PLITVICE LAKE

 Incredible view from the top  

  Beautiful Lake

Map of Plitvice Lake 

Location : Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia.

Plitvice Lakes National Park is the oldest national park in Southeast Europe and the largest national park in Croatia. The national park was founded in 1949 and is situated in the mountainous karst area of central Croatia, at the border to Bosnia and Herzegovina. The important north-south road connection, which passes through the national park area, connects the Croatian inland with the Adriatic coastal region. In 1979, Plitvice Lakes National Park was added to the UNESCO World Heritage register among the first natural sites worldwide. Each year, more than 1,200,000 visitors are recorded.

The national park is world famous for its lakes arranged in cascades. Currently, 16 lakes can be seen from the surface.  These lakes are a result of the confluence of several small rivers and subterranean karst rivers. The lakes are all interconnected and follow the water flow. The sixteen lakes are separated into an upper and lower cluster formed by runoff from the mountains, descending from an altitude of 636 to 503 meter over a distance of some eight km, aligned in a south-north direction. The lakes collectively cover an area of about two square kilometres, with the water exiting from the lowest lake forming the Korana River.

 

                       The lady's-slipper orchid                                                 Brown bear

The Plitvice Lakes national park is heavily forested, mainly with beech, spruce, and fir trees, and features a mixture of Alpine and Mediterranean vegetation. Scientists have so far listed 1,267 different plants out of 109 species that can be found within the area of the national park. The area of the national park also is home to an extremely wide variety of animal and bird species. Rare fauna such as the European brown bear, wolf, eagle, owl, lynx, wild cat and capercaillie can be found there, along with many more common species. As regards bird species, the Plitvice Lakes rank third among other Croatian national parks. Up to now, 157 species have been counted, of which 70 have been recorded as breeding there.