One piece of repeated advice I have received about Split is to “visit the islands!”  So I did.

The only way to reach the islands is by boat* – ferry, catamaran, speed boat, sailboat, pirate ship (yes, one is available.)  You can’t just drive over a bridge when it suits you.  To visit an island means really engaging with the Adriatic Sea, and adapting your plans as boat schedules and nature see fit.  It’s a good way to practice living in the moment.

Brac (Dol):

My first island excursion was to Brac.  Even though it is a short name I’ve heard many times around here, I still can’t definitively tell you how many syllables it has!  It is the largest island in Dalmatia, the closest one to Split, and the one we can see beckoning us from our balcony.

On Sundays our local bus runs once an hour, taxis don’t wander by (though they over charge anyway), and Ubers may be fickle.  So we started Uber roulette an hour before the ferry departure to be sure we would make it.  Indeed we had one false start, but we arrived with plenty of time to catch our ferry to Supetar.**

The scheduled outing was a bicycle tour, along the shore, to the town of Postira for lunch, and then further biking inland to the historic village of Dol.  While I kept to the geography of the outing, I didn’t get on a bicycle.  I did something else.

This may need some context: two weeks before leaving for Croatia, I got an x-ray of my left foot which was still sore after a fall three weeks earlier.  The x-ray showed that it was – I’m sure you’ve guessed – broken.  The urgent care doctor and the subsequent foot specialist both quizzed me on my pain tolerance, as did a few friends given what I did during those previous three weeks.  I walked out (well, hobbled out) of the clinic with a lovely boot on my foot.  I had been wearing it for four weeks by the time we went to Brac.  My foot was feeling good, and ready to just be in a simple Velcro ankle brace.  But hopping right onto a bicycle seemed, well, stupid.

The alternative to a bicycle was a quad bike.  Feel free to google ‘quad bike’ and catch a video.  Your left foot does nothing!  Right foot has a brake.  Right handle has a brake and the accelerator.  Put on a helmet and you’re off!  IT WAS AWESOME!!  Perhaps not many would compare it to a snowmobile, but that’s what first came to my mind.  Once out on a quieter stretch of road, I got a lesson and took the reins as it were, and rev’d around the curves of the shoreline and over the inland hills with a huge smile on my face.  

The village of Dol, once a thriving community, strategic for the clear view of the sea from its high point, has become a sleepy, aging, hidden gem.  The published population is 130.  The grocery store has very limited hours, and is mostly a gathering point for everyone to see each other.  But rumours are that when the grocer retires, it too will close.  What the village does have is tons of charm, many steep and winding pathways, a few restaurants, and lots of grapes, olives, and pomegranates.   

Our bicycle guide was also part of the family which is maintaining a homestead passed through centuries of generations.  They are gradually restoring sections for tours, while also running a seasonal restaurant and making their own wine.  Industrious to say the least, and pretty inspiring. 

Brac (Bol):

The second excursion was back to Brac, to a town called Bol.  Yes, they have a Dol and a Bol on the same island.  Bol is on the opposite side of the island, which means on the opposite side of the peak that created the whole island.  We accepted an offer from a local friend, to join her as she went to Bol for work, which meant that she was taking her car onto the ferry.  As we were about to board, with pure shock, we watched them drag the chain across the deck with no more room on board and the boat simply pulled away from the dock.  That was 9am.  The next ferry to Supetar was 11am.  Welcome to life on Island Time.  We took advantage of the two hours for more local insights of Split, and then we enjoyed the reverse experience of being first onto the ferry. We were back on track.

The town of Bol has fully embraced its popularity as a tourist destination.  Along the seaside you can have a bite to eat, visit a market, browse shops, and even checkout a few art galleries.  Bol is most famous for Zlatni Rat which is a promontory made of pebbles, creating a two sided beach!  The water is really clear, and on the day we visited it was also, shall we say, refreshing (aka cold.) It is not hard to imagine that on a hot summer day it would be a fun place to feel right in the sea.  

