Hiking Volusnica

Author: Ivana Milicevic Kalic

HIKING VOLUSNICA

 

Montenegro is such a small small country, but OMG, it has so many varieties! You would imagine that you could explore it all in some 10 days... WRONG, impossible, nope, not even in a month, not even in a year. Well, I've been living here for 12 years, and I work in the travel industry, and there are still some places I haven't visited.

 

Montenegro has 5 national parks: Biogradska Gora, Lovcen, Skadarsko lake, Durmitor, and the youngest -Prokletije. All of them rich in natural beauties, and very different from each other. I must confess - my favorite one is Prokletije. And Durmitor :-D , OK, Prokletije is in the first place and Durmitor in the second first place. 

National Park Prokletije borders with Albania, and Prokletije mountains are partly in Montenegro, partly in Albania, actually, the highest peak is in Albania and that is why we take Bobotov Kuk (in Durmitor) as our highest peak. This area is so rich in wild nature, and the hiking trails are the ones with the greatest views of them all.  To start this season, I went hiking Volusnica...

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When you search for places to visit in Prokletije, you will always find suggestions such are Grebaje valley, Plav lake, Vusanje village, Ropajana valley, etc. They are all amazing, you can't make a wrong choice. But if you really like hiking, and you are in a good fit, Volusnica might be the best choice for you. 

 

 

 

To come from Plav to Grebaje it will take you some 30min, it is around 19,5 km. You can park your car anywhere besides the road in Grebaja, you could do it in front of some of the restaurants in Grebaje, or you could park your car beside the ramp of National Park entrance. The entrance ticket is 1e, and you can bay it online here. 

 

Hiking starts in Grebaje, near Suljova cesma (Suljova fountain).  

 

 

After just 100m, you will get into the forest. The path is marked very well, but hiking through the forest is honestly quite strenuous. You will have on your left side an amazing view on Karanfili peaks at some points, but hiking is quite uphill, and the forest is very dense. I had the luck this time to come at a time when the bear's onion is in its blossom, and the whole forest was covered with flowers.

 

 

Depending on your fit, it will take app one hour to get out of the forest, on the first meadow where the path goes in two ways - The path on the right goes to Popadija peak, then Talijanka and Volusnica, the path on the left goes first on Volusnica, then Talijanka and then Popadija. The first one is a little bit more strenuous, but in my opinion prettier because of the position of the Karanfili peaks and the view while hiking. In both options, you end at the same meadow and you go again into and through the forest down to Grebaje from where you started. 

 

 

The whole hiking (in both options) is 11km long, and the total uphill is app 900m. This uphill is on the first half of the trail in the first option, so count on 900m of uphill on some 5,5km of the hike. In the second option, it is divided into a little bit more kilometers and that is why it is a bit easier.

 

 

START OF THE HIKING, GREBAJE: 1160 m

POPADIJA PEAK: 2057M

TALIJANKA PEAK: 2056M

VOLUSNICA: 1879M

 

 

FOR MORE PICTURES FROM THIS HIKE, CHECK THIS LINK

 

In Prokletije national park, beside Volusnica nature reserve, there is also one nature reserve more, it is Hridsko lake, the highest lake in the whole Montenegro. In our next story, you can read about this beauty.

 

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