CC Travel Blog

Frankly, March is not the best season to visit Plitvice Lake National Park. The weather is still between winter and spring and snowstorms are unpredictable. Some trails are still too slippery due to icy snow and flooding. We were told that yesterday the strong wind carried the snow to the park and coated some trails with thick flakes. A group of travellers had an accident and a girl fell into the canyon lake. For safer bet, come late April or October.

For us coming from the south tip of Croatia to the central part of the country takes a bit of drive. By that I meant leaving Dubrovnik at 7:30am and arrived at around 2pm.

Strong wind condition on the road forced us to take a detour and lengthened the drive by half an hour. Thankfully we were still on the main roads.

Although the national park is famous, the lakes are so small that it is hardly visible on a map. The national park itself is not big and the lakes cluster into two groups that by hiking two hours in two trails, one can cover most of the lakes areas.

Due to the bad winter condition, we only hiked the lower lake trail and skipped the upper fall.

For the lower lake trail, my advice is to do it in the morning for better photography opportunities. The trail was heading west, so my pictures become dark as the camera is all facing the sun.

We entered the park through the Lower Lake entrance and then hiked towards the ferry station.

The first waterfall was rather big, but the upper fall was still frozen.

Some lakes are very peaceful and green.

At early spring, the melting snow supplies the water with abundant energy.

The water fall is about 10 meters high.

Passing the marsh, we approached the ferry station.

The ferry ride was about 15-20 minutes. The ride was very peaceful, cozy and not chilly.

Along the side, bushes and waterfalls created a continuous scene.

In my mind, Jiu Zhai Gou in China is much better alternative because it offers same sceneries but bigger size and more sights and views. But for Croatia visitors, this is a pleasant gem.