We are happily home from our Great Croatian Graduation Adventure. Oh my what an epic adventure it was – for the place of course – but really for the people we got to experience Croatia with – a country that is brimming over with natural beauty in every direction that our eyes were lucky enough to gaze upon. Here is my rather public thank you to the group!
Dear Group that Joined GYGG in Croatia,
Thank you for saying yes when you were perhaps not 100 percent sure of what you were getting into! Thank you for being game and open to traveling by bicycle, on foot, by boat, and in kayaks with an entirely new cast of characters in a new, but exceedingly inviting country.
Thank you for being so open to each and every experience that was put on offer! With enthusiasm and good cheer you tackled on foot and on two wheels those rather giant hills we so loved admiring from afar as we island hopped on our own private boats. You know you have a pretty special group on your hands when everyone is still smiling and laughing and grabbing new lavender bike jerseys after completing an entirely uphill 8 mile climb before 9am in the morning. Fist bumps to all!
Thank you for being so open with your fellow intrepid travelers! Our group was gathered from California, Florida, Ohio, Connecticut, Massachusetts and of course NYC. Appreciated you all mixing and matching the seating at every opportunity we had to break Croatian bread together and toast our good fortune for the food that was put before us (biking makes you hungry) in natural settings that were concomitant with the abundance of food on the table.
Thank you for so sincerely appreciating what can be categorized as the natural nuances that were peppered throughout the experience! The bounty of nature in Croatia in the form of olive trees, lavender fields, meadows cheerfully dotted with poppies, fig trees, seaside towns that become one with the water is astounding. The opportunity to pedal and hike your way through this? For lack of a better term: good for the soul, brain, and body.
Thank you group – for cherishing each and every special moment that was curated for us! Let’s recall and celebrate just one hour on that third day (that 8 mile climb day). Backroads afforded us the opportunity to bike through a lavender filled countryside complete with lovely villages with their church bells proudly ringing, and two friendly and hungry donkeys who favored the fig leaves a subset of our group procured for them.
The helpful wahoo’s (Backroads navigational tool of choice) on our bikes then directed us to the shore where we pedaled aside the sparkling Adriatic sea twisting and turning on what might have been the most scenic bike ride of everyone’s lives! Happily gliding our way to a seaside village where a lavender gelato ice cream cone was promptly acquired.
That was just one of the very special hours as orchestrated by Backroads. Doing what they do best: immersing us in places that we would probably not discover on our own. Best in class places that our group had the good fortune to enjoy entirely to ourselves. MAGICAL!
Thank you of course to our guides Marija, Vele, Teja and Sam! The Backroads Guides are the magic makers – really and truly – orchestrating umpteen details so we can cruise into town for a lavender cone or a farm to table meal in stunning settings. Croatia, we learned, is one of the more difficult trips to organize logistics wise. Well our guides nailed each and every logistical hurdle – and we as a group THANK YOU ALL for being our guides on this trip. We hope our bike paths cross again soon.
And finally group – thank you for being so generous with the sharing of yourselves with this group! Am grateful for every experience we collected as a group. Because of the superlative quality of the experiences of course, but more so because you. This adventure was the purpose of Grab Your Group & GO defined.
Also: Badass alert. Must brag that our guides let us know that our group as a collective whole were the fastest bikers, hikers, kayakers and eaters! they had EVER witnessed in the history of the 18 year long Croatian Multi Sport Adventure trip. More fist bumps to each and every awesome (and slightly competitive) human that created our awesome group.
THANK YOU!! THANK YOU!! THANK YOU!!
Where shall we GO next?
Linda
Partner Spotlight - BACKROADS!
As you may have derived I am a big believer in traveling with Backroads – The ACTIVE travel company. If any of the above sounds remotely interesting to you and a group you might want to create – we are equipped and ready to help you land on your perfect Backroads adventure. If that means one without an 8 mile climb – we can make that happen. 🙂
I am a certified Backroads Specialist and Stacie has the Backroads Private Group Team on speed dial. In addition to helping you select your perfect trip, Stacie can quarterback all of the pre and post details for your ultimate Backroads adventure (so helpful!!). We already have ideas in the works for the next GYGG Backroads trip in June 2024! Click below if you want to be on the early list for that TBD but guaranteed to be completely awesome adventure.
Happy to help you land on the ideal Backroads experience for you and your group so you can see for yourself why this form of travel is our family’s most favorite way to GO. Whether it’s for your family’s summer vacation, for you and a few friends on a fall getaway, or just for you (as a solo traveler Backroads provides the group for you). SO MANY OPTIONS TO CHOOSE FROM!! Like candy store overwhelming options, but we can help – we speak Backroads. Click the button below to get started.
