Why this ride
From Zadar it runs 397 km to Zadar; allow about 7 h 47 of riding. On the way it passes Paklenica National Park, Plitvice Lakes National Park and back through Paklenica National Park.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Defensive System of Zadar and Plitvice Lakes National Park
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 397 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 7 h 47
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Paklenica National Park → Plitvice Lakes National Park
The ride follows Paklenica National Park → Plitvice Lakes National Park for 153 km.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 153 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Defensive System of Zadar
Zadar spent much of its life on the front line, and its walls prove it. Once the chief city of Venetian Dalmatia, it stood on the border between the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire, and in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the Venetians turned it into one of the strongest fortress towns in the Adriatic. The ramparts, bastions and gates that survive are part of the Venetian Works of Defence between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, a group of sites across Italy, Croatia and Montenegro that UNESCO inscribed in 2017.
Read the complete Defensive System of Zadar write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Defensive System of Zadar is where the day begins. Next is Paklenica National Park.
2. Paklenica National Park
Paklenica is a place where the Velebit mountains drop in a wall to the Adriatic. The national park, created in 1949, protects two gorges, Mala and Velika Paklenica, which cut into the limestone like a pair of knife wounds, with vertical walls up to four hundred metres high. The big wall of Anića Kuk is a famous climbing area, and on a clear day you can watch climbers as small as ants. Between the walls, the path winds through black pine and beech forest, with the sound of a stream and the smell of resin. Griffon vultures nest on the cliffs and often circle overhead, and the caves in the hills hold bats and old stories.
Read the complete Paklenica National Park write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Paklenica National Park comes up about 54 km into the recorded legs. Next is Plitvice Lakes National Park.
3. Plitvice Lakes National Park
Plitvice is sixteen lakes arranged in a staircase, linked by waterfalls and bordered by beech and fir forest, all coloured an unreal turquoise by the minerals in the water. The lakes form because the water is rich in calcium carbonate, which settles out as travertine, or tufa, on moss and plants, building natural dams that grow slowly over the centuries. It is a living process, which is why the park is protected, and why visitors have to keep to the wooden walkways that wind across the water. UNESCO listed it in 1979, and it is today Croatia's most visited natural site.
Read the complete Plitvice Lakes National Park write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 207 km into the recorded legs you reach Plitvice Lakes National Park. Next is back through Paklenica National Park.
4. back through Paklenica National Park
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Paklenica National Park write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Paklenica National Park, late in the day. Next is Defensive System of Zadar.
5. Defensive System of Zadar
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Defensive System of Zadar write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Defensive System of Zadar. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Defensive System of Zadar to Paklenica National Park
Defensive System of Zadar → Paklenica National Park is 54 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Paklenica National Park to Plitvice Lakes National Park
Paklenica National Park → Plitvice Lakes National Park is 153 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Plitvice Lakes National Park to back through Paklenica National Park
Plitvice Lakes National Park → back through Paklenica National Park is 127 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Paklenica National Park to Defensive System of Zadar
back through Paklenica National Park → Defensive System of Zadar is 63 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.