Zrmanja is a 69 km long river in north-western Dalmatia. It springs under the Poštak Mountain in the southern part of Lika and flows into the Novigrad Sea, some 12 kilometers from Obrovac.
It is a river of non-permanent flow that has carved its’ way towards the sea during thousands of years thanks to is its’ force and the force of the Zrmanja tributaries. The river carved the hard limestone surface and created one of the most impressive canyons adorned with numerous waterfalls and cascades, travertine thresholds and gravel deposits. It flows through a narrow and long valley surrounded by fertile fields.
After Žegar the river enters a deep canyon, considered the most beautiful part of the river flow. The sides of the canyon rise up to 300 meters high. Under the vertical shafts, beaches of pure white pebbles were formed by the river. Here Zrmanja receives its largest tributary, the Krupa River, which on its way towards the Zrmanja passes by the famous Krupa monastery, and is only 200 meters away from the 11 meters high Visoki Buk, the highest waterfall of the river canyon. The canyon ends at Ogari Buk falls after which the river continues its’ flow along fields all the way to the Muškovci waterfall and Berberov Buk falls.
Downstream Zrmanja receives another tributary, the River Dabarnica, on whose left bank the Klisina fort is located. From here, the river spreads into the accumulation lake of the hydro power plant “Muškovci”. After the dam, the river flows through another canyon and after the ruins of Stari Obrovac meets the Janković Buk falls, the last falls of the Zrmanja River.
The town of Obrovac is located on the bank of the river. The road from Zagreb via Plitvice towards Zadar runs through Obrovac. The ruins of Fort Kurjaković loom above the town, as are the vertical cliffs of Skočaj. The last 2 kilometres of the River Zrmanja are encompassed by high and steep cliffs that squeeze the river into a narrow passage right before the mouth of the river in the Novigrad Sea.
