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INTRODUCTION

Descending to Vusanje and the Ropojana Valley (Stage 9)

The Peaks of the Balkans is a recently developed cross-border long-distance trail through the spectacularly wild and rugged borderlands of Montenegro, Albania and Kosovo. A circular route of around 192km in length, it takes in remote valleys, lakes and mountain passes, winding its way through some stupendous mountain scenery and passing through traditional mountain villages which often feel like somewhere time forgot. It’s a corner of Europe few people are familiar with, let alone visit. Food and accommodation are offered in traditional village home stays, so there’s no need to carry camping gear, with delicious regional cuisine and genuine hospitality that is frankly a million miles away from some of the more lacklustre tourist resorts on the coast. The route can be hiked in around 10 days or stretched out over a couple of weeks, with about a third of the whole trek lying in each country.

The bulk of the mountain scenery on the Peaks of the Balkans Trail is provided by the Prokletije mountains (Bjeshkët e Nemuna in Albanian), whose name translates rather charmingly as ‘the accursed mountains’ – created, according to local folklore, by the devil himself, unleashed from hell for a single day of mischief. The biodiversity of the region is extraordinary. The Montenegrin side of Prokletije was recently designated a national park – the newest and still the least visited of Montenegro’s five national parks, a great glacier-scoured area (the glaciers themselves are long gone) bristling with spiky mountain peaks boasting suitably evocative names like Očnjak (‘Fang’) and Koplje (‘Spear’). There are two more national parks on the Albanian side, and another in Kosovo.

The trail was developed by the German development corporation GIZ in conjunction with national and local tourism organisations and hiking clubs, in order to create a sustainable income for the local population in these mountainous areas of Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro, to encourage sustainable local tourism and to bring these parts of the region closer together across political borders. Despite increasing visitor numbers – largely due to the growing popularity of the Peaks of the Balkans trail – the area remains incredibly underdeveloped and unspoilt, much of it having been off limits to foreigners until comparatively recently. This is the first English-language guidebook to hiking the Peaks of the Balkans.

Since it’s a circular route, there are several points at which you can choose to start and finish hiking the Trail (the various merits of which are described in ‘Where to start/finish’) – and there are two points where the ‘circuit’ meets, like a figure of eight. Starting from the village of Theth in Albania, the route crosses a pass to reach the Valbona Valley, and climbs to the Montenegrin border below Maja Kolata, one of the highest peaks in the area, before descending to the tiny settlement of Çeremi. Later it passes through the remote summer settlement of Dobërdol before crossing the border into Kosovo, and descends to the Rugova Gorge. Crossing into Montenegro it passes through Babino polje then climbs to Lake Hrid, before descending to the town of Plav and, after crossing Vrh Bora, to the village of Vusanje, before following the Ropojana valley up into Albania again, crossing the Pëjë Pass and descending to Theth.

Katun Treskavička, on a hillside between Babino polje and Plav in Montenegro (Stage 8)

The trail is well marked for much of its length, a reasonably good map is available covering the whole route, and access is relatively straightforward – sometimes extremely straightforward – to several points along the way by local buses. Good, knowledgeable local guides are available to accompany groups or individuals along the route. Hiking is along existing paths and 4WD tracks and is not technically difficult – however the surrounding mountains are high and the weather can change suddenly and dramatically, and for the most part the route is very remote. Exit points, should you need to break your trek short in an emergency, may be several days apart, and may not be in the country you arrived in.

It’s possible to start and finish the Peaks of the Balkans in any of the three countries through which it passes, however whichever starting point you decide on, you’ll need to obtain a cross-border permit from the relevant authorities in Montenegro, Albania or Kosovo before setting off and actually walking the trail. Judging by the helpful and informative Peaks of the Balkans website (www.peaksofthebalkans.com), you would be forgiven for thinking this should be easy enough to do yourself, but in fact it’s not quite as straightforward as you might expect, and it is worth simply getting a local agency to sort out the permit. See ‘Cross-border permits’ below for further guidance.

