Matić-poljana park

Matić poljana is a long, narrow grassy plateau in Gorski kotar, between the villages of Begovo Razdolje and Tuk in the municipality of Mrkopalj, in the forested Velika Kapela range near Bjelolasica. It lies at about 1,030 metres, runs roughly east to west for some 3 km and is between 100 and 300 metres wide, surrounded on all sides by slopes of mixed deciduous and coniferous forest.

The meadow is known for a wartime tragedy. On 19 February 1944, a partisan brigade of the 13th Primorje-Gorski Kotar Division, around 680 fighters from Istria, Gorski kotar and the Croatian Littoral, set out on a march of about 52 km from Škalić via Drežnica, Jasenak and Matić poljana to Mrkopalj. During the night, in deep snow and wind, the temperature fell to around minus 30 °C. Many of the exhausted and underfed fighters froze while crossing the plateau. Villagers from Begovo Razdolje and Mrkopalj came out to help the survivors. The brigade buried 26 of its men in a single day; 65 more suffered severe frostbite, and 15 of them later died in hospital. The dead were buried in common graves in Tuk Vojni and Mrkopalj.

The memorial on the meadow, designed by Zdenko Sila and dated 1969, consists of 26 limestone monoliths set in a regular row, representing a column of marching partisans. Plaques beside them carry short texts written by local schoolchildren about the march. A commemoration has been held every year since 1962; since 2004 it has been called the Peace Memorial (Memorijal mira) and takes place in Mrkopalj in February.

The plateau is easy to reach on foot from Begovo Razdolje. An unpaved road of about 2.9 km, mostly along the forest edge with only gentle climbs, leads from the monument to fallen partisan skiers in the village centre (an abstract sculpture by Tomislav Ostoja, 1980) to the memorial, about 45 minutes' walk. A gravel road also crosses the plateau towards Jasenak, and the walk can be continued to the Bijele stijene mountain hut in Tuk Vojni.

This is high, exposed ground. Snow can lie well into spring, and the weather changes quickly, so dress accordingly outside summer.