Via Dinarica XV, Family Lalovic to Gornje Bare Jezero

Friday, July 5, 2024, Lalovic Family cabins to Štrinsko Jezero
Last night, getting ready to go to bed, Patsy found a scorpion in her bed! She showed our hostess this morning who said the scorpions are nothing to worry about. "We have poisonous snakes here", she said. Oh well, there's a surprise!
When I paid Dragon Lalovic, I was surprised the bill was 143 km. We'd been charged 10km for the beer, but also for every cup of tea and coffee. Even in Albania, our first cup of coffee was always included with breakfast. I don't recall ever being charged separately for a cup of coffee at breakfast. It was still cheap by USA standards but a rip-off by BiH standards.
Our stay at the Vrela lodge was a much better deal for 127.50 km per night including dinner, breakfast, a lot more beers, no scorpions, power in our room, etc.
Oh well, not having to wake up in a wet tent is worth something.
The path this morning followed gently ascending gravel roads for 3 miles before turning into a narrow path. At one point, we had to swim through wet vegetation that stretched above our heads, including stinging nettles as high as my chest. I donned my rain pants and rain jacket for protection.
We stopped for lunch just after crossing a tiny stream and then climbed to the saddle below Velika Lenja (2,032m). I climbed the peak alone, a really pleasant little adventure. The path wound upward amongst dwarf pine trees, sheltering me from the cold wind. The summit was adorned with a large cross in addition to a big cairn.
We headed towards Štrinsko Jezero (lake), each with only half a litre of water. We were around 6,000' and the temperature was cool so it worked out okay. I drank the last of my water when the lake was in sight. About 100' from the lakeshore was a bench so we headed to it and decided to camp there. It was perfect and it was 5 pm.
We started filtering water and made tea with boiled lake water. Dinner consisted of a corba soup, noodles, and Karen's mixed vegetables together with cheese, and potato chips.
Another backpacker, Ravi, appeared and came down to say hi. He said he'd heard about us, the "older" couple from California.
He said he spent last night at the Siminovic guesthouse and it was great for only €30 for bed, breakfast and dinner, with no extra charges.
11.5 miles, 3,400' gain
Saturday, July 6, 2024, Štrinsko Jezero to to Gornje Bare Jezero
We woke up at 5 am in a dense blanket of fog. Everything was sopping wet and the water in the silicone tubing of our water filter had frozen.
We packed up and stopped by Ravi's tent to chat with him. Age 53, he was born in Malaysia to Indian parents, went to college in the USA, and works as a communications contractor. Like us, he began long-distance hiking in 2010. He had planned to hike the PCT a couple of years ago but his father suffered a bad fall so he canceled the PCT.
Patsy led us on an unnecessary detour up to a signpost and then I led us down the wrong path. Walking ahead of me through tall grasses, Patsy released a cloud of pollen that, only minutes later, provoked an allergy attack. I was sneezing so violently that I gave myself a nosebleed. Reaching a spring, I took an antihistamine pill that cured me.
Ravi caught up with us. We were descending a steep, muddy forest road. I checked my phone. Now Ravi was leading us the wrong way. Retracing our steps steeply uphill, we met Birger, 26 years old, a business consultant specializing in behavioural economics, from Dusseldorf. The junction had been obliterated. Without the track on our phones we'd never have found it
Next, Birger led us the wrong way, missing another junction. Three wrong turns in an hour!
We came to a couple of buildings with a trough full of beer cans and juices. Trail magic? Not quite but I bought a large can of beer for only 2.30 km. We sat there with our drinks while our tents and groundsheets dried in the sun. Beneath the shade canopy, it was surprisingly cold and a fire was burning in the hearth.
Then another guy, a park ranger, appeared who had us all pay 10 km for a park pass.
The trail wound uphill until we lost it. I'd neglected to download a high-resolution map for this area but Patsy's map showed a trail 150' feet above us. We detoured a little off this trail to climb Bregoč (2,014m).
We met a young German couple just before entering a forest. They'd expected to find a spring in the forest, but there was none. We were also running a bit short of water. I didn't know if we'd make it to our next water source, Gornje Bare lake, because we still had to climb over Ugljesin Vrh (1,859m).
The climb wasn't as difficult as I'd anticipated because half of it was in shaded forest. On a ridge just below the summit, Birger had set up camp, planning to take more star photos.
It was a steep descent but we made it to the second lake that had clean blue water and there was no one else there. By the time we were eating dinner it was 20:30 and getting dark.
13 miles, 2,800' gain

[@joebow-tv9hg]

Wow! You always find the most beautiful, and off the beaten path places.

[@OvertheHills]

@joebow-tv9hg We try. The mountains we're headed towards are in Durmitor National Park, Montenegro. We ended this trip in Žabljak, at the east end of Durmitor. There were quite a lot of people there, including a lot of tourists, but they only dayhike.

[@joebow-tv9hg]

@@OvertheHills Well, you succeed!