Zrmanja By Boat

The Zrmanja tour starts in Obrovac where the river continues to flow through the canyon full of vegetation characteristic for carst. Right before the town itself, on the right bank there is the town’s cemetery built on the remains of a Benedictine monastery, and further on the chapel of St. Nicholas which is on the left bank of the river and testifies the importance of the river Zrmanja as a channel through a number of centuries. The river continues further on through the ever deeper and ever wider canyon with vegetation that becomes sparser, and seemingly cruel steep cliffs take over the canyon. In that immense vastness of rock and water, only a keen eye will notice a lonely cliff with a small stone building, the so called „Pržunac“ which, according to historical findings, was the last prison of the Croatian queen Jelena which confirms the strategic importance of the River Zrmanja and its canyon in the history of this area. At the end of the canyon and the delta of this karstic beauty into the sea, we are embraced by the impressive cliffs where within just a few meters space coexist the griff on vultures and the Odysseus’ Cave as well as the remains of the ancient settlements which the local inhabitants call the ancient Šibenik. And so…with a tremendous historical heritage and unique beauty, quietly and discreetly, through a several-hundred meters wide delta, the river flows into the Novigrad sea.