Wild Camping the Peaks of the Balkans

Quick Stats

When To Hike the Peaks of the Balkans

The Peaks of the Balkans is typically hiked between mid-June and mid-October, when the high passes are clear of snow and guesthouses across all three countries are open for the season.

• June: Early season. Snow can still linger on the higher passes, especially in the first half of the month, and a late snowfall can briefly close a pass. This is of particular importance for Valbona Pass, Prosllopit Pass, and Pejë Pass where remaining snow can lead to unsafe conditions. Lower alternative routes may be necessary. In June, wildflowers are at their peak and water sources are running full.
• July – August: Peak season. Weather is the most stable and driest of the year, though afternoon thunderstorms are common, and guesthouses fill up. It may be useful to plan your guesthouses ahead of time. August is also the hottest month.
• September – October: Cooler mornings, less risk of thunderstorms, and fewer people on trail. Weather can vary from beautiful, warm sunny days to cold rain and even snow. Some remote guesthouses start closing for the season in October, so confirm availability before relying on one.

Guide Book

I purchased the Cicerone guide “Peaks of the Balkans Trail” by Rudolf Abraham.

He breaks the trail into the typical 10 stages and gives a good overview. I think it is a worthwhile purchase. However, he tends to focus more on staying in guesthouses.

For gear planning and organization, I use TrekList, a free tool that I created to help with getting your pack set.

For route planning I generally use Komoot but for this specific hike, I found the mobile POB Map app excellent for navigation while hiking the Peaks of the Balkans.

Combined with this guide, you have everything you need for planning a trip on the Peaks of the Balkans.

Logistics

Getting There

• Flight → Tirana International Airport (TIA)
• Bus → Tirana Airport → Theth direct via Shkodër (Book in advance)
  • Albania Bus – €30, 5 hours with 2 hour stopover in Shkodër
  • Gjirafa Travel – €25 to €30, 4 to 6 hours

Passport Control: For EU travelers, Albania is not in the Schengen zone: full passport control at TIA. In my experience as a US passport holder, this was very quick with the new automated system. From arrival to grabbing a coffee outside of the airport was only about 20 minutes. (No checked bag)

Tip: The direct Tirana–Theth bus runs twice a day, departing at 6:00 and 11:00. If arriving from a long, international flight you may want to stay in Tirana the first night or two. It’s an interesting city with a lot of history worth a guided or self-guided walking tour. You can then take the direct bus in the morning. Another option closer to the trail is Shkodër. Although, I think Tirana is a better experience. The minibus from Shkodër to Theth runs at both 7:00 and 14:00 so you could start mid morning the following day.

Getting Home

• Bus → Theth → Tirana Airport direct via Shkodër (Book in advance)
  • Albania Bus – €30, 4.5 hours – Daily departures at 11:00 (15:30 arrival) and 16:30 (21:00 arrival)
• Tirana → TIA (If visiting Tirana) – local bus to TIA 400 Albanian lek
• Taxi / Private transfer → TIA

Note: The bus transfer is an experience on its own. The first leg to Shkodër is a bit boring. The transfer to the second bus can seem to be chaotic but they will direct you where to go. The second stretch is up and over a mountain pass. Lots of turns and switchbacks. Our first driver seemed to treat the bus as a race car. You may want to take a motion sickness pill or think of hiring a private transfer if you prefer.

What To Do Next

If you didn’t spend the first couple of nights in Tirana, I recommend adding a night or two to celebrate your accomplishments. I spent one evening there meandering the streets while following a self guided walking tour.

For dinner in Tirana, Tradita te Meri was absolutely delicious. The tavë dheu and qofte were amazing! Some significant sites worth checking out are Skanderbeg Square, Et’hem Bej Mosque, Bunk’Art 2, and the Pyramid of Tirana.

Hotels in the old city can be found for less than €80 at booking.com. I took a small guest room with a private bath in a nice location for 4,500 Lek or about €47.

Peaks of the Balkans Border Permits

The Peaks of the Balkans trail lies outside of the EU/Schengen Zone and crosses into 3 countries. It is therefore essential to acquire the proper permits to do so. Although possible to do on your own, I’d highly recommend using a company like Balkan Natural Adventure or Zbulo. The small fee they charge far outweighs the hassle of obtaining the border permits on your own.

You can find more information at Balkan Natural Adventure and zbulo.org. In order to begin your application you’ll need traveler information, your passport or EU ID, payment details and the exact dates and locations of your border crossings. You can apply 1 to 8 weeks before your hike. Once completed you receive your permit via email and can save a copy to your phone in case you are questioned.

Allow 1 week minimum for the permits to be processed.

