On the way to Sv. Ilija through starry sky
Briefly about Biokovo
One of Croatia’s most beautiful and by far roughest and harshest mountains. Its combination of steep reefs and the sea they fall straight into is a unique sight for eyes. The very things that make it breathtaking and picturesque are the same ones that can put your life in danger. Not to exaggerate, this is not Matterhorn or Mt. Everest by all means, but Biokovo is seriously underestimated. A lot of foreign “hikers” approach it as a walk in the park. More often than not they end up with a Croatian mountain rescue service phone number on their screen.
It is a very steep, rocky and dry (few water refill spots) mountain. The most frequent issues are dehydration, sliding down the accumulations of rock debris or spraining an ankle due to uneven terrain. On many places the markings are very bad. They either faded out, burned down due to fire, got hidden by rocks due to earthquake or just got abandoned by the local mountaineering association. Therefore it is necessary to get all the information of the trail you want to use. Not to forget, check if there are any water sources along the path. That being said, Biokovo is undoubtably stunning!
The route
This time we decided to finally go to Sv. Ilija peak and as always we try to spend 2 days anywhere we go. We had few doubts before the trip, whether to sleep in a tent or to sleep in a shelter. Since we knew that the way up would be steep, for carry-on weight reasons we decided to spend the night in the shelter on the way up. In the following morning we reached the peak Sv. Ilija and then went back to our start in a small place called Bast.
The trail was 15.7 km long and it took us around 8.5h (across 2 days) of walking. Of course, due to taking photos and videos it lasted longer than it normally would. Without that part it could have been comfortable 7h, for us. We made sure we have enough water (3L each) due to sunny weather, steep terrain and Biokovo’s lack of sources of water along the trails. Even though we knew there was one by the shelter, we played it safe.
Day 1
Morning
Everything about this trip was in hurry and so was our start. We left Split at 11.20, hit the highway and were at Bast near Makarska at 12:30. We parked the car on the parking lot basically at the beginning of Bast. 10 mins after we were on our way. By the way Bast is one very cute little place in the foots of Biokovo.
From Bast there are two ways to Sv. Ilija. One to the right through Osičine and one to the left through quarry (rock excavation pit). The one through the quarry is probably the hardest and steepest classical hiking trail in Croatia. Originally we were planning on taking that one but due to the lack of time as we started late we chose Osičine which is a bit milder route. The beginning of the trail passes by the church and enters the forest between local houses on a narrow path. As we started getting higher and higher over the rock debris the view started to get better and better.
For those who don’t know or remember, there was a big fire on Biokovo 1.5 year ago. It destroyed large amount of pine tree forest and several marking posts located on trees. 90% of those big logs are still laying there on and off the hiking trail. So apart from not only being steep, the trail was also covered with tree logs to hop over. On the next cross section we turned left for “Kuća”.
Eveninng
We were loosing the sun here and realized that we would finish the hike with barely any light left, but nonetheless we welcomed the beautiful sunset with open arms. There are very few things if any, prettier than a mountain sunset with a sea view. This one is pretty hard to beat.
It was very hard to look away from this scene, so unfortunately after good 15 mins we had to continue forward to our shelter. From the small hunters cabin we turned right and 12 mins later on the next crossroad (we forgot to take a photo) we continued straight and that took us to our shelter located beneath the peak Korenik. The area is known as “Radića stanovi” which are old shepherd houses where people used to bring their cattle for pasture.
Needless to say how absolutely overwhelming the feeling is, when you have finished your first day of hike and all you have to do at that point is to sit back and relax. Relax in peace and quiet with the best piece of art there is just above your head for as far as your eyes can see…
Day 2
Rise and shine. It was time to head to Sv. Ilija peak. The weather was absolutely perfect, even too good for December. Backpack on, camera in place and we were ready to go. Since we slept in the less sunny north side it was a bit chilly in the shade, but luckily there were gaps where the sun rays could reach us, so they kept us warm until we crossed back to the south side again.
Our next stop was “Matijaševića stanovi”. Another set of old shepherd houses and this one looked just as impressive. A complex of drystone house ruins and yet you could still see and feel the soul of the place. The image in my head of how this little stone village looked like hundred years ago was very beautiful, unobtrusive and in complete sync with the environment.
10 meters from this spot was another sign for water source, but as we already had enough we did not need a refill. Also, we heard that it was not the cleanest and safest water to drink, so use it as a last resort.
After 1.5h we reached our goal, the Sv. Ilija peak located at 1642m. The views that arose on all sides were really spectacular. The sky as clear as it can get, temperature around 14 degrees and comfortable breeze that every now and then turns into a gust. Textbook example of a perfect weather on a perfect mountain. Bioko just like Velebit, acts like a climate separator as the sea side has sensitively different micro climate compared to the one on the other. But we were on the top, getting the best from both worlds.
As always, mesmerising views, the ones that Biokovo never lacks in. Overwhelming and unique combination of sea and sharp and aggressive mountains always has a more powerful and admirable look. Sunrises, sunsets, old drystone shepherd houses, cool shelters and beautiful scenery. Biokovo has it all!
