On November 25th we went on a hiking tour in the Medvednica Nature Park. Before heading out to the mountain the representatives of the ‘Medvednica Nature Park’ Public Institution welcomed us warmly and explained us the hiking etiquette guidelines with a focus on a leave-no-trace environmental protection philosophy.

We took a walk along the Bikčević trail from Bliznec to the Njivice resting place. While hiking we learnt about the difference between a nature park and a national park, revised 8 national parks and 12 nature parks in Croatia where two of them being at Zagreb’s doorstep (Medvednica and Žumberak), found out how Medvednica got its name, learnt how to read hiking trails markers and learnt how to identify forest trees based on leaves and bark such as oak, chestnut, beech, linden and yew trees.

After we had climbed down, we walked along the Bliznec Forest Trail, which is the first educational trail in Croatia and completely, in construction and content, adapted to visitors with disability. We explored the educational panels located on the trail learning about natural, cultural and historical significances of this locality. We also saw the forest books which contained the text of educational panels in Braille alphabet so that the blind and visually impaired people could read them. After the tour we had lunch at the Bliznec Restaurant.   

This tour was a wonderful way to explore our local area, enjoy the fresh air, immerse in nature, learn about our surroundings, encourage our curiosity and appreciation for nature, hang out with our classmates and help us grow into keener hikers.

The photos of the hiking tour are posted on the MYP homepage, but here you may find the photos taken by the MYP1 students highlighting some nice details.

Photos: Frane (MYP1)