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Clear Water, Canyons, and Pristine Nature – Rafting on the Neretva

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“We’ll pick you up tomorrow at quarter to eight and take you rafting,” a beaming Amel Salihbašić, author of the Bosnian travel guide Come, Enjoy, Pass It On, tells me. I’m hesitant at first. We’d been planning to do something together for quite a while, but I wanted to go to the mountains. “Come on,” Amel said, “we’ll go hiking next time. It’s time for you to experience something extraordinary! And the nature is amazing,” he continued. That might well have been the case, but was I ready for such an adventure? “Oh, I think that might be a little too much for me,” I argued, hoping that he’d change his mind. His wife, Hana, calmed me with her soothing voice. “Don’t worry. It’s not so fast. I’ve been a couple times. If seven-year-olds can do it, then so can you. Amel is right – rafting the Neretva is definitely a great choice.”
Komm, entdecke, erzähle weiter – BOSNIEN UND HERZEGOWINA 30 unvergessliche Tage Das Buch kann in Deutschland bei www.amazon.de*  in der dritten Auflage bestellt werden.
  • Verlag: Salihbasic, Amel; Auflage: 3. (15. November 2017)
  • Sprache: Deutsch
  • ISBN-10: 3950378510 / ISBN-13: 978-3950378511

Let's go for the Bosnian rafting adventure

We leave Sarajevo, heading in the direction of Mostar. The 40-kilometer drive to Konjic, on the Neretva River, takes about an hour. Although it’s raining when we arrive, the climate is warmer in this area and more Mediterranean.
camp Dzajica Buk
Welcome to the camp Dzajica Buk! (Foto: balkanblogger)
“It’s not so nice to spend the day on the river in the rain,” Amel said. “But let’s wait for a bit.” I’m still feeling a bit critical of the idea in general, but my interest in the whole endeavor is starting to grow. This only continues when we arrive at the Neretva Rafting Đajića Buk Camp. Situated directly on the river, you can sit on the terrace and look into the water, which is as clear as glass, flowing past. As I do this, fine pearls of water settle on my face. The rain has stopped by now, and the light gray clouds can’t detract from the beauty of the landscape.
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The river Neretva (Photo: balkanblogger)
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From the terrace you can enjoy a wonderful view of the river (Photo: lela-dejhuti-world.com)

Strengthen your body before rafting - Bosnian breakfast

Before rafting, it’s time for breakfast. “Time to get strong,” Amel says, grinning. His friend from Međugorje, Alen, and Alen’s two sons are with us. We are served uštipci, which is salty fried dough, along with kajmak, jam, dried meat, cheese, and boiled sausages. We all dig in – the fresh air has made us hungry. It tastes like home, with everything fresh and homemade.
Breakfast-Balkan-style-left
Nothing is better than a proper Balkan breakfast! (Photo: lela-djehuti-world.com)
Breakfast-Balkan-style-right
... with everything that gives power and energy (Photo: lela-djehuti-world.com)

With the skipper to the start

After breakfast it’s finally time to get going. “This is Dženan. He’s your skipper and will take care of you while you’re rafting,” explains the lady of the house. A tall, young, blonde man with the body of a model and a BMI of something like -10 stands in front of us!
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Our skipper Dženan (Photo: neretvarafting.ba)
We get dressed and board the bus, which will take us to Džajići, where the rafting begins. The bus takes us up and up. I’m a bit annoyed. Is the plan to fall down into the river, as if on a slide? I certainly hope not. The queasy feeling I’m experiencing begins to spread. I have images in my mind of how I’m going to be catapulted down a waterfall the size of Niagara. The only thing to distract me from these stupid thoughts during the ride is the nature we pass by – pristine forests, villages with just a few houses and their well-manicured gardens. Everything is green. On the right side of the road is the deep valley through which the Neretva flows. We eventually begin descending. We just had to drive up and over a mountain in order to reach our destination.
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Rafting on the emerald green river Neretva (Photo: komm-entdecke-bosnien.info)

Four hours and four adrenaline spots

We bring our rubber boats to the gently flowing river together. Most of the clouds are gone by now, and the sun’s rays are shining down on clear, emerald green waters. “Sit in the back of the boat on the right side and paddle,” the skipper says, handing me a paddle. I have no idea how this is supposed to work, but Dženan’s muscular body helps me outsmart my weaker self.
“The trip to the base takes about four hours and we’ll pass through four ‘adrenaline points.’ The level of difficulty increases as we go along,” he tells us. The only words I hear are ‘adrenaline’ and ‘level of difficulty.’ Oh great – this is going to be interesting. I’m already in the raft though, so I’m going to see this through.
Journey through the canyons - gopr2363
We enjoy the ride through the canyons! (in right, Amel left - photo: neretvarafting.ba)
We go over high and low points, and through broad and narrow canyons. There’s nothing to be heard but the sound of our paddles and the birds, which occasionally fly around us. The water is so clear that we can see the bottom of the river. We glide slowly down the river, and I’m enjoying the ride. We encounter several fishermen who have found rocks to sit on. “How did they make it down here?” I ask. “They climb down and stay for a few days,” Dženan explains. “After a hike like that, it’s not worth it to stay for only a day.”

"...the sight of nature will leave you speechless."