Vis:

My third excursion was a one-day tour on a speed boat.  The primary destination was the Blue Cave on the island of Bisevo near the island of Vis.  Much like other ‘blue grottos’ around the world, the entrance is very low.  On the day I went, the sea was rough, with white caps, which made the cave inaccessible.

So the new primary destination was the town of Vis on the island of Vis.  This is the furthest of the islands off Split, and about 90 minutes in the speed boat.

While the wind wasn’t good for the Blue Cave, it was great for the Vis-Split regatta!  As we approached Vis, we saw a flotilla of 200 sailboats literally racing towards us.  And then around us.  And then onward past us.  It was an incredible sight.

After that excitement, a stroll through Vis was very quiet and peaceful.  October is definitely the off-season.  I peeked into a few churches (there are plenty), and nodded to the fortresses.  I do really enjoy a cup of tea while gazing at the sea, and the waterfront in Vis was perfect for this.

Vis was used by the Yugoslav Partisan resistance movement during the Second World War, and allied fighter planes were based there.  After the war, Yugoslavia used it as a major naval base.  Since the time of Croatian independence, over 25 years ago, the military facilities have essentially been abandoned.  We rode the speed boat into one of the bunkers designed to hide a warship or perhaps a submarine.  Once inside we could see tunnels that military personnel could walk through to reach other parts of the island.  We wandered through a short tunnel that brought us back to the front of the bunker.  It felt like we were in a James Bond movie sneaking around the villain’s lair.

Speaking of movies, Vis may feel familiar as it is the one that became a film set for the second Mamma Mia! movie.

Budikovac:

From Vis, we popped over to the nearby Budikovac island.  It has a quiet lagoon with stunning variations of blue in the water and is thus often called a Blue Lagoon.  The water is inviting, and the beach, with the typical pebbles, is ready for lazing in the sun.  As it wasn’t super hot that day, and the wind had a bit of chill to it for anyone coming out of the ‘refreshing’ water, I skipped the aquatics.  This island has more donkeys, chickens, and cats than residents, and a beach bar appeared to be the only shelter yet alone open business.  The bartender seemed quite happy with his secluded gig, perhaps always seeing people when they are truly enjoying themselves.

I imagined I would just relax, and listen to the sea and to my own thoughts.  And then the bartender asked if I wanted something.  Quite out of character for me I replied, “What are you offering?”  Without another word, he thought a moment and then went to his fridge and pulled out what was once a Coke bottle, but now had clear liquid in it.  He poured some in a short tumbler and placed it on the bar in front of me and smiled.  Steeling myself for some kind of moonshine, I took a sip…..and liked it!  It was grappa with honey.  I sipped it all.  The magic of honey, and the Blue Lagoon.

Hvar:

The last stop on the speed boat tour was the town of Hvar on the island of Hvar.  (Note that there is also a town of Dol on Hvar, not to be confused with the one previously mentioned on Brac!) You can’t mistake Hvar, with its huge fortress looming up on the hill overlooking the port. We walked up many flights of stone steps between ancient houses with old town charm, and then along a switchback walking path to get up to the fortress and take in the stunning view.  Some lounge chairs were a welcome place to relax before heading back down.

Boats of all sizes were in the port, including water taxis to reach various other parts of the island. The town has a large central square, complete with a church, an ornately covered well, restaurants, and an ice cream shop.  The smell of lavender was EVERYWHERE.  October certainly isn’t the lavender harvest season, but the souvenirs of the popular island industry were readily available.

Before sunset we were back to the mainland with a full day of memories of our adventures.

Bottom line: 

My advice to you is to be sure to include visits to the islands when you are next in Split!

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* You technically could fly to an island. I am assuming a certain affordability level when I say the ‘only’ way is by boat.

** What’s in a name?  I found out later that Supetar takes it name from the Latin for Saint Peter which is Sveti Petar, or Sv. Petar.