I first visited the Prokletije mountains back in 2004, staying a few days in a mountain hut in the Grbaja Valley in Montenegro. One day I walked along the Ropojana Valley – a broad ribbon of green framed by limestone peaks, their tops festooned with clouds – towards a lonely lake on the border with Albania. The Peaks of the Balkans wasn’t yet born at that time, the Montenegrin part of Prokletije had not yet been declared a national park, and the only people we encountered on these well-marked trails through some of the most beautiful mountain scenery anywhere in Europe were a handful of Albanian children gathering wild strawberries. It all seemed fantastically, almost unbelievably remote and unspoilt. Returning to Prokletije in 2016 to research and write this guide, I was pleased to find that feeling of isolation little changed.

Key facts and figures
Montenegro
Country name	Montenegro (Crna gora)
Capital	Podgorica
Language	Montenegrin (Serbian)
Currency	Euro
Population	625,266 (2011 census)
Land surface area	14,026km2
Time zone	GMT +1 (CET)
International telephone code	+382
Electricity	220V/50Hz
Albania
Country name	Republic of Albania (Albanian: Shqipëri; Gheg dialect: Shqipni)
Capital	Tirana (alternative spelling: Tiranë)
Language	Albanian
Currency	Lek
Population	2.8 million (2011 census)
Land surface area	28,748km2
Time zone	GMT +1 (CET)
International telephone code	+355
Electricity	220V/50Hz
Kosovo
Country name	Republic of Kosovo (Albanian: Kosova)
Capital	Pristina (alternative spellings: Prishtina, Priština)
Languages	Albanian and Serbian
Currency	Euro
Population	1.9 million (estimate)
Land surface area	10,908km2
Time zone	GMT +1 (CET)
International telephone code	+382
Electricity	220V/50Hz

Geography and geology

Krš Bogićevica, viewed from the pass above Dobërdol, on the border between Albania and Montenegro (Stage 4)

The mountains through which the Peaks of the Balkans route passes form the border between Albania, Montenegro and Kosovo. They occupy an area south of the River Lim and north of the Black Drin, bordered to the west and east by Lake Skadar and the headwaters of the White Drin respectively.

Collectively, these mountains are known by several names – Prokletije or Bjeshkët e Namuna, meaning the ‘accursed mountains’, in Montenegrin and Albanian respectively, or (the part lying in Albania) the Albanian Alps. In some places, you may see signs referring to them as the ‘blessed mountains’ – a nice attempt to challenge the negative connotations of the ‘accursed’ part of their name (and frankly, when you’re hiking through this astonishingly beautiful part of Europe, this does seem more appropriate). In any case, for convenience, we’ll refer to them as Prokletije here. Prokletije forms the south part of the Dinaric Alps, a chain of mountains stretching some 700km and running in a northwest to southeast direction from the Slovenian border through Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Albania and Kosovo.

The Prokletije mountains are characterised by broad, glaciated valleys and steep-sided limestone peaks, particularly in the western half of the range in Albania and Montenegro – in Kosovo, the eastern half of the range has a more gentle profile. They include the highest peak in Montenegro (Maja Kolata, 2528m) and the highest peak in Kosovo (Gjeravica, 2656m), as well as the highest mountain in the Dinaric Alps, Maja Jezerces (2694m) in Albania (the highest mountain in Albania is Korab, 2764m, which lies further southeast on the border with Macedonia). All three of these can be climbed with only slight detours from the Peaks of the Balkans Trail, as can several other prominent peaks.

The Prokletije mountains were formed some 100 million years ago, during the same period and process as the Alps – through the buckling and uplifting/folding of the Eurasian plate with the African plate, and the uplifting of the what had once been the bed of a shallow, tropical sea, where shells and other marine life had been deposited in layers over millions of years. The area is heavily glaciated (although no glaciers remain here today), and glaciation occurred at a lower altitude than in the Alps further north – Lake Plav is the largest glacial lake in the Balkans, and a glacier in the Plav/Gusinje area is thought to have been around 35km long and up to 200m thick.

Karst features – distinctive fluting, pans, sinkholes and limestone pavement formed by the gradual dissolving of limestone rock by rainwater – are prominent in Prokletije, particularly in the western half of the range. However, unlike most other popular hiking areas in the karst mountains of Montenegro (and neighbouring Croatia), availability of surface water is good on the Peaks of the Balkans Trail, with fairly abundant springs and mountain streams.

Rocky trail with karst features near the Prosllopit Pass, Montenegro (Stage 2)

Historical summary

For a more detailed historical timeline, see Appendix E.

