as we walked round from the car park, the big front gates were open, and a welcome sign bade us enter. The Han may never have become the planned retirement home, but it is now a beautiful, and very special place to stay for travellers. The renovations have stayed true to the original Turkish architecture, and there’s a feeling of timelessness and simplicity to the buildings. Don’t get me wrong, all the modern comforts are in your room, including USB sockets for charging your iPhones, but there’s a lack of fussiness that’s so often confused with luxury. The bedrooms are around the back courtyard, very peaceful and extremely comfortable for a good nights rest! Each room has a tall chimney, a ventilator to let out the heat. The walls are thick and the ceilings high, to keep you cool in summer.

The Han includes a museum and a view of the original Turkish bath house, which is still unfinished. The restaurant is in a lovely building with arched wooden roof that was originally planned as the mosque. The food is excellent, although I have to say the vegetarian options on the menu were minimal, and they’ve missed a trick in not having any Middle Eastern items except for the baklava. However, when I asked what they had for vegetarians, I was offered an extremely tasty dish of grilled veggies and soya chunks on a bed of creamy whipped potatoes – very yummy!

Sadly we didn’t get to try the new spa and hot tub, as it apparently needs to be reserved in advance. Well, maybe next time!

The han was originally built for Jusuf Mašković, a local boy from Vrana, who made a good career for himself at the court of the Ottoman empire in Constantinople. Born in 1604, he became a silahdar to the Sultan, a principal page/arms carrier who wielded considerable influence in who could have access to his master. He was known in Turkish as Siladhar Yusuf Pasha, and rose to be a Vezir and Grand Admiral of the Turkish Fleet. So, an important person then, with a decent salary to put towards building his own house. In 1644 he started sending funds to Vrana for the construction of a large han – partly to accommodate travellers, and partly as his own residence.

Mašković was in charge of the successful attack on the Venetians in Chania on Crete in 1645. When he returned to Constantinople, he married Fatma Sultan, the three year old daughter of Sultan Abrahim, and was given the Ibrahim Pasha Palace as a residence. But only one year later he was executed by the same Sultan for showing too much mercy to his Venetian captives. So much for the retirement plan! The unfinished Maškovića Han just sat there for several centuries, until a recent grant from the EU enabled work to restart.

We really enjoyed the style of the han, little details such as the trellis-work with the Islamic patterns, the tall ventilators in the bedrooms and the pointed archways. We spent a very peaceful night here, and will definitely come again! Here are the pages from my sketchbook…

After Lake Vrana, we continued north up the Jadranska Magistrala – Croatia’s beautiful coastal route avoiding all motorways. Next stop, Mala Paklenica canyon…

We’ve been exploring some of the quiet bays near Vrboska, both along the Hvar coast and across to Brač. In June, we pretty much had all of them to ourselves. Increasingly, though, some of the better-known anchorages such as Soline Bay, can get quite crowded. There’s usually a mix of small rent-a-boats, motor cruisers, yachts and catamarans of all sizes right up to the super-luxury charters complete with crew and a selection of inflatable toys. It’s fun to look up these visitors online and find out how much they cost for the week! For example, the 80′ catamaran 7X costs 67,000 euros/week and accommodates 8 guests with a crew of 3. Another recent visitor, Axioma costs 549,000 euros/week, accommodates 12 guests with a crew of 20! I think the one with the helicopter must be private – hard to look up when there’s no visible name on the bow.

We like to take a picnic with us, and seek out quieter places. Depending on the wind direction, we’ll drop anchor in whichever of the nearby coves offers the best protection. Going westwards, we usually run into a fairly brisk maestral (westerly) in the afternoon, funneling through the narrowest part of the channel between Hvar and Brač. Eastwards, the bays are more open, but that’s OK, because the maestral doesn’t blow as strongly there.

There are also sail-in restaurants, which is pretty cool. Not having a dinghy, we depend on being able to moor at a dock, otherwise we’d need to swim ashore. It’s possible, for example, to tie up next to Me & Mrs Jones in Jelsa, for a lovely lunch. We even did that during the socially-distancing summer of 2020, when they served us on board our boat. Excellent food and nice folks!

