This is part 2 of our story following Pushing Past Fear: A Journey through Albania and Montenegro. If you’ve already read it and want to know how we find ourselves climbing over a mountain and negotiating horse transport, here we go…
From Shkoder to Valbona Valley
We are told to be ready at 6:30 this morning and that a driver will take us to our accommodation in Valbona. As our driver approaches us, so too does a young man named Andi who will be our guide for the next two days. He’s surprised to see our luggage backpacks, he didn’t know we would have any, and this is a problem because unbeknownst to us we will be hiking from one guesthouse to another and it involves climbing over a mountain. There is no way we can carry these packs during our hike. I knew these two days on our itinerary were odd because they had the fewest details, but I assumed this was because Travel Twitch wanted us to be surprised. Well mission accomplished, we are very surprised!
Pondering this dilemma, our driver takes us two blocks down the road where he drops us off at a bus, which we board along with a large group of people who all look like they know exactly what they are doing and where they are headed. I’m a little worried but thankfully not panicking. I am however frustrated because I know this could have been avoided had I asked more questions and Travel Twitch given us more details. Thank God for Google Fi, because I’m able to use WhatsApp to contact Arjan, our local contact, and he reassures me that he has a solution. He will hire a horse transport to take our luggage over the mountain. Alrighty then, I asked for adventure and I am certainly getting it.
Eric is taking it all in stride, showing no signs of stress or worry about the “unknown.” He cracks a joke about us re-enacting the John Wayne movie Two Mules for Sister Sara. I appreciate his humor as our two-hour bus ride is hot, bumpy and I have no idea what the hell is ahead of us. We are part of a large caravan of vehicles, all transporting tourists to the same destination. We arrive at the entrance to a tunnel, at which point we grab our heavy packs and proceed to walk through the mountain with a horde of people all racing to be the first to get to the ferry, which will take us to the next stage of our journey.
As we observe other travelers who unwisely brought large wheeled suitcases, we feel a little better about having luggage and Eric makes another joke. His day pack is sitting on his belly so he jokingly says he’s pregnant. Our guide Andi immediately responds “Congratulations, boy or girl?” Eric says “twins” and the butterflies in my stomach go away. I like this guy Andi and I know we’re in good hands.
There are two boats and it’s unclear as to who is in charge and how to get on the boat, but Andi knows what he’s doing and we find ourselves on the upper deck of ferry number two, packed in like sardines but at least we have a breeze and gorgeous views of Komani Lake. It’s a 2-hour ferry ride, which Eric spends getting to know Andi and I swap travel stories with a couple from London and a woman from Quebec who used to work for the Canadian park service.
When we arrive Andi says to rush so we can catch a bus before they run out. He says he used to be able to stop for coffee but now there are too many tourists and not always enough transport. Good thing I braved the toilet on the ferry because there’s no time to break here. Buses are already full at the ferry so we trek uphill with our luggage to the next flat spot where a hodgepodge of vans await. There are no signs, just a group of gangster-looking men with phones, taking tickets and determining who gets in which van. Words are spoken, followed by gestures, and we are in a van. Now we wait, I assume to make sure every ferry passenger has a ride.
As the driver pulls out of the parking lot he’s stopped by a car and told to take two more passengers. Our driver’s response is to spit a giant phlegm ball towards the car but he complies. These last stragglers are a young couple from southern Germany and they have to sit on the floor. We will see this couple throughout the next two days and maybe because of our bonding experience we will speak and smile to each other. Thus commences the third section of this journey, another death defying drive winding through mountains and towns. And one final act just as we arrive in Valbona, in which my epitaph nearly becomes “death by cow.”
After six hours on a bus, ferry and van, we arrive at Kol Gjoni Guesthouse where we discover that poor Andi does not have a room. Somehow he got forgotten when the rooms were reserved. We joke that he will be sleeping with the cows and the guesthouse worker humorously says “no room in the inn.” Looks like Andi will be re-enacting the Nativity scene tonight. But he seems perfectly confident that all will work out, which we are learning is the general attitude here.