Early times

The history of the mountainous borderlands between Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro – along with much of the Balkans – is long, complex and incredibly rich. Unfortunately however, it is little known or understood in western Europe beyond the prism of recent civil war, conflict and political turmoil.

By the first millennium BC Bronze Age tribes – collectively known as the Illyrians – were established along the eastern Adriatic seaboard (including Montenegro and Albania) and further inland, while Corinthian colonists founded trading cities along the coast and islands. The Romans began their gradual conquest of the Illyrians from the third century BC, leading to the creation of the Roman province of Illyricum (later renamed Dalmatia) which roughly included modern Croatia, Montenegro and Albania, and further inland, the province of Moesia which included modern Serbia and Kosovo. The Romans built roads and cities, developed trade and exploited the area’s wealth of natural resources including minerals (for which eastern Kosovo was particularly important) and wood. Both Albania and Montenegro still have impressive Roman remains, including UNESCO-listed Butrint in Albania.

The Illyrians didn’t simply vanish – several Roman emperors including Aurelius and Diocletian were actually of Illyrian descent, and a number of Illyrian tribes also left their names in the region, including the words Dalmatia (from the Delmatae tribe) and Adriatic (from the Ardiaei).

Following the collapse of the Roman Empire in the fourth century AD, and a succession of Hunnish and Gothic invasions, Slavic tribes settled in the Balkans from the sixth century AD. Byzantium remained a dominant influence in the Balkans, albeit waxing and waning with the rise and fall of other powers in the region such as the Bulgars.

The medieval period

During the 11th century the Serbian state of Duklja (in what is now Montenegro) gained independence from Byzantium, while the following century in Albania, Arbanon was established as a semi-autonomous principality. Duklja was in turn absorbed into Raška, which grew into medieval Serbia, and by the 14th century Montenegro, Albania and Kosovo were all incorporated into the vast medieval Serbian Empire. The seat of the Serbian Patriarchate (Orthodox Church) was located in Peć (Pejë), in Kosovo, and the medieval architecture of Peć and Deçan – just east of the Peaks of the Balkans Trail, and a very worthy detour – is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

With the defeat of Serbian and other Christian armies by the Ottomans at the Battle of Kosovo in 1389, Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro all fell under Ottoman rule for some 500 years. In Albania in particular, the following centuries saw a widespread conversion to Islam. Meanwhile Venice annexed most of the southern Adriatic coast, including the Albanian and Montenegrin coasts – a hold it would maintain until Napoleon Bonaparte extinguished the Venetian Republic in 1797.

Wooden minaret in snowfall, Plav (Stage 8)

Early 20th century

Serbia and Montenegro, together with Greece and Bulgaria, successfully attacked and defeated the Ottomans during the First Balkan War in 1912, leading to the Ottomans ceding most of their territories in the Balkans. Serbia regained Kosovo, Albania declared its independence. However at the end of the First World War, Montenegro became the only Allied country to lose its independence, becoming instead a part of Serbia when the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was proclaimed in 1918.

During the Second World War the Kingdom of Yugoslavia was invaded by Hitler’s Germany, Albania by Mussolini and later Germany. In 1945, Montenegro – along with Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, Slovenia and Macedonia (Kosovo had the status of an autonomous province within Serbia) – became a state within the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, under Tito. Meanwhile in Albania, the head of the new Communist Party Enver Hoxha became ruler. Tito formally broke ranks with Stalinism in 1948, while Hoxha followed a more isolationist policy, and later turned increasingly towards Communist China.

Recent conflicts

Following the death of Tito in 1980, Serbian leader Slobodan Milošević rose to power in Yugoslavia, fanning nationalist sentiment and reducing the autonomous status of Kosovo within Yugoslavia. Croatia declared its independence from Serbia following a referendum in 1991, and during the ensuing war between Serbia and Croatia (Croatian War of Independence), Montenegro allied itself with Serbia. Following this conflict, Serbia and Montenegro maintained the name Yugoslavia, but from 2002 this confederation was renamed the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. Calls by the Albanian majority in Kosovo for greater autonomy within Yugoslavia led to the Kosovo War in the late 1990s, between Yugoslav forces and the Kosovo Liberation Army, prompting a huge exodus of refugees into Albania, and Nato airstrikes on Serbia.

Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia in 2008, the declaration being recognised by most EU states as well as by Montenegro – which has distanced itself from Serbia’s stance on Kosovo – but not by Serbia, which still views this area as the cradle of medieval Serbia. A large stretch of the border between Montenegro and Kosovo remains disputed, and a drive from Berane in Montenegro to Peć in Kosovo goes through around 7km of remote and spectacularly beautiful no-man’s-land.

In 1990, the Communist regime in Albania allowed the formation of independent political parties for the first time. However the country descended into anarchy in the late 1990s following the collapse of fraudulent pyramid investment schemes, through which many Albanians saw their life’s savings vanish.

The church in Theth, Albania, built in 1892 (Stage 10)

21st century

In May 2006 Montenegro held a referendum and voted by a narrow margin for independence from Serbia. Although the EU began accession talks with Montenegro in 2012, at the time of writing (2017) any potential prospect of EU membership remains several years away. Both Montenegro and Albania are members of Nato.

National parks and nature reserves

Prokletije National Park, in Montenegro, covers an area of 16,630ha. It is the newest of Montenegro’s five national parks, having been designated as such in 2009 – a strikingly beautiful mountain landscape, the fauna and in particular the flora of which are fantastically rich. Within Prokletije National Park, the area around Hridsko jezero is a nature reserve (Rezervat prirodne Hridsko jezero), as is Volušnica in the Grbaja Valley.

The Peaks of the Balkans Trail passes through two national parks in Albania: Thethi National Park and Valbona Valley National Park. Thethi National Park covers an area of 2630ha in the Thethi Valley, and was declared a national park in 1966. The Valbona Valley National Park covers an area of 8000ha, and was declared a national park in 1996.

The Rugova Valley and surrounding mountains in Kosovo were declared a national park in 2013, covering an area of 20,330ha. There is some opposition to the new park from some locals, who fear it will affect their ability to collect firewood and graze livestock in the area, or to build houses there.

Despite the presence of these national parks, the area is not without its own environmental issues. In the Valbona Valley, there are proposals for a large number of hydroelectric power plants, some of them within the protected area of the national park itself. Pollution of mountain rivers from toilets – in some cases built directly above streams, as at Dobërdol – is another concern, in particular given the sharp (and continuing) increase of trekkers on the Peaks of the Balkans Trail.

View on the approach to the Valbona Pass (Stage 1)

VALBONA RIVER HYDROELECTRIC POWER PLANTS

There are plans to construct no fewer than 14 hydroelectric power plants along a 30km stretch of the Valbona River, with eight of these to be within the Valbona National Park itself. Despite local residents having filed numerous official complaints, and concerns having been raised by national and international organisations including EuroNatur and the WWF, there has been little or no response to these objections from the Albanian government: they simply argue that the concessions for the projects were made by the previous government, and imply they are unable or unwilling to stop them going ahead – even though they admit they should never have been granted.

Catherine Bohne and Alfred Selimaje, who run the Rilindja Guesthouse in Valbona, are doing what they can to raise awareness of these proposals, which would obviously have a catastrophic impact on the environment and surrounding landscape – which is simultaneously the region’s main draw card for tourism and the basis for a sustainable local economy. Local residents, represented by an NGO, TOKA, have moved to block the projects by filing a lawsuit against the government. Nevertheless, in September 2016 bulldozers moved into position in the Dragobi and Maskollata regions of Valbona National Park.

You can find out more about the proposed hydroelectric projects in the Valbona Valley at www.toka-albania.org.

Wildlife and plants

The biodiversity of the Prokletije mountains in Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro is extraordinary, from large carnivores to raptors to clouds of butterflies, and one of the most spectacularly rich flora of anywhere in Europe.

Mammals

Prokletije is home to small numbers of Europe’s three large carnivore species – brown bear, grey wolf and Eurasian lynx – with their distribution limited in all cases to the remotest areas of the range. Crucial to the survival of these iconic species in the region is maintaining effective wildlife corridors – the so-called Balkan Green Belt along the border areas of Montenegro, Albania and Kosovo as well as between Albania and Macedonia (part of the European Green Belt initiative) which EuroNatur (www.euronatur.org) has been working to protect and strengthen since 2004. Encounters between humans and bears are very rare; in more than 15 years of hiking in the Balkans the author has never seen more than a few paw prints in the snow, and some scat.

