Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Prokletije National Park
Montenegro's newest national park was declared in 2009, covering 16,000 hectares of the
mountainous region on the border with Albania and Kosovo. It contains the country's
highest peak, Kolac (2534m); on the Albanian side of the border the Prokletije mountains
soar to 2694m. There has long been talk of declaring the entire range a cross-border
Balkan Peace Park, but the politics have yet to be ironed out.
Ancient glaciers formed the Plav Valley on the edge of the mountains. Lake Visitor, in
the mountain of the same name above Plav, has the unusual quirk of a floating island.
Local legends say that it was once a raft used by the ancient shepherds to transport stock.
Because it was well fertilised it developed soil and foliage and now drifts around the lake.
Tourist infrastructure is limited in the gateway towns of Plav and Gusinje, but that is
bound to improve. The park holds plenty of potential for mountain biking, hiking and seri-
ous mountaineering.
One of Montenegro's more curious species is the olm, a blind amphibian that can be found in Biogradska
Gora National Park. Its Montenegrin name, č
ovje
č
ja ribica,
means 'human fish' because of its human-like
skin.
