THE MAIN FEATURE – NORTH MACEDONIA – GOSTIVAR (Day 28 covering 80km to 3,250km)

This post sees us chase the clock and drive from the cities of Debar to Gostivar in North Macedonia along a canyon in the Mavrovo National Park.

 

Why did we chase the clock? Simples. The young guy we met at the St George Monastery yesterday told us that the road from Debar to Gostivar would close from 10am to 4pm for road works. That meant a 6am rise and quick departure. What a blessing. If we had not met him we would have been stuck in the canyon for a whole day !

 

Another blessing. The Bigorski Monastery of St John The Baptist. You have not seen Macedonia if you have not seen this Monastery. It is the most beautiful I have seen in the most beautiful location – and I have seen A LOT of Monasteries !!! Bigorski is the heart of Macedonian Orthodoxy which is an Autocephalous Church and was founded here in 1020AD when a humble hermit by the same name discovered a very old wooden icon of St John The Baptist floating on the river passing just below here. The icon helped many people and he was compelled to found a monastery here and not only did he become its first Abbott but the first Archbishop of Macedonia. This icon continues to work miracles, especially couples who cannot have children. The monk who took us inside to venerate this precious piece told us that hundreds of children have been born to parents who could not conceive. We also venerated the middle finger bone of St John The Baptist and another small piece of the actual cross of Christ. This place is magical and the mountains surrounding it cradle it like a small child.

 

At the end of the canyon lies the Mavrovo Lake at 1272m making it perfect for a run at 10am. We made it. Passed the huge road trucks about to close the road with 20min to spare!!! I left Paris and Leo at a collection of cafes and headed running along the lake towards the village of Mavrovo which comprised many Swiss-style homes equipped with triangular roofs to keep that winter snow at bay. This place shimmered in the sun and was the ideal place to fish for trout and hear myriads of birds singing.

 

Gostivar on the other hand was a stark contrast. Very industrial and a hosh-posh of incongruous buildings and crowded streets. No photos here. Headed to our first and only hostel which we had to ourselves. Looked like a New York artist loft apartment with a kitchen and lounge downstairs and bedrooms upstairs in the roof cavity.

Enjoy the blessed road from Debar to Gostivar…

THE MAIN FEATURE – NORTH MACEDONIA – DEBAR (Day 27 covering 71km to 3,170km)

This post sees us drive from the cities of Ohrid to Debar in North Macedonia via the snaky “Black Drin” river system through the greenest of valleys headed due North.

 

Another picture-perfect drive through a completely new geography – this time a long river valley with visits to two dams and two hydro-schemes. A very hot steamy day even though it was 650m to 800m. I think the super green forests and river system had a lot to do with the extra humidity wearing us down with each stop. It was worth it, as you will soon see below. The images are super.

 

Debar (Pop 14,561, Elev 650m, Founded 2^nd Century AD) is not a good-looking city but has a colourful pedestrian walkway full of umbrellas overhead – original indeed. The river is clean and forms a focal point for the city. Debar is a city in the western part of North Macedonia, near the border with Albania, off the road from Struga to Gostivar. It is the seat of Debar Municipality. Debar has an ethnic Albanian majority of 74% and is North Macedonia's only city in which ethnic Macedonians do not rank first or second demographically. Debar is 74% Albanian Muslim. Mosques everywhere. In fact this part of Macedonia is mostly Muslim given it was at the heart of the Ottoman occupation.

 

The highlight of this drive was the female Monastery of St George The Victorious, just outside Debar. It features the church of St George built in 1835 which contains the knuckle bone of St George himself and a small piece of the original cross of Christ. The church is now covered by a metallic hangar to protect it from degradation by the heavy snow here during winter. A lot of work is being done to preserve the buildings here. This monastery also makes the “mitres” or head crowns worn by Orthodox Priests and Bishops. We met a young local guy helping to upgrade the site who told us all about the monastery and church.

 

We ended the day on an high, literally, staying in an old village home high above Debar with Yana, a lovely lady who cooked her traditional Macedonian dish of stuffed eggplants with mince and rice. We sat at a little Gazebo overlooking the valley below. Magic.

Enjoy the journey to Debar Macedonia…

 

THE MAIN FEATURE – NORTH MACEDONIA – OHRID (Day 25-26 covering 166km to 3,099km)

This post sees us drive from the cities of Bitola to Ohrid in North Macedonia over the Galicica National Park mountain pass that connects Lake Prespa with Lake Ohrid.

 

The mountain pass road connecting Lake Prespa with Lake Ohrid is easily the most breathtaking and scenic drive to date. You cannot see both lakes at the same time but the view of each one is spectacular. Lake Ohrid view in particular looks like the famous Lauterbrunnen view in Switzerland. Refer the map photo to see the geography of the two lakes. The people of North Macedonia are fortunate to have these lakes given they are land-locked.

 

The city of Ohrid is the “Goldilocks” of cities to date. The right size, a great look, tidy, colourful, a bit of glamour, not crowded, not overrun with tourists, on the crystal clear freshwater Ohrid Lake, elevated Old Town with ancient sites, restaurants and cafes to suit all tastes and budgets.

 

Believe it or not, Paris and I woke up at 5:45am to travel 26km to a little village called Radozda (only 2km above the Albanian border on Lake Ohrid) and proceeded to go STAND UP PADDLE BOARDING until 10:30am. Amazing. I took to it like a duck to water and only fell off once in all that time because I had to drag Paris back who only sat on his knees and butt because he could bot stand up even if his life depended on it !!! I also swam 2.1km in the refreshing 19C water and lucky for me I did not swim over the Albanian border to the rattle of gun fire on the water !!!

 

The town of Radozda is also famous for the CAVE CHURCH of Archangel Michael built into the side of the mountain that overlooks Radozda. This cave church is apparently one of the oldest in Europe dating back at least to the 13^th Century.

Enjoy the spectacle of the pass and the calming waters of Lake Ohrid – a real inland gem…

BITOLA TO OHRID:

OHRID:

 PADDLING AT RADOZDA:

STOP PRESS: Ohrid is OBSESSED with BBQ Chicken - every restaurant has a rotiserrie out front with many chickens rotating - nice plumb little chickens. A whole plumb, juicy (slightly undercooked) chicken with cabbage ad chips is only 10AUD!!! Paris had the chorizo-lie sausages. We also enjoyed traditional bean stew (like the Greek fasolatha) and covered our chicken in the Macedonian verison of Dukka with hundreds of spices in it - delicious...