The Eurasian lynx survives in small numbers in Prokletije. A critically endangered subspecies of the Eurasian lynx, the Balkan lynx, survives in very small numbers in Prokletije and in the border area between Albania and Macedonia – there are thought to be as few as just 35 individuals left, making it one of the rarest cats on earth.

Other more common mammals include wild boar, roe deer, chamois, fox, pine marten, common dormouse and Alpine shrew. Bat species inhabiting the caves of Prokletije include the Mediterranean horseshoe bat, Geoffrey’s bat, greater mouse-eared bat and others. The Eurasian otter, categorized as near-threatened on the IUCN Red List, is also present.

Man on a donkey near the Pejë Pass, Albania (Stage 10)

Reptiles and amphibians

Several species of snake inhabit the Prokletije mountains, two of them venomous. These are the nose-horned viper, known locally as poskok or nëpërka me bri in Montenegrin/Albanian respectively; and the common viper or adder, known locally as šarka or nëpërka e malit. The nose-horned viper is the more venomous of the two (it’s Europe’s most venomous snake), and also the more aggressive; it is either light grey or brownish copper, with a dark black zigzag pattern along its back, and is easily recognizable by the prominent soft horn at the end of its snout. The common viper is generally around 55cm, with a zigzag pattern along the back. (It is worth mentioning that both the nose-horned viper and the common viper also occur in other, more frequently visited parts of Europe – for example, the former is found in northern Italy, while the latter is Europe’s most widespread venomous snake, and is found in the UK.) Other species of snake include the large whip snake, Balkan whip snake, Dahl’s whip snake, Montpellier snake, grass snake, dice snake and the tiny worm snake.

Snakes are very unlikely to strike except in self-defence (for example, if you step on them), and walking boots and hiking poles will usually alert a snake of your approach and give it time to slither off. See ‘Safety in the mountains and what to do in an emergency’ for more information.

A number of lizards are common in Prokletije, including the Balkan green lizard (which grows up to 16cm or more in length), green lizard, Balkan wall lizard, Dalmatian algyroides (unmistakable, with its striking, blue-coloured throat), slow worm and Prokletije rock lizard – the latter a species endemic to Prokletije and known only from a few isolated locations.

The amphibian you’ll probably see most commonly hiking the Peaks of the Balkans Trail is the fire salamander, easily recognised by its bright yellow spots. Other species found in Prokletije include Alpine newt, Balkan crested newt, Balkan stream frog, Albanian water frog and yellow-bellied toad.

A useful resource for identifying the reptiles and amphibians of Europe is www.herp.it.

Fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra) on a trail near Plav

Birds

Prokletije is very rich in birdlife, with high mountain areas particularly important for breeding raptors and Lake Plav providing a significant area for waterfowl and migratory species. Some 161 different species of bird have been recorded in Prokletije National Park (Montenegro) and 179 species recorded in Kosovo.

Raptors to look out for in the mountains include the golden eagle – a huge bird, fairly easy to identify by its long wings, long tail and sheer size – the short-toed snake eagle, Bonelli’s eagle, griffon vulture, common buzzard, goshawk, peregrine falcon and European honey buzzard. The latter is more closely related to a kite than to the common buzzard, and has an extraordinarily wide colour variation – generally in imitation of other birds of prey inhabiting the same area.

Prokletije is a particularly good area for rock partridge, and you also have a chance of seeing the Eurasian eagle-owl – one of the largest species of owl, with huge ear tufts – Eurasian scops-owl, hazel grouse, red-backed shrike, yellow-billed chough, Alpine chough, wallcreeper, ring ouzel, white-winged snowfinch, Alpine accentor, horned Lark, European nightjar, rock nuthatch and common crossbill. Several species of woodpecker are present, including the lesser-spotted woodpecker, grey-headed woodpecker and the endangered three-toed woodpecker.

On or around lake Plav, look for grey heron, great crested grebe, black-necked grebe, little grebe, great bittern and corncrake. The lake is home to the largest breeding population of corncrake in Montenegro.

Journey to Valbona have prepared a very useful checklist of birds in the Valbona Valley, based on information from the Albanian Ornithologist Dr Taulant Bino, which can be downloaded from www.journeytovalbona.com (select ‘About’, then ‘Birds’).

