Velebit

Velebit is the largest though not the highest mountain in Croatia. Its highest peak is the Vaganski Vrh at 1757 m.

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It is part of the Dinaric Alps and is located along the Adriatic coast, separating it from Lika in the interior. Velebit begins in the northwest near Senj with the Vratnik mountain pass and ends 145 km to the southeast near the source of the Zrmanja river reasonably near Knin.

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It is usually divided in 4 different ares. The northern part between moutain passes Vratnik and Veliki Alan, whith the highest peak Mali Rajinac (1699 m), the middle part between Veliki Alan and Ba?ke O?tarije with the highest peak ?atorina (1624 m), the southern part between Ostarije and Mali Alan, and the south-eastern part with Crnopac as the most remarkable peak.

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Velebit as a whole is a nature park, from which two national parks have been carved out: Paklenica and Sjeverni Velebit. A further category of even more careful nature preservation exists within Sjeverni Velebit, the Hajdu?ki i Ro?anski Kukovi.

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Hajdu?ki and Rozanski Kukovi are under the highest nature protection avalible in Croatia. Officaly no human activity is allowed there(except research). These are the mostly still unexplored and wild places and probablly will stay that way in the future.

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Throughout the Velebit leads Premu?i?eva staza (Premu?i?'s pathway). This pathway was built between 1930 and 1933 and it conects northern and southern Velebit. Its length is 50 km. Many parts of Velebit would not be reachable without it.

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Velebit also has the largest and deepest caves in Croatia. The three-part "Lukina jama" cave is 1392 m deep, while the "Slova?ka jama" is 1320 m. See Velebit caves.

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The imposing nature of the Velebit mountain has made it something of a national symbol in Croatian folklore. There's a patriotic folk song Vila Velebita that personifies a fairy in Velebit.

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Velebit is home to the Degenia velebitica, an endemic and protected species of the degenia plant from the Brassicaceae family.

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Mountain: A mountain is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain in a limited area. A mountain is generally much higher and steeper than a hill, but there is considerable overlap, and usage often depends on local custom. Some authorities define a mountain as a peak with a topographic prominence ...

Croatia: The Republic of Croatia is a crescent-shaped country in Europe bordering the Mediterranean, Central Europe and the Balkans. Its capital is Zagreb. In recent history, it was a republic in the SFR Yugoslavia, but it achieved independence in 1991. It is a candidate for membership of the European Union....

Dinaric Alps: The Dinaric Alps or Dinarides (Italian: Alpi Dinariche; Croatian and Serbian: Dinaridi) are a mountain chain in southern Europe, spanning areas of Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro, Albania and Greece....