Blogger Dražen Breitenfeld decided to try out some of the 500 kilometres of new bike trails in the Krka National Park. To begin with, he chose a visit to the Rogovo viewing point and came to the new Visitor Centre in Laškovica, which is the starting point for cycling through the most beautiful parts of Krka, reports tportal.hr on February 3, 2019.
The Krka national park offers fourteen cycling routes, from mountainous to relatively easy trekking routes, which will undoubtedly be exciting and highly-visited since even beginners will be able to master them.
In addition to Laškovica, the bike routes start from Skradin and the Eco campus in Puljani. These locations also have national park facilities where you can get all the information about routes, bike maps and everything else you need for a perfect getaway. Although it is still winter, when the weather is beautiful and sunny it is possible to enjoy a comfortable ride and the spectacular views of the Krka River and Miljevac plateau.
Laškovica can be reached easily and quickly from the A1 motorway, from the Skradin exit. Then you should continue to Plastovo and towards the Roški waterfall. After half an hour of driving, you will arrive in Laškovica. There is a large car park where you can leave your car and prepare for a bicycle ride, as well as a smart bench, an electric car charging station, and a nice bar where you can drink coffee, water or beverages. The trails are well-marked with blue markings and, apart from the number of the route, include the location which you are approaching, which is good for easier orientation, so you do not have to take out your map all the time.
The map should nevertheless be taken at the starting point when you pay for a ticket to enter the Krka National Park. You have to buy just a regular ticket for tourists, which is cheaper outside of the primary tourist season. It now costs 30 kuna; in pre-season it is 65 kuna, while in July and August you will have to pay 110 kuna.
The Trek 5 route from Laškovica to Rogovo and Dračevica is just fourteen kilometres long. You use an asphalt road from Laškovica towards the village of Rupa, but before the village, you turn left. The trail then follows a macadam path. A half hour ride later and on your left, you will see a phenomenal view of Promina and Krka. Soon you will come to a location where you will temporarily leave your bike. Nearby is Rogovo, from where you can see almost half of the national park. Downstream is the Krka river which expands into a large lake, and you can also see the Visovac island. Everything is blue and green, and you will want to stay there for quite some time. There are climbs on this route, but you will hardly feel them since they are very mild.
Another feature which you have to visit is the Roški waterfall, which can be reached by bike or car. It is about three kilometres away, and it includes a climb on your way back. It will take you at least an hour to visit the waterfall. The whole route number 5 will take you more than two hours, not including a detour to the Roški waterfall.
More ambitious cyclists can opt for the MTB Route 2, which is longer and has more climbs. It is 34.4 kilometres long and has 732 meters of climbing. Longer and more difficult parts demand more time and more serious planning. You should also keep in mind that in the park you must respect the rules – from protecting the environment to taking care of other traffic participants, especially hikers. You should ride your bikes only on marked tracks or roads.
Of course, it is best to ride in sunny weather, and there is no lack of it here. The national park area has about 2,500 sunny hours a year. The park hopes that the bike routes will attract guests to visit other parts of the park towards the middle and upper reaches of Krka and move visitors away from the popular Skradinski Buk.
They also plan to construct one of the largest suspension bridges in the world that will connect the two banks of Krka. When it is built, the bridge over the Krka canyon will connect two fortresses, Trošenj and Nečven, and the broader areas of Promine and Kistanje.
Translated from tportal.hr (written by Dražen Breitenfeld).
More news on the Krka national park can be found in the Lifestyle section.
