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PREFACE

Looking down across the islands of Rava and Iž, and towards Zadar on the mainland, from Dugi otok (Walk 16)

I first visited the islands of the Croatian Adriatic back in the late 1990s, having already fallen in love with Croatia (and a Croatian) and moved to Zagreb. Despite countless return visits over the ensuing years, the sense of excitement at first seeing these scattered whalebacks of bare grey-bronze rock and green forest, dotted with exquisitely well-preserved old towns and etched against some of the most brilliant blue seas imaginable, has never really left me.

Although I have made regular trips to Croatia’s islands over a period of some 15 years, writing this book in the summer of 2013 was something of a revelation – there was simply so much here that was both rewarding and inspiring. As you walk across these islands, whether following ancient stonewalled paths between olive groves or boulder-hopping along bare limestone ridges with unforgettable views across the Adriatic – the air alive with butterflies, and each step redolent with the scent of sage, lavender and thyme – I hope you enjoy using this guide as much as I have enjoyed writing it.

Rudolf Abraham

2014