But again, I am just guessing since I never walked the direct route from Valbone to Vusanje. Luckily, there are two other options available. travel agencyto obtain the permits on your behalf. This is a beautiful hike. I understand that for some hikers having a guide is simply not their preference. There is also no restaurant in town, but a friendly local farmer offered us some bread and cheese. Heres the kicker, you can do both. Your first challenge is getting border crossing permits. After bagging this peak you will continue the hike following the border between Kosovo and Montenegro. This is the definitely the hardest day on the trail because it is the longest and has a huge descent, but it is one of my favorites. Most days were somewhere in the middle. If you Google Peaks of the Balkans, you can find several stories about people getting lost. You will always be walking over a combination of trails, dirt roads, and sometimes tarmac roads (which you could and should skip more about that later). See the resources section at the end for information on where to download the GPS tracks that you can install on your GPS or phone. Once you reach the top of the ridge, the next 8km are relatively flat. Finally, if you start in Kosovo, which I dont recommend, more on that later, fly into Pristina and take the bus to Peja, then find transport to Reka e Alleges. However, about 5km before reaching Vusanje, the wikiloc trail suddenly ceased to exist. The hike begins with a big climb up Tromeda Mountain. We chose to follow the original route which involves a short but very steep climb up Mount Bora (dont worry it is still hiking and doesnt rise to the level of a scramble). The wikiloc application on our phone showed an alternative trail, going in the opposite direction, that would avoid the fires and also take us to Vusanje. This is even more frustrating since you will see markers and think you are on the right track, when in fact you are not. As far as nature and mountains is concerned, the trek passes through the very beautiful Accursed Mountains, so named because of their wild and impenetrable appearance. After finishing our day hike, we hitch-hiked back to Plav, where we spent some time sight-seeing, had a nice lake-front dinner at camping LakeViews, and spent the night at the basic bed and breakfastOttoman Kula Redzepagic which is located in a historic mansion. According to some descriptions there is a hotel there, but we couldnt find it. On day 3 we walked 16km fromMilishevc toRek e Allagas, going through landscapes that are quite similar to what we saw on day 2. A second potential starting point is the small town of Teth in Albania, which is just one stage before Valbone. As we mentioned before, we hate walking over roads, so once again we paid one of the locals to drive us the last part. When you get to the bottom of it and look back to where you just came from, it seems impossible (no worries, it looks much worse than it is, and there is actually no exposure whatsoever). If I were in your shoes, I would stay in guest houses 100%. This is my favorite stage of the Peaks of the Balkans. You pay for everything the guest house provides, breakfast, packed lunch and dinner, but you sleep outside. From Tirana, your next step is the small city of Shkodr, which can easily be reached by public bus. Following option 2, it took us about two hours to hike from the sign up the valley and arrive tiny village oferem, which is just a small semi-deserted collection of simple farm houses. There are several budget airlines that service Tirana. Your port of entry into Albania will probably be Tirana, the capital. In retrospect, we should have arranged a taxi fromDrelaj toLiqenat in advance (as suggested by the folks from Uncornered Market see resources at the end). Once you cross the pass, the landscape opens up completely, and you hike down the other side, with amazing views of the Accursed Mountains and the Valbon valley deep below. Met dank en groeten, Peter Daalder / NKBV / Hoogtelijn. The other reason is that the official route includes some mind-numbingly boring parts over tarmac roads with nothing to see. If a guided trek sounds like the path for you. Once at the top of Mount Bora, the remainder of the day goes across a high plateau with amazing views, and eventually the trail switches back into a valley that takes you to Vusanje. The second day we walked from Dobrdol toMilishevc. Next you do a small scramble up through a forest. Technically, you enter Kosovo at this point, and by the end of the day you will enter Montenegro. From my experience helping countless hikers lost on the Peaks of the Balkans, I recommend getting a guide. Valbone (also known as Valbona) is a tiny and very spread out village with just a couple of hotels. In November 2017 (some time after we completed the trek), Cicerone published a guide book on the Peaks of the Balkans. Two, there is an alternate route that is much more interesting and fitting to the rest of the trail. It is hard on the knees and not the most interesting part of the circuit. Soon after the bunkers, you start a long descent down to the town of Theth. On the most expensive day we spent maybe 100 euro (60 for a double room, 40 on food). It features two amazing glacial lakes at the start of the hike and the Shkodra Pass providing awesome views. This is hole in the mountain, covered by an arch which (with a good dose of fantasy) resembles a pair of kissing cats. We mostly stayed in small local guest houses, but also a few fancier hotels. How much cash did you end up spending per trekking day and what currency did you bring with you? This hike includes beautiful views of endless meadows and Bogicevica National Park. If you are thinking about visiting, stop thinking and book your ticket. The park is essentially a deep valley flanked on both sides by amazing high jagged mountains. Be sure to read the trail description where I map out each of the 10 sections of the trail. Calm days on the lake Shout to the bro @svetlimnocu for the invite and the shot , GJERAVICA HIKING GUIDE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, MAJA BOJS HIKING GUIDE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, GREBAJE'S GREATEST HIKE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, VUSANJE TO THETH HIKING GUIDE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, THETH TO VALBONA HIKING GUIDE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, VALBONA TO CEREM HIKING