D13: Plitvices National Park
The coffee place we stopped at on our way out of town as we head to Plitvices National Park didn't have food, so we called an audible and went through the drive-in at McDonald's so we could be on our way. The nice-ish weather we'd been having so far in Croatia would be over today as the forecast called for temperatures around 50 degrees and rain. Lots of rain. Not an ideal day to spend it all outside walking around a national park, but we went for it anyways after calling the NP gift shop to confirm they sold ponchos.
I've been to seventeen national parks in the USA but without a doubt, Plitvices in Croatia was the most beautiful park I've been to and it was very accessible. The park consists of a series of lakes that progressively flow into each and since they start high and work lower, they create these outstanding waterfalls all throughout the park. The park has the feeling of both being a water amusement park and also at the same time like I am walking through Jurassic Park. Walking the park in the rain, I think, only accentuated and strengthened the waterfalls pulsing through the park and it very much felt alive. We did the longest route option which included an 8,000 meter hike and a ride on a boat through one of the lakes. The hike was almost exclusively either on wooden walk ways built over the lakes or on paths directly next to the side of the lake, although the wooden walk way part was my favorite since it took us closest to the waterfalls and at times directly over the roaring water cascading to the lake below.
After surviving the cold and wet temperatures during our visit, we hopped in the rental car and drove to our next Croatian coastal town of Rijeka where we had a beautiful old style Airbnb located on the main square of the town.