back to Albania site    back to hikes and climbs   back to Locations and Travel

Off-roading west of Lake Ohrid

Summary: Most to Lake Ohrid rush to the lakeshore, or sip past on their way to Korca or Greece. With a little more time, wonderful and instructive excursions can be had in and beyond the hills east of Lake Ohrid, offering striking vistas and insights into life "beyond" the hills. We describe three separate trails, which of course can be combined during a leisurely weekend, or taken piece by piece.

 High above Lake Ohrid: From Qafe Thane to Memelisht:

Maximum altitude:	1361 meter
Minimum altitude:	735 meter
Cumulative height:	679 meter
Cumulative length:	21 kilometers
Difficulty	easy
Time:	about 1.3 hour
Date of this record	August 2011
Download GPS info:	Qafe Thana to Memelisht

General location and approach: Start from Qafe Thane, opposite the hotel on the pass. The road is used by trucks carrying iron ore, which is mined on the mountain. After enjoying the views across Lake Ohrid to Macedonia, drive through a more intense mining area and descend steeply (on asphalt) to Memelisht at the Lake. From there, it is only a few minutes to Pogradec.

 

To Guri Kamjes:

Maximum altitude:	1401 meter
Minimum altitude:	872 meter
Cumulative height:	557 meter
Cumulative length:	11.3 kilometers
Difficulty	easy
Time:	1 hour
Date of this record	August 2011
Download GPS info:	Guri Kamjes

General location and approach: Start from the village of Leshnice, first on asphalt later on dirt road. Guri Kamjes is an interesting rock formation, visible from many directions. You can drive right to the foot of the rock formation - and have a picnic.

 

From Pogradec to Librazhd, through the Shkumbin Valley:

Maximum altitude:	1309 meter
Minimum altitude:	432 meter
Cumulative height:	1076 meter
Cumulative length:	43 kilometers
Difficulty	moderate
Time:	less than 3 hours
Date of this record	August 2011
Download GPS info:	Shkumbin

General location and approach: Start from Pogradec and look for the road leading west into the mountains. The road climbs gradually, sometimes steeply until it reaches the anti-fascist monument on the pass. Turn right. From there, the road gradually descends into the Shkumbin valley. It is easy to take a wrong turn in the villages along the way, though sooner or later you may be led back to the road. Up to Trebinje, people orient themselves towards Pogradec. From the next village, people orient themselves towards Librazhd. In-between, the road suffers from neglect.

GPS and trailmaps: The map and trailinformation is generated by www.wikiloc.org, based on GPS information collected from the actual hike. Waypoints can be downloaded to a GPS device from Wikiloc. If necessary, use GPSBabel to convert GPS data to different formats. For more hike descriptions by Palmtreetreeproduction, browse this website or visit Wikiloc and search for "Palmtreeproduction". You may also find nearby trails from other authors.

Google Earth: You may also view the trail in 3D by clicking "view in Google Earth" when on Wikiloc. You need to have Google Earth installed on your computer.

Images: Click the button at the end of the page to view the slides in full screen