Our Hike up Mountain Crvsnica towards Hajducka Vrata

This journey was undertaken back in October last year, but I never got around to edit and post the images on the blog. I am finally getting around to it. This post is closely related to my previous two-part travel series to Nature Park Blidinje. But only in terms of location. If you remember the forest in part two of the aforementioned travel series, then you will know that I never hiked out of those woods, only returned from where I came from. Well that hike through the forest actually leads (after many hours of hiking) to one of the crown jewels of the Mountain Cvrsnica: the rock formation known as "Hajducka vrata" (translated: Haiduk door). That's why the beginning of this post may look familiar to you. 

What was supposed to be a 4 hour hike, turned into a all day adventure for us, since we were (and still are) unexperienced hikers. So come along with me, my sister Jasmina, her husband Amer, my best friend Selma, and her husband Damir, and "hike" with us through the forest, over the mountain, between the valley, until we reach the end of our destination for that day.

A walk through the Forest

It was a sunny Saturday morning as we took the first steps through the mountain forest. We were fresh, relaxed and ready to go. Of course we couldn't know then what awaited us, and that the road up the mountain would take pretty much everything out of us. The forest has a lot of shade and natural coolness, so it's very easy to hike there. There are some parts that lead up hill but nothing major. The real part of our adventure would start once we walked out of the woods.

Sunkissed on Mountain Cvrsnica

The first "problem" we encountered was that the sun in the mountains is much much stronger, so as soon as we walked out of the woods the real struggle started to present itself. We are overdressed, thinking that we needed thicker clothes for a hike in the mountains in October. But we were wrong. Also I don't think that most of us had the right footwear. But we marched on bravely, with the first pain in our foots knocking on the door.

First resttop

We made our first stop on a designated resting area and drank water. That's the only thing we came prepared for: food and water. Of course we didn't make this hike alone. We had a professional guide, Advan Stukman. I would recommend him highly, as he was very well prepared, attentive towards us and above all patient. We started to loose it after a while, but it was all met with laughter and joy.

You have to understand that this is not a hike for beginners. While I'm sure that professional hikers will classify the hike to Hajducka vrata as easy, let me tell you: it's not. First of all, there is a lot of walking, but also the terrain goes steep up the mountain then goes down and up again. It's a lot, and your feet will give up on you. As our hike went on the promise of that sight was pretty much the only thing that kept us going, and I won't lie, we thought numerous times about giving up. Luckily we didn't.

Mountain views and lakes

After we finished the climb, and reached the top from where we continued towards Hajducka vrata, it was a bit easier. Of course we were pretty much exhausted by then, so every step, even on even ground was a chore. We made another stop at the small mountain lake "Crljenak". We are advised not to drink the water and wash ourselves with it. We didn't drink the water, but we did freshen ourselves up a bit. Nothing happened to our skins. We also didn't care at this point.

Only a few steps divided us from the Hajducka vrata. To leave this mountain and not photograph the Hajducka vrata, is straight blasphemy. Hajducka vrata are a natural phenomenon at mountain Cvrsnica, which, besides its beauty, is astonishing for its position as it is located on the edge of a canyon of an even 1800 meters (5900 feet) drop . The legend says that the one who goes through the “Hajdučka vrata” becomes bulletproof. In the end the hike was totally worth it. The sights are breathtaking.

The Hike down the Mountain Cvrsnica

In the end it was time to return home. The hike down mountain Cvrsnica wasn't easy but we made out. Of course with lots of blisters. There as a sense of accomplishment in the air that overshadowed any tiredness. I made some final images in the forest, as the day started to vanish and night started to roll in. My feet were shaking as I sat in my car and started to drive us back home. Somewhere in the back of my mind I was hopeful that the walk through the Hajducka vrata would indeed make us bulletproof for any further adventure.

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