Cliffside Climbs, Sunset Swings, and Signing Off
July 19, 2025
Good morning USA. This is the last trip update of the Croatian summer of 2025 and a recognition of our sponsors is in order: thank you Moondance, thank you Terra Magica, thank you Patagonia, thank you JBL, and thank viewers like you.
Previously, we were held up in a hotel. It was very nice to have hot showers and fresh towels. The next day, we pillaged the hotel buffet breakfast and headed to climb the limestone canyons in Plaklinista. We got to the crag and the students had a mixed bag of feelings ranging from stokey-pants to scardy-pants. Marion was anti-stoked to get on the wall but at the same time, there was no way she wasn’t going to give it a go. She started up the climb and got a little stuck half way through. She was about to call it quits until Kate came in with some healthy patronization to motivate her up the wall. Marion finished the climb and it was flippin flopping metal. It was super cool watching her conquer her fear. Gavin was on the other end of the spectrum. We shot up and down the route before you take off your harness. After climbing we headed to arguably our best lunch of the trip. At Dinko’s the kids were wowed by the massive meat platter that were put in front of them. We handled lunch in every meaning of the word and then started a drive to Sienna camp. Other than the sleeping accommodations in tents/enos, this site was some of the kid’s favorite because of the incredible seaside view and dinner. We swam and went to dinner. MEAT PLATTERS again. We had a beautiful view with our dinner and beautiful Croatian music. All the sudden the musicians turned their attention towards us, played a “Country Roads.” Next thing you know Vivi was dancing on top of the table and Nora was being spun by the nice lady singing. It was a blur. We did Moonup by the water and crawled into our Enos for the night. *insert Tarzan yell* The next morning we went zip lining. Lila was very excited. As mentioned before, her facial expressions did not conceal her excitement. She was so excited she kinda forgot to hit the brakes as she came sliding into the end of the line. The guides braked for her and she went back to smiling, nothing could keep her spirits down. Zip lining was a huge hit and lunch just kept the good vibes rolling. Fletcher was very excited for his cheeseburger with onion that we ate with a view of the sea and islands. We made our way down the coast ever getting closer to our last stop, Dubrovnik. Before, Dubrovnik we had one more place to stay. We made it to our hostel and Cooper and Gray played a little bit basketball. We walked over to the beach and just like on Rab there was inflatable obstacle course in the water. Mimi found herself leading the charge to the park. We ate another meat platter for dinner and had a windy Moonup on the balcony of our hostel. The next morning was the last full day of activities. We drove into Dubrovnik at noon and got ready to go into the old town. We got out of the bus and the kids simulated by the plethora of pigeons, people, and panderers. The first thing that was purchased in the old town was by Teddy. Of course he bought the stuffed animal capitalism fine boss formally known as a Labubu. Candy was the next thing that was bought in town and lot of it. Lewis bought a large bag of candy that he and Gray picked out. Now that we had the essentials we explored the town going from store to store and from site to site snacking on candy and strutting Labubus. It came time for dinner so we piled onto the public transportation bus and went to our restaurant. With food in our bellies we hiked back to our accommodation and started our final Moonup. This was to be a special Moonup. It was not only our last but it was on the eve of Cooper birthday. Instead of “finding the nug jug” the LODs found a birthday cake! Cooper was given a tin foil crown and many early birthday wishes. As Moonup so came to close we all went to bed in preparation for the travel on the morrow. This was incredible trip can’t wait to see where these students go next year!
Live, laugh, love, & don’t forget gritty to in Croatia. Cordially signing off, Bowen “Did we just do that?”
Bell and Catherine “heckin’ right we did!” Whitlock.