It is 2:30 when we sit down and have coffee and food for the first time since we left our apartment at 6:30 this morning. It’s also the first chance Eric has had to pee. Andi hasn’t had anything all day, except the yogurt biscuit I shared with him. Over macchiatos, we learn that Andi is a talented artist, comedic storyteller and proud bachelor. He tells us what we’ll be doing the next two days. Tomorrow we hike the Peaks of the Balkans trail from Valbona to Theth. And then “something with wheels” will take us “somewhere” then we hike to the Blue Eye if we’re not too tired.
Maybe Andi senses some doubt, because he follows this statement shortly with an order of raki and strongly encourages Eric to drink two glasses. It’s made from plums. Hot and tingly, I can taste the plums beneath the layers of pure alcohol. I think my tongue just went numb. I am so far removed from my comfort zone, and yet I have never felt so relaxed.
Hiking from Valbona to Theth
I wake up to a beautiful morning sunrise and crisp cool air in the beautiful Valbona Valley. Life would be perfect if we didn’t have to shovel breakfast down our throats and be ready in less than 30 minutes for our driver to pick us up. Because we have luggage, we get to skip the long walk from the guesthouse to the start of the trail. Our drive is slow going because we are driving through a dry riverbed over large rocks. I’ll need a chiropractor after this ride.
We arrive at a small structure with snacks and canned drinks being kept ice cold under running water coming off the mountain. We hand off our luggage and cash to the driver and hope for the best. As Eric and I suspected, the horse won’t be hiking with us so we have to trust that our luggage will find its way over the mountain. But we have bigger worries than luggage, we have to get ourselves over that mountain!
I confess to being completely naive about this hike today. I knew nothing about the distance or elevation gains. When we asked Andi the previous night how long this hike would be, his response was six hours. We’re noticing Albanians don’t measure anything in distance, it’s always in time and even that is a questionable measurement. Less than one hour into the hike, I see tiny specs of movement at the very top of the mountain and ask Andi “are we hiking around this mountain or over it?” He grins devilishly and says “over it.” My response is a loud resounding “fuck” which of course just makes him grin even bigger.
Thus commences a thoroughly brutal hike of 8 miles with a 2,900 feet ascent and 3,700 feet descent. We’ve hiked similar elevation trails in Washington’s North Cascades and Banff National Park, but both of those trails had more switchbacks. The Peaks of the Balkans section between Valbona to Theth is a straight climb up and a straight climb down, there is no flat. It is a knee-destroyer that’s fully exposed to the sun for most of the hike, with a rare respite through a thickly wooded forest once you get closer to Theth.
We are so grateful that Andi has chosen for us to go from Valbona to Theth, because going in the opposite direction is much more grueling and the people we pass coming from Theth look exhausted before their hike has barely begun. We pass a man who we had seen at the beginning of our hike, he now has an ankle wrapped and bandages and he is painfully trying to make his way down the mountain. His injury is bad and our guide asks if he has help. He says his friends are making their way down to see if they can get help.
The climb down to Theth is dangerous because it is so steep and the rocks are loose. All three of us fall at least once in this section, but thankfully no injuries and I get one of the best photos of the trip when Eric falls right next to a cow. At the bottom we meet up with the injured man’s friends. They’re Albanian and one man lived in California for 10 years so he speaks great English. They are getting a wagon to take their friend down. It’s a good reminder to never hike alone unless you have a rescue plan or satellite phone.
Arriving in Theth feels like being in a Star Wars movie. The scenery is so vividly beautiful that I feel as if we’ve entered another planet. The people here are different, it’s like an outpost town where travelers converge and the locals grudgingly allow us in while profiting as much as possible. The village is one long dirt road that stretches for miles, and of course our guesthouse is nearly at the end of that road. But Guesthouse Polia is clean, it’s next to the church that everyone wants photos of, and they have a great outdoor area perfect for enjoying the 360° mountain views.
