Lim Channel

The Lim channel runs about ten kilometres inland from the western Istrian coast in a narrow steep-sided trench, and although it is often marketed as a fjord it is nothing of the kind: no glacier cut it. It is a river valley, the lower course of the Pazincica, drowned when sea level rose after the last ice age. The mix of fresh groundwater and sea makes the water unusually productive, and oysters and mussels have been farmed here for a long time, sold in the restaurants along the shore. Boat trips run in from the coast, and the road above has viewpoints looking down the length of it.

What you actually see

• A drowned river valley - not a fjord, whatever the signs say.
• Ten kilometres of steep-sided inlet - cutting into western Istria.
• Oyster and mussel farms - the water is unusually productive.
• Viewpoints on the road above - looking down the whole channel.

When to go

May to September, when boats run. Half a day.

Honest expectations

Boat trips are commercial and heavily sold on the coast, with fixed stops and a set meal in most cases. Swimming and private mooring are restricted to protect the farms. The viewpoint laybys are small and busy.

Nearby

Vrsar is at the mouth; Rovinj is south along the coast.