Hvar's best farmland is not on a hillside but on a flat, fertile plain just inland from the town of Stari Grad, and it has been laid out in the same pattern for about twenty-four centuries. Greek settlers from Paros founded a colony called Pharos here in the fourth century BC, and they divided the plain into neat rectangular plots, marked out by dry-stone walls. The walls are still there, the plots still follow the old grid, and the people who farm them today are growing grapes and olives much as their predecessors did. UNESCO listed the plain as a World Heritage site in 2008, and for once the listing is tied to something you can actually walk across.
For a rider, the surprise is how gentle it feels. The island of Hvar is long, narrow and mostly limestone ridge, with its main road, the D116, running along the spine, and the plain is a broad pause in that ridge, with rows of vines, low stone huts and sometimes a farmer on a three-wheeler. The lanes through the fields are narrow, patchy and occasionally gravelly, so ride them slowly and watch for a tractor in the next bend. The big roads are better, with decent asphalt and a few lovely switchbacks as you climb out toward the hills.
Stari Grad itself is a quiet harbour town at the end of a long, narrow bay, and it is the ferry port from Split, which is how most riders arrive on the island with a bike. The bay is sheltered, and in the evening the town smells of grilled fish, wood smoke and cut grass. The nearby towns of Jelsa and Bol give you a few more options for food, and fuel is available in Stari Grad and Jelsa, though in summer the pumps can be busy and it is wise not to run low before a long day on the island.
Hvar is dry, bright and very hot from July to August, so start early, and carry water. The best months for riding are May, June and September, when the light is soft, the sea is warm, and the lavender and wine harvests give the plain its colours. A glass of the local plavac mali, from a vineyard just off the road, is a good way to end the day.