Scenic route from Bar to Žabljak

Off into the hinterland we go, without the caravan in tow. Which turned out to be the best idea ever…

The Oldies left the caravan on the campsite and set off to explore inland Montenegro, following the advice of an Englishman who had lived there for ten years. The route he suggested has got to go down as the most beautiful drives on our travels yet!

I had to say goodbye to the coast soon after Bar when the Oldies turned onto the main road to Podgorica. Thinking that this will be the boring bit, I almost dozed off, but I sat up and took notice as soon as I realised that the road was leading us past Virpazar. I was going to see Lake Skadar again! Better still, we even drove across it, on the bridge at Lesendro Fortress. I decided to stay awake after that.

The main road from the capital Podgorica running along the River Morača is a treat in itself. This is my kind of ‘main’ road! Her Ladyship insisted we stop to have a look at the construction of a new road bridge across the river, and predictably raved on about the ‘gorgeous’ cranes and what not. Marvellous engineering I suppose. Montenegrin road builders certainly have their work cut out for them. But still, give me the old scenic routes any day.

As the road rose higher and the gorge became deeper, we had to negotiate endless bends and a string of tunnels which were simply hewn out of the rock. I noticed His Lordship grimacing as he watched the driver of a truck in front keeping to the middle of the road to ensure he had clearance overhead. I bet Himself was glad we had left the caravan behind!

The road was hairy and scary enough, but you should have seen the railway line running along the other side of the gorge. Crikey! That is surely a wild ride, but the views from the train must be fabulous. I wonder if His Lordship will ever manage to persuade Herself to give it a go.

I’m always on for a picnic. What seagull isn’t? But this was another first for me: a picnic in the grounds of a monastery. The Morača Monastery has been beautifully restored, and what a location! I wasn’t surprised to see that there had been a wedding there just before we arrived. Nice, I suppose. Give me a picnic any day, though.

Not far past the monastery, we turned off the ‘main’ road towards the Durmitor National Park. We were finally in the wild, mountainous Montenegro I’d been hearing about all this time. Wow. This really has to be seen to be believed!

At one stage, the Oldies stopped off at a viewing point and were quietly drinking in the views when suddenly there was a screech of brakes. In typical Montenegrin fashion, a Podgorica-registered car came to an abrupt halt as far from the designated parking area as it could be, and of course, nose to kerb with the boot sticking out into the road. A middle-aged guy hopped out and rushed over to the Oldies, enthusiastically shaking their hands as if they were long-lost friends. He explained that he had never driven this road before even though he only lived a couple of hours away. In fact, he was making it his business to finally get to know his own country better as there are just so many beautiful places to see. ‘You need not one, but two lifetimes to see Montenegro!’ he declared. From the little I’ve seen of this little country, I tend to agree.

He shook hands again, bid the Oldies farewell and drove off. He’d only driven about 50 metres when he yanked the car back onto the wrong side of the road and stopped to take a photo through the car window. Thank goodness there weren’t any other locals out discovering their country at that particular moment!

Over the next few hours, we slowly wended our way along this scenic route, marvelling at the unspoilt scenery. We eventually came to a plateau where the landscape opened out to pure, unadulterated, chocolate box scenery. Lush, mountain pasture, a riot of colour in its blanket of wildflowers, a shepherd sitting by the roadside watching over his flock of sheep grazing nearby, a backdrop of stunning snow-capped mountains in the distance. You couldn’t make this stuff up, for goodness sake!

Traffic was still fairly quiet on the road here. Only the occasional baaa!

The Oldies had spent so long meandering along that they had a bit of a challenge finding a place to stay for the night. They finally found a room in a ski hotel in Žabljak, a resort with an old-fashioned feel to it, but with some funky, modern hotels and restaurants. And some funky, modern food too, thank goodness!

After dinner, His Lordship announced that he was going  to get up at 6.30 am the next day. He said he was determined to go down to the glacier lake, Crno Jezero, just outside the town to take photos in the early morning light. Now, this was coming from a guy who has got up early to take photos exactly once in the past three years. And that was only because the bed in the hotel we were staying in was so uncomfortable that he had to get up to ease his backache.

Her Ladyship and I nodded off that night, luxuriating in the thought of the long lie-in we’d all have in the morning…