Pedala: Through the cradle of Croatia’s oil drilling industry and the wondrous Žutica Forest

This route is a part of Zagreb County Cycling Network project run by Tourist Board of Zagreb County. We are recommending that together with this description you are using published/paper map (scale 1:60 000) which can be obtain from office of Tourist Board of Zagreb County, Preradovićeva 42, Zagreb, Croatia, www.tzzz.hr. Please contact office for map delivery.

Route description

This route begins at the parking lot 1 in front of the main railway station in Ivanić-Grad. Head off down Kolodvorska St., and turn right immediately at the intersection in the direction of Kloštar Ivanić. This is a busy road, so take caution while riding. At the 3.5 km mark of the route, turn left at the Y intersection 2 . Kloštar Ivanić is a small village at the top of a hill, adorned by two impressive towers rising up from the two large churches: the Church of St. John the Baptist and the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Next to these stand the Franciscan monastery and the Carmelite Sisters Convent, respectively. After passing the beautiful well in the very centre of town, continue riding uphill along Školska St. towards Čemernica Lonjska. At the intersection with the chapel-shrine, continue riding straight along Čemernička St. The route lead you on this picturesque road along the ridge of the hill, offering some beautiful views, particularly of Zagreb and Mt. Medvednica to your left. In Čemernica Lonjska, at the 7 km mark of the route, turn right at the Y intersection and continue riding towards Križci. Pass through Križci.

At the T intersection 3 in Bešlinec, at the 10 km mark of the route, cautiously turn left and continue along the road for Mostari. After the 13.8 km mark, you will come to a Y intersection and continue along the main road, across the Glogovnica Channel. If you go to the right, after 1.6 km you will reach turnoff A that leads to Stara Marča, where you can take a break at the Janković rural tourism estate, with its spacious grounds, lake and woods, or just do some sightseeing in the village and learn more about its interesting history (see green route). Be sure to visit the Eastern Rites Catholic Church of Michael the Archangel, and enjoy the stunning view of the Glogovnica River valley and its colourful ﬁelds from the plateau. When you continue riding along the route by returning to the main road, you will soon enter into Mostari. Next to the row of mulberry trees at the entrance to the village, you will see the old Chapel of St. Helena, erected back in 1840 and recently restored (see the green route). At the Y intersection 4 next to the chapel-shrine and volunteer ﬁrehall (DVD), turn right and continue riding in the direction of D. Lipovčani. In Donji Lipovčani at the Y intersection 5 and the 20.3 km mark, turn right next to the old demolished Church of St. Petka. The ﬁelds and meadows ﬁlled with ﬂowers of different colours and smells give the region a particular charm. Pass through Marčani and enter into Sovari. At the intersection 6 with the road Ivanić-Grad – Čazma, ﬁrst turn right, and then immediately left onto Slatinska St. and continue in the direction of Šušnjari. Be sure to take caution at the busy intersection! After the intersection, you will climb up to the ridge of the hill; enjoy the view of the surroundings and to your left the Moslavačka gora hills. Pass through the village of Šušnjari. At the 34.5 km route, riding along Zagrebačka St. enter into the centre of Križ.

Take the opportunity to rest and ﬁnd refreshment, and to gather strength to ﬁnish this somewhat lengthier route. In Križ, at the Y intersection 7 , after the INA petrol station, turn left onto B. Radić St. and continue riding in the direction of V. Hrastilnica. Continue riding across the railroad tracks and be sure to take the necessary caution, and cross the highway by the new exit Križ – Hrastilnica. At point 8 , continue riding straight in the direction of V. Hrastilnica. Velika Hrastilnica is a village in which people continue to live with the forest and live from the forest. Be they forest workers, oil workers or farmers, in some way they all use the wealth of the forest. Upon leaving the village, after the left-hand turn, you will pass by the Lugarnica V. Hrastilnica (forest lodge) and you will come onto a straight road and pass through the lovely wetland forest of Žutica. At the 42 km mark of the route, at the intersection in the forest 9 , near the structure “Izgradnja Žutica” with the wooden sign reading “Petica”, the blue route continues to the right along the long, straight road towards Ivanić-Grad. At this intersection, you can also take turnoff B to explore the Žutica forest and the virtually perfect network of smoothly paved roads through the wetland forest, with numerous green-yellow steel giants working in the ﬁelds. These giants, rocking powerfully and yet virtually silently both day and night, pump oil from the oil wells from 1.800 to 2.200 m underground. And they have been working for more than forty years. About one hundred kilometres of paved roads run through the Žutica forest to link the 275 oil wells. If you take turnoff B to Lugarnica Pleso or to the Gospođica pasture, you will add an additional 4.5 to 5 km to your ride each way. The road leads you to an intersection of three roads and the wooden sign reading Crna humka, where you continue straight through westwards. Before you again lies 2-3 km of straight road to the next intersection. Here, the road to the right leads to Žuti brijeg, but continue straight through towards the intersection in the forest called Babrlin. Enjoy the fantastic forest that surrounds you. At the bridge over the Lonjica River, you can feel the true atmosphere of this dense, wetland forest. After the paved road, you will come onto unpaved forest road, which also marks the entry into the best preserved and most peaceful part of Žutica. When you arrive at the Babrlin intersection, near the wooden gazebo, you can turn right for Lugarnica Pleso (another 1.9 km of riding).

