Ali-pasha Springs – Gerani

GPS

Ali Pasha’s Springs are a natural attraction, and the trail which just after it continues towards the village of Gerani is glued along the cliff below the mighty ridge of the Vezirova Brada Peak, and travelling along it we venture into a short, relatively gentle adventure, attainable for all, but still not quite ordinary. In other words, this is a “low-cost” adventure – it requires only will power and a positive attitude, and in return it gives us a stunning secluded area, free of any disturbance, and thickly padded with a “get-away-from-everything” atmosphere. While we are going along this trail we might grumble now and then on account of this guide which has convinced us to take our bike for a “walk” in such a place, but in the end we will have a nice memory of successfully negotiated obstacles and will definitely wish to do it all again one day… The route can be combined with the one to the Ropojana Valley (Route GU 03). The start of this route is 1.4km from Gusinje: from the road towards Ćosovići we turn right and soon reach Ali Pasha’s Springs – a large, shallow natural pool which is fed by springs from underneath.

The rest of the route does not require a great physical effort, but a narrow stone trail which forks left after about 700m will require us to push our bikes beside us at many points, and in a few places it will be necessary to carry it for several metres as well. Therefore for those who are not skilled at riding on uneven and rocky terrain, it is best not to get on the bike at all in this section – walking beside it, with a little patience they will pass the next 2km relatively easily and even then be quite satisfied with themselves. And those who are not at all fans of pulling and pushing their bikes instead of riding them, would be better off leaving them somewhere beside the trail and then walking as far as it seems to them interesting, before going back.

As we get closer to the village of Gerani, on the left, beside or below us (the trail keeps going up and down constantly) is the vegetation through which the River Grlja wanders and winds its way. In the slightly marshy terrain on that side, below the trail there are still plenty of springs: although we might not notice them, we go past more than twenty of them. 1.9km from the start of the tour we descend to a very field and it will be necessary to search for a trail in the very short grass, lost amongst the large boulders lying there. It will not be difficult since the trail reappears again after only a few dozen metres.

The road surface gradually becomes relatively suitable for riding, and from the junction near the village of Gerani (about 2.3km from the start) one can already ride without significant problems – we have negotiated the complicated section of the trail, slightly less than 2km long. Immediately after this point we go past a graveyard (on the left) and soon reach a asphalt road, which will then take us (sooner than we would like in this wonderful area) onto the Vusanje–Gusinje road.