''The Albanian Alps'', sometimes called the ''Accursed Mountains'' are a range in northern Albania. They are also known by the Serbian name Prokletije.

Regions

The area covers parts of Shkoder and Tropoja districts in Northern Albania. The mountains themselves extend into neighboring Kosovo and Montenegro.

Towns and villages

The main city of the area is Bajram Curri. Shkoder is located in the coastal plain just west of the region.

The villages of Thethi and Valbone once were important tourist destinations.

Parks

The area around Thethi is an Albanian National Park.

The greater region along the border of Albania / Montenegro / Kosovo is where the Balkan Peace Park may one day exist.

Mountains

The Albanian Alps are where the highest mountain fully in Albania is located.

Understand

Talk

Get in

To access the mountains, you can enter from the north - west from Shkoder through the village of Boge (where public transportation stops, the asphalted road also stops) which continues to Thethi. In the summer there are various vehicles continuing to Theth and it's possible to hitch a ride. Walking is not recommended; it is 25 km to Thethi, with little water, and on a narrow road with hairpin curves that sees a fair amount of traffic.

It is easier (although also quite long) to head up the beautiful Valbone valley from Bajram Curri. There are minibuses from Bajram Curri to Valbone, and almost to the last village in the valley, Rrogami. The minibuses stop at the end of the road, about 4km from Rrogami. The road is only asphalted a short way out of Bajram Curri, however, this road is currently being improved.

Get around

Getting around is best with your own vehicle, or if you have more time, your own bicycle, or on foot. There is little public transportation, and on many routes this means just one minibus early in the morning.

The mountain pass which separates Thethi from Rrogami is only passable on foot. It is a challenging hike over a poorly marked trail. Parts of the trail are a bit sparse, and the only publicly available map is a Soviet map from the 1950s, scaled 1:50,000. This map series is no longer available from the University of California - Berkley, however, it is available through the [http://www.bunkertrails.org/app/maps/browse/50 Bunker Trails] project. The hike is spectacular, one of the best in the world.

The best way to find your way over that pass (Qafe e Valbones) is with a local guide. The trail begins at the very end of the village of Rrogam. The trail is rather light, and seems to disappear at some points. If you are on a tight schedule, a guide is recommended. There are some English and Italian speaking residents in this area, but it is really best to speak Albanian. If walking on foot does not sound appealing, a horse or donkey can likely be arranged with one of the villagers for an appropriate fee (5,000 ALL). If you have time to spare, the trail can be found through a bit of detective work (following donkey dung, etc) and with enough time, you too can practice the art of trailblazing.

Itineraries

A good itinerary would include the Fierze-Komani ferry on lake Komani. You could get from Shkoder to Bajram Curri by way of this ferry, then visit the Valbone valley, and either (for experienced and well-equipped hikers) get over the mountain pass to Thethi, and go back to Shkoder from there (this loop would probably take an absolute minimum of 4 days, and a more likely duration of 6 or 7 days), or from the Valbone valley get back to Bajram Curri and continue east towards Tropoja or Kosovo.

See

Stunning scenery and grand vistas, a unique and difficult way of life, traditional Albanian houses and villagers, and a lock-in tower (Thethi) that has been restored. The lock-in tower is especially of interest because it is one of the last remaining examples in Albania. The lock in tower was used to protect the male members of a family while they were under blood feud. Blood feuds were virtually extinguished during the communist times, however, the lawlessness of the 1990's saw a rather sharp rise in the number of killings. The New York Times has a series of articles about the Kanun, Leke Dukagjini, and the blood feuds. Luckily, tourists and foreigners are generally immune from these (and even protected, unless you flip over someone's table!).

Do

Hike those amazing mountains!!! The very little traffic in those remote areas makes it nice to hike even on the roads. Go fishing in the Valbone river. The rapids near Dragobia seem to be a popular place. If you can, talk to people.

Eat

Try buying local foods from people in villages (this may be tricky without speaking Albanian!). You might get locally made cheese, delicious home-baked bread, pickles, and various fruit and vegetables.

Drink

Turkish coffee, or home-made raki (plum alcohol).

Sleep

Apart from cities like Bajram Curri and Shkoder, there are very few hotels and places to stay. There is one hostel / campsite in the Valbone valley in between Dragobia and Valbone. It it easy to find people willing to accommodate you or let you camp in their garden. They will generally ask for money, and sometimes not mention it until you are leaving in the morning, which is not the best moment to bargain the price. So be sure you make everything clear when you arrive. Among those who speak English or Italian and are accustomed to foreign tourists, a price of around 20 euros is common, and includes breakfast and dinner.

Stay safe

Don't get lost in the mountains. This is a sparsely-inhabited area and the trails are not marked and signage is sparse. A GPS is highly recommended, and a simple basemap is available through the [http://www.bunkertrails.org/wiki/index.php?title=Albania_Geopolitical_Mapset Bunker Trails] project.

It is rumored that there are bear and wolves in the area, so rough camping is not recommended for the timid. If you do decide to camp, be sure to employ proper bear bag techniques. You don't want bears following the scent of that dry sausage hidden under your pillow.

This area has witnessed disturbing violent conflict in recent years. To understand this problem, one must recognize that this area is subject to extreme poverty and isolation. While Albania as a whole was virtually sealed until 1991, this area was isolated to an even greater extend because of the condition of access roads. The area was repressed by the former regime because of the resistance that it offered. Little public investment occurred, and is only beginning now. The state of public infrastructure is simply deplorable. A while back, the power network (1 small power line) for the entire valley went down because of snow fall. The entire valley (5+ communities) was without power for nearly 6 months. The reaction to this repression is quite evident. At one point, a large state hotel existed near the village of Valbone, and the communist leader had a private house in the area. Both of these were destroyed in rioting. The house is in slightly better condition, but both are concrete shells. There are only a couple of schools in this area, and most people have left this area to find a better life elsewhere. These social issues are compounded by the armed conflict between Kosovar Albanians and the Serbs. This area was very near the route used for smuggling weapons, and the border is very close.

Considering these issues, this area is relatively safe for foreign tourists. Many of the locals use this as a steady stream of income to finance their lives in the outside world. For example, as of 2008, there were only two families that live year-round in the village of Rrogam. During the summer, several additional families return, and make a handsome profit by supporting foreign tourists. This is an excellent example of eco-tourism functioning at a grassroots level. The one major recent security incident that has occurred in this region was the disappearance of four Czech tourists. Their remnants have never been found. More about this incident can be found on the [http://www.ztracenivalbanii.cz/details.en.html web site published by their friends and family]. This is a truly tragic incident, and it can only be hoped that anyone who has knowledge of these events will come forward. While this event took place recently, it must be considered in the context of the time in which it occurred. This area has long been outside the law. Following the chaos of 1997, it took the Albanian police many years to regain control of the entire country, and this is known to be one of the strongholds of resistance to law and order. As the transcript of event indicates, the police still encountered heavily armed villagers during the course of their investigation. Though 2001 is relatively recent, much has changed in the time since this incident, and people in this area are coming to see the value of foreign tourism and development. The main tourist attractions are safe to visit, but ensure to ask locals which areas to avoid.