GUIDE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, CEREM TO DOBERDOL HIKING GUIDE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, BABINO POJLE TO PLAV HIKING GUIDE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, DOBERDOL TO GJERAVICA HIKING GUIDE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, DOBERDOL TO MILISHEVC HIKING GUIDE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, MILISHEVCS TO REKA E ALLEGES - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, REKA E ALLEGES TO KUCISHTE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, PLAV TO VUSANJE HIKING GUIDE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, ACCURSED MOUNTAIN RANGE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, VALBONA NATIONAL PARK - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, THETH NATIONAL PARK - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, DOBERDOL: REMOTE ALBANIAN VILLAGE - DIARY OF A BALKAN KID, Freedom to stop wherever you want and customize trail, Days are much longer and difficult due to pack weight. ATMs are widely available in Tirana and Schkoder and (I think) Plav and Theth, but dont count on them anywhere else on the trail. I strongly recommend bringing good maps and a GPS or a navigation app on your phone. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); avoiding other people as much as possible, bed and breakfastOttoman Kula Redzepagic, very detailed blog on the Peaks of the Balkans, https://github.com/brunorijsman/peaks-of-the-balkans-hike-gps-tracks/archive/1.0.zip, https://github.com/brunorijsman/peaks-of-the-balkans-hike-gps-tracks, Follow Hiking and Coding on WordPress.com. This park contains the most splendid and rugged section of the Accursed Mountains, and there are some breathtaking day hikes here. This involves flying into Tirana, the capital of Albania, and then taking a public bus toShkodr, and finally a combination of a minibus, a ferry, and another minibus to Valbone (more details below). As we left Banino Polje following the dirt road, we exited the forest for beautiful views of the cloud-filled valleys below. Dont worry if you cant make it because the traditional hike is literally a traverse from one great valley into another. The section from Theth to Valbone is by far the most popular section of the whole circuit. Here you will be emersed in a panoramic view of the surrounding area. Where ever you go, its a feast for the eyes. I am not suggesting something bad happened to them, just that they wasted so much time on a wrong turn that fell behind by a day or maybe gave up. I was afraid to run out of time, so we skipped it. As of today, Montenegro and Albanias borders are open. But, hey, its a chance to take a shower and load up on comfort food and knock back some beers. However, it is worthwhile deviating from the official route for two reasons. About halfway up there is a cute little coffee caf in the middle of nowhere, where pretty much everyone stops for a coffee and a pastry. The price for camping varies between free (0) and 5 euro per person. We started the trek with gusto: we combined two stages of the official Peaks of the Balkans route (Valbone-erem anderem-Dobrdol) into a single longish day. The problem is not that the trails are faint of absent. No worries, this guide is meant for you too. This stage of the Peaks of the Balkans takes you from Reka e Alleges to Kucishte. Hey, thanks for this informative post. Yes, I know I dont recommend doing this hike because the two stages leading up to it arent up to par, but on the bright side of things, when you hike my recommended route from Milishevc to Babino Polje, it is the same route as the second half of this hike. InDobrdol we opted to camp instead of staying in a room because the weather and the views were amazing. InMilishevc there was no accommodation at all, so we had to camp. This hike passes through beautiful old growth forests and has a welcoming caf to rest at about halfway through. I provide a specialized Peaks of the Balkans Tour with my adventure company BLKNMTN. If you use a phone navigation app, carry a battery pack as well and make sure you pre-download all maps for offline use. As we crossed the high plateau, we noticed several forest fires billowing smoke. Bus from Tirana to Schkoder: just a few euros. (LogOut/ This trail is not by any means easy. Once you arrive you are in for a treat. It has only two (or maybe three) rooms, so you might want to call ahead. We made all the arrangements ourselves and we did not bring a guide. The first part is a good tarmac road, but the second part is a steep series of switch-backs over a dirt road that requires a four-wheel drive. The red and white markings vary between two extremes. Thankfully, we soon left the tarmac roads behind us and entered back into nature. Once you get there, hotel Panorama is heavily advertised, but we preferred hostel Ariu which is run by the very friendly Mr.Moustafa and his family. it seems like you spent considerably less than Uncornered Market. This is a total distance of about 20km with lots of ups and downs. The first half of the hike is beautiful. Although many maps show this as the official route, dont even consider walking this it is very boring and very long (19km). We did get checked once by a patrol, so this is not a formality that you can skip. As mentioned before, the Peaks of the Balkans Trek is circular. On the one extreme, there are huge sections without any markings whatsoever. The Uncornered Market travel blog has a very detailed blog on the Peaks of the Balkans. The local people still hold on to their traditions. That proved to be very useful on several occasions. Looking at the map, it appears to go through roughly the same area that we went through following the high route from Cerem to Valbone. Once out of the forest, you continue on a dirt road until you reach Cerem. If I remember correctly, the trail on this section can be faint and is not very well marked, but you are essentially following a valley, so it is pretty obvious which way you need to go. If so, this part might be quite remote, challenging and difficult to find the route. Accommodation is very scarce, and reservations (or a tent) are essential. That is probably the biggest savings in cost, but you must be very comfortable with route finding and I highly recommend bringing a GPS track for the route because the trail is easy to lose in some places. Every single day is a hike to remember filled with stunning views and nature.