Paklenica National Park

Paklenica National Park is located near Starigrad and Zadar, in northern Dalmatia, at the southern slopes of mountain Velebit. It contains two karst canyons: Mala (Small) and Velika (Big) Paklenica. The name Paklenica probably derives from black pine sap called “paklina”, which the locals used in traditional medicine, for wound treatment, for light and for coating of wooden boats.

The wealth of flora is reflected in a thousand plant species and subspecies recorded to date, 79 of them endemic. The great diversity and the presence of rare, protected species make the Park a very valuable area not just in Croatia, but in Europe and the world as well.

Near the entrance into the Velika Paklenica there is an artificial basement/cave complex that had been built for Josip Broz Tito in the late 1940s.

The deepest speleological objects in Paklenica:

• Precipice on Bunovac (534 m) is the deepest object in Central and South Velebit
• Cavern in Crljeni kuk (152 m) is very significant geomorphologically because of the dimensions of the underground halls over 100 m in diameter
• Pit in Zub Buljme (139 m) – in addition to its depth, it is interesting as a finding site of a cave bear’s skull
• Pit under Počiteljski vrh (123 m)
• Pit of Beautiful Fossils (103 m)

The longest caves in the Park:

• Vodarica Pit  (300 m)
• Cave in Zub Buljme (250 m)
• Medviđa Cave (215 m)
• Manita Cave (175 m) – one of the most beautiful caves in the park with an abundance of cave ornaments
• Lucinka Cave (132 m) – with the highest cave entrance in Croatia (51 m)

Paklenica National Park is the most visited climbing site in Croatia, and the largest in southeast Europe. The close proximity of seawater gives this climbing site a special charm, making it an ideal place to combine climbing and water sports.