Nature is the only book in which each tab holds some truth.
Hello, and Happy Easter to all who are celebrating it now,
Today we are going to walk together on Croatian lands, where we arrived I can say by mistake.
The holiday season came and we decided to visit the Plitvice Lakes in Croatia, having been away from home for a while and quite tired after a heavy traffic all the way to Croatia, and after several stops on the way at some point due to fatigue I had to stop in a parking lot to rest a bit, we didn't have long to our destination about 30-40km.
Being through a village I looked for a parking to stop, from the main road I followed a road to the right and stopped.
My wife got out of the car and started looking around to unclench her legs and I lay down for a while in the car with the aim of resting.
It didn't take 5 minutes and my wife comes to the car and tells me to go see something I haven't seen before.
After 10 minutes of walking around this area I got over any sign of tiredness and we decided to stay until the next day to explore the village.
Let The Adventure Begin,
The Village of Rastoke
Found on the edge of the town of Slunj, a gateway of sorts to Plitvice, Rastoke is the town’s historical core. While staying in Slunj to visit the Plitvice Lakes, I had an inkling that there was a waterfall to visit here. I’d first learned of the village from a photo I found online back when I was first thinking of visiting the lakes. It really wasn’t until my bus from Zagreb rolled past that I realised the scale of Rastoke’s waterfalls.
Part of the reason that Rastoke has been traditionally overlooked is that it and Slunj were a frontier border for much of their history. Wedged between the Ottoman Empire and the kingdoms of Europe, it was often only seen as a line on the map. There’s also the problem that the local economy took quite a hit in the 20th century. Because it sat at the confluence of two rivers, the Korana and the Slunjcica, Slunj was a milling town that got hit hard by the Industrial Revolution. Throw in the blinding tourist beacon that is Plitvice Lakes and its understandable how this gem has escaped major notice.
Once here, you feel like you have actually entered another world, a rustic, peaceful and magical world. The magic comes from both the look of the place and the stories that weave with the trickle of water through the small, colourful cottages.
Short history
The first documentary record of Slunj dates back to 1390 and Rastoke, the area of water mills and playful waterfalls, is mentioned much later, around 1860, in the travel diary of the writer Adolfo Veber Tkalcevic.
The little village with its water mills, green alleyways and unmitigated moss was declared a protected area in 1969. So those who come here have the opportunity to walk through a genuine open-air museum, a museum that not only looks but is actually full of life.
What could be more beautiful than being able to see and feel the beautiful friendship between man and nature, the respect man shows to nature and the unconditional reward of nature. A beautiful story.
And speaking of fairy tales, everyone knows that fairy tales are children's favourites. Arriving in Rastoke, children young and old can hear tales of frolicking fairies and enchanted millers. Rumour has it that when the millers gathered in the evenings for a chat while waiting for the wheat to be milled, the fairies living in the nearby woods would steal their horses after bewitching the millers.
Is it true? Are the forests that surround the area still home to magical beings? Who knows?
Waterfalls of Rastoke
Although Rastoke shares the Korana River with the Plitvice Lakes, it is the Slunjcica River that creates the village waterfalls. As the river hits Rastoke, it begins to fork and fork again, creating streams that spread throughout the village.
All these different streams end up creating over 23 separate waterfalls, through a limestone substance called tufa. Some little rapids pass through the village, while larger ones pour down into the Korana River. None are as great a drop as the big falls at Plitvice Lakes, but they’re nevertheless pretty.
The village itself plays a big part in the beauty of Rastoke. Certainly the view wouldn’t be the same without the traditional wooden houses that line the streams or rest out on the little islands. Yes, there are some spots that are only reachable by quaint little bridges.
You can even stay in some that offer guest accommodation, while others are restaurants with little decks out over the water.
We chose to stay at the local guesthouses, what wonderful people.
Perhaps the only downside to seeing the waterfalls here at full force was that they were hard to identify. Several of the more well-known Rastoke waterfalls are named like Vilina kosa the “Fairy’s Hair” and Hrvoje. Because none looked like the information boards representing them, it was a little hard to keep track.
The Best Viewpoint
Walking through the village, you’re going to find plenty of great spots for photos. For the best views of Rastoke and its waterfalls though, I think you actually need to leave the village. At the northern end of the village, there’s a small bridge that takes you across to the far side of the Korana River.
Just a little downstream from there you’ll find a fantastic viewpoint on top of the hill there that lets you see all of Rastoke’s most impressive waterfalls. That said, also head the other direction at the bridge to see a waterfall flow out from under a house. It was a photo of that very view that brought me to Rastoke.
In Rastoke you can't get lost or bored. The walk easily turns into a treasure hunt. At every turn there's either a mill, a restaurant with a terrace over a lake or a museum awash with flowers. What a pleasure it is to wander along the little path that respects the waterway.
Admittedly, we didn't go to the museum or into any working mills. I preferred to dine on the terrace of one of the restaurants,
Visiting Rastoke Slunj
From the centre of Slunj, Rastoke is a gentle 10 minute walk away. Alternatively, you can park at the viewpoint north of the river and walk down to the village that way.
In all honesty, it was unclear whether you need to pay a park entrance or something for Rastoke. There is a tourist information centre in an out-of-the-way spot in Slunj that had some sort of sign about Rastoke but I only glimpsed it as I was leaving. Again, this was in the off-season so perhaps things are clearer and busier in summer.
I totally recommend to stay with the locals for your visit to Rastoke.
Have you heard of the waterfalls of Rastoke in Croatia before?
So, as a final note, I have saved one piece of information that will surely encourage you to take a run to this wonderful place, not far from the spectacular trails of Plitvice National Park. It was here, at Rastoke, that the first Winnetou was filmed, the one in 1969.
After a day of exploring we were pretty hungry, by the way the food is amazing.
Thank you in advance for stopping by, for supporting me as this 