Of all the places on my trip cycling in the Balkans I somehow have some of the craziest stories from my short 5 days journey through Montenegro. A true adventure really…in the beautiful yet tiny heights and sea country of Montenegro!

Arrival

Day one in Montenegro was a sprint to cross 3 borders and leave the Schengen Zone behind for a nice chunk of time. Many citizens around the world are granted a 90 day entry limit in the Schengen Zone so if you plan on staying long in the EU you must be actively aware of your days and use time wisely. Bosnia and Montenegro are not in the Schengen Zone so being in those countries is like freedom and since Croatia is in the Zone I wanted to maximize time there but not surpass a full day. This was me trying to maximize my time and days in this zone!

This day I entered Croatia from Bosnia in the morning and headed to Dubrovnik in Croatia knowing I would need to exit Croatia into Montenegro before the day ended. Dubrovnik is in this odd spot in Croatia where it gets separated from the rest of Croatia by Bosnia just before the border with Montenegro. I was coming from the Trebinje side of Bosnia though not the coastal Bosnia crossing most might use to reach Dubrovnik but either way still coming from Bosnia. My plan was to do a triple border crossing and use the most hours possible of the last day for awhile in this Schengen Zone.

I could have stayed in Bosnia and skipped entering Croatia but given it was my first trip to Croatia I didn’t want to miss Dubrovnik as it is beyond famous in history, movies, etc and literally a must see even if it gets super crowded!

It was an eventful day because even before I left Bosnia I got a flat tire and wasted an hour dealing with that. Changing flats on a gravel bike is no easy feat (but i’m getting better)! Once it was fixed I crossed, only to realize it had another puncture I’d not seen, damn it.

It appeared slow leaking enough that I decided to continue and just get to Dubrovnik and deal with it after my visit to the walled city. It was a long downhill from the border followed by a huge hill on the main coastal highway with a million cars and finally a descent into the city. I pumped the tire for the downhill then pumped it again after the hill so I could make it in ha…Getting a flat on a downhill can be super dangerous so I nervously kept my eye on in the whole time ensuring it had plenty of air. Once in town I found a spot, locked up the bike and went exploring.

I stayed a few hours exploring on foot, in fact I even stayed an hour longer than I had planned. I knew a storm was on its way so I had tried to plan my time wisely in hope of missing the down pour.

I was told I must walk the fortified city wall so I spent the flipping 35€ to do that and tried to enjoy it while moving along with the crowd up there. Croatia sure knows how to charge high prices (and for good reason, beautiful places and demand), it was nice, unique and pretty, but not sure it is worth 35€! I guess it used to be free (as it should be)! After the wall I wandered the core of the walled city and it’s streets as I was also told I could see this in a few hours. Unfortunately, I didn’t enter any museums but they all looked amazing. The whole city was beautiful with the immaculate details etched on many of the white washed stone buildings but the city is way too crowded and this wasn’t even peak season…oh my just avoid summer if October was this crowded!

At the bike I fixed the flat…which was a whole ordeal in itself as I couldn´t get the tire back on the rim until some ladies who walked by, with their tire changed from a bike shop, kindly stopped and tried to help speed up the process… Finally I was headed South trying to beat time basically running away from the Schengen Zone and the now visible approaching storm off in the distance. I thought I still had enough time so I made one other stop on my way South in Cavtat but it was not worth it at all in my opinion (another recommendation I received).

Crossing into Montenegro was super exciting but then again when isn’t it exciting entering a new country! Plus it had been weeks since I’d done so as I was bouncing between Croatia and Bosnia for what seemed like forever! Excitement was also because the views looking down from the border shined light on what lay ahead…shear beauty between mountains and sea!

I still had about an hour to cycle before arriving to Herzig Novi where I would stay and camp out the storm in a guesthouse. At the border it was clearly getting very dark with huge deep grey clouds looming precariously nearby. I surpassed the first challenge of leaving the Schengen Zone but now the second challenge seemed nearly impossible. I went as fast as I could because the sky looked like it was going to open up any minute and place a wicked waterfall over me!

On the way I passed another cyclist on tour who said he planned to camp so I warned him about the visible storm since sometimes while touring you forget to look at the weather and who knows if he had.

I managed to make it to town but still my guesthouse was a ways past there… I made it (so relieved)! Literally just in time because that sky opened up 20 minutes after I arrived with heavy rain and plenty of lightning.

Grateful to be inside because the storm only let up for a few short moments until the next afternoon. During which, of course, I managed to escape, for a quick jaunt to the supermarket nearby to get food to cook dinner and the next morning for a run. I’d say super impeccable timing! Wow!