We arrive too late for lunch and we will have to wait until 7:00 for dinner. Eric orders beer, I order Coca-Cola and we eat the few remaining snacks we have left. If Eric and I don’t lose weight on this trip, there is something seriously wrong with our metabolisms. Andi can sustain himself on raki and cigarettes, apparently.
Andi informs us that tomorrow’s plan is for us to walk 4 miles along the road to the trailhead. Let me repeat that, we are to walk 4 miles before we even begin the trail. “F that” Eric says and Andi and I agree. We make a plan to find a taxi the next morning to take us to the trailhead. With empty stomachs and legs that no longer hold us up, we take a shower and collapse into a coma until dinner. It’s a hearty meal, not as delicious as the previous night’s lodging, but equally as filling. A platter of fresh sweet watermelon and peaches for our dessert makes me forget all the suffering from earlier…until I have to climb the stairs to return to our room.
Hiking to the Blue Eye of Theth
It’s a beautiful day! We will be able to enjoy our breakfast this morning, so I begin the day feeling slightly more human. Eric and I walk around to take photos of the iconic Theth church and to stretch our leg muscles which are screaming at us this morning. We see a taxi parked near our guesthouse so Eric takes a photo of the phone number and gives it to Andi. Andi calls and we have our ride to the start of The Blue Eye trail, saving us 4 miles of walking on a dusty busy road.
There are so many tourists in Theth and Andi tells us there are more each year. New construction is all around us, although in Albania it is often difficult to distinguish between what is new construction and what is abandoned.
The hike up to Blue Eye is steeper and rockier than Andi led us to believe, imagine that, but it is as beautiful as he promised. Reminds me of the cenotes in Mexico, but with a little Robinson Crusoe mixed in. We cross over a patchwork of questionable wooden boards to sit atop another questionable wooden structure built on top of a rock. This gives us the perfect view to people-watch.
There are women stripping down to their bikinis for the Instagram photo in front of water they will never get in. Only two men brave the frigid water and they last about 1 to 2 minutes. A local woman guards her canned drinks and bottled water, which are ice cold thanks to the water. These cold drink vendors can be found throughout the popular trails here. There is a cafe above us as well, but I seriously doubt any engineer would pass inspection on those structures hanging precariously off the cliff, so I will pass.
We need to waste an hour before our driver arrives, so Andi finds us a quiet spot by the water and we lounge. Andi and I soak up the sun and put our feet in the water while Eric attempts to find shade as his skin burns easily. Coming down the trail we see two women who will have to turn around, one has been injured and the other looks like she has heat stroke or heart problems.
My heart breaks for these women, I know all too well the disappointment of a body not being able to do what the mind thinks it can.
Back at the base, we have coffee, Andi smokes and we cool off under the shady terrace while watching the never-ending arrival of tourists. Andi gets a call from our driver and some bargaining occurs. Next thing I know we are meeting our driver and buying him a coffee. Since he’s in no rush we order some potatoes and I become addicted to Albanian ketchup, which is much sweeter than American ketchup. I continue to marvel at the amount of food here and how cheap it is. For $8, we get 4 coffees, 1 beer, bread and a large basket of fries.
I like our driver, he’s older, has a calm demeanor and smiles easily. It’s a good thing he engenders such trust, because our drive back to Shkoder is another nausea-inducing windy road through the mountains. We stop twice for photos and he points out a drinking spout coming out of the mountain which he says is the cleanest water in Albania. Upon arriving in town, our driver runs his fingers through the tokens hanging from his rearview mirror — a policia tag, photo of 2 young boys, and a rosary. It looks like a ritual, almost like he is thanking God for a safe return home. Considering Albanian roads and the way people drive here, it’s a pretty darn good ritual.
As we conclude our time in Albania, I marvel at the beautiful countryside. While Albania can use some much needed improvements before it’s truly ready for tourism, there can be no doubt that this country is extraordinary and worth visiting.
Stay tuned for the third part of our journey as we Explore Rural Homestays in Montenegro.