“And, what did I tell you?” Amel remarks. “I knew the sight of nature like this would leave you speechless!” I had been concentrating so intently on everything around me that I’d completely forgotten everything else. I must have been sitting there with huge eyes and my mouth wide open. The only thing I hadn’t forgotten was that I needed to keep paddling. I didn’t dare slack off under Dženan’s watch. “You have to paddle! Otherwise we won’t get anywhere,” was what we heard from Dženan frequently.
paddle-forgotten
Never forget to paddle! (Photo: http://neretvarafting.ba)
Then we came to the first ‘adrenaline point.’ We actually began moving more quickly through the high rocks. We had to paddle in the right direction so that we wouldn’t get stuck in the rocks. This was an adventure indeed! Once we’d made it through, things calmed down again. “If I had known that the ride would be so relaxing I would have brought a bottle of water,” I said, feeling thirsty. “Why? There’s plenty of water here,” said Dženan with a grin. “If you’re thirsty, go right ahead,” he said, nodding his head in the direction of the river. “What water? You don’t mean that I should drink straight out of the river!” I thought he was making fun of me. “Just dip your hand in and have a drink. It’s not a joke. This water is perfectly clean.” I did just that, and I was glad that I had. The water tasted wonderful! We reached a high cliff and it was time for a break. Dženan and his colleagues impressed us with their elegant dives off the cliff. A few members of our group did their best to imitate them.
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The jumpers of Konjic (Photo: neretvarafting.ba)

Rakitnica meets Neretva

After that we continued on to the point where the Rakitnica River flows into the Neretva. The Rakitnica is so very different. It is very flat, and in the sun it almost seems yellow. The water here was clear as well, and we could see each individual stones. Dženan showed me a crayfish typical for this area. “There is all kinds of life here, many animals that can only survive in clean waters. As long as they’re here, we know everything is alright,” our skipper explained. Dženan tells us that there had been a plan to build a hydroelectric power plant here a few years ago. Bosnia and Herzegovina’s population united, mobilized, and protested against this. The power plant would not have only ruined the beautiful view; it would have also damaged the nature. In the end, the construction of the plant was prevented. Dženan, a student from Konjic, has been rafting since he was five years old and earns his pocket money as a skipper. This would no longer have been possible had the power plant been built.
river-Rakitnica
The Rakitnica Riva is famous for its yellow color (Photo Credit: neretvarafting.ba)

Adrenaline meets Balkanstyle

The other three ‘adrenaline points’ were fast and exciting. Here too we had to paddle quickly so as to maintain the correct position in the surging waters, allowing us to make it safely through the narrow canyons. In between the ‘adrenaline points’ we passed by small waterfalls flowing from the cliffs. A very proud group from Slovenia came up beside us, and passed us with their heads held high. They meant to seem very professional, as though they were mocking our comfortable Balkan style of rafting.
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The fourth adrenaline station (Photo: komm-entdecke-bosnien.info)
At some point we must have overtaken them when they stopped for a break next to one of the small waterfalls. The most challenging ‘adrenaline point’ really was at the end. Here, the surging water mixed with a small waterfall. We had to work together – and quickly – to make it through. Dženan shouted and encouraged us to paddle faster. “That’s good….perfect!…we’re going to make it through….WELL DONE!” We’d made it through. We all sat on the raft, happy and relieved, and pushed along by the river.

Slovenia meets help

The Slovenians came up behind us. Dženan got out of the boat to take a few photographs of their rafts. We sat nearby and watched. Alen was happily smoking a cigarette beside me. For whatever reason, the Slovenian raft got stuck on a rock and couldn’t move forward or backward. Alen and I gave each other a look. “Aren’t those the Slovenians who laughed when they passed us before?” he asked. I nodded.
He looked at them and grinned. “Too bad for them, they missed the ‘adrenaline point,‘“ he remarked. “I can’t help but feel a little Schadenfreude though.” We had a good laugh. A few skippers had to help the poor Slovenians so that they could get going again. Several people fell out of the raft behind the Slovenians who’d been stuck – but no worries, it’s absolutely harmless. Everyone has a helmet and a lifejacket. Furthermore, the swift currents are over quickly and anyone can swim to the shore or grab onto the raft.
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Small waterfalls along the way (Photo Credit: neretvarafting.ba)

And finally a Bosnian buffet...

After about four hours, we were back in Konjic. Happy and exhausted, we got changed back into our clothes. Showers are available for all rafting participants. As a reward for having completed rafting, there’s a typical Bosnian buffet, which is served on the porch: roasted meat, potatoes, vegetables, salad, bread, pita, and, and, and… I’m glad that Amel succeeded in persuading me to go on this adventure. It was true – I really did get to learn more about the nature and the legends of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Rafting isn’t only interesting for tourists who are in the country for the first time; it’s also great for locals who enjoy such excursions. For me, I have to say that rafting is wonderful!
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...and a legend about Konjic

Dženan told us the legend of Konjic and how the place came to be. It’s a very old story, but the content is somehow fitting for the present. Just remember this: “never scorn a person who knocks on your door looking for help.” You can read the whole story in the following gallery.

Last but not least

Many thanks to Amel Salihbašić, who provided special organization of this excursion for Balkanblogger!
Clear Water, Canyons, and Pristine Nature – Rafting on the Neretva 1
Komm, entdecke, erzähle weiter – BOSNIEN UND HERZEGOWINA 30 unvergessliche Tage Das Buch kann in Deutschland bei www.amazon.de*  in der dritten Auflage bestellt werden.
  • Verlag:Salihbasic, Amel; Auflage: 3. (15. November 2017)
  • Sprache:Deutsch
  • ISBN-10: 3950378510 / ISBN-13: 978-3950378511
  • Preis prüfen*
Clear Water, Canyons, and Pristine Nature – Rafting on the Neretva 2

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