THE BALKAN ROUTE

Pioneering The High Scardus Trail on MTB

By GripGrab Field Notes

March 9^th, 2021

‘The Balkan Route starts in Vienna’

If this quotation by Prince Metternich was true, there would have been no need for this journey – but we would have missed out massively. Kosovo, Albania and Macedonia are three incredibly interesting countries. This trip has burnt so many impressions deep into my brain, like barely any other.

No Peaks of the Balkans

As I kicked off my search for “bikeable” adventures in south-eastern Europe, I stumbled across the Peaks of the Balkans' long-distance hiking path, and not long after, Endrit’s travel company Zbulo! A few emails and one Skype call later, he had wiped out the whole initial idea: “On Peaks of the Balkans 80% of the way is not rideable.” My mood plummeted. However, one sentence later he turned the light on the horizon back up again. “The High Scardus Trail would be better, but we are still working out a route for bikes.” Sounds like an adventure, I thought and told him that we would accompany him on his pathfinding mission.

Chill mood: on

A few weeks later photographer Andreas Vigl, vlogger Christoph Eder and I “chill” our way from Austria towards Albania. We enjoy everything the Croatian coastline has to offer; wild camping near Zadar, ice cream in Makarska, and a dip in the sea in Dubrovnik. Once in Tirana we meet Endrit for the first time in person. By his side, guide number two, Drin. Endrit seems to be a vastly well-read man; wise and level-headed. Drin is his impulsive counterpart. On the way to the Kosovar border, we are already tuned in to each other’s wavelengths.

Close to the small village of Shishtavec, we take the bikes from the roof rack of our all-wheel-drive Hyundai and climb up the grassy hills. There is no road, no path. Just a few tire marks on the grass. It’s not long before we break a sweat. Drin – according to his own statements Albanian vice-champion in road cycling – celebrates his first hill climb of this trip, with many more to come. We are right on the border between Albania and Kosovo. Just a few hours before, when we stopped during our drive from Tirana, there was news on the TV about a new border dispute. Here, directly on the borderline, there was no sign of a conflict. The scenery is just idyllic: a landscape like a winter wonderland that’s been around too long and been covered by grass.

In the near distance, we see a farmer’s family raking hay. They are not even bothered by our manual sunset session.

Hospitality

Back in the village, we meet a total contrast: loud music everywhere. An engagement party is going on and we stop to watch the spectacle and a group of teenagers gather around us. One of them asks in German where we are from. Austria is not a satisfying answer for him, and we find out that – back in Austria – we live not even 30 minutes from each other. His grandparents are from Shishtavec and every summer him and his parents come back for a visit - a common procedure, it seems. Lots of Albanians migrate, Endrit explains, with big pressure to be successful abroad, otherwise their relatives wind them up with a “you could have just stayed home” repose. That explains all the luxury cars with foreign license plates heading towards Albania in summer – and also explains why, in the middle of the village square of Shishtavec, which I would describe as humble and arable – there is a brand new Mercedes G-Class parking.

Modest guys as we are, I told Endrit beforehand that he doesn’t need to worry about accommodation standards too much. “It’s pretty basic anyway”, he returned. Right, when we step into the first “guesthouse” I get what he meant. We are hosted by a local family. One goal of the High Scardus Trail is to give 100 families an additional income – and this is one way to do it. Everyone shifts around and their daughters’ room becomes our sleeping place for the night. Even if the space is tractable and the accommodation rustic, we feel more than welcome. There is no common language between us and the main man of the house, but he seems to be delighted to host us - as delighted as all the other hosts in the following days. Whether we step into an already overstaffed house or are invited for Raki at a complete stranger’s place, the hospitality is next level.

Development aid HST

The day before we leave, we are invited to a press conference: the official opening of the High Scardus Trail. After one week of riding bikes we find ourselves a bit underdressed, sitting next to the German ambassador and the Albanian minister of tourism, in flip flops and our last somewhat-clean set of shirts and shorts. Our appearance is secondary, once we show them vlogger Crisu’s work documenting what we have been up to the last days. Biking the HST wasn’t on their minds at all. It’s not too long after that Endrit gets asked to offer bike tours on the HST. Seems like we helped to start something here. A good feeling we take with us as we hop into our car and race home to re-adapt to the more hectic Middle-European lifestyle.

Factbox

Since the second century before Christ’s birth, the High Scardus Trail weaves through Kosovo, Albania, and Macedonia. In autumn 2018, the GIZ (German International Development Agency) marked and opened it as a 500 km long hiking trail. It’s the younger brother of the Peaks of the Balkans. If you want to conquer the HST by bike, Endrit Shima from Zbulo! is the guy to go to. He is co-creator of the trail, an excellent guide, and offers 8-day tours where you can be part of the life of rural Southeast Europe – in addition to great biking.