I personally used Balkan Natural Adventure and highly recommend them. They were very responsive over email and friendly. We had a last minute change with our permit as my wife was getting off trail in Milishevc instead of crossing over to Plav as we originally planned. They were able to help guide us with the new itinerary, arrange transportation from Milishevc to Pejë and issue the updated permits.

Balkan Natural Adventure’s fee structure for permits begins at €25/1 person while each additional person on the same permit is discounted. For example, €25/1 person, €40/2, €45/3, €50/4, etc.

Here are my border crossing permits as an example from Balkan Natural Adventure with the full route over 8 days, beginning in Theth (counterclockwise)

• 20/09 Doberdol (AL) to Milishevc (KS) via Three Border Pass
• 22/09 Kuqishte (KS) to Babino Polje (MNE) via Zavoj Ravno Selo
• 24/09 Vusanje (MNE) to Theth (AL) via Lake Gershtaja

A typical 10 day itinerary would look like this.

• Day 4 From Doberdol (AL) to Milishevc (KS) via Three Border Pass
• Day 7 From Kuqishte (KS) to Babino Polje (MNE) via Zavoj Ravno Selo
• Day 10 From Vusanje (MNE) to Theth (AL) via Lake Gershtaja

Zbulo charges €5/person/border crossing plus Montenegrin border police fees.

For example, the full route (3 crossings) would cost €26/1 person, €43/2, €60/3, €67/4

Cost

In total, my cost for hiking the Peaks of the Balkans was around €600. This includes bus transfers, permits, 2 nights in Theth, 5 meals at guesthouses, 1 hotel in Kosovo, a small resupply in Plav and 1 night in Tirana. I kind of splurged at a very nice place in Theth which was €90/night so that brought my total cost up.

Food and Resupply

Meals at guesthouses were generally around €10 and I had a small resupply in Plav. To start the hike, I packed about 5 days of breakfasts, dinners and bars. In hindsight a couple lunches would have been nice. I brought most of my food from home. If you don’t want to do that, your best bet would be to either find a shop in Tirana or Shkodër but I also found that the small store in Theth was pretty well stocked.

Along the trail, you’ll come across the occasional stop that will have small snacks like nuts, chips and soda. I’d treat these as a bonus but not something to rely on. The first good resupply will be in Plav. For most hikers that will be 7 days in, so plan accordingly.

Packing List

I’ve done a lot of hiking including thru hikes of the Pacific Crest Trail, Appalachian Trail and various European hikes like the Tour du Mont Blanc, Alta Via 1 and West Highland Way. In total over 8,000 miles hiked. Over all those miles, I’ve learned what has worked well for me. Below, you’ll find my Peaks of the Balkans packing list to help you sort kit.

This is everything I actually took with me. In total, it was 5.9kg | 13lb plus worn items.

Tip: If you plan to extend your stay in Europe beyond the Peaks of the Balkans, there are services available to store additional luggage while you’re on your hike. I highly recommend this option to avoid carrying unnecessary gear that you won’t use during the hike.

If you just need storage, Bounce works well. They partner with local shops, hotels and small businesses to hold your bags safely while you hike. Booking through that link gets you 5% off.

Another option for luggage storage on the Peaks of the Balkans is the Store&Go in Shkodër. It is conveniently located near the bus stop when transferring to Theth. There you can expect to pay between €5.00 and €5.50 per day for luggage storage.

Wild camping spots

Guesthouses

I didn’t stay at any guesthouses along the trail and as this guide is mostly focused on wild camping I won’t include a lot of information here. The POB Map app does have a lot of guesthouses with contact and booking links included. Useful if you prefer that route or want a last minute stay in a bed instead of your tent.

Guesthouse Meals

Planning for the trek, my main concerns were where to wild camp and how much food to bring. I expected only to eat dinner or breakfast at guesthouses but I found that I was able to find midday meals as well. Sometimes on a limited menu and never really guaranteed. When the option was available, I made use of it.

Here are some of the places I ate along the way.

• Guesthouse Relax, Çerem – Late Lunch
• Guesthouse Roshkodoli – Late Lunch (Delicious!)
• Guesthouse Bujtina Kaçaku – Coffee and Cake
• Guesthouse Maslo, Babino Polje – Traditional cabbage pastry dish (Yum!)
• Bakery in Plav

Tip: If wild camping during June, July or even early August when the days are long. I’d consider stopping at a guesthouse for dinner, then moving on to find a wild camp spot in the mountains while the sun is still out.

Peaks of the Balkans Trail Map

Should you skip Kosovo?

When I began this hike, I had heard from numerous other hikers in the community “I hiked the Peaks of the Balkans, but I skipped Kosovo.” That made me curious as to why someone would skip over 2 entire stages and more than 15% of the trail. I myself am a purist whether I like it or not so I decided to hike it.

