Krčić Waterfall (Source of the Krka River)

It would be no wonder if, to foreigners who experience a place like Dubrovnik or Klis as a mere backdrop of a popular foreign TV series, the whole of Croatia looked like one big amusement park. By that we don’t mean politics, although for some that would be the first association, but rather the diversity of natural phenomena and the complex blend of cultural heritage. You drive along and every so often you have incredible canyons, caves, waterfalls, lakes, viewpoints, fortresses…

No exception is the source of the Krka, because if we already have islands within islands, why wouldn’t we also have a spring within a spring (?!?). Where would there be greater symbolism than in the fact that one of our rivers, so abundant in fascinating waterfalls, begins its very existence with one of the most beautiful and most powerful of them? But the symbolism doesn’t end there, for how else to interpret the fact that this same waterfall, which at one moment is so powerful and great, at another moment dries up? While the Krka still flows and creates hundreds of waterfalls on its way to the most beautiful sea in the world?

Did you know that the Krka is the 22nd longest river in Croatia? Naming even half of those longer rivers is quite a challenge. That’s how much wealth Croatia has at its disposal!

What is the Krčić?

The Krčić is a river that gathers the groundwaters of Dinara. It rises east of Knin, and after some ten kilometres it plunges in a magnificent waterfall into the source of the Krka. It wouldn’t even be called the Krčić but the Krka, were it not that it dries up in summer, and the source of the Krčić would be the first source of the Krka. As it is, the Krka has “only” three sources. The main one, which is named just that, and lies in a cave / siphon beneath the waterfall itself and yields 80–95% of the water; the Third, which rises 50 m downstream and yields 3–5% of the water; and the Small one, which rises 150 m further and yields 10–15% of the water. Evidently the Third was discovered after the Small one 😉

The Krčić waterfall is 22 m high. It is also known as the Topoljski slap or Veliki buk.

I first heard of it once, many years ago, when I was shown how, with the help of ice axes and crampons, they had managed to climb it frozen! Since then it has been on my wish list, but, although it is easily accessible, somehow it was never quite the right time.

In the past it was the subject of human “intervention” when its direction and flow were altered by blasting for the needs of the nearby hydroelectric power plant.

Right in front of the waterfall there is a bridge that offers a very explicit view of the falls. When the waterfall is at full strength, be prepared to get completely soaked by the cloud of water spray that hurls itself furiously tens of metres away from the falls.

A similar bridge is also located some 170 m downstream, where a landscaped walking path begins. The path is paved with stone, and alongside it are set information boards, benches and rubbish bins. The bridges are also paved with stone and secured with a nice wooden railing. The overall impression of the landscaping is excellent, but to keep everything from being ideal, the ruins on the right bank of the river have done their part. The first two are ruins of stone houses that fit into the surroundings, but the last one, closer to the waterfall, is a concrete monstrosity “decorated” with graffiti that intrusively enters the frame of every attempt to photograph the waterfall from a distance. The parallel with the source of the Cetina suggests itself, and is yet another proof that our tourism develops haphazardly and that we have more luck than sense in inheriting what we inherit.

Getting to the Krčić is simple. At the main eastern turn-off for Knin, you turn east, and at the next Y fork you take the right branch. After a few hundred metres you reach a car park before the already mentioned bridge. You can also drive across the bridge, and on the other side there is likewise enough room for parking. At the aforementioned Y fork the upper branch continues into a cycling trail that offers a wonderful view of the waterfall from above. The trail, about 15 kilometres long, leads through the canyon of the Krčić towards its source, but that is part of another story…