Hiking, kayaking and canyoning: Daredevils can go wild on this crazy Croatian adventure

  • Jo Kessel took her three teenage children on an adventure break to Split, Croatia
  • They encountered the rapids on Dalmatia’s longest river, the 62-mile Cetina
  • The family also went on a hilly hike on Ciovo, an island in Central Dalmatia

My task is to jump from a high rock into a shimmering Adriatic. Peering up at me are 16 pairs of eyes belonging to people who have already leapt, three of whom are my children. I’m the last one to go. ‘You can do it, Mummy!’ Thanks.

The other eyes belong to the families who’ve signed up for the same activity holiday in Croatia as us, whom we’ve only just met.

This leap offers a chance to cool off during our first activity — a hilly hike on Ciovo, an island in Central Dalmatia, 15 miles west of Split, which is our base for the week.

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Thrills and spills: Omiš (above) is a small town and port at the mouth of the Cetina river

Thrills and spills: Omiš (above) is a small town and port at the mouth of the Cetina river

In the end, it’s a matter of pride and not wanting to fail in front of a crowd, particularly with my twins Nathalie and Gabriel, 15, and Hannah, 13, all watching. Three, two, one. Splash! The reward is a sublime swim in the crystal-clear water of a remote cove.

Floating on my back, I admire the dramatic black-rock coastline fringed by a turquoise sea.

‘Croatia has so many secluded coves that you could swim naked and no one will see you,’ says our guide Viktor. ‘Except for U.S. satellites.’

Viktor later explains the week’s activities, some of them extreme. ‘Don’t do canyoning if you’re scared of heights,’ he warns.

I take an extra-large glug of chardonnay and distract myself by noting that the children in our group (aged eight to 17 years) have ditched their electronic devices and are playing cards. Miracle.

I had done some homework about ‘canyoning’, checking its definition: ‘Scrambling over rocks, jumping and swimming.’ How hard could it be?

But, first, we would encounter the rapids on Dalmatia’s longest river, the 62-mile Cetina. They aren’t hardcore, but they are relentless.

My husband Marc takes two of the brood in his raft, I take the third. My boat stays upright throughout, but Marc and the twins get a thorough dunking when they capsize behind us.

Brave it: Try kayaking down Croatia's Cetina river, which flows 62 miles 

Brave it: Try kayaking down Croatia's Cetina river, which flows 62 miles 

Our hotel is the Sveti Kriz, which has a pool and tennis court, but best of all is beside the beach. It’s not posh, but is clean, modern and good value, with us the sole Britons among a largely Eastern European clientele.

Variety makes time whizz by. One morning we’re sea-kayaking, the next we’re bouncing on an inflatable obstacle course moored at sea near our hotel; one day we’re lazing on the beach, the next we’re on a local hopper ferry.

A 20-minute ride takes us to the mainland’s medieval walled-town of Trogir. We splurge on bags and jewellery at its market and stumble upon gelateria Bella in its labyrinthine centre. Their ‘lemon cream’ flavour won the ‘Best Ice Cream in Croatia’ award and is dreamy.

Too soon it’s the last day, last activity: canyoning.

The start point is the precipice of a sheer gorge, the destination is a silvery thread of river 500ft below and the only way to get there is on foot. It’s like scaling the exterior of a skyscraper from top to bottom with no safety net. I now see Viktor’s point about heights.

Helmet and wetsuit on, rock by rock, inch by inch, I cling to overhanging branches and ropes on the descent, muscles quivering from exertion. It’s a relief to reach the river, but now what? ‘We ride the rapids like human rafts,’ says Gabriel. And so begins two hours of clambering over rocks and leaping into white water to be tossed around, swallowed up and spat out, again and again.

Then suddenly I find myself on another rock, only this one’s four times higher than the one at the beginning of the week. I shuffle forward, heart hammering. Dare I?

A moment of inner reflection — then I’ve jumped, for the second time in a week.

I gaze at the steep canyon walls hemming us in and can’t quite fathom that I’m here, doing this. The children are buzzing afterwards, saying that it’s the best thing they’ve ever done, but it’s taken a physical toll on the grown-ups. One Mum has cuts over her shins; another sports multiple bruises. My finger pads are red-raw and most of us can barely walk. Yet we all feel strangely euphoric.

The twins tell me how proud they are of me for jumping.

Do it again? Unlikely! Pleased I did it? You bet!

TRAVEL FACTS 

Explore offers an eight-day Family Croatian Active Adventure (explore.co.uk, 01252 883 358) from £1,235 per adult, £1,095 per child. Price includes return flights, half-board accommodation and activities.