Into the Albanian Wilds

A common denominator in all of our adventures is that they all have absolutely gorgeous natural beauty, so it should come as no surprise that Albanian has a lot to offer! The Alps actually stretch down into Albania and the beaches resemble those of Greece and Croatia - both well known for their beauty. To get a taste of Albanian mountains we had to decide whether to head north or south - both looked gorgeous with the north having a Swiss look to them and the south having a bit more Andes desert look but still with some pine trees. What tipped the scale was the roadway system to get to the north seems to be a bit more adventure than we wanted.

It was actually illegal to own a personal car in Albania until the 1990s, therefore their roadway systems are much less mature than most nations. So although looking at google maps will show you roads with traffic data, it does not mean they are even paved. We used google street view and satellite view to scope them out and some other helpful blogs. The road to the north seemed to be a one lane mountain road with steep cliffs which meant sometimes needing to back up to let other cards through, but people were excited it had at least been paved in the last year or so. We still decided the roads to the south were more our speed.

It was about a 3 1/2 hour drive from Tirana to Përmet, a small town along the River Vjosa and in the middle of the Fir of Hotava-Dangelli National Park. The drive was a combination of 4 lane highways and 2 lane roads through towns with frequent back ups going through roundabouts slowing things down a bit. And add in the random goats, sheep and cattle for a true adventure!

There are a number of cute guest house and small hotel accommodations in the village of Përmet, we opted to rent a home just outside of town to give ourselves some space together. Traveling in a group of 7 is a little hard to find room configurations that work well. The house came equipped with a roaming tiny kitten which will provide great entertainment to the kids. We anticipated the potential for cute stray cats and brought cat treats with us on the trip!

We happened to be in town for an annual Nona festival - celebrating Grandmothers. After dark (and once the temperatures dipped from their daytime high of 100 degrees) the town filled with families and there was live music, lights, kids bounce houses and food stands and the streets were closed. I absolutely love stumbling upon these types of local, cultural events and really getting a feel for what life is like. We listened to some violin rock and ordered some meat on a stick and took in the atmosphere for a little while. The food stand owner seemed surprised that Americans were ordering food for him, so he asked for a photo. The kids were not thrilled with this but if they think for some reason this will help their business, we are happy to oblige.

We had arranged for a rafting trip down the Vjosa river with a local rafting company, Albania Rafting Group. The rapids during this time of year are up to about a level 2 and considered ‘family friendly’ to take the girls along. We opted for the 9:30 AM departure time thinking it would be cool - but even at 9:30 am, the temperature is nearing 90 degrees. They got us dressed in wet suits, helmets and life jackets and then piled us in a van for a 30 min drive up river. I could complain a bit about the heat but will resist. I think my pores are completely cleansed though.

There was a group of probably 40 people going down river with us. Normally I prefer smaller group adventures but didn’t mind the larger group for this activity. The guides were fun and encouraged and instigated boat splashing wars. The water felt great in the heat - with a high of 100 degrees. We all were seated in the same boat and the guide carefully had the youngest near him. At one point we stopped and people had the choice to jump off a 7 meter cliff - the teenager proudly did the jump, the 8 year old jumped at about 2 meters and I opted for about a 1 meter jump! All in all, the rafting trip was a hit!

August in Albania is definitely hot. With temperatures in the 100s and very strong sun rays, we opted to stay indoors and rest during peak sun hours of each day. With restaurants and stores being closed mid-day, I think we were adapting to what the locals do each day. In the evening, we’d head out for dinner around sundown and by 9 pm the town was buzzing with the restaurants full, cafes loaded with guests along the streets and kids running everywhere. It’s lovely to see.

Our second day in Përmet was spent in the river. In the morning we just hung out around the shores of Përmet and in the late afternoon we ventured out to the Benje Thermal Baths in Lengarica canyon. The baths were located about 20 minutes from Përmet along a windy paved road, complete with roaming livestock! There’s is a small river that flows through a canyon with various pools located along the sides of the river that are slightly warm and people hang out in them. There were a decent number of people located in the baths that you can see right away so we hiked back into the canyon about a half a mile. The hike up the canyon through the ankle/knee deep running water was absolutely a highlight. The canyon was gorgeous and very few of the people visiting the baths seem to venture very far up the canyon. The further we walked, the more beautiful the canyon was and we got to enjoy it with very few people around! It seems the canyon is used for rafting during other times of year where the water levels are higher, so likely not passable. Keen sandals were clutch for this walk!