From all five National Parks in Montenegro Prokletije was always the one that attracted my attention. One of the main reasons – this national park is known as a wilder and less touristic place. For me – sounds like an ideal plan. And something mysterious is in its name: “prokletije” can be translated as a “curse”. But in my opinion, the real “curse” is to stay in hot summer Podgorica or on the coastline (in summer the temperature can be +35 or above). So.. that’s how the hiking adventure began!

Route

Pogroica – Plav – Gradine  – Hrid Lake – Samel’s Cottage – via Biking trail to Plav – Podgorica.
In total, it took 3 days (can be done in 2). The total route is approximately 40 km and is going (partially) via The Peaks of Balkans trail.

Logistic

From Podgorica to Plav there are regular buses: 4-5 times per day in both directions: check the schedule on this website. The regular price is 12€, but the bus station will charge an additional 1€ for their services and one more 1€ will take the bus driver for the luggage space usage (yes, your hiking backpack would be mandatory to leave in the luggage). If you buy the ticket online be ready to pay an additional 3€ (it’s website commission). Time on the route (bus): ~4 hours.

Peculiarities

Complexity medium (not super easy, but no ice climbing – at least during the high season). The best time for this route is mid-summer and early Autumn. In Spring it can be too much wet and even snow. The weather changed so dramatically during the week when we planned this trip, so if we paid a lot of attention to the rain forecast we would not go at all. Be ready to adjust your plans on the go: as the weather is really unpredictable in this area. The day that was expected to be “showers” was stormy heavy rain, and the day with the heavy rain in fact was very sunny, with no clouds and even hot.

Recommendation:
Be ready to adjust your plans on the go: as the weather is really unpredictable in this area.

Preparation

As the main map mapy.cz was chosen. After long years of maps.me and google maps usage for hiking – this map is a real treasure! We took 2 liters of water with us (but you can find numerous drinking water sources during this hike). Except for other standard things for hiking I strongly recommend taking enough cash money (as you would not be able to pay by credit card for a night, or for dinner. Another recommendation: you can buy entrance tickets to the National Park online on the official website.

If you plan to visit several (or all) National parks you can buy all parks tickets – and save a little bit. If you’re vegan, consider taking some lentils/beans with you (ask them to cook them for you), as in these places you can find some vegetarian-friendly options, but not vegan. Also, consider taking your swimming suit to test the Hrid Lake (I took mine, but in the end found myself swimming right in my underwear)))

Interesting:
Hridsko jezero (Hrid Lake) – it’s a glacier lake in north Montenegro in National Park Prokletje. Located high in mountains: 1970m and can be accessed by one day hike from the Plav city, it’s also part of of the famous Peaks of Balkans.

Accommodation

I prefer such a type of hiking where you’re staying in comfort during the night – that’s how I and my husband usually plan our routes. 1^st night we stayed at Gradine Katun Camp. Credit cards are not accepted. Hot water in the common bath (girls and boys are separated). And very tasty local food. My hot recommendation is a local dish called “kachamak” – it’s similar to Italian mamaliga and Ukrainian banosh. The second night we spent in the Samel’s cottage (Samelova koliba). Very remote place, with no internet or even electricity (but I think that by request you can ask to charge your devices from the Solar Panel). Hot water (common bath again) veeeery warm blanket and super delicious food. By request, they can make some vegan options (no eggs) of pancakes for breakfast.

Budget

The total budget for 2 persons was about 190€ (~120€ – accommodation for 2 nights with breakfasts and suppers, 56€ – mini-bus transport Podgorica-Plav-Podgorica, ice cream in Plav after the hike – priceless!

Difficulties on the path

The first and second days would almost always be climbing up. That’s why we decided to split the route to the Hrid Lake into 2 parts. On the first day, you would need to cross the river (not a super difficult one, but after the spring season and heavy rains can be more challenging). On the way to Hrid Lake, it would be huge rocks that could be challenging to pass after the rain. Pay attention that in this area snakes and bears are possible – but meeting them is low probable (but be careful – it’s wild nature). Another difficulty on the path – is lots of berries (wild strawberries and blueberries) – that would hard to resist. There are many open spaces on the route (esp. days 2 and 3).

Waste / Recycling

No recycling and waste infrastructure on the route, so my recommendation would take all your waste (if any) back to Podgorica – check my Recycling guide for Montenegro for more details.

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