I didn’t truly make up my mind until the night before while staying at Hotel Gryka. The reason hikers skip it is because most of the route is road walking. It’s not necessarily a busy road but nonetheless it is largely on asphalt and not many views are had.

The good news is you can easily do a big day (I did 33km) and there were a couple of really nice guesthouses along the way. Furthermore, I am a believer in psychological lows and highs. When you get through the section, you’ll appreciate the next section even more!

If you choose to tackle the whole trail, download a good podcast and go for it. Otherwise you can skip this bit and enjoy the highlights of the trail.

How would I skip Kosovo?

In my opinion there are two good options, although you could find more if you choose. The first involves a transfer while the second would still be a continuous footpath.

Skipping Kosovo with a transfer while skipping the least amount of actual trail

This is the route I’d personally choose as you still experience a lot of the great parts of the trail without missing any highlights. Continue on after Milishevc, the trail leads sharply left and upwards (it’s a tough climb). At the top, probably the most beautiful grassland of the whole trip and an amazing wild camp spot. Over the next small pass you’ll continue on past a seasonal lake before descending steeply. This part of the trail is honestly tough and even worse if it’s wet as everything turns to mud.

Once at the bottom you can grab a transfer from the Gryka Hotel. I would take the transfer all the way up to Liqenat where there is a restaurant with €15 steaks and free camping with a view of the valley. Here is the route on Google Maps. You can camp here or continue on further to the lake.

The transfer from Hotel Gryka to Villa Liqenat: about 12 km and 30 minutes by car via Kuqishtë.

Skipping Kosovo without a transfer

From Milishevc, you will backtrack a bit and take the trail up to Maja e Bajrakut. This will bring you to a saddle along the “high route”. The beautiful valley you descended into earlier will be on your left as you progress further south.

The good part about this option is you skip that steep downhill to Hotel Gryka and you don’t have to worry about the logistics of a transfer. The downside is you will miss Liqenat Lake and a beautiful climb up to the highest point on the whole trail Qafa e Jelenkut (Jelenkut Pass) at 2,272m.

Tips

Water

Typically I only carry a filter like the Katadyn Befree or the Sawyer Squeeze. Both of these filters are excellent choices and filter bacteria and protozoa (Giardia, Cryptosporidium) well.

I chose to bring purification tablets (Aqua Tabs) as well because sections of the trail have run off from shepherd huts, guesthouses and cattle. There have been numerous reports particularly before and after Doberdol of what is suspected to be norovirus. Filters alone will not kill the virus and I’d rather not spend my hike pooping and vomiting along the trail.

In the end, I filtered all of my water with the Befree and added an Aqua Tab to 90% of it, particularly on the Albania side. I had no issues with getting sick although I heard of others and met a Frenchman who was skipping ahead a couple of days to rest in Plav because of an illness. He said he wasn’t sure if it was the food or water but it was a gastrointestinal issue.

Phone Service eSim

I always use the Jetpac app when traveling. I only purchased a plan for Albania as most of my hike would be spent there and I was able to connect to wifi at guesthouses. If you prefer you could purchase small plans for Kosovo and Montenegro. In general cell service isn’t great but I was able to still connect in places like Theth, Valbona, high up on the tri-point after Doberdol and random other spots. Because the cost of those plans is so cheap, I say go for it. I paid $17 for two different packs in Albania. One to start the trek and one when I finished as I spent some time in Tirana.

Unfortunately, if you have a carrier locked phone you will not be able to use a new eSim from Jetpac.

Weather App

I’ve found that Meteoblue is the best for local weather along the Peaks of the Balkans trail. There is an associated app you can download.

Gear Items

The most convenient way to pick up last minute essentials like camping gas, trekking pole rentals or Aqua Tabs is the Store&Go in Shkodër. During your transfer between buses you should have plenty of time to head over and pick up what you need from their lockers. It’s about a 5 minute walk from the main bus “station” tucked into the 1st floor (2nd floor in American) of a building. Google will help you find it. You’ll want to reserve items ahead of time on the website although they do have the option to purchase straight away from the lockers.

I found this super easy to grab a 230g canister for my BRS-3000t stove. The GasPower 230g with the typical EN417 standard screw-top fitting works on stoves like the BRS-3000t, MSR Pocket Rocket, Jetboil, Snow Peak Gigapower and others.

Note: I did initially have an issue screwing on my BRS-3000t stove to the GasPower canister. It seemed like the threads didn’t line up correctly and it was quite difficult to tighten all the way down. After a few tries and much to my relief, the gas fumed out and I was able to then screw it all the way down.

Peaks of the Balkans Trip Report

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