Butterflies

The Prokletije mountains are incredibly rich in butterflies, with 130 species having been recorded in Prokletije National Park in Montenegro alone, and 129 species recorded the area of Prokletije in Kosovo (to put these figures in context, there are just 67 species of butterfly in the UK!). Butterfly species recorded along the Peaks of the Balkans Trail include common swallowtail, scarce swallowtail, twin-spot fritillary, lesser-spotted fritillary, small tortoiseshell, mountain apollo and several species of blue including northern blue, turquoise blue and mazarine blue.

Plants

The Balkan peninsula constitutes one of the richest plant areas in Europe, with an estimated 7000 or more species of plants – a figure which includes numerous endemics and, because the region was not under permanent ice caps during the glacial periods of the Quaternary era, a number of Tertiary relics (species that were more widely distributed during the Tertiary Period).

Around 2000 species of plant have been recorded in Prokletije National Park in Montenegro, of which some 225 species are endemic. At least 1650 plant species were recorded in Theth National Park in Albania, 85 of which are rare or threatened, and four endemic; and over 1500 plant species in the area of Prokletije located in Kosovo.

Orchid beside the path from Çeremi to Dobërdol (Stage 3); bellflower (Campanula) near the Zavoj pass, Montenegro (Stage 7)

Along the lower sections of the Peaks of the Balkans Trail, coniferous, mixed and broadleaved forests dominate: Aleppo pine, Norwegian spruce, beech, mountain maple, white oak and to a lesser extent the regionally endemic Macedonian pine and Bosnian pine. At higher altitudes these are replaced by Alpine vegetation including mountain pine and juniper. Rich sub-alpine pastures and grasslands or areas of scrub extend above the tree line, giving way to bare rock and scree.

Wild thyme and other herbs carpet the ground in places, and blueberries grow in profusion during the summer months, along with blackberries and wild strawberries – hiking at this time is sometimes reduced to a slow but very enjoyable grazing pace. The number of fungi is astonishing; there are an estimated 2000 or so species in Montenegro alone.

Climate

The Prokletije mountains experience moderate summers and long, harsh winters. Daytime temperatures during the summer are warm but not unpleasantly so, reaching up to around 25°C in July/August, the nights refreshingly cool. July is the driest month of the year in Prokletije, followed by August and June, although the weather here is notoriously fickle and you shouldn’t rule out the possibility of showers, even in the summer months.

Over 90% of precipitation occurs during the winter, with precipitation generally at its highest in November. Winters in Prokletije are long and harsh, with heavy snowfall (between one and three metres). The first snowfall in the mountains is usually sometime in October, and is at its heaviest in November/December, with snow lingering well into the summer months, particularly on northern slopes. The snowline in Prokletije is considerably lower than in the Alps – around 1500m.

In general, northerly winds are colder and drier, bringing more stable, clear weather conditions during the summer, and snow in the winter; southerly winds tend to bring warm, moist air, leading to rain during the summer and snowfall during the winter. As in other parts of the Dinaric Alps, the northerly wind (called the bura) can be quite strong, with gusts reaching gale force.

The Montenegrin and Albanian coasts and lowlands enjoy long, hot summers and short, mild winters. In Montenegro’s Zeta plain, summer months can be oppressively hot – the Montenegrin capital, Podgorica, had the highest summer maximum temperatures recorded in the former Yugoslavia, while Orjen, above the north end of the Montenegrin coast, has one of the highest annual rainfalls recorded anywhere in Europe.

Alpine shelter near Hridsko jezero (Stage 8)

When to hike

The hiking season on the Peaks of the Balkans Trail begins in May or June, with the latter bringing more settled weather and milder temperatures – although you can still expect snow patches in June, or until July in higher areas. Wildflowers are at their most spectacular in June. July is statistically the driest month, followed by August and June – but this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be prepared for possible rain or thunderstorms during these months, just as at any other time of year. August is the hottest month. By September snowfields have dried up, and with them possibly some springs; nights will be getting cooler and you can expect frost. In October the landscape turns to beautiful autumn colours, and the first snowfall arrives sometime this month, which generally marks the end of the trekking season in Prokletije.

