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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Topic Author's Original Post - Sep 29, 2008 - 05:37am PT
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We flew from Dublin to Zadar direct by Ryanair. Flew in late Wednesday night and the Hotel (Hotel Laguna) was 18km away so we got ripped off by the taxi. He charged us 400 kuna (about 48 euro) when it should have been around around 250 kuna, but we were tired.
Stayed two nights at Laguna (in a small village in the sticks, Privlaka) next to the sea and then hired a car in Zadar (from now on I'll hire a car at the airport from one of the biggies - Avis, Hertz, etc).
Drove to Starigrad and stayed the night, and we went to Paklenica National Park. I bouldered some. The limestone is great and I will return to climb properly some day. It is more of a sport climbing area than trad with most climbs bolted, so gear is mainly quick draws. Didn't see many climbers, but the area is fast gaining a reputation as one of Europe's top rock climbing areas, with routes up to 300 meters high.
It was very windy and started to rain. Apparently the heavy winds (for ten days at that point) were totally against the norm (climate change?). We then drove the autobahn (German influence is heavy in Croatia) inland and then cut back across the mountains to the coast to Senj, and had lunch there but the town has little to offer except the well-known castle on the hilltop.
We drove up the coast and we have settled in Novi Vinodolski at Hotel Tamarsi, which we happened across. The town touts itself as the Dalmatian Riviera. It is beautiful and tree-lined, by far the best town we have seen. The beach is about 60 meters from the hotel and our balcony overlooks the trees and sea. If you ever visit Croatia, I recommend this town and hotel. It is four star, which is about three star in Ireland/Britain/France. We are going to use Novi Vinodolski as a base and fly back next Saturday. We hope the cat is okay (we have a cat sitter looking in on Boots).
I saw a doctor this morning as my ear infections have not gone away, despite the antibiotics my GP gave me in Dublin. My right ear is seriously infected and bugging the sh*t out of me. Left ear is much better (that's were the infection started). He gave me antibiotics and ear drops (300 kuna about 42 euro, for consultation and medicine, not bad).
I don't think we will make it to Dubrovnik as it is way down the coast close to Montenegro. That's a shame but there is always another trip.
At first Jennie hated Croatia but she is warming to the place. I am in the only internet cafe in the town. It has four stations and the guy told me it is packed during the summer (a lot of German and Italian tourists, especially German). Maybe I should open up a proper internet cafe here (the place I am online right now is more of a electronic goods shop - iPods, mobile phones, gadgets etc).
We are going to drive up to Trieste in Italy tomorrow (passing through Slovenia). I am trying to talk Jen into a long day road trip to Bled in Slovenia (Julian Alps, the eastern most part of the Alps) sometime this week. There is apparently a good climbing area near Trieste and also Osp near the coast in Slovenia.
The past few days have been sunny. That is all for now folks. Hope all is well on the Taco Stand.
Cheers
Patrick
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Captain...or Skully
Big Wall climber
Nunya, America
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Sep 29, 2008 - 07:30am PT
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Sounds like a gem in the rough......nice. Safe journeys to you.
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bhilden
Trad climber
Mountain View, CA
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Sep 29, 2008 - 12:09pm PT
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I wouldn't feel too bad about the taxi ride from Zadar to your hotel. On our recent bike trip in Croatia/Slovenia the ferry from Mali Losinj we were on docked at 10:30pm. We rode off the ferry without lights and then spent the next half hour in the dark riding around Zadar trying to find our hotel. It's all part of the adventure.
Bruce
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Sep 29, 2008 - 01:25pm PT
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Post some pictures when you get home.
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 30, 2008 - 05:11am PT
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David, I will post some pix but I am not a great photographer, such as Jerry and Jody and others, and I have a crap little camera I bought on the plane to Nice back in February and it does not take great pix.
I need to get a good camera. My last camera, a Mamiya Sekor 1000 DTL, which I had since 1969, was stolen from my flat in Dun Laoghaire back in 2001 by two junkies who burgled my flat and my landlord's house above me (he lost a Nikon F1 that he had for years to the creeps).
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tooth
Mountain climber
B.C.
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Sep 30, 2008 - 07:22am PT
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Post the pics, no excuses! Ha, we can't all be great at everything...
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 30, 2008 - 10:42am PT
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"We can't all be great at everything"
Tooth, I wish I could say that I was great at something, but...
....alas.
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jstan
climber
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Sep 30, 2008 - 12:43pm PT
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Someone where I worked bought a retirement property in Croatia. The stone house, hundreds of years old, took a lot of remodeling but the area is beautiful and the people very friendly.
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Sep 30, 2008 - 01:03pm PT
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David, I will post some pix but I am not a great photographer, such as Jerry and Jody and others, and I have a crap little camera
Doesn't matter. There are probably not more than one or two people on ST who have seen anything of Croatia, so if you've got some pictures of interesting stuff, put them up. No one here will care that they're not masterpieces.
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