Paklenica National Park

Paklenica National Park protects the part of the Velebit mountain where it meets the sea, and its defining feature is the pair of dramatic canyons, Velika Paklenica and Mala Paklenica, that cut into the range. Velika Paklenica is the accessible one, with a stream, a shaded trail and a famous rock-climbing area; Mala Paklenica is wilder and reserved for serious walkers.

The park is one of the oldest in Croatia, protected since 1949, and it is best known among rock climbers, who come from all over Europe for the big limestone wall of Anića Kuk. For non-climbers it is a hiking park, with trails up to mountain huts and onto the Velebit ridge, and the relatively easy walk up the main canyon is one of the most rewarding mountain outings on the coast.

Paklenica sits above Starigrad, about an hour’s drive north of Zadar, and it makes a genuine alternative to a day on the beach. The canyon entrance is busy in peak summer, but the crowds thin quickly once you climb.

For photographers, the canyon walls closing over the stream are the wide shot, and the climbers on Anića Kuk give scale. Bring real walking shoes and water; the canyon is hot in the afternoon.

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