A ridge walk with views, downhill through trees, along a road, through an open cast copper mine and into the town of Majdanpek. My day in brief.
The wind died down overnight and my tent was undisturbed and dry for the first time this trip. I watched the dawn break orange over the mountains that I subsequently hoped to cross, in particular the jagged ridge of Veliki Krs. My route took me up and down along a rounded ridge. Well forested to the north, there were frequent views to the south. Before dropping down through trees into the valley I climbed up to the summit of Breza. It was worth battling through trees and bushes to reach the top of this rocky peak for the sight of 360 degrees of snowy mountains, especially on a fine day like today. Note that the summit can only be approached from the south.
Coming down the north side of the ridge through the woods I unexpectedly came across some surveyors! Ruts in the track contained streams of melt water, and the muddy brooks and river were bursting from their usual confines. Consequently I was thankful to reach the road with my last 10 kilometres or so on tarmac, while my feet did not get dry they at least did not get any wetter. The road went up a wooded valley under a railway viaduct and through the rural village of Debeli Lug. Then the character of the area changed with a modern factory area mixed with remains of older industry. Finally a few kilometres before Majdanpek I followed the road through a tunnel into a massive hole opened up to extract copper, with lessor amounts of gold and silver. I could see huge dumper trucks going up and down to collect the ore. I was seeing for free what I had paid money to see in Kalgoorlie in Australia.
The town, consisting largely of blocks of flats, was a complete contrast to earlier rural towns on my trip. It starts at the point the pit ends and my hotel, the Golden Inn was not far beyond it. A hotel in which I was given a large suite with deep pile carpets, fluffy white towels, large TVs...you get the idea, a lot more luxurious than a miniature tent on a hilltop, and the receptionist spoke English. A bit lonely in the large restaurant area though.
23.2 kilometres walked today, mostly downhill. A gpx file of my route can be found on Wikiloc.com, and WanderMap.net. The route can also be downloaded from Viewranger.com as johnpon0027.
The wind died down overnight and my tent was undisturbed and dry for the first time this trip. I watched the dawn break orange over the mountains that I subsequently hoped to cross, in particular the jagged ridge of Veliki Krs. My route took me up and down along a rounded ridge. Well forested to the north, there were frequent views to the south. Before dropping down through trees into the valley I climbed up to the summit of Breza. It was worth battling through trees and bushes to reach the top of this rocky peak for the sight of 360 degrees of snowy mountains, especially on a fine day like today. Note that the summit can only be approached from the south.
Coming down the north side of the ridge through the woods I unexpectedly came across some surveyors! Ruts in the track contained streams of melt water, and the muddy brooks and river were bursting from their usual confines. Consequently I was thankful to reach the road with my last 10 kilometres or so on tarmac, while my feet did not get dry they at least did not get any wetter. The road went up a wooded valley under a railway viaduct and through the rural village of Debeli Lug. Then the character of the area changed with a modern factory area mixed with remains of older industry. Finally a few kilometres before Majdanpek I followed the road through a tunnel into a massive hole opened up to extract copper, with lessor amounts of gold and silver. I could see huge dumper trucks going up and down to collect the ore. I was seeing for free what I had paid money to see in Kalgoorlie in Australia.
The town, consisting largely of blocks of flats, was a complete contrast to earlier rural towns on my trip. It starts at the point the pit ends and my hotel, the Golden Inn was not far beyond it. A hotel in which I was given a large suite with deep pile carpets, fluffy white towels, large TVs...you get the idea, a lot more luxurious than a miniature tent on a hilltop, and the receptionist spoke English. A bit lonely in the large restaurant area though.
23.2 kilometres walked today, mostly downhill. A gpx file of my route can be found on Wikiloc.com, and WanderMap.net. The route can also be downloaded from Viewranger.com as johnpon0027.
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| Dawn over the mountains by my campsite |
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| Veliki Krs , I think, in the distance, a later part of the route |
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| Tunnel you go through to enter the large open cast mine on the public road |
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| Majdanpek copper mine |
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