Tom`s travels: Skakavac waterfall (05/04/2025)

On an early morning, we took bus number 69 from Sarajevo and reached the village of Nahorevo, just north of the city. Once there, we continued on foot following the main road until we reached a parking spot, the last spot for cars to reach the mountain area. There were barely any cars despite the hour, but usually it does get fuller in the summer months. As it was over 1100m in height, the trees around were still without leaves despite the season. From there, we then started following a path through the forest, which, with the lack of greenery, was rather dull and brownish. However, the lack of people around and nice weather made it nice to walk through. We passed a small rivulet flowing down the side of the mountain, crossed over it, and then reached a rocky cliff siding the path and creating a scenic landscape. A little further ahead, we heard it before seeing it, the strong and loud rush of water gushing down the mountainside and crashing down on the rocks below. The Skakavac waterfall was quite a sight to behold, 98m in height and considered the tallest in the country. Now, without leaves covering it from afar and the spring rains and snowmelts fueling it, it was quite impressive to admire, especially its vertical drop down the limestone cliff. As we approached it, the sound of the water got louder, and the wind created by the crash shot up cold air and drips of water our direction. We took a few pictures and then decided to continue on our hike. We had to cross over a rundown wooden bridge right in front of the waterfall and realized just as we crossed it that our right side, which faced the waterfall, got completely wet while crossing due to the closeness and force of the water. Once on the other side, we started heading uphill to reach a nice viewpoint on the rocky cliffs above, from where we could now see the waterfall from above. All around, we could now also see a nice view of the surrounding mountainous landscape. From there, we continued on and followed a nice wooden path through the forest until we reached an open area with a stream flowing down, the one that fuels the waterfall, and a picnic area around. From there, we started following another trail through the forest, this time heading constantly uphill. It was rather nice, with pine trees all around us. We eventually reached some open areas with young low pine trees and still some patches of snow here and there. Eventually, we came upon the Planinski dom Bukovik, set at about 1459 and surrounded by beautiful, blooming purple crocuses. We decided to stop at the mountain hut to eat the lunch we had brought with us and also order a nice warm soup to go with it. After lunch, we then trekked to the nearby Bukovik, reaching a height of 1532, and the highest peak in the Ozren mountains. From the top, we had a great view of the surrounding landscape with the city of Sarajevo below in the distance and above it the snowcapped peaks of the Bjelašnica mountain range. After enjoying the view, it was time to move. We headed out through the open fields, admiring the nice views all around. After some time walking, we passed by another mountain hut, Koliba Kod Brace, this one full of people eating, drinking, and playing music. We continued on, through another nice section in the forest, sometimes with views towards the snow-capped peaks of Jahorina. At one point, we even managed to spot a black squirrel scurrying up a tree. Eventually, after descending, we reached Sarajevo, ending our hike with just over 23km in length.