Getting there and around

Since the Peaks of the Balkans Trail is a circular route, it is possible to start or finish the route in Montenegro, Kosovo or Albania – meaning a flight to Podgorica, Pristina or Tirana, and continuing to a trailhead by local bus from there. On balance, at least if arriving from the UK, cheaper flights and more direct onward transport to the Trail favour flying to Podgorica or Pristina. (See later in this section for advantages/disadvantages of the different possible places to start/finish hiking the Trail.) See Appendix A for a list of useful contacts.

Visas

UK passport holders can enter Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro as a tourist without a visa and stay for a period of 90 days, as can most other EU passport holders including Dutch, French and German nationals. Similarly, US, Canadian and Australian passport holders do not need a visa to enter Montenegro, Albania or Kosovo as a tourist, and can stay for up to 90 days. Other passport holders should check visa requirements through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of each of the three countries through which the Peaks of the Balkans Trail passes:

 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Albania: www.punetejashtme.gov.al

 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kosovo: www.mfa-ks.net

 Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, Montenegro: www.mvpei.gov.me

(Select the English-language option and look for consular services/affairs.)

The above three websites are also the place to find the addresses and contact details of foreign diplomatic missions (ie consulates and embassies) in Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro. Make a note of these before you travel.

Note however that the Peaks of the Balkans Trail is in a sensitive border area and you must obtain a cross-border permit before hiking the route (see ‘Cross-border permits’).

Katun Bajrović, a summer settlement above Babino polje, Montenegro (Stage 8)

Flights to Podgorica (Montenegro)

Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) fly direct from the UK to the Montenegrin capital, Podgorica, twice a week. From Podgorica you can either continue by bus to Plav (in Montenegro) and start hiking from there, or continue by bus and ferry via Skhodër to Theth or Valbona (both in Albania), and begin your trek there.

Podgorica

Podgorica Airport (www.montenegroairports.com, called Golubovci) is around 15km south of the Montenegrin capital. There’s no airport shuttle bus, so it’s best to get a taxi (tel +382 (0)69 949 197; www.taxi-travel.me) to Podgorica bus station or your hotel, which shouldn’t cost more than €10–€15. (You can get a local bus on the Podgorica–Bar route, but you need to walk from the airport terminal down to the main road and flag down the bus there – and there’s no guarantee it will stop if already full.)

The main bus station (Trg Golootočkih žrtava 1, Podgorica; tel +382 (0)20 620 430; www.busterminal.me) is a 15min walk southeast from the downtown area and Trg Republika, across the River Morača, or a 10min walk southeast from the old clock tower (Sahat Kula) and the old town.

If you’re planning, or need, to stop in Podgorica for a night or more at the start or end of your trek, Hotel Terminus is good, clean and better value than most accommodation in the Montenegrin capital, and is located right next to the bus station (www.terminushotel.me). Pod Volat (Trg Vojvode Bećir Bega Osmanagića, Podgorica) is a good-value restaurant serving a wide range of local dishes, next to the old clock tower (Sahat Kula) – a 10min walk northwest from the bus station.

Podgorica airport is actually almost as close to Lake Skadar National Park as it is to Podgorica, so staying in Virpazar (from where there are buses to Podgorica) is another possibility, with some kayaking or a wine tour thrown in for good measure – contact Undiscovered Montenegro for accommodation in Virpazar or tours in the Lake Skadar region (www.undiscoveredmontenegro.com).

Podgorica to Plav

Around five buses a day make the 4hr journey from Podgorica bus station to Plav. Buses do sometimes fill up, so it’s worth buying your ticket as soon as you get to the bus station. Bus times from Podgorica can be found at www.busterminal.me/timetable.

View across Lake Plav towards the mouth of the Ropojana Valley (Stage 8)

Podgorica to Theth or Valbona

By public transport, this is a less direct route than Podgorica–Plav. There are two buses a day from Podgorica to Skhodër in Albania (journey time 90mins, timetables at www.busterminal.me/timetable), from where you can take another bus along the steep road to Theth (journey time 2hrs 30mins, usually departing early in the morning). Alternatively – and more scenically – take a bus from Skhodër to Koman (2hrs), from where you can take the ferry across Lake Koman, following the flooded course of the River Drin (timetables at komanilakeferry.com/newsite and www.komanilake.com/ferry-transport) – this ferry ride being the main reason for following this route. Of the two ferry operators, Berisha and Mario Molla, the latter offers the advantage of including ferry and connecting minibus services in one single booking. Otherwise, from Fierze where the ferry arrives at the north end of the lake, take a minibus to Bajram Curri (minibuses meet the ferry, as do taxis so make sure you know which one you’re getting by asking the fare); and from there, a minibus to Valbona (one service daily, journey time 45mins) – otherwise, a taxi from Bajram Curri to Valbona will cost around €25. Valbona is scattered along the valley for several kilometres, so let the bus/taxi driver know the name of the guesthouse you’re staying at to make sure you get dropped off nearby.