Around the Bay

Montenegro is a small country I literally could have cycled through in 2 days but it is also a beautiful country worth sticking around a bit longer and discovering all it has to offer.

For my second day cycling I planned to go around the Bay of Kotor and enjoy all the mountain views it offers on the flat road around the bay!

Turns out there was still some lingering storms in the area so temps were cooler, wind was picking up and rain was planning to stay all day. I bundled up and made it halfway around to Perast, which I thought was an adorable spot. I stayed a bit longer than anticipated yet skipped the island excursion that basically every tourist does here because the rain I had avoided most of the morning had now caught up and with it came stronger wind. Instead of staying any longer I decided to keep going!

Perast wasn’t far from the City of Kotor but rounding the corner toward Kotor was the windiest and the Bay of Kotor here had lots of white caps. Rain was light and views despite being stormy were still incredible with the mountains surrounding me in every direction all flanked by the Bay that I stopped quite a few times to absorb the views. Hell I even stopped to watch the wind spinning an anchored sailboat around in circles ha ha.

This last part into the city was flat, off the main road, gorgeous and lovely. By the time I reached Kotor though the rain had fully caught me.

At first sight, Kotor, with it’s city wall extending up the mountainside, on the bay with mountains everywhere really struck me as beautiful. In fact I couldn’t believe where I was. To escape the rain I decided it was lunch time.

I found a secure spot for my bike, which was somehow covered perfectly by a tree so it miraculously never got wet while I was away, then joined the bus loads of people stuck on tour in the city lol. Due to the rain though crowds didn’t seem awful once inside. Most seemed to hover in their groups hiding from the rain lol. I ducked into a restaurant and found a seat before the crowds had the same idea and stole my spot.

I ordered fish and a beer but ate it slow. When I got the bill it was absurd, I had no clue this was the most expensive city outside of Dubrovnik on my trip. I paid and left frustrated because 40€ just for fish and a beer was almost my whole day´s budget…say what! Generally meals were around 10-15€ so this was ridiculously steep! Why are prices so high here? Shit! Had I known I would have just ordered fries like the other ladies sharing my table!

I stumbled back out onto the streets to explore on foot Kotor kicking myself for accidentally falling into the trap and wasting my day’s budget on one meal…uggg! The restaurant left me bitter and to add to the dent the rain dampened every other potentially great thing in the ancient city. I was not thrilled to be in Kotor anymore. I kept wandering hoping the rain would subside but it never did and I decided to just call it a day and book a bed at the hostel. I hated that I was going to spend the night here and I was now really wanting out of the country! The over tourism, prices and overall experience here was leaving me with a sour taste.

Kotor Serpentine

The famous serpentine road up to the top of Kotor is a must visit. Many touring by bike go this way. I was not going this way but I was not missing the climb either so I added it to my route before heading to the coast for the route I would take South.

I originally planned to do the 30 switchbacks of the Kotor serpentine the same day I cycled around Kotor Bay from Herzig Novi but the weather was pure crap and I wasn’t going to waste the awesome climb on a shitty weather day and miss the views so I stayed and did it early the following morning.

I left around first light to avoid any heat on the climb up. Since I wasn’t going this route in the end there was no need to take all the extra weight so I stashed my bags somewhere on the route up that I felt was secure and cycled unabated up to the top! It was wonderful to be so light weight on the bike, I felt like I was so fast going up the mountain and with such ease.

The Kotor Serpentine road starts at an elevation of 458m above sea level, and ends at 881m (423 m elevation gain with 5% grade). The 5% grade was the important part in the climb…meaning the switchbacks were very gentle all the way up. Generally anything 10% or above was quite hard…doable but hard.

I had the whole road to myself going up the forested steep mountain. I met two Hungarians on tour and saw a few cars. Views were absolutely stunning and kept getting better and better as I pedaled up. First I saw the bay, a cruise ship was now parked in it looking silly between all the mountains and also ugly as if it was a big white skyscraper sitting in the bay. As I continued up I started to see nearly the whole bay, then the Adriatic Sea, then Croatia and probably Bosnia too since Montenegro is so tiny. I was really in disbelief at all that I could see while pedaling up that it made me laugh. I couldn’t believe all the beautiful nature revealing itself before my eyes as I ascended higher up in this tiny country! Also the fact that I had it basically all to myself…well until the top where I found a guided cycling group finishing the climb and celebrating. I cycled a bit further at the top looking for this painted red bike (which I saw on my navigation app Komoot) with a view for the classic photo opp but never found it… turns out I had to go a tad bit farther…bummer! Video of views

I reached the top around 9 am and by the time I turned back from the farthest point I cycled to and reached where the other cyclists were taking photos there was now a bus parked too. Before even 9:30 am the cruise ship was busing loads of tourists up the narrow windy serpentine road. I’m glad they got to see the view but this road should never have huge buses on it. On the ride down more buses were coming up. It was now dangerous on the road and cars were reversing on the road to let buses pass on the curves, it was ridiculous!

