With their unique climate, terrain and comparatively close distance from Poland the Balkans seem pretty close to being an ideal location for those in the mountain biking crowd looking for the perfect trail. Adding the intriguing cultural mix, wild mountain ranges and the “terra incognita” aspect to the equation just made us more eager to pack the car and go there – Pathfinder crew simply had to roam south and see this. Our next destination are Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Balkan states, especially Bosnia and Herzegovina and their capital of Sarajevo still bring back the painful memories of war that happened there back in the 1990’s. Even today you can still see the wounds it inflicted on the city and the country. Ruined houses and bullet holes are still easily found. In the countryside there is still plenty of landmine warning signs. This is no reason however to cross off this beautiful place from your mountain biking “must go to” list.
Our first target was the Ploćno summit and its surroundings. It is a huge mountain in fact that has its peak reaching up to 2228 meters above sea level. The eastern slopes are easy enough for a road to be built on – a road that can be easily taken by any mid-level off road vehicle, as well as an enduro mountain bike.
We decided to use the hairpin turns of the road were only to go uphill and to find our way down on the other side of the mountain – we were expecting to get a decent share of downhill excitement there. That proved to be a great idea, the trail we found started with a few hundred meters of a picturesquely exposed ridge just to turn into a crazy steep slope covered only with tiny stones.
Luckily the trail itself descended the colluvium with traversing turns, making it possible for us to ride it. Even though there was not much flow in the riding we were overwhelmed with pride of riding what seemed to be unrideable looking from the foothill of the mountain.
A couple of following days were spent exploring the trails in the lower sections of the mountains – we found a lot of flowy fast riding there. As it usually happens we could not leave the place unscathed, the mountains had to show who’s the boss here. Thunderstorms and heavy downpours forced us to flee south. As we were less than a hundred kilometers from Croatian coastline, we packed our stuff into the car and drove southbound.
After two hours’ drive we found ourselves in a different climate. The sights were stunning – a coast where the sea meets the mountains. This wonderful spot and it’s great trails encouraged us to plan another trip – a trip to Croatia that will take place this winter!
Words & Photos: Mariusz Bryja https://www.facebook.com/EnduroMe
