Today we did a hike on the Peaks of the Balkans trail. The Peaks of the Balkans trail is a 192km trail that goes through Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro via the ancient routes that were cut during the Cold War. We had no idea what to expect, except that if you're hiking from Valbona, the trails go straight up. This trail was no exception. And it was surprisingly enjoyable, despite feeling like we were hiking on marbles often (loose rocks). I also love hiking to saddles - it's like opening up a door to whole new view when you are hiking.
Because matching is obviously important - we look like such dorks!
The day started off with laundry - hooray for clean clothes! Then we had breakfast at our guesthouse which isn't served until 7:30. For a town that is all about hiking, 7:30 seems a little late for breakfast especially when the sun cooks you on the trail. If you don't agree with me then you probably should never consider traveling with me. Poor Dan.
Breakfast at our guesthouse in Valbona.
Check out who is sitting next to Dan - too funny.
Because we had to wait for breakfast, we got what Dan and I consider to be a late hiking start. We were worried about baking in the sun and being miserable. However, there were several sections of the trail that had some wonderful shade. Don't get me wrong though, it was still really hot for hiking.
Hiking up the Peaks of the Balkans Trail not too far from where we started.
There are shepherd settlements all over the mountains. You can see the stone walls and small hut in this photo.
Hiking in the Accursed Mountains is very deceiving. Just when you think you know where you are going or how far it is to your destination, it gets further away when you crest the next knoll, hence the name I have dubbed this trail: Saddle of Deception.
Still hiking up...
A cool heart formation in the rock
A short snacky break before doing our final push for the saddle.
Made it to the saddle and busted out lunch.
Once again, matching is so ridiculous. For what it's worth, I got dressed in my Covered Bridges shirt first in the morning.
Standing on the border of Albania and Montenegro with Montenegro behind us.
The mountains in Montenegro look so much tamer than the Albanian mountains.
The view of Albanian mountains.
There were so many wildflowers, butterflies and other pollinators.
Sections of nice hardwood forests were a great respite from the sun.
I took a post hike dip in the stream at the end to cool off.
The "supermarket" in Valbona. You can buy beer, soda, chips, cookies and tobacco and not much else. The closest town with a few more options is about an hour drive.
After we finish a hike back home, we often with have a Coke and Doritos (thank you Ellen for this tradition). After today's hike, we had a Coke and Vipa Oregano Chips. They were tasty.
There are always animals roaming in the streets.
This meal was delicious and ran us less than $30.
Check out the cow behind Dan. It kept mooing all through dinner. I think it wanted some attention, but was getting ignored.
Look at this cute baby marching down the road.
It was fun hiking to Montenegro on the Peaks of the Balkans trail. The plan for tomorrow is to hike Maja Rosit, which may be another butt kicker. So, we have decided to get up at 4:15am to try to beat the heat. So, off to bed for us.
Last year, Dan bought a book about canyoning in Albania, so that's how we ended up deciding to go adventure there. I read about the beautiful mountains, but what tipped the scales in Albania's direction was what I read about the food - it's kind of a mix of Greek, Italian, Turkish, and more. And with a mountain range named the "Accursed Mountains", we kind of HAD to check it out. Before we left, we had to get our ducks in a row, including creating our "geriatric garden" (raised beds) and putting the plants in the garden, getting and training a puppy, packing a lot of gear, wrapping up things things at school for my work and putting together the master spreadsheet for our trip. And before we knew it, it was time to depart. It was a long travel day, but we finally made it to Dhermi, Albania. We said goodbye to our pups, Maya and James and then headed off to catch the Concord Coach with a quick stop to get the salads that we always get for flights at Market...
Dan thought it was a good idea to do Benjes Canyon today despite the fact that it is a more technical canyon and very few people even do canyoning in Albania. So, I was a little anxious the night before thinking that we might die in a canyon in Albania. I am writing this blog now, so we obviously didn't die - yay. The morning started off well with a yummy breakfast in the garden of our guesthouse. Then we packed up our gear and headed off to find Benjes Canyon. We had to go several kilometers on a dirt road which would have made our rental car company very unhappy. We drove very carefully though. Breakfast in the garden of our guesthouse Our guesthouse There were even little pizza fritta - just like I learned how to make from my Italian mom and Nana We parked at a church that was tricky to drive to. The approach to the canyon was about an hour of hiking in the hot sun on a faint trail. It seems like we have spent a lot of time sweating since we have been in Albania. Eventually, we...
We set our alarms for 2:15am to start our journey from Albania to Meriden, NH. While our trip to Albania was a great adventure, we were excited to be heading back home. We talked about what we were most excited to do when we got back home. For me, I could not wait to play with my pups and check out how the garden was doing. Dan was most excited about sleeping in our bed and to hear how it went with James and Maron taking care of Ernie and Luca. Dan's top experiences in Albania were: 1) Holtes Canyon 2) Benjes Canyon 3) Xhiro in Berat 4) Affogado in Shkoder Kara's top experiences in Albania were: 1) Holtes Canyon 2) Hiking Maja Rosi 3) Dipping & jumping in Lumi Valbones without anyone else around 4) Xhiro in Berat Taking off before sunrise from Tirane Airport Sunrise from Air Italia Layover in Rome I bought a massive sandwich that fed both Dan and me for 2 meals. Layover in Amsterdam. Final bird home After being awake and traveling for over 24 hrs, I was soooooo happy to se...
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