Experience taught me that bringing good shoes along on a sailing trip is worth wile.

One cannot only sit in the cockpit of a boat and occasionally jump in the water – that becomes boring, so we try and climb the islands we stop at and the view is usually rewarding.

This time we climbed on both hilltops on Levrnaka Island. We dropped anchor in Lojena Bay on SW side of Levrnaka which is well known as one of the most beautiful beaches on Adriatic. If you’re wondering why, check out the photos.

The view is fantastic to all sides. Towards NW you can see nearby islands Aba Vela and Aba Mala, and even part of Katina Island which is situated between Mala and Vela Proversa – the northern entrances to Kornati National Park. You can also see Sestrica Island where one of the nicest lighthouses on Adriatic is and Šilo Velo and Šilo Malo Islands.

Towards SE you can see all the way to the 126 m high hilltop at Piškera, where ACI marina Piškera is and Mana Island with its ruins that remained from a film shoot in the 70-ies.

In short it’s worth a bit of sweat to enjoy the nice view.

Spring is here and everything is blossoming in ACI marina Piškera.

This marina is situated at one of the most beautiful places in the world – between two islands Piškera and Panitula at National Park Kornati.

It is open from April 1st until November 1st and it holds daily berths only. Depth by the piers varies from 2.5 to 3.5 meters so exceptionally large boats cant dock there. It also has limitations as far as water and electricity supply is concerned, because water is delivered by boat and electricity is produced by a generator.

Nevertheless it is well equipped with showers and toilets. The closest gas station is in Zaglav port at Dugi Otok Island 12 miles away.

there are quite a few restaurants around in Kornati National Park and none of them should be taken lightly. Dining at Kornati National Park is not so cheap.

Telašćica is always fun to visit and if you enjoy nice view I recommend taking a 10 minute trip to the cliffs and Mir Lake.

The stroll is nice and short if you don’t decide to go further along the edge of the cliffs. The path is nice, but do wear good shoes, because at some points the rocks are razor sharp.

If you come by a boat, the buoys are free of charge because each visitor pays entrance fee of 60 kn per person. Surprisingly not all the buoys were taken.

There are lots of donkeys there. They are your main hosts feeling quite at home there and they don’t let themselves be bothered by tourists.

You can stock up with fresh fruit and veggies and schnaps at Toni’s supermarket and Market Janko – both shops are floating (boat shops).

If you’re going to Zadar you can also dock in Preko. There is a really nice marina, where they take reservations (unlike Tankerkomerc for example).

You can cross the canal to Zadar with a ferryboat (www.ugljan.org) or with a shuttle boat organized by the marina.

You can swim in clear (considering that it is Zadar canal) water at the outer side of the peer. The toilets have air –conditioning and are well maintained. Another sign that they care, is that the marina keeps fresh flowers and spices in pots (which you can use to enrich your dinner).
The town is near; the store is even nearer and well stacked.

The bars along the shore are ok, they even include a lounge, where you can spend an evening drinking cocktails. The two night time photos show the view of Preko and across to Zadar.

The lines on the last one is the ferry Jadrolinija Jurij Dalmatinac, arriving in Preko. Somebody else will have to provide the daytime photos.

We climbed on the highest top at Smokvica Vela Island at Kornati National Park. The view is fantastic; you can see the whole Kornati archipelago. I strongly recommend visiting the island and climbing the hill which is not that difficult.

If you come from SE side I recommend mooring in front of Mare restaurant and climb the hill from there. You can get a bite to eat in the restaurant in you find it too exhausting.

Hi you all!
It has been a while, since I've written something here. I visited Tribunj and i loved the little town on the small island, wich is connected to mainland with a stone bridge. I just loved the marina, because there is crystal clear water and very close to the town. But it's a bit pricy.

We spent the night at Borovnjaci anchorage on Kakan Island. The anchorage is situated between Kakan and two smaller islands called Borovanjak mali and Borovnjak Veli. The bay itself is called Potkućina.

There are about 10 buoys there and the rest of the surface is good for anchoring. The price for the buoys is about 200 kn for a 7-15 m boat.
Borovnjaci anchorage is especially nice at the shallowest point between Borovnjak Veli and Kakan Island because of its turquoise water.

In Tratica Bay, just SE of Potkućina there is a nice but simple restaurant run by a nice family. The prices are about the same as at Kornati (that is to say not too cheap).

The restaurant has a couple of their own buoys for their guest but if the forecast is bora (NE wind) I wouldn’t stay the night.

Oh and when going to the bathroom in the restaurant we recommend taking a headlamp.

If you are ever at anchor in southern bay on island Zirje, you have to climb up a small hill and see the Roman ruins. And it is a great wiew overlooking the bay and boats at anchor.

Zapuntel is a fantastic little harbour located in a passage between islands Ist and Molat. The harbour is situated on NW most end of Molat Island facing the island Ist and a nother anchorage in Mljake Bay right accross the passage.

Zapuntel is very well protected from winds from all directions, allthough a strong Bora wind from NE does tend to produce a nasty swell in the bay.

The harbour has a L-shapped pier that has a few moorings on the N side and there are a few slips to more up in the inner part of the L pier. Depth there is 2,5 m so you can go in with a decent sized sailing yacht but it fills up quickly. If you have a boat with more than 2,4 m draft we recommend going for a buoy.

The W (outer) side of the pier is reserved for the local line - usually a fast passenger catamaran (not a ferry) that connects Molat Island from Zapuntel and Brgulje with Zadar on mainland and neighbouring island Ist. You can check the schedule on Jadrolinija's official webpage (www.jadrolinija.hr) but do be careful to choose the right time of the year because schedules change with the seasons. You can’t stay there long if you tie up alongside, because the harbour master is going to chase you away when the catamaran is about to come.

Apart from the moorings on the pier there are 20 buoys set up and they will cost you 14 Croatian Kuna per meter. You can call +386 98 272 264 to check for free buoys. As everywhere you can also anchor if all the buoys are taken but you can expect to be charged something anyway.

You will find a small shop for basic supplies in a container behind the ticket office right there in the harbour.

There are two restaurants, one of them directly on the water called Škrila located on the NE side of Zapuntel Harbour.

The village Zapuntel is situated a bit further along the road going South towards villages Brgulje and Molat town.

Coming into Zapuntel by sea from the West there is a relatively narrow passage between islands Ist and Molat. Minimum depth in the passage is 5 m and it is lit by a red lateral beacon flashing white in 15 second period. There can be very strong current in the passage (up to 3 knots) but the direction of the current varies.

Sailing into Zapuntel from the East or NE the depth is much bigger and the passage itself is much wider. This entrance is lit by a white lighthouse with a period of 2 seconds located on the Cape Vranač (Rt Vranač) on Molat side of the passage.

If you sail in the Zadar area I recommend stopping in Zapuntel. It lies between islands Ist and Molat.

On both sides you will find buoys to moor your boat but on Ists side there is nothing on shore. On Molats side there is a small village called Zapuntel.

There is a nice simple restaurant Škrila right on waterfront with nice pine trees for shade and a delicious cuisine.

Last year we had shrimp in buzara sauce, sea bass of about 1kg, cabbage salad and some potatoes with that. With 1l of white wine it cost 720 kuna (about 100€) for 4 people. Nice to pay little less than usually for a great dinner, for a change.

Oh, the buoys cost 15 kuna per meter but I think it was around 13 when we were there.