15689

Montenegro / Bosnia and Herzegovina: Bay of Kotor and Hutovo Blato

For our first longer 2022 vacation, Nada, Bronco and me decided to have a road trip to the Balkans with our target countries being Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro.

We have been on vacation for seven days now and it was time to set our course back towards Slovenia, but we were not in a hurry, so today we left Budva, drove next to Bay of Kotor, visited Grahovo and we finished the day in Hutovo Blato in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Previous days of our vacation: Day 6 - 15688, Day 5 - 15687, Day 4 - 15686, Day 3 - 15685, Day 2 - 15684, Day 1 - 15683.

Leaving Budva and Sveti Nikola island, that we will visit next time.

After we left Budva, the police stopped us - overtaking over double line. I was saved by my driving license, since it is obvious that I am a motorbiker and so was the policeman. I'm glad I still haven't changed it for the new one.

Bay of Kotor and the Kotor town.

The Bay of Kotor is about 28 kilometres long with a shoreline extending 107.3 kilometres. It is surrounded by two massifs of the Dinaric Alps, the Orjen mountains to the west, and the Lovćen mountains to the east.

 

Our next stop was the Memorial Park "Uprising and Revolution - Spomen-park Ustanka i Revolucije dedicated to Sava Kovačević and Yugoslav Partisans in Grahovo.

 

In the mid-1970s, a memorial project was initiated in Montenegro towards the goal of completing an expansive monument complex at the village of Grahovo upon Umac Hill, which was the spot where revolutionary fighter Sava Kovačević and his followers unleashed the first shots of uprising and resistance against occupying Axis forces in the region (which was part of a larger planned uprising at locations across Montenegro).

Nada and Tuši.

Karst field called Grahovo polje.

Curious Bronco.

Quick stop on the near Bileća Lake, where we spotted a nice orthodox church, unfortunately closed for visitors.

 

Finally we arrived to Hutovo Blato in Bosnia and Herzegovina. First we tested the boat and Bronco said it is stable enough and that he will go on a short boat trip.

Hutovo Blato reserve is on the list of BirdLife International's Important Bird Areas. It is the largest reserve of its kind in the region, in terms of both size and diversity. It is home to over 240 types of migratory birds and dozens that make their permanent home in the sub-Mediterranean wetlands surrounding Deransko Lake. In the migration season, tens of thousands of birds fill the lake and its surroundings.

Since 1995, Hutovo Blato has been protected as a Hutovo Blato Nature Park and managed by a public authority. The whole zone is well protected from human impact and functions as an important habitat for many plants and animals .

Video about the Hutovo Blato - Park prirode Hutovo Blato.

 

After the boat trip, we were hungry, so we had some food in nearby city Čapljina. But soon we retuned back to the reserve, where we set our base camp.

 

Our house was set, so we had a well deserved beer. Wild camping rocks.

Some fishermen came to visit us. They gave us some rakia and then they went fishing.

Geocaches found (all received a visit by trackable items "Chakkuri's Community Volunteer Travel Tag", TB676DY, "Get a photo of a tree", TB8JV00 and "Magic: The Gathering, Rivals of Ixalan Trackable: Vampire Die Bonbon Dose", TB8Q8AY):

- Bokokotor Bay view, GC45FWV

- Grahovsko Polje, EarthCache, GC8FAJ6

#CatahoulaLeopardDog #Balkans #geocaching

15688

Montenegro: Budva

For our first longer 2022 vacation, Nada, Bronco and me decided to have a road trip to the Balkans with our target countries being Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro.

We decided to spend the sixth day in one of the oldest settlements on the Adriatic coast, Budva. The plan was simple, walk along the coast, see the city, enjoy on the beach and meet our friends from the city.

Previous days of our vacation: Day 5 - 15687, Day 4 - 15686, Day 3 - 15685, Day 2 - 15684, Day 1 - 15683.

On the promenade towards the old town.

 

The town has many piazzas connected with narrow streets.

