Trogir to er Trogir, oh, and Leonardo

Friday 6th – Monday 9th October

We had planned to stay at Camp Rozac a few days longer but it hadn’t really lived up to expectations, plus the water was dreadful so we decided to move on today. We knew that there was another campsite in the area, in fact just 3 miles up the coast from Trogir. We quite liked the area so we decided that we would try the other site.

Camp Belvedere was not our usual campsite and we had seen some mixed reviews for it. We decided that it was worth a try so packed up and drove the short distance up the coast. We were a little concerned as we drove in the entrance, the site has an enormous and long pagoda like canopy alongside a very posh and modern reception area – the whole thing sang of a very big set up. We are not normally seen on very large sites and were a little apprehensive. Anyway, into the breach as they say.

We booked in at reception and the staff were very pleasant. Site plan in hand we drove around the park to find a nice pitch and were immediately taken not only by the size of the whole place but also the fact that everything appeared to have been renewed or refurbished. The touring pitches are terraced and the site is on quite a steep slope leading down to sea level. During normal season different areas of the site attract different rates, those nearest the sea are premium rates. We had been told that as we were off-season all pitches were the same rate and covered by the ACSI Camping Card rate.

We chose a lovely pitch on the bottom level overlooking the sea and with just one other motorhome on the same row. It was a good size pitch with electric, water, and grey waste disposal. In fact a quick look along the pitches indicated that each pitch could have 3 electric hook ups, each rated at 16A.

The site was lovely and our concerns about the size were ill-founded. OK, we were off-season but we never got the feel that we were on a large site, probably because of the steep terracing which has been done very well. Each of sanitary blocks were new and couldn’t be faulted. The site recycles and all waste is segregated, the only problem being that when we saw the bin collection one morning all bins were being tipped in the same wagon!

Unlike some sites we’ve stayed at with the dogs, this was great for walking the dogs. Walking one way out of the site towards Trogir takes you along a path that eventually leads to a promenade, through a marina, and then a short distance along the road to Trogir. In all 3 miles each way. Walking out of the site the other way leads you to the village of Seget Vranjica. You have a couple of choices, walking around the coast on a footpath takes you to the harbour/port area of Seget Vranjica, whilst taking one of several paths up and away from the sea takes you into the village at various points. You can also do as we did and make a circular walk of it.

On the Saturday we had decided to take a stroll into Trogir. We had seen the market and thought we would try and get some provisions. Our days normally pan out with breakfast followed by a walk with the dogs (or vise versa), then coffee and/or lunch, by which time it only leaves us the afternoon. So an afternoon stroll into Trogir it was then – of course it wasn’t stroll because it was 3 miles each way, plus our milling around in Trogir. By the time we got back we had wished we had started out earlier and maybe had some lunch in Trogir. Anyway, we got to the market (bought a cauliflower for £4 – eek, I have to explain that this was the only cauli we had seen in Croatia and it was on the large size) and had another look around the old town, this time with the dogs in tow. The dogs were fine as it happened and caused the usual amusement with some of the tourists – ‘oh, a Dalmatian in Dalmatia, can I take a picture?’. We met an English couple in the old town who were interested in the dogs and our travels with them. It turns out that they had just arrived from Split airport which is just a few miles up the road and were heading for the marina where they keep their boat. Presumably flights to Split are fairly economical and what a great place to keep your boat.

Apart from the relatively short road section at Trogir it is a very pleasant walk. Part way along the route to Trogir we were hailed by a boat who wanted to take us the rest of the way for 40Kn each (about £5) but apart from enjoying the walk it seemed a little steep. Had we have taken the boat option we would have missed some of the walk and probably not found our way back as easily. Just prior to the road section you pass through the marina. It was Saturday and it was obvious to us that the marina run sailing flotillas from here and it was change-over day – the marina was heaving, groups of people standing around with their luggage, others wheeling trolleys of provisions presumably for the week ahead (it was quite interesting to observe what some were thinking as essential provisions for a weeks sailing!), and then crew members unloading stuff from yachts whilst others were busy loading other vessels. When we returned a couple of hours later that same hustle and bustle was still going on.

On the Sunday we took a walk the opposite way and around the coast path into Seget Vranjica and out past the boat moorings to the far end of the village, stopping along the way to chat with a local as best we could. It is a very pleasant village and very quite at this time of year. One the Kanobas had shut for the season the day before, we passed another whose owner tried to attract us in but we weren’t ready to eat just yet. Anyone that knows me will be aware that I keep bees and it’s always interesting for me to see the fauna and flora in different parts of Europe and the differences in the seasons.

Before I came away I had prepared my honey bee colonies for the winter months and I was confident that by now they would be starting to hunker down for the cold dark days ahead. Not so in Croatia as I witnessed the various blossoms still available for the Croatian bee.

