Biking Rakovica

Our second full day began with a hearty breakfast to fuel us for our ride through the countryside.  We were happy to see blue sky greeting us as we fitted our bikes.  Mike and I were not as intimidated as some in the group heading up the hill out of the village to the main road. We rode for a short distance on the main highway before exiting to a narrow side road which took us over a few hills to the neighboring village of Dreznik. On our way we stopped to visit a recently restored watchtower. It was part of a 16th century fortress protecting against invasion by the Turks. Today, it adds to the story book character of the surrounding area.  We hopped back on our bikes to ride to our next destination, the Barac Caves or Baracevin Spilja as they are known locally.  These caves were first protected in 1892 and only recently reopened to the public. The same karst phenomenon that creates the Travertine above ground also forms the stalagmites and stalactites that over millennia may meet to form columns. When we were deep inside the cave, they asked everyone to be silent and turned out the lights to demonstrate the complete absence of light and sound.  It was incredibly novel to experience the sensory deprivation.  As we made our way back to the light, our guide pointed out some horseshoe bats clinging to the ceiling. Some people were happy not to know we were sharing the cave until we were exiting.
After climbing the hill up to the main road, we headed to a local farm house for lunch. As with the majority of our meals in Croatia,  it was large and featured a diverse array of fresh fruit and vegetables from the farmer's garden. The only downside was having to get back on the bike afterwards! We stalled for awhile taking photos to prove we did ride since with all the fabulous food we may return heavier than we arrived. Our guide Robbie is a great practical joker and convinced Neil to photo bomb us. We have to give him credit for coordinating with the bee in front of us as well. Reluctantly,  we mounted our bikes for the ride "home".  Robbie, who also enjoys surprises, had one more in store for us as we continued up the hill past the road to our village.   We climbed higher over the next few kilometers and before we knew it we were hiking out to a secret viewpoint above Plitvicka Jezera.  We vamped for the camera taking advantage of the early evening light over the postcard view of the lakes.  Once more we mounted up and all the uphill was forgotten as we cruised downhill all the way to the village.  The perfect ending to another beautiful Croatian day.