Poštak – a realm of stone sculptures
Location: Otrić, GračacLength: 4,76 kmElevation gain: 774 mDifficulty: ModerateDifficulty rating: K1, T1, VR4
Climbing Poštak is one of our dearest experiences. It is impossible not to fall in love with it, and completely so. Dressed in its golden grassy cloak and adorned with rocky sculptures, it will stay with us forever!
Poštak, a place that will enchant even the most hardened of hikers.
It supposedly got its name from the fact that mail was exchanged at its foot between the Austro-Hungarian and the Ottoman empires. Old maps also show the name Kečina kosa. It is the fourth highest peak of the Lička Plješivica range. At 1,425 m it offers an outstanding view in every direction. The hill is mostly grassy. A late autumn day was perfect for it. Sunny, windless, ideal for a climb that is fairly easy and steady throughout.
Leave the car in Otrić, in the car park beside the railway line. The hiking trail begins by passing through the underpass beneath the tracks. The path is quite wide for the first 600 m, and after the houses it branches off into a narrower but well trodden and well marked trail that first runs through a small wood and then comes out onto pastures that stretch right up to the summit.
At around 1,100 m above sea level there is a group of stone figures. Seen from a distance, they look as though some giant had scattered them across the meadow. An ideal spot to rest, have a bite to eat and enjoy the shelter from the wind before the final climb, or on the way back down from it.
Some 30 metres below the summit itself are the summit stamp and the “visitors’ book”. From the top there is an unobstructed view in all directions.
Poštak is a place we will keep coming back to…
Special
Although our focus is on Croatia, due to great interest in reviewing some international locations from our travels, we decided to launch the Special section. In it, we will not cover locations in the same detailed way we do with Croatian ones, but will instead provide a brief overview of multiple locations grouped into meaningful categories. The only criterion we still strictly follow is that they must be natural attractions.
