On our second day in Istria, we decided to go to the famous Trail of Seven Waterfalls. This circular hiking trail is 14 km long and has only 400 m of total ascent, but it is still marked as “difficult”. On the Istria-trails site, there is a warning: “The trail has dangerous and demanding sections, and some of them may be too difficult for less experienced users. Use the trail with extra caution and find out about the characteristics of the sections before visiting it.”
Well, the difficult part is at the very beginning: a steep uphill of not more than 110 meters. The trail is secured with ropes (you don’t need a climbing harness, but the gloves would come nicely to protect your hands). I suppose some people find it a little bit scary, but realistically, almost anyone can climb up without any special skill.
That said, not by intention, we started the trail backward, so we came to the hard part at the end of the journey and thus had to climb downwards, which is harder but manageable.
To find the beginning of the trail (near Buzet) and to navigate through some poorly marked parts (99% of the trail is well marked, but still, there are places where you can be confused about where to turn), it is a good idea to download a GPS track and put it on your watch or mobile phone. You can do that HERE. On the same place, you can also find more information about the trail (it is the number 306, previously 556 – when on the trail, watch for both numbers: it is the same path).
After the beginning ascent (ending descent for us), you will find yourself on a very easy (the highest point is 281 m) and enjoyable walking path through forests, gentle hills, and abandoned villages (but also one or two where people still live in traditional, very colorful stone houses). Of course, there is the river Mirna (Calm or Quiet), which you will pass three times and enjoy in its specific “cauldrons” (“kotli” in Croatian, or better to say Istrian): unusual depressions in the shape of cauldrons carved by water in the river bed. The whole trail takes 3 to 4 hours of walking (depending on how long you will stop and enjoy along the path).
As usual, pictures say more than words. Be nice to yourself and plan to visit the trail of Seven Watterfals somewhere in the future!
About the Author: Emina
Now you need to go once again and just after rain to see the waterfalls :P