Other routes

Slightly less conveniently for the Peaks of the Balkans Trail but handy if you plan to spend some time on the Montenegrin coast, Easyjet (www.easyjet.com) fly direct from the UK to Tivat, as do Norwegian (www.norwegian.com). From Tivat airport get a bus or taxi to Kotor, followed by a bus to Podgorica, and continue as above.

Flights to Pristina (Kosovo)

Germania (www.flygermania.com) flies direct from London to Pristina in Kosovo twice a week (and their baggage policy is very generous – checked baggage up to 20kg is included, unlike Ryanair where you’ll be paying extra). Easyjet also flies to Pristina from several European cities, but not from the UK at the time of writing (2017). If you need to stay a night in Pristina, Buffalo Backpackers are located in the city centre and are reasonably priced (www.buffalobackpackers.com). From Pristina, take a bus to Pejë and another into the Rugova Valley (see below). This is actually the shortest route to get to the Peaks of the Balkans Trail.

Pristina airport

Pristina Airport (www.airportpristina.com, called Adem Jashari) lies around 15km southwest of Pristina. There is no airport shuttle bus service, but a taxi into town will cost you around €15 (www.taxibeki.net).

Pristina to Pejë and the Rugova Valley

There are buses as frequently as every 20mins from Pristina to Pejë (journey time 2hrs), from where there are twice-daily buses to the Rugova Valley, where you join the Peaks of the Balkans Trail.

Pejë (Peć)

The main bus station is on Adem Jashari, about 10min walk northeast of the town centre. There are regular buses to Pristina. If you need to stop for the night in Pejë, Hotel Çardak (Mbretëresha Teutë 101; tel +386 (0)49 801 108; www.hotelcardak.com) is a good, reasonably priced hotel in the town centre, between the main post office and the bus station. For tourist Information see www.pejatourism.org.

Pristina to Valbona

There are frequent buses from Pristina to Gjakova (in Kosovo, journey time 90mins), from where there are buses to Bajram Curri in Albania and from there to Valbona (see above).

The Valbona Pass, looking towards the Valbona Valley (Stage 1)

Flights to Tirana (Albania)

For those starting/finishing the route in Albania, British Airways (www.britishairways.com) flies direct to Tirana, from where there are buses to Bajram Curri (5hrs) and from there to Valbona (45mins). Choose Balkans run a daily jeep to Valbona, departing from Tirana in the morning (tel +355 (0)69 88 01 181; choosebalkans.com). Alternatively, a taxi transfer from Tirana to Theth or Valbona will cost up to €150.

Tirana airport

Tirana airport (www.tirana-airport.com) lies 17km northwest of the city centre. There’s a bus service into the city centre, otherwise a taxi will cost around €20.

Tirana to Valbona

There are several buses leaving Tirana for Baram Curri in the morning and early afternoon (journey time 5hrs), usually travelling via Prizren and Gjakova in Kosovo since the roads are better there, rather than all through Albania. Buses depart from Rruga e Durresit (the same street as the airport bus), just northwest of the Zogu i Zi roundabout in Tirana. From Bajran Curri there’s a daily minibus to Valbona (journey time around 45mins), departing from Bajram Curri early afternoon (and returning from Valbona early in the morning). See ‘Podgorica to Theth or Valbona’, above, for more information.

Arriving by train

Podgorica is on the railway line between Belgrade, Serbia (from where there are rail links to Croatia and elsewhere in Europe) and Bar (from where there are ferries to Italy) – a rather spectacular journey in itself as it navigates a course through the mountains of Montenegro through a succession of tunnels and viaducts. The main railway station in Podgorica is located next to the bus station. For train timetables see www.zcg-prevoz.me.