The Old Town of Budva is situated on a rocky peninsula, on the southern end of Budva field. Archaeological evidence suggests that Illyrian settlement was formed on the site of the Old Town before Greek colonization of the Adriatic. While the site was permanently settled since Roman era, most of existing city walls and buildings were erected during the Venetian rule. The entire town is encircled with defensive stone walls. The fortifications of Budva are typical of the Medieval walled cities of the Adriatic, complete with towers, embrasures, fortified city gates and a citadel.

The fragments of Roman Necropolis from 1st century B.C. were discovered in 1936-1938.

 

Bronco is afraid of water. We couldn't convince him to wet himself.

Guarding our spot on the beach.

 

We explored two beaches, Slovenska (Slovenian) and Bečići beach.

Meeting our friends. On the photo: Nada, Jasna, Tara and Tuši.

Budva in the evening.

#CatahoulaLeopardDog #Balkans

15687

Montenegro: Trebjesa and Skadarsko jezero Lake

For our first longer 2022 vacation, Nada, Bronco and me decided to have a road trip to the Balkans with our target countries being Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro.

On our fifth day we left Durmitor National Park and headed South. We stopped in Nikšič, where we made a short hike on their local hill called Trebjesa and after a while we did a boat trip in Skadarsko jezero lake. We weren't sure, if Bronco will board the boat, but he did it. We ended the day on the coast in Budva.

Previous days of our vacation: Day 4 - 15686, Day 3 - 15685, Day 2 - 15684, Day 1 - 15683.

Nikšić is the second largest city in Montenegro.

 

We spotted the convoy of Caterpillars, so I quickly escaped on a tree.

Easy hike on Trebjesa - Garmin Connect.

In a village Virpazar, we diced to go on a boat trip. Bronco was scared at first, but in the end he loved it.

First row on the boat. Skadarsko jezero - Lake Skadar is the largest lake in Southern Europe.

 

Like in a movie. Hopefully we won't end the same.

Lake Skadar is the largest lake in the Balkan Peninsula with a surface area that seasonally fluctuates between 370 km² and 530 km². The lake is located in the border area between Albania and Montenegro, the Montenegrin share of the area of the lake is slightly larger than the Albanian. The lake's water level also varies seasonally from 4.7 to 9.8 metres above sea level.

The lake is a cryptodepression, filled by the river Morača and drained into the Adriatic by the 41 km long Bojana.

 

Lake Skadar is one of the largest bird reserves in Europe, having 270 bird species, among which are some of the last pelicans in Europe, and thus popular with birders. The lake also contains habitats of seagulls and herons.

It is abundant in fish, especially in carp, bleak and eel. Of the 34 native fish species, 7 are endemic to Lake Skadar.

The lake is named after the city of Shkodër in northern Albania (Albanian: Shkodër or Shkodra; Serbo-Croatian: Скадар, romanized: Skadar).

Lotus flowers on the lake.

Bronco, Nada and a fresh Lotus flower.

The Montenegrin part of the lake and its surroundings has been part of a national park since 1983, whilst the Albanian area is a Managed Nature Reserve. As of 1996 Skadar was included in the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance by the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. In late 2011 the lake area was formally nominated for a UNESCO heritage status.

  

The water of the lake is completely changed in 2 to 2 and a half times every year.

Numerous medicinal herbs as well as plenty of orchid species can be found along the lake’s coast.

Bronco wasn't interested in the lake anymore, so he fell asleep.

The surrounding mountains on the lake shores are home to wild tortoises, lizards, amphibians, snakes, wild boars and wolves.

In region of Skadar Lake there are 20 monasteries, churches, villages, fortresses and sacred monuments. This lake is witness of Montenegrin history from 11th century up to now.

Returning back to port in Virpazar.

We drove to a sightseeing point, where we found a geocache and admired the view.

One last photo and we said goodbye to Lake Skadar and hello Budva.

Geocache found:

- Another view to Lake Skadar, GC6NTY4, that received a visit by trackable items "Chakkuri's Community Volunteer Travel Tag", TB676DY, "Get a photo of a tree", TB8JV00 and "Magic: The Gathering, Rivals of Ixalan Trackable: Vampire Die Bonbon Dose", TB8Q8AY

#CatahoulaLeopardDog #Balkans #geocaching