We returned back to the site via the village centre because we wanted to see what shops if any were there. The site does have it’s own mini-market, which to be fair was quite well stocked for the time of year but of course you are always a captive market and we didn’t think the prices were particularly attractive. There is a small Studenac store, another store that appeared to have closed for the season, and a Pekara which had closed for the day but we were hopeful that might get some fresh bread the following morning. Ruth’s walk in to the village the following morning seems to suggest that this too had closed for the season.

We had decided to leave the site on the Tuesday so Monday was our last full day and we had a fairly lazy day along with packing up ready for the morning. In the afternoon we decided to repeat the walk we had done the previous day and around the coast to the village. Today, just as we left the campsite and started on the walk around the coast path we met with two dogs who we assumed were from the village and had taken themselves off on a walk of their own. It seems quite typical in Croatia to see dogs roaming on their own. Anyway, Lily is OK with most dogs although Vincent is a little nervous about meeting new dogs and things can sometimes turn a bit noisy. Normally however once Vincent knows that another dog is not a threat things calm down and all is OK. Well this was a normal meeting in that respect, we had a few barks from Vincent, the other dogs kept just out of range, but both followed us around on the path. We thought initially that they would soon get fed up and go back from whence they came. No such luck.

Both dogs followed us all the way around the coast path and into the village where we had planned to find a bit of beach so that Lily have a swim and play with the ball. She wasn’t too fussed about the other two dogs but they maintained an interest in her and knowing that Vincent was not too keen on being best buddies, well they just kept their distance from him. So when we got to a suitable bit of beach our two new companions just joined in with the fun. The golden dog was a bit mad to be honest and every now and then would ave a mad time running all over the place, jumping over obstacles, and skidding on the fine stone gravel. The black dog, Leonardo as we would later find out maintained his keen interest on Lily however.

The dogs had quite a play in the water, all chasing and swimming after the ball, Lily usually losing out to one of the other two. Vincent on  the other hand doesn’t like to get his feet wet so he just stands by wondering what all the activity is about. We had thought that as we left the beach area we would lose the other dogs, surely they are at home now. Nope, they were having none of that and as we left they followed us in tow. We tried a couple of times to make a quick detour down a side street but they both seemed wise to that trick. Eventually we lost the golden dog but Leonardo was resilient in his desire to enjoy our walk too. Maybe when we got the boundary of the site he would know his boundary and not follow us in. Nope, wrong again, we had gained another dog and no amount of coaxing and shooing seem to make any difference.

At this point we started to get worried. This was turning into a stalking incident, people get locked up for less. If we continued back to the motorhome he would surely know where we lived and that thought was just terrifying.

A short way into the site we spotted another dog ahead, and so did Leonardo, and with that he bounded off ahead to greet the new dog. Just at that point we noticed a long flight of steps on our left and going up between some holiday apartments. Ruth and I looked at one another with exactly the same thought and we ran up the steps as fast as we could and then darted behind one of the apartment buildings where we hid, all quite for fear of alerting Leonardo. Maybe we had lost him. We stood there for a while just keeping still and hoping this was our escape. Then, Leonardo came bounding up the steps, we saw him go straight passed us and to the top of the steps where he stood in full view of us and looking around in all directions. Knowing that dogs can see objects that move easier than those that are stationary we just stood there frozen to the spot. Leonardo then turned back down the steps and started running down the flight of steps at brake neck speed right in our direction. Still frozen, Leonardo bounded straight passed us, and a quick peep around the corner confirmed he had gone off down the promenade. Quite pleased with ourselves we decided to stay put just a little bit longer to ensure that the coast was clear. We then looked around and saw Leonardo bounding towards us from the opposite direction. Our hearts sank, we were still stuck with Leonardo.

All five of us then proceeded back down to the promenade and we walked a little further along. We still didn’t want to go back to the motorhome with Leonardo in tow. We approached one of the promenade bars (which are all run by the campsite) and explained our predicament to the lady behind the bar. I’m not convinced she really understood what had been going on. Anyway, we decided we were going nowhere and just stood our ground on the promenade. By this time Leonardo was all over Lily, and I was trying to keep between the two of them. The lady from the bar must have begun to realise the situation and came over to try the coaxing and shooing that we knew wouldn’t work. She then went off and got someone else who also tried the coaxing and shewing, again to no avail. A short time later she came over and told us that she had spoken to reception and they were going to contact the police. Hooray, so Leonardo would soon be in custody for stalking and false imprisonment! Quite how soon we didn’t know so we got a couple of coffees and settled down to wait for the police. At one point we thought that Leonardo had wandered off but our relief was soon shattered when we saw that he had moved underneath one of the benches to get closer to Lily who I had been trying to shield. Our coffee was finished and time passed, and then we were told that the owner had been tracked down and would be coming to collect Leonardo. Quite a bit more time passed but eventually the owner came to relieve us of Leonardo’s attention. It was then we learned his name. He was seven months old and by all accounts a bit of a handful. We learned that the other dog with Leonardo also belonged to this owner.

We returned to our motorhome but still wondered whether Leonardo would sniff us out later that evening or perhaps in the morning. Fortunately though we were safe and able to make our get-away the next morning.