Dalmatian Black Pine – in glowing colours!

I wrote last year about the Dalmatian Black Pine, and the efforts to save this endangered species on the island of Hvar. In honour of Earth Day 2017 (22 April), here is my painting of a Dalmation Black PIne on Sv Nikola, the highest peak of the island. In the background is Mt Biokovo on…

Two-tailed pasha underside

Hvar’s wildlife: butterflies

Butterflies always seem so fragile, so transient. So it came as quite the surprise when I read that (a) there are butterfly fossils dating back around 56 million years, and (b) the Painted Lady appears to hold the record for the longest return migration, from Africa to the Arctic circle and back!

Eryngium amethystinum

Guide to Hvar’s wildflowers in the late summer

Following on from our Guide to Hvar’s Wildflowers – Spring Edition, I’ve been out and about looking for what’s in bloom at the end of summer. These are mostly in the high country around the peak of Sv Nikola and on the Vorh plateau, although some are down around sea-level, even right on the beach…

Single tree

Saving the Dalmatian Black Pine

A couple of years ago, we took a trip up to the summit of Sv Nikola, the top-most point of the island. It was January and a bitter wind was blowing, not to mention the odd shower of rain, but the scenery and the views were glorious! On the way down, we passed by a…

On top of the island – up to Sveti Nikola

We walked up to Sv Nikola yesterday, that’s the island’s highest peak. I won’t try to pretend that we walked all the way up, in fact we drove most of the way. The road leads up from the end of the Selca tunnel, the turning nicely signposted. The larger, more noticeable sign is for Kolumbić…