Village Kaludra (11km, 885m) is one of the favorite destinations Berane bikers. The characteristics of this routes are paved road, moderate mileage in both directions (22 km) and climb that anyone in a remotely moderate shape can handle. When you pass the suburb of Luge and the village of Donja Ržanica, you will ride through the beautiful narrow valley of Kaludarska river that at some spots forms a gorge.
Throughout this entire section you will be followed by the murmur of water, and it is particularly nice to be here in spring when nature awakens and swollen streams that rush down from the mountains raise the water level so much that this stream murmur becomes a powerful roar that spreads all over this otherwise quiet and not so frequented road. The most interesting points of this section are certainly sharp stones of Ostri krs (5.7km), Djevojacki krs (6.7km), the Monastery of St. Luke (9km), and of course the village itself – Kaludra – which is still full of beautiful authentic houses unique for this region. When there’s not enough time for a whole day ride, or when the weather is unstable, this short section to Kaludra and back is for many cyclists a preferred option for riding.
Toward the heights
However, the real attraction in fact only begins from the village Kaludra, when the asphalt disappears and you go further upstream of Kaludarska river and take the gravel roads to some of the highest peaks here: Cmiljevica and Džakovica, Cafa, Murgaš and Hajla, Kaludarske kape and Mokra. To pass this route, through still pristine and wild areas of kaludra and Rozaje, is an experience you will long remember.
At 15.7km (1040m), when you pass a wooden bridge, with a sharp turn to the right, begins the ascent to the katun called Kaludarske kape. Characteristics of this zone are – pure wilderness, pretty bad road, and a lot of sharp ascent. The length of this section is 6.7km, the altitude that needs to be climbed is 700m, the average slope is 12% and the maximum slope is as high as 24%. For mountain bikers in good shape this is a common challenge, while beginners who overcome this challenge will feel as if they have accomplished epic success.
After a lot of sweat, but also after a great joy of enchanting forests of Kaludra and magnificent views, you will enter into a beautiful, authentic Montenegrin katun Kaludarske kape (22km, 1740m). At first glance this katun may appear empty, however, in a conversation with the shepherds who will kindly offer you a coffee, you will learn that according to the number of livestock this katun is one of the biggest in the whole region. Through one program of the Ministry of Agriculture, solar energy has been introduced here, and you will notice solar panels on many roofs in this katun.
Moving to the temporary settlements called katuns in summer, and taking cattle to better pastures into the mountains, is the centuries-old tradition of Montenegrin farmers. Wherever there are rich pastures, there are katuns. It’s nice to see that somebody’s thinking about improving living conditions for people who are still following this tradition. Unfortunately, in recent decades there are fewer people in the villages, and consequently even fewer in katuns. Katuns are perhaps the only places in Montenegro where you can still clearly feel the breath of our old traditions, both in the way of construction, as well as in lifestyle and food that they eat here. More and more foreign adventure tourists who come to our mountains recognize this as well, and along with phenomenal nature, katuns and their style of living leave most positive impression on them.
The pond
In the center of Kaludarske kape katun there is a small lake, the size of 65m x 48m, which never dries, and once upon a time it was clear as a tear, and the children were known to swim in it.
Today, it accumulated a lot of mud and a lot of grass which each year steal couple of centimeters of depth and size. In addition to being a great watering place for cattle, this lake is also an important wetland which is the center of a wider environment inhabited by a significant number of animal species. They say here a mountain newt has been seen, then the Greek frog which lives in the cold streams in the area. Among reptiles here you can encounter copperhead snake and Aesculapian snake, and in the wider area around the katun even venomous types of snakes such as common viper and staple.
As for the larger beasts, these forests and mountains are known as a major habitat of the brown bear and the gray wolf. At some point this mountain was inhabited by the Balkan lynx, but is considered to be long extinct and no one remembers when it was last seen in this region.
Options for return
To return there are several options. From the katun there is another dirt road that leads to Kaludra through Ravni omari, Suvovara and Pecanovica, and really attractive option is to return through the other side, through the picturesque villages of Sekular. If you have the time and you are in good shape, you may continue even further, through Mokra and Velika to Murino, and then via main road back to Berane. In any case, whatever option you choose, good view is guaranteed, as well as breathtaking nature, villages and locals who will be pleased to see you.
Part of this route overlaps with Top biking trail 3 – Enchanting East, which connects Bjelasica, Komovi, Prokletije and Hajla, and which in its 300 kilometers of length offers unforgettable landscapes and a completely different nature. There are numerous opportunities for mountain biking in this area. We should all work much harder and smarter to cover this whole area with different trails, complement them with other offer, and add much stronger promotion to make this cross-border area an important destination on the map of Europe where recreational, mountain biking is concerned.
MAGAZIN JUTRO
Exploration of this trail has been supported by National Tourism Organisation of Montenegro.
Red color marks the main route to Kaludarske kape, while other colors represent options for rturn mentioned in this text. We recommend that you take this GPS track log for your trip, or to use our site for navigation.
