Sharr Mountains National Park

Sharr Mountains National Park (also know as Parku Kombëtar Malet e Sharrit in Albanian and Национални Парк Шар Планине in Serbian) is a 533 km² park located in the southern part of Kosovo, in the districts of Prizren and Ferizaj, in the border with North Macedonia. It's a very nice place to discover unspoilt mountains and skiing.

How do I arrive to Sharr Mountains National Park ?

 The area isn't too difficult to be reached, being able to arrive from Prizren and Pristina too.

• Bus: there are minibuses from Prizren that connect it with many villages in Sharr Mountains. There are buses from Ferizaj to Gjilan (aprox. 30 minutes) too.
  
• Car: from Prizren it can be reached Mušutište (aprox. 30 minutes), Prevalla (aprox. 40 minutes), Dragash (aprox. 45 minutes), Brod (aprox. 1 hour 10 minutes) and the rest of villages in the National Park and Prevalla can also be reached from Pristina (aprox. 1 hour 20 minutes). On the way from Pristina to Skopje (North Macedonia) you can also visit Ferizaj (aprox. 40 minutes) or Kaçanik (aprox. 45 minutes) (they are only 20 and 40 km south from Lipljan).

 Once in the Park the best ways to move around the park are the car, taxis or simply hiking.  

History

The route of an ancient road crossed the Scardus from 169 BC onwards and on the Roman period, the mountain was a tripoint between the provinces of Dalmatia, Moesia and Macedonia. It became later part of the Byzantine empire and then part of Serbia. When King Milutin donated lands to the Our Lady of Ljeviš church, he also donated the Višegrad Fort to serve as an Prizren's defence outpost. Emperor Dušan later expanded the fort to the river and built his endowment, the Monastery of the Holy Archangels (formerly in Mušutište). There are 45 Serbian Orthodox monasteries on the slopes of the mountain, dating from the 12th to the 16th century (and 32 monasteries were damaged or demolished during the NATO bombing of Serbia in 1999). The National Park was created in 1986 and expanded in 2012.

 

What can I visit in Sharr Mountains National Park ?

The visitor should be careful because in Sharr Mountains there are many Yugoslav shepard dogs (or Šarplaninac) that are very cute but may have rabies. These are many things to do in Sharr Mountains National Park such as trekking or skiing. Here they'll be explained now according to the town or village where they are or the nearest one:     

• The east of the national park, close to the border with North Macedonia, there are interesting trails. One of them is Luboten Peak Trail (17.7 km round trip), a demanding trail that arrives to the top of Luboten Peak (2,498 m). This mountain in the border between Kosovo and North Macedonia, although not the highest, can be seen from both Pristina and Skopje.
• Štrpce (Shtërpcë in Albanian, Штрпце in Serbian): 1,265 inhabitants small town in the district of Ferizaj that has a majority of Serbian population. Since 2013 Brussels Agreement the municipality will have to be included in the Community of Serb Municipalities.
  

  • St. Nikola Serbian Orthodox Church: church built in 1576 whose iconostasis is considered to be from the 19th century and the church's belfry was not built until 1912 (because of the Ottoman Empire).
  • St. Jovan Serbian Orthodox Church: church that was built in 1911 on the foundation of another unknown church. 
• In the small town of Mušutište (Mushtishtë in Albanian, Мушутиште in Serbian), 3,394 inhabitants, in the northern part of the National Park there used to be an important Serbian minority and even 10 Serbian Orthodox churches; some of them were destroyed during Kosovo Wars such as the impressing 14th century Bogorodice Odigitrije Serbian Orthodox Church.
• Prevalla (Prevallë in Albanian, Превалц in Serbian): nice touristic and ski resort located in the southern part of Sharr Mountains National Park.
  • Kobilica: 2,466 m high pyramid-shaped peak close to Prevalla, home to the biggest herds of chamois. The peak can be reached by taken Kobilica Route (23.6 km round trip).
    
  • Prevalla's Rock Peak: 1,991 m high mountain south from Prevalla. It's the starting point of the river Bistrica’s pass.
  • Brezovica Ski Resort: old Yugoslav ski resort that was a back-up for the Sarajevo Winter Olympics in 1984. It's the largest ski center in Kosovo. From here depart may trips to the mountains and one of them is Brezovica Ski Resort-Brezovica Lake Round Trail (13.8 km) towards Brezovica Lake.
  • Oshlak Peak Trail (15.9 km round trip): trail that arrives to Oshlak Peak (2,212 m).
    
  • Prevalla-Jazhincë Lake Trail (15.6 km round trip): nice trail that takes you to this small glacial lake with cold but crystal clear water, Jazhincë Lake.
• The westernmost place in the National Park (and of Kosovo) is Dragash (Dragashi in Albanian, Драгаш in Serbian), a 1,098 inhabitants small town in the region of Gora, where Gorani people live. It's the center of the municipality with the same name and has some mosques such as Zlipotok Mosque in the village of Zlipatok.
• Brod (Brod in Albanian, Брод in Serbian): picturesque 1,544 inhabitants town in the southwestern part of the National Park. Its main feature is the fact of being inhabited by Gorani, a Muslim Slavic ethnic group that has its own language (Gorani or Našinski, quite linked to Serbian, Macedonian and Bulgarian).
  • The town is interesting and different enough to make it worth a visit. Its graveyard is quite curious to be seen too.
  • Walking 3-4 hours south you can reach walking Rudoka Peak-Shutman Lakes Round Route (20.7 km), a hike with nice views by the river, an impressing canyon the highest peak in Kosovo, Velika Rudoka (2,658 m high), and the two Shutman Lakes.
• There's a route called High Scardus Trail (495 km) that goes all over Sharr Mountains range visiting Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro and North Macedonia. The parts that take place in Kosovo are the following ones: Staro Selo in North Macedonia-Brezovica in Kosovo (24 km), Brezovica-Prevala (22 km), Prevala-Vejce in North Macedonia (24 km), Beshala in North Macedonia-Brod (21 km) and Brod-Torbeshki Most in North Macedonia (27 km).

Brezovica Ski Resort

Brod

St. Cara Uroša Serbian Orthodox Church and
Ferizaj Great Mosque

Outside the National Park, in the road between Pristina and Skopje there are some things to visit. One of the first ones can be Ferizaj (Ferizaji in Albanian, Урошевац in Serbian), a 42,628 people town with a great history of religious coexistence that is home of an US Army base (the most expensive built since Vietnam War). That tolerance can be seen in an Orthodox church and a mosque being wall to wall, unique in the world. St. Cara Uroša Serbian Orthodox Church (free) is a church built in 1933 and the other is Ferizaj Great Mosque, 19th century mosque built to commemorate Ottoman victory over Albanians during a Prizren League uprising. Continuing south you reach the town of Kaçanik (Kaçaniku in Albanian, Качаник in Serbian) with its 15,634 inhabitants, known because of Kaçanik Fortress, built by koca Sinan Pasha in the 16th century to keep out kachaks (Albanian bandits). Here you can also take a look at Sinan Pasha Mosque, a nice 16th century mosque built in the fortress construction's times; from here it can be visited Kaçanik Gorge, a nice gorge by river Lepenac.

Where can I eat in Sharr Mountains National Park?

This National Park is almost uninhabited so it's important to bring food from outside the park. Once in the National Park, mainly in the region of Gora, it can be nice to try the traditional cheese from here, Šar cheese.

Posted in: Europe,Kosovo,National Park