A true overlanding camping adventure
The thing that makes eastern Serbia so special is the fact that it’s one of the few remaining sparsely inhabited wildernesses in Europe. It’s the kind of place that you’re dreaming about when you want to break all your ties with everyday life and find silence and unspoiled nature somewhere. And freedom, yes, that is the key factor. Because, unspoiled nature throughout Europe is in most places actually spoiled by guards, cameras, rules, which are there to, allegedly, “protect” that nature, but actually keep reminding you of the things you want to forget about. And you every move is closely monitored. But not in eastern Serbia, no. You can really wander for days there without meeting a single human being, without being forced to obey any regulation or rule, except the natural, logical ones. You can really forget about the place where you’ve come from. You can be relaxed, and FREE.
That is the kind of place that we’re proud to offer to our visitors as the most impressive adventure brand of Serbia. A week on a 4×4 camping tour of eastern Serbia is an experience that can be compared to roaming around central Asia. It’s the kind of place where you feel as if time stands still. So calling this tour Eastern Serbian Nomad’s Adventure is a logical choice.
We’ve started with the central part of eastern Serbia, plunging swiftly into Kučaj mountains, the largest uninhabited area in Serbia; 50×50 km without towns or villages, only endless forests, grassy plains, rocks, canyons, caves, overwhelming beauty which is a home to deer, wolves, wild bore and all known kinds of wildlife. A favorite hunting ground, during the summer it’s quiet and looks like everybody has forgotten about it. We’ve had three great campsites on the territory of Kučaj mountains, before we continued southwards towards Stara planina (a.k.a. Balkan mountain), the precious jewel for nature lovers.
A short encounter with Rtanj mountain brought us an unfortunate summer storm, which is no wonder – June is traditionally the wettest month in Serbia, giving very good conditions for the mud lovers. But not on Rtanj – in order to safely climb this cult mountain on wheels, you need absolutely dry ground. And after a summer storm, you just don’t have it.
We devoted the finishing days of the tour to Stara planina, and it was really an experience for which the participants couldn’t find words strong enough to express their fascination. I remember Renaud, our friend from Belgium, using the word flabergasting, which may be a good, unique way to express the emotion that traversing the endless grassy highland plateaus of Stara planina overwhelm you with. Due to rainy weather, we’ve spent one night in the fine mountaineering chalet on Babin Zub, and camped the last night in the Arbinje valley – it’s an experience that simply shouldn’t be missed.
Video from the tour (titled “Quest for freedom”)
Technically, driving through eastern Serbia doesn’t have to be very demanding, as good dirt trails can be found. But it’s not hard at all to find challenges once you turn off the main roads. However, overlanding eastern Serbia is far more a spiritual challenge, because it fills your heart and soul with exotic daily impressions that seem to come from a whole different world. The world in which the modern pace and rules of life still didn’t arrive. A world that very much resembles Tolkien’s Middle Earth. Only this one is real, and available to everyone to experience.
Take a look at the photo album about what our friends, coming from Belgium, Germany, Romania and Venezuela experienced in the 7 days of June 2015, and you’ll probably understand what I’m talking about. Would you like to try it? Of course you would, who wouldn’t? 😉 So go straight to our schedule, and book our next Serbian Nomad’s Adventure!
