2017 Europe: Adventures in Durmitor National Park (Hiking, Canyoning, Zip Lining)

14 - 17 September 2017

The host in Sarajevo recommended to visit the "Battle of Sutjeska Memorial Monument" before going to the Durmitor National. It is one of the most stunning World war II memorials in ex-Yugoslavia. It commemorates the battle of Sutjeska that took place in May and June 1943. In the battle 20,000 Partisans fought against 127,000 Germans and their allies. At the end the Partisans succeeded to break thru and escape, but the number of dead was huge (6000 Partisans and 2000 civilians), among them the legendary Partisan commander Sava Kovačević.

I have engaged RaftingClub TARASPORT for 2-day activities in Durmitor National Park. They are really good as they provide flexibility in customizing your own itinerary. They offer different accommodation options depending on your budget. They were very patience throughout email conversation with a lot of enquiries and changes for two months before the trip.

Below was the planned itinerary, 319 euro for food (drinks excluded), accommodation and activities.

1st day - arrival at the camp in the evening hours, dinner, rest

2nd day - breakfast, jeep safari and trekking tour on Durmitor (Bobotov kuk), lunch in the mountains during the tour, zip lining, return to the camp, dinner, rest

3rd day - breakfast, canyoning tour, lunch, free time, dinner, rest

4th day - breakfast, departure

Durmitor National Park is Montenegro's largest protected area. This breathtaking national park was formed by glaciers and is traversed by rivers and underground streams of which are embedded in the much larger Tara River Basin Biosphere Reserve (UNESCO reserve).

The camp "Divlja rijeka" is located at a very rural site where most of the roads are gravel road. The camp is in Bosnia region but very closed to the border. There is no convenient store nearby so I was lucky I brought two big bottles of water. When I first came to the camp, I felt nervous for not being able to fit into the environment. At night it was so cold, WIFI almost couldn't work, toilets/showers require walking to access. Day time it was 24c, night and early morning the temperature could be as low as 8c. Every morning I needed to bathe myself in the sun to stay warm.

Later this place reminded me of Onuku Farm Hostel in New Zealand. There were wooden huts, hammocks under trees and camp fire. The first dinner was awesome. The gravy of the beef stew made of tomato and chili sauce was fantastic and I wished to have a bowl of rice with me. The taste was very similar with Nyoya Pork Kurma.

The camp is not owned by RaftingClub TARASPORT. I was puzzling over the meeting time and how to meet the guide for tomorrow's tour. The next morning, the guide met us in the camp after the breakfast. It was a very young guide and he brought along his friend who turned out to be even better than the guide. He was talkative and helpful. We talked a lot and shared each other's culture throughout the hiking. I was lucky to have fine weather these two days for the coming outdoor activities.

Since there were no other guests in the tour, it had become a private tour for me. We rode on a jeep from the camp to the starting point of the trail. It was about 3 hours driving and we stopped at a few lookout points. Piva River and Piva Canyon along the way was spectacular.

Bobotov Kuk is the 4th highest peak of Montenegro and the highest peak that is entirely inside Montenegro and perhaps the most famous of all the mountains in the country. It was a long walk, but very rewarding. We took 6 hours to go up and down Bobotov Kuk. Watching the surrounding Montenegrin mountains and Durmitor massif as if laid out on the palm of your hand is really unforgettable. The hike is easy until you reach the last part where you need to use the secured meal cables to climb some rocks higher up. Going down was more challenging to me as I was looking down from high and the path was slippery.

After the hike, we continued with zip lining over the Tara river canyon, which has the deepest gorges in Europe. It was late evening by the time we reached and I felt it was a waste of money doing it for 60 Euro as it was getting darker and the river dried up due to drought. The original price for the zip lining is only 10 Euro but transportation from Bobotov Kuk starting point to the zip lining had made the tour price to 60 Euro. Zip lining is actually not extreme at all.

There was a long queue at the border and it was closed to 9pm when I reached back to the camp. Grilled trout was served and it was unbelieavable tasty. People gather around camp fire to watch live basketball match. My legs were sore and I was exhausted. 

The next morning, I woke up with muscle pain all over the body. Yet, I was still very excited for the upcoming canyoning at Nevidio. I chose canyoning over rafting because I feel canyoning is more adventurous and I can do rafting elsewhere. Canyoning is probably best described as white water rafting without the boat. You navigate your way down water filled gorges by swimming through rock pools, sliding down chutes and clambering over the rocks. This pastime combines elements from different outdoor disciplines including scrambling, abseiling, cliff jumping and swimming and requires local knowledge and rope rigging skills to be done safely. 

We set off slighly late today. We crossed the border to Durmitor National Park and after 2 hours we arrived at a restaurant where we made short break. It was actually noon so I thought we would have lunch first. We continued to the canyoning starting point and put the gear on.  

The tour guide was very professional and sociable. It is a shame I forgot his name. He offered a lot of help during the tour. It required a lot of strength as he carried gear, food, and water bottles in his dry bag. Sometimes he made himself a bridge so I could step on his body to cross between rocks. He told me the tour can have up to 20 people in summer and all of them climb on him to cross. The canyoning was fun. It was tiring at some part where I needed to swim. Being an adventurous person, I was very weak in jumping/diving. The last jump from 8m was really scary. 

Put on hood to stay warm

After the canyoning, there was a 45-minute hiking and walking back to the car park. The hiking was more tedious than the canyoning itself. The path was steep and I did it with my wet wetsuit on. Every step was heavy. We completed the canyoning after 5 hours, 2 hours slower than expected. We went back to the same restaurant and we were served huge "lunch" at 6pm. Dinner was waiting for me at the camp.

After dinner, we drove back to the camp. We made stop near Bobotov Kuk starting point to refill our bottles with natural water. As it was very dark in Durmitor National Park, stars and milky way could be clearly seen from the sky along the way. 

We reached the camp at 10pm and the hall was full of people coming for the live band this time. I skipped the dinner in the camp. I had a drink session with the tour guide while he shared his videos taken during the canyoning.

I left the camp after breakfast the next day. The breakfast was the same for past three days. The mini doughnuts were my favorite among all. 

I had collected 10 immigration stamps just in three days by crossing the border everyday. Piva Canyon Road is a very scenic drive, part of the European route E 762, in the southwest of Montenegro near the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina. The road encompasses miles of stunning views through twisty hair pin corners, high elevations and steep grades. The road has unfinished tunnels that add to the charm. The drive is definitely worth it. There are many excellent photo opportunities here. Don’t forget your camera! The views are superb and the place remote, but you have to keep your eye on the road (with rock falls).

The count of the tunnel is written on the right