At this hour there were also now tons of cyclists, touring cyclists mainly, heading up the serpentine. One after the next, incredible, this whole trip I’ve never seen this many cycle tourists heading the same direction as me until now…and of course I was headed down in the opposite direction lol.

The ride down was just as great except any encounter with a bus or car because again narrow ass road! I got down, bags were still there…I grabbed them and onward I went to the coast…the sheer joy of zooming downhill with wind and views whipping by me I missed a turn and took the highway…don’t do this!

Advice if you do this climb: Be done well before 9 am! The guided cycling group had all the reason to be done at 9 am! In fact, they packed up their bikes and drove back down….bummer they missed the rewarding and joyful downhill part but I totally get it!

Lake Skadar Hills

The hilliest day of my whole bike tour was when I did these hills to exit Montenegro. It was never intended to be an extremely hilly day but I failed to research my route and what a hilly one it was! A massive 6,158 ft/1,877m elevation gain day was ahead of me!

I left my last camping spot in Montenegro at Buljarica Beach and headed up the mountain pass all so I could cycle this route I´d heard about along a lake that was supposed to be beautiful. The climb over the pass from the beach was so harsh. Not only was it steep and long but I started climbing at 11 am….way later than anticipated because I wanted to stop in the next town over, Petrovac, to give a potential rental car shop I saw on the map a chance. I really wanted to go to Durmitor National Park and my plan was to rent a car to do so but I passed up an opportunity in Kotor but still had some hope…so there I was wasting time in Petrovac hoping for but not encountering any rentals! This was one of the things I regret not doing while in Montenegro.

The pass was a suffering sweat fest, so much so that I did it in just my sports bra and with my helmet off. I found that going up mountain passes without the helmet was way better. If you kept the helmet on you would have streams of sweat pouring down the whole time but if you went without it the air seemed to cool most of it before it could pool up and pour. Views along the way were ok but in general I was so glad once I reached the summit. Once on the other side of the pass the descent was super fun to ride down and the luscious views with the lake in the distance and the rocky foothills before me weren´t bad either!

I enjoyed the long blissful downhill into Virpazar where I would turn off to cycle around the lake and into Albania!

Virpazar was supposed to be this town hardly anyone visits but I guess that time has passed, it is now loaded with tourists looking to take the boats out onto the lake. There are now grocery stores and restaurants that sprang up for the same reason. I quite liked this tiny town and once I stopped in the main square I was quickly greeted by kiosks selling tickets for the boat tour. Nothing in your face but there were lots of kiosks. Among the mess a man approached me, a Canadian cyclist I´d met in Trebinje, Bosnia a week ago. It was fun to catch up with him. He mentioned he and his partner would take 2 days to get to Albania which made me wonder if I should have considered taking longer to reach it as well.

I snapped a few photos of the soviet-ish looking monument and headed out of town. I quickly found lots of hills along this lake. I also quickly cursed at them saying, ¨hey, I´ve already done enough hills for the day, ease up!¨ What a lie, my legs needed more apparently. Video – first impressions The whole route along the coast was rolling mini passes with not much civilization in between…so forget a meal or water refill….

The scenery once past a few mini pass climbs was really pretty though and it kept getting better with elevation lol. I could see pretty little islands dotting the shores of the lake which I really enjoyed. Video – views.

After cycling through this beautiful, seemingly random chestnut tree lined area of the road I entered an actual town. I was super excited to reach Ostros, the only village on this route where real restaurants exists! At this point I was beyond done cycling up the hills so I grabbed a beer before even ordering food to feed my starving stomach or refilled my two water bottles. I choose Konoba Votra at the edge of town and I was very happy I did! The owner was friendly, spoke good English, told me the town history and even offered the back yard of the post office as a place to stay (random but his father owns it). ha ha

I learned that the village is mainly Albanian speaking although it is situated in the country of Montenegro. Due to the division of borders and with Albania literally across the lake, it got separated but predominately retains the Albanian culture. I was told that there are 5,000 Albanians who live abroad (I believe mainly in NY) and return to this region and town every summer which is crazy knowing how small this place is (approx. 800 people). Apparently, New York has over 100,000 Albanians and a huge percent live in the Bronx (Lydig Ave./Pelham Parkway/Arthur Ave.), enough to earn the neighborhood the title of Little Albania! (read more) And of course, I learned that not only is the post office owned by his 80 year old father but that it is only open in this town because the dad can´t stop working there…it is his baby.