CALLING ALL EPIC ADVENTURERS
July 17, 2025
*large boom and intro music* … and we are back CRO 3B fans. Before we get into the last 4 days don’t forget to like and subscribe. Day 7 we walked from breakfast to Moby Dick Diving. The kids we all surprised to be handed a pair of swimfins, goggles, and snorkels. Their enthusiasm was cut short by the sunscreen police [Catherine and Bowen]. Spirits regained their height as we marched toward the dock and not towards kayak landing. Gavin was very excited to get back in the water. We piled on to the boat and casted off to our first drive spot. “This cave smells like poop,” exclaimed Mimi. We swam under water to a cave that was actually filled with bats and poop at the top. Mimi was completely right. While some were in the cave others were looking at the sea floor teaming with life and scattered with shells. Cooper helped find a blue crab shell. We made our way to a few spots along the cliff. One in particular was a jumping spot with a plank or wood wedged in the rock as a diving board. Marion fearlessly showed us how it was done. She threw her flops in the water and jumped in after them. We swam back to the boat and ate our packed sandwiches on the way to our last stop at a beach. Nora still had an inch for exploring and laying on the beach wasn’t her forte. We docked, said farewell, and treated ourselves to some ice cream. Afterwards, we had a very chill beach afternoon. We trudged to the buffet and ended the day with Moonup.
The next day it was time to leave Rab island. No one was more sad than Lila. Her frown was turned upside down when she realized we had to get back on the ferry to leave the island. We spent the morning traveling to our next destination that we could actually see from our previous campsite in Rab. Trekking in the Velebit mountains was our next activity. We arrived at the base of our hike up to the mountain hut and were greeted by free range horses. Vivi was also dazzled by the fact that we were staying at the top of a mountain for the next 2 days. We spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out at the top hanging with the horses. Lewis was especially fond of the horses. Him and Gray spent most of their afternoon with them. Kate and Marion cooked burgers for us for dinner. Yum! They were the best burgers we have ever had. Kate said that she felt like her dad the way she grilled. After Moonup, Fletcher and Bowen were amused and entertained from Fletcher’s green laser pointer that we danced on the black silhouette of the mountains on the horizon. The next morning we had a 9 mile hike. Teddy woke up a little earlier to help with breakfast of sausage and cereal. After a hardy breakfast and a light dance party, we trudged along the beaten path. We were wowed by all of the incredible rocks we saw. Some rocks were big, some were smaller, all rocks were white limestone. Some rocks had shallow holes, some rocks had sharp edges, all rocks were cracked and jointed. We walked looking down on huge sinkholes 300 ft deep. We made it to a hut, ate lunch, and turned around to hike the same 4.5 miles back. At mile 8 we were really tired of the rocks and annoyed by Bowen and Catherine’s riddle. Stumped, when all hope of hints were dulled and everyone was about to give up… “LIGHTHOUSE [the answer]” shouted Cooper! Bravo! Everyone scoffed and sighed as the realization of the riddle dawned. We made it safe and sound to our mountain hut and sang songs with the guitar. Our dinner was pesto pasta, so delicious. We had our last morning in the mountain hut and our last mountain to climb the next day. It was the tallest mountain in the northern Velebit range. It was breathtaking with more mountains on one side and the Adriatic on the other. You could even see the buffet on the Rab island Fletcher joked. We hiked down, ate our last meal at the hut, and packed into the van to go to our next accommodation. We are staying in a hotel😳. Stay classy San Diego and tune in next time for what happens next with CRO 3B
Warm hugs, from Bowen “gives good hugs” Bell and Catherine “makes a mean omelet” Whitlock.
Here are some shoutouts from the kids!
Lewis – Hey mom and dad and rexo what is up I miss yall.
Gray- hello mom and dad I’m in Croatia having a good time, see yall soon.
Fletcher – hi mom and dad, can’t wait to see yall on Saturday, love yall!
Cooper- Hey Mom Dad and D, miss and love yall!
Gavin- hey mom and dad. I miss you guys! See you soon. Love yall
Teddy-Salutations mother and father I am having a splendid time in Croatia love yall
Vivi- Hey mom and dad I miss yall so much!! Im having the best time but I’ll see y’all soon. Tell Zoe and Jenks I said hi!! Tell Zoe I found her husband
Nora- Hi Mom, Dad, Gunby, Brandt, and Ford! I am having an amazing time and have made many new friends! I am sad to leave Croatia, but I am so excited to see yall!
Mimi- hey mom and dad!!! I miss yall so so much but I’m having literally the best 2 weeks like ever. Tell Hudson and Eli I said hi and I miss them too!!!
Marion- greetings parentals. I miss yall so much and I am having the best time ever. Wahoowaaaa! Tell mr tutty i miss him. And tell him i found him a wife soon to be named Mrs. Tutty. Tell Jane 🌭🌭-🌭. Love yall see yall soooon.
