Active Albania - rafting, trekking, off-road
Albania has places that are not easy to reach, but once you get there you are rewarded with beautiful landscapes and wild nature. Stunning views, few tourists, quite decent infrastructure and helpful locals. Ideal places for those who want an active break: rafting, trekking in the mountains or travelling along roads passable only for off-road vehicles.
Rafting on the Osum river
When in Albania, you are sure to end up in the town of Berat, as it is one of the most interesting thanks to its setting and historic architecture. From Berat to Çorovodë it is 50 km, which takes about 1.5 hours to drive. Çorovodë is the centre of the Skrapar region, which offers many different activities. Rafting on the Osumi river is certainly one of them. It is an 18 km trip down the river, during which you admire 15 waterfalls. Their exact number depends on the season, in other words on the amount of water. The canyon varies in width. At its narrowest it is only 1.9 metres wide, so some air has to be let out of the larger rafts to squeeze them through. Giuseppe, a native Italian, has his base on the main square in Çorovodë and can organise a trip even for a single person. I was on my own, so he charged me 40EUR, but if there had been more of us, Peppe would have charged 30EUR per person. From Çorovodë you ride upriver in a van, where the rafts are launched, there is a short safety briefing and off you go with the current. You collect all the equipment you need from Giuseppe's base. You will find more information about the activities he organises at http://www.actionxscrapar.com .
The Osum canyon is best admired while rafting, but you can also view it from its high cliffs. Treks along the river can be organised when the water level is at its lowest, between July and September. But even then there are stretches you will have to swim. Giuseppe organises not only rafting trips but also treks and 4x4 expeditions.
A few kilometres beyond Çorovodë there is a newly built viewing terrace above the abyss. It was paid for by Albanian Americans. Admission is free and the views are breathtaking. You walk along a horseshoe-shaped terrace, so you can see the canyon in both directions. If you drive a few kilometres further, you can turn off to the right and go down to the river itself. That is where rafting trips usually start. There is a stony beach and a bar beneath a high cliff.
Watch on YouTubeOther places in the area worth recommending are the mysterious tunnels from the era of Enver Hoxha's communist dictatorship. Just 3 km from Çorovodë are the Pirogosh tunnels, which may remind you of an underground city. They were built in complete secrecy over 17 years. The underground stores were used to keep weapons and ammunition. It was estimated that the supplies stockpiled there would allow Albanian territory to be defended for 6 months. Another tunnel complex, in use until 1993, was used to store the state's gold reserves. Huge doors weighing several tonnes and an advanced alarm system, together with the natural protection of inaccessible mountains, were meant to block any access.
There is also no shortage of interesting Ottoman-era monuments in the area: the 26-metre Kasabashi Bridge, built in 1640, is still very impressive. There are also the ruins of a medieval bathhouse. More information can be found at http://www.vistiscrapar.com You can also ask the locals or get information at the tourist information centre on the market square in Çorovodë, which is the centre of the little town. In the surrounding streets you can find a room for a few euros. For those who want to treat themselves to a little luxury, I recommend the Hotel Kanione. It is located a few kilometres outside town ( http://hotelkanione.weebly.com ). To be honest, it was the only one that came up for me on Booking when I was booking a room a few hours in advance. I was charged 20EUR for a single room with breakfast. The large terrace, with a covered barbecue area, where you can have an evening beer or a morning coffee, is well worth recommending.
If you have made it to Çorovodë and want to continue south to Gjirokastra or to the coast near Saranda, you unfortunately have a problem. About 20 km of paved road across the mountains is missing to get from one valley to the other. I had to go back and drive via Berat and Fier, reaching historic Gjirokastra after a four-hour drive. I estimate that once the missing section is built, the journey will take no more than 1.5 hours. On the other hand, it is now a superb route for an off-road vehicle! If you would like to do it on foot, equip yourselves with something to deter aggressive sheepdogs. I have heard that some people use stun guns and pepper spray.
The Albanian Alps
The Albanian Alps cover the north of the country, near the borders with Montenegro and Kosovo. They are among the wildest and most inaccessible mountains in Europe. The highest peak (2694 m) is near the village of Theth. The village is something of a mecca for trekkers and travellers, so everyone tries to get there. "Tries", because the road ends at the Boge pass: the next 17 km are off-road. Either you have a car that can cope with such challenges, or you use hired transport.
At the pass, the owner of an elderly Land Rover struck up a conversation with me. Gjok Boga offers a 4x4 taxi service. You can find him on Facebook (Gjokboga), or you can phone 00355695377869. His opening price was 50EUR one way to Theth. If your stay in the village were limited to 2-3 hours, he would drive you back to the pass for the same price. Many people go to Theth to hike the 14 km trail to Valbona. If you are thinking of such a hike, take a look at the interesting description and photos of it by the authors of the blog https://albumzpodrozy.pl/szlak-valbona-theth/
I didn't take up the offer of a ride to Theth and slept on the pass at Buni i Bajraktarit, 100 metres from the end of the tarmac road. They are open from May to October, because for the rest of the year everything is buried under snow. I paid 25EUR for a tiny cabin (two single beds), with a smart outhouse and a shower in a separate little building. The price included a delicious dinner and breakfast. Plus priceless views. A 1.5-hour red trail starts right behind the cabins. Of course, you can also set off from here along the road to Theth.
I didn't make it to Theth, though I really wanted to see the so-called lock-in tower. The building itself is probably less impressive than the whole cultural context of its role. Albania had a special code of conduct that defined what you could and could not do, how to behave in a given situation and how to defend your family's honour. Unfortunately, among its many rules were honour killings, linked to the duty to avenge a member of your family. This revenge of honour has much in common with the Italian vendetta. And this is where the role of the towers becomes clear. They served as a refuge for the killers, who could live in them safely for as long as their clan negotiated the terms of a settlement. Remember that such negotiations could drag on for years. Besides the tower, the village's little stone church, its silhouette standing out against the majesty of the mountains, is certainly worth seeing. This building, more than a hundred years old, was recently restored thanks to the Albanian diaspora in the United States.
Watch on YouTubeThe gateway to the Albanian Alps is the large town of Shkodra, from which it takes about 1.5 hours (around 50 km) to drive to the Boge pass. If you don't have your own car, a minibus from Shkodra will take you there for 10EUR. A very interesting option for reaching the inaccessible Albanian mountains is to fly to Podgorica in Montenegro (direct LOT flights) and continue from there in a rental car. After 30 km you cross the border, and the whole journey can take only 2-3 hours. Remember to get a green card at the airport in the Montenegrin capital, which allows you to cross the border as often as you like (cost 40EUR).
If you still want more information about Albania, read this post about my impressions from a few years ago. And if you have already decided that you want to discover wild Albania but don't want to do it alone, I recommend getting in touch with Marek Jaźwiecki of #4x4flatearth or #suvexpedition, who organises interesting trips to the areas I have described.