The second option is to turn left for the Gospođica pasture (another 1.1 km of riding). Some call it "gateway" to Lonjsko polje Nature Park. This is a somewhat mysterious and beautiful place on the river that is always enthralling to visit. Particularly so, since the visitor does not expect to ﬁnd such beauty so deep in the forest. If you cross the river, you will see an old well (đeram) for providing water for livestock in the foggy distance. You can alxso see its wooden scale upon which the scoop for water hangs. Horses, cows and oftentimes pigs and wild boars can be seen grazing freely here. After exploring the wondrous beauty of the Žutica forest, return to reality on the main road for Ivanić-Grad. Before you lies about 8 km of riding along the straight road through the forest to D. Šarampov. Before D. Šarampov, you will pass the highway and continue straight along Žutička St. At the intersection 10 in Donji Šarampov, turn left onto S. Majdaka St. Notice several beautiful, old wooden houses with carvings. You will soon pass the very busy intersection, be sure to take extra caution here. Continue straight along S. Majdaka St. to the centre of Ivanić-Grad, where this route ends back at the starting point. We hope that this somewhat longer, though ﬂat bicycle route has succeeded in taking you through the history of this lovely, rich and diverse region. Its values are seen in the preserved sacral and traditional architecture of times gone past and through the present and future marked with "black gold".

Technical description of the route

Parking lot at the Ivanić-Grad railway station.
At the Y intersection, turn left into the centre of Kloštar Ivanić. Take caution as this is a busy road.
At the T intersection in Bešlinec, turn left in the direction of Mostari. Take caution while turning onto the busy road.
At the Y intersection in Mostari, turn right next to the shop, chapel-shrine and volunteer ﬁre brigade (DVD) in the direction of Gornji Lipovčani.
At the Y intersection in Donji Lipovčani, near the ruins of the Eastern Rites Church of St. Petka, take the half-turn to the right in the direction of Marčani.
Take caution at the intersection in Sovari. Cross the state road Ivanić-Grad – Čazma. Continue straight ahead along Slatinska Street in the direction of Šušnjari.
At the intersection in Križ, after the petrol station, turn left onto Braće Radić Street.
At the T intersection after the bridge, continue straight ahead in the direction of Velika Hrastilnica.
Intersection in the Žutica Forest. At the intersection, turn right and continue toward Donji Šarampov.
Intersection in D. Šarampov, turn left onto S. Majdaka Street towards the centre of Ivanić-Grad.

Cultural-historical, ethnology and natural points of interest:

Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Kloštar Ivanić – the most signiﬁcant sacral monument of the old Ivanić history. The church and accompanying convent was built on orders of Zagreb Bishop Stjepan II Babonić, it is considered to have been built in period 1227 to 1242. The church was expanded and renovated from 1757 to 1759. It received its current appearance and was newly consecrated in 1759. The main altar was erected by Bishop Franjo Thansi in 1762, and since that time, it has been a votive church. Kloštar Ivanić parish ofﬁce (for both churches), Sv. Marije 4, tel. +385 1 2831 400
Church and Franciscan monastery of St. John the Baptist, Kloštar Ivanić – comprises a unique, monumental architectural complex. According to the date engraved in the Renaissance arch over the main church portal, the church and monastery were built by Zagreb Bishop Luka Baretin, who completed his work in 1508. Church tower in Kloštar, pursuant to a decision from 1817, was chosen by Austria as the base point for the cadastral measurements for Croatia and Slavonia. This tower, 69 m in height, can be seem from many neighbouring points, and therefore serves as a starting point in the trigonometric network.
Franciscan apothecary (pharmacy), Kloštar Ivanić – tied to the Franciscan monastery and one of the oldest in this part of Croatia. There are data that this apothecary already existed in the monastery from 1670. There is a list of Franciscan apothecaries and surgeries. In 1742, the monastery apothecary received the status of a public institution serving the health care needs of the people.
Great Well, Kloštar Ivanić – this rural central well with interesting above-ground architecture stands in the centre of Kloštar. It was likely constructed, for the needs of the Military Border (16th to 19th ct.). The well is one of the very rare historical and architectural monuments of its kind in northern Croatia.
Church of the Raising of the Holy Cross, Križ – one of the best preserved medieval structures in central Croatia, and a monument of the highest category. The altar of the old church was destroyed in a ﬁre in 1714, so a new altar with valuable wooden sculptures was installed in 1720. The two side altars, consecrated to St. Rocco and St. Anthony of Padua, dating back to 1761, are of special value. The church also contains valuable gold artefacts from the 18th and 19th centuries. The centuries old park around the church was restored in 1894, according to the principles of English park architecture. Križ parish ofﬁce, Trg sv. Križa 3, tel. +385 1 2824 747
Church of St. Peter the Apostle, Ivanić-Grad – Ivanić-fort’s third bishop, Ivan Bartolić, had a new church built in 1831. In 1866, the organ created by Antun Mćlzer from the Czech Republic was installed. In 1909, the interior of the church was painted by Italian painter Leonardo Marotti. It was Zagreb Archbishop Juraj Posilović, born in Ivanić-Grad, who deserves the most credit for bringing Marotti here. The painted interior was restored from 1981 to 1991. The restoration was strictly true to the original and carried out by academic painter Vladimir Pavlek, who also restored the cathedrals in Đakovo and Zagreb and the Zagreb government building (Banski dvori). The Croatian Ministry of Culture has adopted a decree proclaiming the Church of St. Peter as a rarity in northern Croatia due to its exceptional interior, and the church is thus a protected monument. Ivanić-Grad parish ofﬁce, Park S. Posezija 3, tel. +385 1 2889 030
Chapel of St. Mary Dolores (Mother of God of the Seven Sorrows), Oborovo – the year 1735 is written over the entrance into the chapel, partially in Arabic numbers and partially in Roman numerals. In the chapel, view the stone sculpture of Mary in a red gown with a blue cape holding the baby Jesus (1703), and the priests of the rosary with St. Mary, St. Dominic in his black habit and St. Catharine of Sienna in a blue and white gown. The Baroque painting of Mary with seven swords in her heart, as she holds her dead son at the foot of the cross, is in line with the name of the chapel. The motive of seven swords originates from Flanders, and recollects the difﬁcult moments of Mary’s life.
Parish Church of St. George and Jacob, Oborovo – renovated in the Baroque style in 1757. The monumental value of the church is even greater due to the well preserved wooden furnishings dating back to the mid 18th century, the marble main altar with statues of Sts. Peter and Paul, the central painting of St. George on the horse, with St. Jacob and the angels hovering overhead, and the pulpit from 1760.
Church of St. Peter the Apostle, Veleševec (see Map 7)
Church of St. Nicholas, Lijevi Dubrovćak – built after 1789 when the parish was established. The Baroque church has a preserved main altar with 3 sculptures of saints 4 angels and an altar pale with scenes of St. Nicholas, and the right side altar of the Adoration of the Magi with pale and wooden relief with cruciﬁx (19th ct.).
Church of St. Maximilian, Posavski Bregi – the parish was established in 1790, and the church erected in 1815. The wall paintings date back to the time of construction. The inventory is from the 19th century, and includes the main altar with three wooden statues (Sts. Maximilian, Ciril and Methodius).

Service information

Ivanić-Grad

Ivanić-Grad Tourist Board, Moslavaćka 13, tel. +385 1 2831 361, turistickazajednica@ivanic-grad.hr, www.ivanic-grad.hr
Ivanić-Grad Town Council, Moslavaćka 13, tel. +385 1 2831 360, poglavarstvo@ivanic-grad.hr
Open University & Town Library, Moslavaćka bb, tel. +385 1 2881 689, info@pou-ivanic-grad.hr
Bicycle Club Ivanić, Kundekova 2, tel. +385 1 2888 945, mob. +385 98 288 107 (Mario Biršić, president), fax. +385 1 2896 094, www.bk-ivanic.hr
Health Clinic and Emergency Services, Omladinska 25, tel. +385 1 2881 493
Ivanić-Grad Police station, Maznica 3, tel. +385 1 2881 111
Ivanić-Grad railway station, Kolodvorska bb, tel. +385 1 2882 471, www.hznet.hr
Raft on the river Sava, Lijevi Dubrovćak–Desni Dubrovćak, raft operator Boris Sućec, tel. +385 44 716 017, +385 98 9898 297
Electro center Petek, Deželićeva 2, tel. +385 1 2888 482 (spare parts and tyre shop)
INA petrol station, Obilaznica bb, tel. +385 1 2888 775, www.ina.hr
Ivanić-Grad ATM machines – Zagrebaćka banka d.d., Trg V. Nazora 7; PPZ d.d., Školska 2 and Omladinska 23a; Erste & Steiermarkische Bank d.d., Moslavaćka 1 (FINA); HPB, Moslavaćka 14 (Post ofﬁce); Raiffeisen Bank Austria d.d., Moslavaćka 11
Naftalan Special hospital (accommodation), Omladinska 23a, tel. +385 1 2834 555, naftalan@zg.t-com.hr, www.naftalan.hr
Kezele Family rural estate, Šumećani, (homemade food, wines, accommodation, events) tel. +385 1 2820 496, kezele-vino@zg.t-com.hr, www.kezele-vino.hr
Prenoćište restoran Ivanićanka, Trg V. Nazora, (accommodation), tel. +385 1 2888 947, www.insula-tours.hr
Town Pub and Brewery Ivanić, Savska 15, tel. +385 1 2888 840, www.aeks.hr
SRC Petek & Garﬁeld restaurant, Etanska cesta bb, tel. +385 1 2883 070, www.ecp.hr