Pokrivenik, which is one of the largest bays on the north side of the island, is also a fine lunch stop. We’ve just been the once, but really enjoyed both the location and the choice of food. It seems to be popular also with the boats from the mainland, for example those fast RIBs from Makarska and Split.

Another popular outing for the Makarska and Split boats is, of course, our own home port of Vrboska. Increasingly, we’re seeing a flotilla of these small, fast boats bringing a party of guests for lunch or dinner. It’s great for the local restaurants, especially the ones right next to the dock, and it’s entertaining to watch the boats come and go. Although, I have to say it can be disconcerting when we arrive back in our boat to find someone else moored in our space… and not only that, using our own rope to tie themselves up! Note to self – don’t return to port over lunch time!

We started at OPG Ante Mateljan – Babić Homemade Products, who are handily right on the main road, just past the pekara. The Mateljan family has cultivated olives and used local medicinal plants for generations. They produce wonderful fruit jams, preserves and syrups, as well as excellent olive oil, wine and prošek. We were treated to a gourmet feast, in which just about everything was grown or made by them. There were various bruschetta (with very tasty combinations of vegetables and their own savoury jams), mature cheese in olive oil, fresh grilled courgettes, enormous green early-ripening Petrovka figs, and to finish fig and prosek balls dipped in chocolate (very yummy). Their black mulberry and chilli jam was particularly good! Introducing all the courses was Ivana, one of the daughters of the house, and who also makes her own jewellery from local plants. The family shop, with a range of goodies is open daily, but a tasting such as we enjoyed would obviously be by arrangement in advance.

We then took a little walk around the back ways of Zastražišće, always interesting to take a peek into life in the village with its old houses and courtyards. There’s a move afoot to encourage the use of the local dialect, and in particular poetry, for which an annual festival is held. This is a long strung-out village, with clusters of houses at various points along the road. Actually more like collections of farmhouses, each with their own yard and outbuildings. Each section has its own name – Mola Bonda, Podstrana, Donje Polje and Grudac. The entire village is named after the conical hill which was known as Stražišće, or “guard post”, now simply called Vela Glava (305m). It provides great views towards Brač and the Biokovo mountain range on the mainland. Conversely, of course, the hill is a clear landmark for miles around.

Moving up towards the church of Sv Nikola, we visit OPG Grgo Lučić, who cultivates fields of lavender, other herbs and medicinal plants and produces wonderfully fragrant oils, balsams, and hydrolates and soaps. They’re all natural products and come with their own distinct health-giving benefits. In June, we watched as Grgo opened the still after processing a load of ‘smilje‘, or immortelle as it’s known in English. The lid of the vat is in the shop, then we go down underneath to the cellar to watch as the remains of the smilje are pulled out to cool. From around 1200 litres of plant material, they extract 0.6 litres of essential oil. Next week they will be harvesting the lavender too.

In May, our walking tour finished here at Lučić, with some snacks and wine, which they also make. For the Wine and Olive Festival in June, we continued on to Kod Kućera family farm, to try some of their homemade cheese and wine (both excellent). They have goats and donkeys, and the beautiful restaurant terrace looks over Pokrivenik Bay. It was rather hazy and humid on the day we visited, sadly, but the view must be glorious on a fine day. We were intrigued to learn that a ‘trim‘ (drystone field shelter) is locally called a ‘kućer‘, meaning a small house. They’re used for storing your tools, and this one has even been a chicken coop at one time. All cleaned out now, it’s wonderfully cool inside, even on the hottest day. The donkeys, Mina and Hugo Boss, are very friendly and patient with visitors. Originally from Brač, they are now retired here and well looked after.

Great couple of outings to Zastražišće, and I also want to give a mention to Ante Beroš and his family who have their ‘stolarija‘ (carpentry) workshop there. They made the beautiful wooden doors, windows and shutters for our house, and we’re so happy with them. You can always tell their work, adds that touch of authentic style to a Dalmatian house. And I have to say they also make one of the best prošeks I’ve ever tasted, too!

Find out more:

OPG Ante Mateljan

Lavender farm Grgo Lucic

Kod Kucera family farm