Paklenica National Park

Paklenica, where the great Velebit mountain range drops steeply towards the Adriatic near Zadar, protects two spectacular limestone canyons, Velika and Mala Paklenica, that cut back from the coast into the heart of the mountains. The larger canyon narrows between sheer walls hundreds of metres high, and these smooth vertical faces have made Paklenica the most important rock-climbing area in Croatia, with hundreds of routes and an international climbing meet each spring. For walkers, well-marked trails run up through the gorge past a mountain hut and old mills into the high Velebit, from easy strolls into the canyon mouth to demanding full-day ascents of the range's peaks, through a landscape of karst, forest and, higher up, bare limestone. The park sits within a UNESCO biosphere reserve and shelters wildlife including chamois and birds of prey. It offers a bracing mountain counterpoint to the beaches just below.

History

The earliest traces of people on Velebit are Mesolithic flint tools from Vaganačka Cave, left when the rising sea of the late ice age pushed hunters into the hills, and about eight thousand years ago the first herders and farmers brought wheat, goats and sheep. In the Bronze Age the Liburnians built the first hillforts here, guarding the cattle and trade routes into Lika through Paklenica, and their ring-shaped stone mounds can still be seen; after the Roman province of Dalmatia was founded in the early 1st century AD, the town of Argyruntum, today's Starigrad, grew into a trading centre whose cemetery has yielded some 400 graves and a collection of 146 glass vessels now in the Zadar Archaeological Museum (Wikipedia, Paklenica).

The landscape

• The Velika Paklenica canyon - the deep gorge between sheer limestone walls.
• Rock climbing - the vertical faces that make it Croatia's top climbing area.
• The mountain trails - walks from the gorge up into the high Velebit.
• The karst scenery - forest, bare limestone and viewpoints over the coast.

When to go

Spring and autumn are ideal for both hiking and climbing, with mild temperatures; summer is hot and busy, though the gorge offers shade, and the high peaks hold snow into spring. The spring climbing meet is a highlight for climbers. Winter access to the heights is limited.

What to expect

Beyond the easy walk into the canyon mouth, the trails become genuine mountain routes that are long, steep and rocky, so proper footwear, water and preparation matter, and the high Velebit demands real fitness and care. The famous climbing is for the experienced or those with a guide and gear. Summer heat on the exposed karst is fierce. It is a park for active visitors more than sightseers.

Nearby

Zadar and its Sea Organ are 40 minutes south; the northern Velebit and the island of Pag are close.

Key facts