Kloštar Ivanić

Kloštar Ivanić Municipality & Tourist Board, tel. +385 1 2892 341, 2892 475, www.klostar-ivanic.hr
INA petrol station, Kralja Tomislava bb, tel. +385 1 2892 230
Kloštar Ivanić ATM machines – Zagrebaćka banka d.d., Kralja Tomislava 6; Privredna banka Zagreb d.d., Trg svetog Ivana 1
Janković family rural estate, Stara Marća (homemade food, events),
tel. +385 1 2888 656, www.jankovic.hr

Križ

Križ Municipality & Tourist Board, tel. +385 1 2831 510, tzkriz@tzzz.hr, www.opcina-kriz.hr
Forestry Ofﬁce, Kolodvorska 27, Novoselec – Križ, tel. +385 1 2897 088, sumarija-novoselec@hrsume.hr, www.zagreb.hrsume.hr
Educational & recreational path in Veliki Jantak forest, 3 km long, contact: Mr. Goran Bek, tel. +385 1 2820 716
INA petrol station, Svetog Križa bb, tel. +385 1 2824 501, closed Sun.
Petrol station Sirovina benz, Zagrebaćka bb, tel. +385 1 2824 910, open on Sun.
Križ ATM machines – Privredna banka Zagreb d.d., Trg svetog Križa bb

Dugo Selo and Rugvica

Dugo Selo Tourist Board, A. Mihanovića 1, tel. +385 1 2751 404, tzdugoselo@tzzz.hr, www.dugoselo.hr
Dugo Selo 2001 Cycling Club, Domobranska 4, tel. +385 1 2753 868, mob.: +385 98 693 276 (Dragan Mikulić-Mika), dragan.mikulic@bk-dugoselo.hr, www.bk-dugoselo.hr
Rugvica Municipality, Trg J. Predavca 1, tel. +385 1 2764 220, opcina.rugvica@zg.t-com.hr
Dugo Selo Health Clinic, D. Domjanića 12a, tel. +385 1 2785 500, Emergency assistance: +385 1 2753 094, 2785 555
Dugo Selo XII police station, A. Mihanovića 2, tel. +385 1 2753 044, 2753 083 or 92
Dugo Selo railway station, M. Gupca 5, tel. +385 1 2753 277, timetable: www.hznet.hr
BELI tire repair shop, car wash, J. Predavca 26, Dugo Selo, tel. +385 1 2751 254, open 8 am to 5 pm
D. Selo ATM machines – Zagrebaćka banka, J. Zorića 17, Kolodvorska 1, Zagrebaćka 108
Raft on the Sava River, Oborovo – Vrbovo Posavsko, raft operator Damir Obrstar, tel. +385 1 2761 129, mob. +385 98 376 517
Ribarska koliba restaurant (Ciglana ﬁsh ponds), Rugvićka bb, tel. +385 1 2753 393, www.buncic.hr
Dioniz restaurant, J. Zorića 31, Dugo Selo, tel. +385 1 2759 760, restoran.dioniz@email.t-com.hr
Posavska hiža restaurant, Dugoselska 28, Rugvica, tel. +385 1 2760 602, Mon. to Sun. 7 am to 11 pm
Guest-house with rooms Ježevo, Ježevećka 3d, Rugvica, tel. +385 1 2775 688, spenava@inet.hr

Authors: Lidija Mišćin and Robert Rigo
Published: December 2007.

If you notice any changes on route, which are not introduce in route description, please inform us about changes on email: rigo@pedala.hr