Kate- Hey Will mom and dad I’m having the best time ever. Our group is amazing and I can’t wait to catch up with yall! Also- 🌭🌭. Tell Teddy and Tucker I miss them!!
Lila- Hi Mom and Dad I’m having the best time ever with the best group! I can’t wait to tell y’all all about it and I will see you soon! Miss yall and tell Shaw I said hi!
Over the Hills and Across the Adriatic Sea: Our First Couple of Days in Croatia!
July 13, 2025
First day. Best day. Who doesn’t like to fly into Zagreb in the rain! For the kids, the rain posed no obstacle. All 12 kids arrived safely with a surprising amount of energy for having a 24 hour travel day. Nora was breaking down boundaries left and right loosening the group up. We stuffed our bags in the trailer, piled in the van, and headed towards our first destination. We ran into some traffic but we never got bored or a chance to sleep, for Marion provided us with her German singing. Once we got to our accommodation we were given a wonderful meal, did Moonup, and laid down in a nice soft bed for a much needed slumber.
Bang it’s day three! We are heading to Plitvice National Parks aka waterfall landia. Kate had a blast pointing out all her favorite waterfalls and raving about her favorite movies. After an incredible morning walking around cool blue Gatorade-like lakes, that were very enticing to jump in, we went back to Lana Haus to play the funniest game of mafia in the history of the deadly game. Teddy being the very perceptive detective that he is, played a perceptive detective but he missed a really important clue causing hilarious dramatic irony. After the last mafia, Mimi, was in the last round, we went for dinner. With warm pasta in our bellies we settled down with another cozy, grounding Moonup.
Day 3 walking around waterfalls. Day 4 kayaking down waterfalls! What? Yes. *very safely* it was an incredible experience that took the breath of many of the students. Especially after the 5th waterfall that happens to be the discharge of a very cold spring. While many of the students were overcome by the cold, Lila was smiling in the face of adversity with her tongue out and hands up. We sent 7 waterfalls and traversed 3 minor rapids. We got in the van and stopped for snacks. Fletcher was stoked on some Nutella biscuits. We ended our day with enrichments back at our accommodation which included Hackey sack, guitar, friendship bracelets, and slack line. Everyone *safely* took turns getting on and falling off the slack line many times until they could take a step. Cooper was able to really get the hang of it. Supercool seeing the group fail and then succeed together. We ate our las-
From Lana’s Haus we traveled over the hills, across the pond, grandmas house we went…. And by “over the hills,” I mean we drove over the Velebit mountains and by “across the pond,” I mean we got on a ferry across the Adriatic Sea and by “grandma’s house,” I mean Rab island. Teddy was very emotional on our travels to Rab claiming that, it was the most beautiful place he has ever been. We set up camp then went to the walked to the beach 50 yards away. Even though the sun wasn’t out and the water was a little chilly, Vivi wasn’t phased. With Vivi leading the charge, the girls ponied up to the large inflatable obstacle course. Nora challenged everyone to a race around the jungle gym. She won!! Some of the boys were busy playing volleyball in the water and others were out shopping. Lewis proudly gave us a haul of his “Italian brain-rot” shirt which inspired everyone to also buy one. We ate dinner at an endless conglomerate buffet. After dinner, we had ice cream and lastly, Moonup on the beach.
Day 2 on Rab, we went kayaking. Before kayaking we went back to the infamous buffet where Gray housed a Nutella sandwich: just bread + Nutella (heavy on Nutella). A short 6 miles we kayaked meandering around the island’s sharp limestone coast. Gavin was in the stern and his steering ability, comical at the beginning, became very efficient and good. We landed and went to lunch for pizzas… the biggest personal pizza we have ever had. There’s nothing that beats a big .25 mile swim after a really big pizza lunch because we did that. List of things we did: that. Phew! After the swim we showered and marched to eat dinner at the all you can eat buffet. Tune in next time to see what we do next.😉
Safe Arrival!
July 7, 2025
Hello Croatia Families!
We heard from our leaders that the group has landed safely in Zagreb! The trip is off to a great start, and we are so excited to hear more stories as they begin their adventure.
Please remember our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips, but we will be posting trip updates throughout the next week! This will allow you to follow along with the trip. You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to!
-Moondance HQ
