Peaks of the Balkans

Two weeks walking and touring in Albania, Montenegro and Kosovo. 

Two years later than planned due to covid delays, in the first two weeks in September 2022 8 of us (4 couples) flew to Tirana, Albania to walk the Peaks of the Balkans (PoB) trail.

http://peaksofthebalkans.com.

The PoB is a circular route of 10 legs and 192kms which crisscrosses the borders of Albania, Montenegro and Kosovo. The route was established only recently and calls itself the newest international trail. However, we did not undertake the whole route and instead signed up with local guiding company Zublo—www.zublo.org. In effect we undertook a “best of” the PoB, missing a good bit of dirt and some tarmac road tramping. And adding some great highlights which we would have missed.

We walked for 10 days. The crux was 6 days out 7 of over 1,000 metres height gain per day with a day of a cultural tour of Kosovo in the middle. During that time we summited the highest mountain in Kosovo—Gjeravica at  2,656 metres(below); and drove out in Land Rovers in indescribably and hair raising rough terrain. 

Much of the mountain scenery is spectacular. And the accommodation is largely in family “guesthouses”. We did eat a lot of fresh tomatoes and cucumbers. Beer available everywhere, but beware slivovitz! The weather was perfect for mountain walking. 

It was also a great chance to visit a part of the world with a recent fascinating, and sometimes gruesome, history. Albania was communist until 1990, in effect the equivalent of North Korea today; there are many old army machine gun posts-below-visible as one crosses borders, there to keep the population in Albania. Yet now the country has in part a Mediterranean feel. 

There was a brutal war in what became Kosovo in 1998/99 between the Kosovo Liberation Army and Serbia which led to the NATO bombing campaign against Serbia. Tension is still very much present and problems remain. See eg Tim Marshall’s good book “Shadowplay”. Yet, amazing Christian medieval iconography survived the Muslim Ottomans, the communists and the war.

We had a guide with us from Zublo the whole time. Although for hardy independent souls there is a Cicerone guidebook and a recent map available and Zublo can help with the necessary cross border permits, the guiding was a massive advantage for many reasons. It is the way to go. We would recommend highly Zublo. 

And as the PoB gets busier as it will, the guide said we should think about trekking the Eastern part of Albania which borders with and into North Macedonia. It is quiet and remote. Food for thought! Another trip? Or maybe Northern Greece next? 

The Balkans are altogether a great place to walk into September—in 2016 Adrian Walker and I did 20 days across Northern Slovenia. 

I have been brief in this blog. If anyone wants more information, just get in touch with me. 

Keith Gaines