River Cetina

Without any doubt, the river Cetina is one of the nicest places in Croatia where you can experience the magic of a rafting adventure. It is situated in a luscious region surrounded by quaint little villages. There are lots of stories surrounding the naming of this river. Passed down through the centuries several theories on the naming of the Cetina River have emerged. One possibility is that some of the first Croatians that came down from Northern Europe towards the warmer Southern coast, finding the river and naming it Cetina because it reminded them of the river "Cetynia", in Southern Poland which was their last Nomadic residence.
A more likely possibility is that the Cetina river derived its name from the Latin word "Kentona" that was given by tribe Dalmates. Croatians over time changed this Latin word to Cetina.  

   

This region is very important, both historically and archaeologically. Along the Cetina’s tall canyon walls real archaeological fortune can be found: bottle-axes from the stone-age, shields from roman soldiers, personal items from middle-age peasants... and many other interesting artefacts. These findings confirm that people from this region are descended from an historical-age...
As the years passed by, the surrounding regions Cetinska and Krajina developed. This area is surrounded by the mountains Svilaja, Kamesnica and Dinara. This is a very productive region where you can find many small towns and villages, grasslands and green meadows full of flowers, grass and life. During moist springs there are many colourful flowers in the meadows and bees in the air. The Cetina river itself is teaming with life, Supplying drinking water to much of Dalmatia.

The unusual Climate in this region is a result of its position between the seaside and mountains. The differing climatic influences are visible in the vegetation of the region. The average temperature in January is about 4 degress celcius and in July the average temperature is above 23 degrees celcius. The average rainfall for this region is about 1400mm per year, which highlights the difference between this region compared to Split, and Livno. This is the reason for its sub-Mediterranean climate.

 

The Cetina river connects many fields and unites all the waters, both above and below ground. Therefore the Cetina river gets water from many regions including Livno, Duvno, Kupres and Glamoc. Therefore the hydrographical territory of Cetina is 3700 square meters. Just as the Cetina gets water from Bosnian regions, it also gives away a lot. Therefore colour thrown into Cetina will appear in springs Studenci, Jadro, and Zrnovnica. As can be seen, Cetina is a very complex system of hydrological relations and laws. The Cetina’s formation and intricate underground connections are miraculous! Its length is 105 kilometres and its flow is lower 385 meters when it comes to the Adriatic Sea from its source. 

 

The source of the Cetina river is situated in a small village (called Cetina) 7 kilometres away from the town of Vrlika. Gospodarska pecina (Noble Cave) is situated 100 meters above the source. This cave has important historical significance as it has been used as shelter for many people throughout history. During the wars with Turkey local soliders (hajduk) Socivica hide thre. The Cave is deep but only a small section of it has been explored. At the end of the 18th century, Ivan Lovrenovic discovered and described it. He
claims that accompanied by a couple of "Morlaks”, after initially having trouble
entering the cave they came to a spacious hall ornamented with stalactites and stalagmites. While listening carefully, he recognized the sound of underground waters. Following the sound he came to a place he describes as a "royal underground river". Some people say that this is the place where underground waters divide to source both the river Krka and the river Cetina. But who can really understand the secrets of underground waters?

 

500 meters down from the start of the Cetina river where the stream is still fairly small, there is a bridge. This bridge has served people for centuries. The bridge has no name, no one knows who built it, or what year it was building. There are many of meadows, green grass and land flowers surrounding the bridge. Resting under a shady tree here listening to the sounds of the river is a wonderful retreat from both people and the hot summer sun. Right there under the bridge (Balecki bridge) is a great place to fish.
On Garjacka kosa, above the river, there are several vineyards. You can find grapes there that are different to all others. They make wine that is sweet and easy to drink. In the beginning of last century, Emperor Franz Joseph (Franjo Josip) came to Krajina, to drink "garjacko" wine. The house where he spent the night is called "Schonbrunn".

Cetina is an entrance to the Sinj fields. There are 60 square meters of fertile ground around town of Sinj, which makes it the biggest field in Dalmatia. There are lots of small towns and villages in that area. In the East are Gala, Otok, Udovicici, Ruda i Grab. In the West are Sinj, Brnaze, Turjaci and Kosute. In the North are Glavice, and in the South are Jabuka and Trilj. In the past after these areas flooded during wintertime, men would bring their animals to this fertile area to pasture. Today, this area is mainly used for corn and wheat.


Leaving the Sinj fields, the Cetina river flows into the canyon. Coasts are closer and higher, and the river is deep and slow. In the past the water in this area flowed quickly and was used to work mills, however, a Floodgate has been built which has nade the water slower and deeper. The floodgate at Djal place, redirects the river and makes the water flow to the hydro-electririty centre. This is one of three hydro-electririty centres in the region of Cetinska Krajina. There is a castle Nutjak above the canyon, which very silently challenges archaeologists and historians. In the town of Omis the river Cetina meets the Sea.