Two valleys and the island of Cres

We biked today from Pula to Labin, and then on to the ferry to Cres.  We followed the main road (the only way, unfortunately) but it went through two  ridiculous valleys.  More like canyons, really.  The first followed miles and miles of gradual climbing from Pula.  We dropped way down (from maybe 1000 feet) to sea level, then followed a river for a few miles before climbing back up to the top, where we reached the town of Labin.  Shortly after Labin we dropped down into another valley, not quite to the bottom this time.  We circled 270 degrees around a power plant down at the bottom of the valley.  The plant had a massively tall smokestack - well above where we were.   An effective way to keep pollution out of the valley, I guess.  It had to be at least 500 feet tall, maybe much taller.  I'd be it ranks on the list of the tallest structures in Croatia - if that's not already a Wikipedia page then I will start it.

After leaving the valley we followed the coast for a few miles before dropping down to the coast for the ferry to Cres in Brestova.  I simply cannot believe how beautiful the coast is here - like California but with bluer water and islands.  I'll post pictures when I have Wi-Fi.  They'll do no justice.

Cres is sparsely populated but has a few small villages.  Other than that it's a long ridge sticking out of the water.  We got off the ferry around 6:30 with vague advice that we could easily stealth camp on the beach or head uphill into the woods.  Well, there was no beach and "uphill" was a 10 km climb before the land flattened out at all.  After some initial stress we decided to head to the campground in Beli - up and over the ridge and down to a small village on the opposite coast.  It ended up taking over 2 hours and we arrived with the last of the light of the day.  Beli has an old medieval center and approaching from the mountain the whole situation seemed impossibly fictional.  Here we are, on bicycles, riding across an island that was once a Venetian ship building stronghold, dropping into an ancient city, complete with walls, steeple and Roman ruins.  And lit up at night.

We got to town but it was another 1 km or so down an 18% grade (barely rideable with panniers) to the beach.  And what is here?  Basically, a party.  There is a dive shop and people are going scuba diving with flashlights.  A large table of people are singing (and singing well) in an unidentified European language.  People in boats are entertaining guests in the tiny harbor.  The bar on the shore is open (where I am now) with no sign of closing.  And the towns across the water, including Rijeka, Croatia's third largest city, are glimmering in the night.  This, dear reader, is what, at least for me, it is all about.