Mali i Sukes could well be the "houseberg" of Burrel, if the gaze of ambitious mountaineers would not wander off to Mali i Dejes (see separate page). Mali i Sukes is the northern exponent of the wild mountainous area that stretches roughly (in west-east direction) between Tirana and the Macedonian border, and (in north-south...

There is some confusion as to the name of Mal Milot. Following some clues from different maps, we call Mal Milot the north end of the mountain range that has its highest point with Dajti Mountain near Tirana, and continues northwards with Brar Mountain, Gamnit Mountain, Kruja Mountain, Rakshanit and on past the town of Lac,...

Dajti Balcony is rightfully a top excursion from Tirana. At roughly 1000 Meter, it offers grandiose views across the sprawling city, and on to the Adriatic. It can be reached in many ways - by car, by cable car, or you can walk from Linza or Tujan village. The summit of Dajti can be easily reached from the balcony. Perhaps not...

Mali i Palleshit is more of a ridge with several highpoints all just exceeding 500 meter altitude. The ridge itself is not easy to walk because of vegetation and uncomfortable rocky terrain. The intrepid hiker will have to pick just one of the highpoints and aim for it - and this is what we did. Mali i Palleshit connects...

Mali i Buretos is perhaps somewhat neglected by ambitious hikers. This might be because it happens to be a little less high than mighty Cajupi Mountain, or even nearby Nemercka or Papingut. 1759 Meter do not seem to be very high, but remember that the Drinos Valley lies at an altitude of 200 Meter only. So Mali i Buretos (or...

Mali i Korres could be coming out of a novel. It is the backdrop for several villages on an isolated highland plateau. Situated right on the boundary of Tirana and Elbasan regions, it takes a while to get there along winding roads in desolated landscapes. We chose a round-trip across the summit of Korres. Due to the much eroded...

Mali i Gurit has been on our mind for quite some time, as it is a prominent mountain seen from Librazhd. The road from Librazhd to Peshkopi - now being upgraded - leads past its foot at Fushë Studën. Fushë Studën and Stebleve are central to the Jablanica - Shebenik National Park, though there is not yet much...

Velji Kosmas has been described as a mountain with very nice views. It is the highest summit in the range that directly rises from the Adriatic, between Budva and Petrovac - undoubtedly one of the most beautiful coastlines in Montenegro. However, Kosmas itself doesn't allow direct views to the shores of Adriatic - for these you...

Goli Vrh is an easily accessible mountain near Budva, which provides excellent views across the coast and - provided there is fine weather - to the Shkodra Lake and the mountains along the border to Albania. The hike, which starts at an altitude of about 750 Meter passes the old fortress of Kosmas. The castle is a ruin, but still...

Maja e Ostrovices, near Elbasan, has the same name as its more famous namesake in Korca region, though it is 1000 Meter lower. We therefore call it Maja e Ostrovices (e vogel, or the small one), and hope that nobody takes offense. We noticed Ostrovice when travelling from Studen to Librazhd, and Ostrovice appears as a...

Mali i Kërçinit, or Kërçin, is one of the outstanding highpoints on the range separating Albania from Macedonia. With 2342 Meter altitude, it is some 20 Meter lower than neighboring Velivar (see separate report in hikr), but the ascent is way more demanding. Your most likely trailhead is in Kërçisht Siperme, at 870 Meter...

When mentioning Mourgana to someone in Albania, you are likely to draw a blank. This is, perhaps, because Mourgana is the southernmost big mountain in Albania and remote. But then, because it is the southernmost big peak, you would expect more attention... Sitting on the border between Albania and Greece, most travelers heading...

An ultra-prominent peak, or Ultra in short, is a mountain with a topographic prominence of 1,500 meters or more. In order to climb a higher peak, you first have to descend at least 1500 meter. Prominence – at least for the mountaineer - is a measurement for the subjective significance of a summit regardless of its actual...

Maja e Velivarit or Velivar as shown on most maps, is the highest summit of the range known as Deshat by the people of Macedonia. Deshat is the southern part of ridge that separates Albania from Macedonia between Diber and Kukes; the northern part is the Korab Massif, with Maja e Korabit being the highpoint of both countries....

Maja Rrunja e Lurës has a long name, but offers a relatively short but invigorating hike. For those wishing to spend some time in the Lure area and visit more than the lakes, Maja Rrunja e Lures is an ideal excursion. Rrunja provides views across Lure National Park, including towards the dramatic Mali i Dejes (see separate...

Kroi Bardhe has a sort of mystic reputation. Everybody seems to have heard of it, hardly anyone knows where it is. We eventually found a description in the promotional picture book published by the Council of Lezha Region, where it is praised as a high altitude camping ground organized around a spring with medicinal qualities....

Who wants to climb a mountain that nobody knows and nobody sees? Well, once you happen to see it (as we did when we were climbing Mali i Polisit), you may actually want to hike Maja e Gaferit. With 1890 Meter, Maja e Gaferit has a respectable height for a central Albanian mountain, and it looks beautiful. It has a 300 Meter...

We were heading into the Gramsh - Grabove area, waiting what the weather would be like. As one year before, while the rest of Albania was nearing a heat stroke, Gramsh experienced major thunderstorms, rendering some of the more difficult access roads impassable. We therefore had to reorganize, and decided to hike Mali i...

We continued our tour of the Rocks of Mirdita with Guri i Nuses, which translates into the Stone of the Bride. Don't even try to discover the long lost legend behind the name. Others tried before, including Ndue Dedaj, and abandoned the attempt in abhorrence over the endless variations of young girls' death and...

Maja e Gurit Gjon is enthusiastically named a Natural Monument in the promotional picture book of the Lezha Regional Council. And when traveling the bumpy road from Rreshen towards Lure, Guri Gjon rises dramatically behind the abandoned mining town of Kurbnesh, almost like a little a miniature version of El Capitan in the Yosemite...