Tour de Korcula

Our last two days have been spent on the Island of Korcula in the town of Korcula. Korcula is a group of islands off the coast of Croatia on the Adriatic Sea located about 1/2 the way between Split and Dubrovnik. Korcula was also the most southerly point of the Venetian empire. As such it has a beautifully walled medieval old town. Our ferry from Split left at 8 am which made for an early start. We took a very fast cataman boat and got to Korcula by 10:20. Our Air BnB host had been very insistent that we not check in until 3 pm so we wandered around the old town but that didn't take too long. We then chilled out by the sea before going for a swim. Lots of boats to watch. Yachts, ferries, sailboats and fishing boats. Very busy maritime scene. We checked into our very nice Air BnB which is in the new part of town in a new building that commands a spectacular view of the old town. Korcula seems a lot less touristy than many of the other places which makes it feel more laid back.

Today Andrew and I rented 2 very nice Trek Merlin mountain bikes and cycled for about 50 km and still only covered a small fraction of the island. Both of our routes were out and back and we cycled along the coast for much of the journey. We had lunch on a stony beach before heading back to Korcula and past to a very sandy beach and some cliff jumping. It was all very pretty and on the shorter leg we paddled through vineyards. Lots of upscale vacation homes on the island and we passed several very large yachts anchored in various bays. At the sandy beach I chatted to a fellow who was from London Ontario and on holiday with his wife. Talk about a small world as originally I came from London. The one observation I made was that there were multiple "back roads "groups on the island bicycling around all dressed like they were in the tour de France but they were all on EV bikes. We were even passed by a fellow by himself on an EV bike and when he went by, I realized that he had an Ironman backpack on. It seemed odd that someone who could finish a Iron Man Triathlon needed an EV bike. That said they all seemed to be having fun which is the important thing.Read more