River Drava and Križnica
Coenagrion ornatum or the ornate bluet is a two-winged long-body insect from the family of dragonflies that lives in the Drava and shallow streams around Križnica. Its presence indicates that the ecosystem is healthy. Križnica is the easternmost part of Pitomača Municipality, its beauty intact and protected, just like the ornate bluet’s. And their Croatian names rhyme, too.
Speaking of rhymes, it is well known that people of this region often sing about olives. But it’s less known that they are true Pannonian islanders. As with strong northern or southern winds on the coast, when the ferries stop running, the new raft by the suspension bridge stops transporting passengers over high water. This is late autumn on Križnica Island. It seems like everything falls silent and the bridge moves a little bit only because of the mailman on his motorbike or few passers-by. Believe it or not, on this only inhabited island on the Drava, a protected biosphere reserve, unlike in the Adriatic islands, the peak season lasts even in winter. Frozen rivers and puddles covered with frost resemble the tundra, prolonging the hunting season for good photos way into winter. After all, every dedicated angler will tell you that the winter fishing is the most beautiful. If you’re wondering why, visit Križnica. Or find refreshment in the finest fish stew and langos in Dravska iža restaurant, run by aunt Ruža. You can also visit the new Interpretative centre of the Biosphere Reserve Mura-Drava-Danube first, followed by a winter photo safari and a fish dinner. If the day is too short, you can even spend the night on Križnica. The fact that this area offers plenty of activities and that it’s worth visiting is not just a fairy tale. Besides, if it’s so exciting in the winter, ask yourself a valid question: what’s it like in the summer?
Križnica is the only settlement of the Pitomača Municipality situated on the left bank of the Drava. If you look at them on a map, the surrounding river meanders resemble the print of a dried clover in a herbarium. Few people know of this small piece of puzzle squeezed between the Drava and the Croatian-Hungarian border. And it’s actually not that small. It’s slightly bigger than the island of Zlarin and a bit smaller than Murter, with 35 kilometres of coastline length. By coastline I mean the winding backwaters Crni jarak and Stara Drava, and even more winding river Drava transforming this unusual part of northern Croatia into an island. Just think of Adriatic rock islands, heart or fingerprint-shaped, and compare them with this Drava clover.
Spring arrives with the high waters and the boat is quiet for a little bit longer. Then the air starts to smell and Drava turns emerald. The fish swims out of its winter hideouts, while the ferry is still unmoving, powered by the river current. When we cycled up to the bridge, we laid down on the grass. Slightly damp, it was immensely refreshing. May is the perfect month for cycling around Podravina in Pitomača Municipality.
“Križnica lives thanks to the people from Otrovanec. 250 years ago we started buying meadows and forests here. My family built an inn. You can still find Tišljar surname on Križnica. They plant red pepper.”
“How did they cross from one side to the other at that time?” I asked Bartol, curiously.
“There was no left or right side. The main river flowed where Stara Drava now flows.”
It is not unusual for a large river to re-shape the area through which it flows. The same happened here. Over the past two centuries, water cut the path of the large meander and overtook the flow of the Stara Drava. As soon as I crossed the river, I was overwhelmed by a blissful feeling that I was in a place separated from everything else. An inexplicable magic enveloped me in total peace as I gazed the ornate bluets’ love dance in the air. The only thing I heard was the silence of a gentle spring breeze.
“There are no vineyards here on Križnica. But there is one wine cottage. You’ll see how nice it is when we get there”, Bartol hurried me. And it really was nice, this place where he took me. The cottage really exists. There’s only one, but a good one. It’s called Ribička klet.
Perhaps it’s no coincidence that this is the place where Drava welcomes you with its widest smile along its entire course. And that smile is the largest in summer, flowing with great enthusiasm. First with its high waters in June, and then with an exciting river regatta Drava Tour Adventure a couple of weeks later. About 30 rafting boats and canoes sail from the village of Brodić 12 kilometres downstream to Nađluka on Križnica, meandering carelessly along the pebble river banks, one moment in Croatia, the other in Hungary. Because the border here goes in all directions, except along the river. Sailing to Križnica is like a story told by a storyteller who likes procrastinating. Your direction slowly winds, but you know where you are going. It all ends under the suspension bridge, with a beach volleyball tournament and a huge, mass jump into Drava whose goal is to raise awareness of the need to protect European water ecosystems.
Source: Zakaj volim Pitomaču? A nesem od tam!
Ferry: Timetable and Price List
