This Peaks of the Balkans hiking itinerary follows a 3-day route from Kuqishte in Kosovo to Babino Polje and Grebaja in Montenegro, then through Vuthaj to Cerem in Albania. Together with Kosovo Mountain Club, we crossed high mountain passes, visited remote villages and celebrated a surprise birthday in the Accursed Mountains.

Peaks of the Balkans Hiking Itinerary: 3-Day Route Overview

  • Day 1: Kuqishte – Liqenat Lakes – Jelenku Pass – Babino Polje
  • Day 2: Grebaja Valley – Vajusha Summit – Vuthaj
  • Day 3: Vuthaj – Qafa e Borit – Cerem

During the past week, I was training CrossFit with my friends in CrossFit Prishtina, Hana, Vegim, and Aulona were eager to go to that particular amazing hiking adventure organized by Kosovo Mountain Club. Also, the positive thing about the mountains is that you always turn back wiser and gain new friends and build stronger bonds. My friends told me about their last adventure which left them speechless and fell in love with mother nature.

It was a 3-day adventure that I was very excited about and decided to join them. I really needed to go outdoors and away from the Internet, away from everyday life, and wanted to spend the time with my friends that were hyped including me about this part of the Peaks of the Balkans.
The main guides of this trip were Adnan and Rinor, two amazing people that took care of us, and every other hiker that was present that weekend.

 

Day 1: Kuqishte to Babino Polje

It was Friday the 2nd and the day of the depart began, we started our hiking adventure from Kuqishte through the wonderful lakes of Liqenat (Niqind Nete) “Long before the locals used to call it Hundred Nights because they stayed there during the summer days and took their livestock out there and lived their lives for hundred days till the cold and freezing days arrived”. – A reference from Adnan Beqiraj.

Thus, we went through the lakes and up to the Lugu i Shkodres ( Shkodra Valley) and hiked up to Qafa e Jelenkut (Jelenku Pass) and descended down from there and went near Roshkodol and through the new border between Montenegro and Kosovo, we also saw wonderful mountain peaks like Marjash that looked so lonely and outstanding.

After we took a short break in a freezing wind, we were standing on the ridge and prepared to head down toward Babino Polje that was located in Montenegro, also on the way we always saw on the right side the majestic Plaku Mountain, which used to be border before the demarcation between Kosovo and Montenegro. To sum things up, we descended down from the Bajraku pass and hiked through the wonderful trails that were covered in grass fields of gold, and in front of us, we could see the wonderful accursed mountains of Montenegro. With every step that we took, we were getting closer to our destination and also getting away from Kuqishte.

Meanwhile, the day was nearing its end, dawn came and we arrived at Babino Polje, we got accommodated at the mountain hut of Adriatik Gacaferri’s friend Enko. The Friday evening was very cool and fresh and we had so much fun together with Vegim, Ylli, Hana and Aulona we had an incredible time there. After the night was over a new adventure was waiting for us, yet unknown, the morning sunshine was covering the beautiful mountain of Plaku.

Day 2: Grebaja Valley and Vajusha Summit

The next day, we woke up from a wonderful sleep and got something to eat and prepared our backpacks and we got gathered by Adnan, took a group picture together with Enko as well as went to the minibus, eventually we took our road to the wonderful Grebaja. This day was one of the best days ever, there were many wonderful moments worth mentioning, like Hana’s Birthday party and the hike to the wonderful summit of Vajusha with an altitude of 2056m above sea level. Vajusha mountain is located in the Accursed Mountains of Montenegro or also they call it Prokletije.

When we arrived at Grebaja, we began the hike through a trail that was covered by marvelous trees with lots of vegetation. Throughout, the time being there, we saw wonderful springs streaming down the mountain, lots of butterflies flying over the golden fields of Vajusha.

Together with Aulona, Vegim, Ylli, and Hana we left the woods and entered the trail that led us to the top. Furthermore, Aulona and I went ahead and our pace got faster, the views got much better, to put it differently, they got outstanding. The views of this mountain are comparable to those mountain peaks in the Dolomites that are located in Italy. Henceforth, we arrived at the Vajusha summit, I could not believe what I was seeing, cathedrals of mountains touching the sky, spiky peaks that sent shivers up and down my spine. In that case, after we got hyped from those views, Aulona and I took some amazing pictures and had an amazing time there.

Subsequently, everyone reached the top, we took some amazing memories that will stay in our hearts forever. We descended down the mountain and arrived at a mountain hut in Grebaja, people were happy and excited, and hungry, so we ate something and some people drank Raki. That day, we went from Grebaja to our next destination which was Vuthaj. Vuthaj is a wonderful village hidden between the huge mountain peaks of the Accursed Mountains of Montenegro. That night, we went there and had a wonderful time there, we celebrated Hana’s birthday and had an amazing time there. Everyone at some point was drinking Raki, and we were dancing and singing. Adnan got a surprise cake for Hana, she was thrilled from excitement. Moreover, she was so happy and also we found the music which she was searching for all along.

Peaks of the Balkans hiking itinerary group in Montenegro

Day 3: Vuthaj to Cerem via Qafa e Borit

On the third day, we woke up, there was a huge rain falling down from the skies, some people thought that we are going to stay another night in Vuthaj, which would be amazing. However, after we ate breakfast and prepared our backpacks, the time came to say goodbye. Vuthaj is an amazing place and always will be. We hiked from Vuthaj to Qafa e Borit and descended down to Cerem in Albania. We hiked in the rain, the mud beneath our hiking boots and fresh air in the air, no one was mentioning the rain, everyone was enjoying it.

After we descended down from Qafa e Borit, also there is the border between Montenegro and Albania, we went inside a mountain cabin and changed our wet clothes, we got warmer and ate some sandwiches. We continued our way down to Cerem, overall this 3-day adventure was amazing and we thank the guides Adnan and Rinor that took care of us all the time.

Plan a Longer Peaks of the Balkans Tour

If this Peaks of the Balkans hiking itinerary inspires a longer cross-border experience with local support, explore our Peaks of the Balkans guided open groups for 2027 or compare all guided and self-guided tours.