I decided to turn down the offer to camp at the post office because I thought it might be noisy in town….bummer….and instead continued my route along the lake. From town the last mini pass was nearby and then it would be all down hill until basically the border. Leaving the restaurant I knew I wouldn´t be crossing the border until the next day so I started looking for potential camping spots. Between stops to check potential camping sports I creeped along the road only to stop every few feet it seemed to look back down the road, along the lake where I just came from and over the mountains to absorbed all the beautiful sunset colors on display behind me. I reached the top of the last mini pass around that same time, sunset time. I let out a sigh and stopped for a long while here finally able to fully take in all the effort of the day, to celebrate that I was nearly finished and simply enjoy this glorious setting sun touching every road I cycled today and leaving beautiful hues everywhere. The color of the lake now popping out of the landscape and providing a rather serene feel while the sky retained its nice orange hue that burned the edges of the mountains for quite some time.

I stayed a bit longer at the overlook slowing moving away but stopping again and again to try and see all the orange fade away then finally started heading downhill before it got too dark. Still searching for a spot but knowing at the bottom of the pass there was one bar/restaurant that might let me setup if all else failed (I´d read about it online).

Heading downhill I found what looked like a promising spot so I joyfully stopped for the night, yeah! Always great when you call it a day after a hilly ride.

An unplanned extra night in Montenegro it would be…

Wild Camping 2

The second time wild camping on this trip was in Montenegro just before exiting and entering Albania. I thought I would make the border this day but I failed to check the elevation of the route. It was along a big lake that I heard was beautiful for cycling. It was indeed beautiful but it was also super hilly! I had already went over a mountain pass to start the day so by the time I added in the hilly lake route legs were pretty much left with barely any energy…finito; done; spent! I still had a ways to go so I decided I would just start looking for a spot to camp.

I finished the whole lake route and was on the downhill when I saw a great spot…an abandoned building with a nice view. I pulled over just after sunset and started to set up camp before there was no more daylight left. As I looked around in the soft light left from a glorious sunset I saw lots of trash, condoms included…so I made sure to move my tent away from that area. The ground was really hard packed and I couldn´t get the tent stakes in deep so I added rocks to the corners for extra strength…even those were slim to find and hard to take from the compact ground. In the end I had 2 good rocks and 2 smaller kind of useless ones. ha

Finally all set up I did a few last things before calling it a night. As I was brushing my teeth a car pulled up. I was like ¨oh shit, I have no way out of here!¨ Luckily they saw the tent and quickly backed out…I don’t think they even saw me behind the tent brushing my teeth. This explained the condoms, of course, this was probably the make out and whatever spot, duh!

I wasn´t going to move now… I wondered if they would return or how many other cars might pull in but the rest of the night was without incident. Thank god!

I slept great until some hour in the middle of the night when the winds picked up. At first it was gusts that were manageable by bracing my arm against the tent every now and then but then it became sustained strong ass wind and I had to brace the tent with both my arms non stop. I was worried the tent might snap…winds seemed super strong. I even got out and tried to adjust the rocks better but to no avail.

At first light I gave up on trying to brace my tent or even sleep and just got out of it and took it down as fast as possible. I headed down the hill and to the border pissed off at the wind so much that I barely even cared to watch the actually beautiful sunrise…which would have been amazing from my tent had it not been for the winds!

For the downhill the wind was at least at my back which meant I had an incredibly awesome and ridiculously fast push out of the hell hole on the early morning downhill ride. I think winds pushed me to 40 mph at some point…a tad too fast but I was still ecstatic after the awful night in the tent. Plus strong winds meant I barely pedaled which was amazing after the crazy elevation the day before. I crossed the border at 7 am lol…possibly the earliest I have ridden my bike this whole trip!

What I learned wild camping is I really suck at picking good spots. HA I only wild camped a couple of times and each time was some crazy story (I mostly stayed at campgrounds while bike touring). I am fine in the forest alone camping but for some reason near towns as a single female cyclist I just wasn´t a fan.

Great Cycling spots in Montenegro

Triathlon in/around Kotor Bay!

Other Stories from Bike Touring the Balkans – Greece – Albania