| Biokovo | |
|---|---|
 Biokovo with Makarska riviera | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 1,762 m (5,781 ft) |
| Coordinates | 43°20′N 17°03′E / 43.333°N 17.050°E |
| Geography | |
  Biokovo Location of Biokovo in Croatia | |
 | |
| Location | Dalmatia, Croatia |
| Geology | |
| Mountain type | Limestone |
| Climbing | |
| Easiest route | road |
Biokovo (pronounced [bîɔkɔʋɔ]) is the second-highest mountain range in Croatia, located along the Dalmatian coast of the Adriatic Sea, between the rivers of Cetina and Neretva.
It is sometimes referred to as Bijakova, especially among inhabitants of the eastern side of the mountain. Its highest peak is Sveti Jure (Saint George), at 1762 m.a.s.l.[1] It shows a typical karst landscape. Atop the peak there is a powerful FM and DVB-T transmitter.
The 196 km2 of its area is protected as a nature park with over 1,500 plant and animal species, some of which are endemic.[2]
Biokovo also includes the separate ridge and peak Sveti Ilija (Saint Elijah) at 1,642 m or 5,387 ft.[3]
Biokovo is one in a line of Dinaric Alps stretching along the Dalmatian coast - northwest of it is Mosor and southeast are Sutvid and Rilić. To the east, the Šibenik runs in parallel. When the weather is very clear, from the top of Biokovo it is possible to see Monte Gargano in Italy, which is 252 km (157 mi) away.[4]
Zabiokovlje, a mountainous area in Biokovo, includes such townlets and villages as Gornja Brela, Zadvarje, Žeževica, Grabovac, Rastovac, Zagvozd, Župa, Rašćane and Kozica. Major economic activities there were cattle raising, grape growing, and hunting. Part of this area is in the Biokovo Nature Park. To aid hikers, the Biokovo Nature Park Visitor Center is in downtown Makarska.
However, Biokovo can be perilous if hiking unprepared - tourists erroneously imagine peaks to be closer than they are and, oblivious to the danger, have been known to go hiking wearing flip-flops, without water, wearing shirts with military camouflage patterns making them harder to spot for search and rescue teams. From 1976 to 2007, 24 hikers have died on Biokovo, while 37 had to be rescued.[5]
- ^ Ostroški, Ljiljana, ed. (December 2015). Statistički ljetopis Republike Hrvatske 2015 [Statistical Yearbook of the Republic of Croatia 2015] (PDF). Statistical Yearbook of the Republic of Croatia (in Croatian and English). Vol. 47. Zagreb: Croatian Bureau of Statistics. p. 48. ISSN 1333-3305. Retrieved 27 December 2015.
- ^ Biokovo park prirode, biokovo.com; accessed 19 March 2017.(in Croatian)
- ^ "Sv. Ilija – vrh" (in Croatian). Croatian Mountaineering Association. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
- ^ "Park offer". pp-biokovo.hr. Nature Park Biokovo. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
- ^ "Biokovo krije niz opasnosti: od 1976. do 2007. poginula su 24 penjača". Slobodna Dalmacija (in Croatian). 10 August 2013. Retrieved 1 September 2020.