The whiskey did it’s job and we slept comfortably warm that night! These campgrounds with hot showers are a luxury and in these cheaper Eastern European countries they’re also somewhat affordable! Packed up and back in the muddy Troopy we hit the road again northbound for Serbia. This was a potentially problematic border crossing as due to COVID restrictions, Australia was not on the approved list for entry via land borders. Not for any other reason that we believe these countries worked on a reciprocal basis; if they’re not on Australia’s approved list, Australias not on theirs. This was the route we needed to take though to get to Romania so with clear copies of all our documentation in hand we decided to try our luck and attempt the crossing. The border lies over a canyon and due to the topography the gates are actually kilometres apart, connected by a road which runs along the bottom. Arriving at the Serbian border it turns out we had nothing to worry about, the crossing was seamless, the officials friendly and welcoming, and we were on our way again.
Our destination for the day is a large snaking river canyon known as Uvac Canyon. We had two options to get there - Google, or Maps.me. Following Google would see us continue on the nice smooth easy road through the gorge, Maps.me had an alternate route which apparently was an hour faster. Although main roads may be easy they can also breeze past culture and are often altered with niceties for travellers. We prefer to see more of a country’s everyday life and as our time here was short we opted for the wild card Maps.me route. Climbing up and out of the populated area it didn’t take long before we were off the black top again and into the mud. Passing a huge dairy farm we found Maps.me evidently hadn’t been updated recently and the road had been washed away. Thankfully we still had reception and managed to make out on Google satellite what looked to be a road (unmarked) not far back that traversed around the damaged section.
Now back on course the new track bought us out of the muddy wooded slopes and on top of a gentle rolling plateau. A shepherd moving his herd blocked the track so we stopped for a quick chat. We were a long way from any western tourist route up here so it must have been an odd sight for him. Oddly, hiking across the field was also a group of Serbian landscape photographers. They happened to make our social media details on the back of the Troopy and sent us some pics later of us trying to break through the herd. So thanks if you’re reading this!
As it turns out, and to no surprise or care, our Map.me adventure costs us double what it said it was going to save and we made it to the canyon just as the sun was setting. The walk from the parking area is several hundred metres over a small hill to a little rickety timber viewing platform. The platform sits over the edge of the canyon as it takes an incredible form, carving through the landscape, continually folding back on itself as if it’s been compressed end to end. The high water mark forms a perfect contrasting two tone divide along the canyon walls., something not usually visible earlier in the season. The sky is clear and filled with countless golden eagles and vultures (endangered griffon vultures) soaring collectively in the evening thermals. We watch the sunset over the farms on the opposing side and as night falls the temperature plunges so we hastily make the hike back to the warmth of the Troopy.
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26 авг 2024
