Serbia – a travel destination for outdoor fans

Who would have thought what wild adventures we would embark on in Serbia. “Cave exploration” sounds like a harmless activity on paper. But more on that later. Our outdoor trip through western Serbia started comfortably with a bike tour through Belgrade’s district of New Belgrade, including exciting stories about the massive buildings. But it wasn’t to go on quite so comfortably.

#1 Paddling on the Danube

Our first stop is about 100 kilometers northwest of Serbia’s capital. Novi Sad is the second largest city in Serbia and offers not only a pretty city center but also lively beaches on the Danube River. On one of these beaches, the “floating island” of the Danube Rafting Team is already waiting for us. From Novi Sad they offer various paddling tours (day trip from 25 euros). “Hi, I’m Jugo,” our guide greets us and toasts “Ziveli!” with a schnapps. This can be a cheerful tour. Jugoslav aka Jugo, as he calls himself, belongs to the type of survivalist. He has already paddled down the Danube three times from its source to its mouth in the Black Sea and now says to us “you have to become one with the water”. We chug upstream with the floating island, which also transports the canoes and kayaks, and then drift downstream with the help of the current of the Danube. There is enough time to enjoy the scenery and every 30 minutes we jump into the Danube on Jugo’s command to cool off. Especially on such a sunny summer day, a truly wet and cheerful pleasure.

#2 Hiking around Valjevo

From Novi Sad, our journey continues to Valjevo, about 150 kilometers away. The small town is nestled between the mountain ranges of Povljen and Maljen and is therefore an ideal starting point for hiking and other sports activities such as rafting, canyoning and caving. First, we explore the cultural and scenic diversity around the town on a half-day hike. We follow the river Gradac in a southerly direction out of town. The first highlight is the magnificent Celije Monastery. After that, it’s on without squeamishness. We walk across fields full of fresh-smelling mint, which grows here like the nettles here. We pick a handful and put them in our water bottles as a refreshing flavor enhancer, which, by the way, we can fill with fresh drinking water at any tap without hesitation. We continue across the riverbed, and while the shoes are left to dry in the sun after the hike, there is a freshly caught grilled trout for refreshment.

#3 Climb through dark caves

In the afternoon, it quickly turns out that the hike along the Gradac River was just the warm-up program. With our guide Nemanja from Wild Serbia, we head for one of the numerous caves in the area after lunch. We are equipped with a helmet, rubber boots and an extremely sexy cover and take a first look. “We’re going to abseil down through this hole,” Nemanja says, pointing to a narrow opening about 25 meters above our heads. No one really takes him seriously with these words. But when we are standing at the top of the opening a few minutes later and he calmly arranges the ropes, we realize that we should actually go down there. “Who wants first?” asks Nemanja. Silence. No one outs himself as an adventurer. My heart is beating like crazy with shit, but waiting will only make it worse. And so I take a deep breath in and out, step forward and go backwards into uncertainty. For five minutes I reach the bottom of the cave with trembling feet. Managed.

At the next item on the program, I treat myself to the joker card. Nemanja leads our troop far into the depths of the cave. The friend, daring as he is (as a man, you can’t pinch yourself), bravely goes along. Two hours later, it returns to daylight, muddy from head to toe. No, the cave exploration was definitely not a beautifully groomed path, but a climbing tour past bat caves and through narrow passages deep into the dark earth. If you’re looking for thrills, you’ve come to the right place at Wild Serbia.

#4Explore the Ovčar Kablar Gorge

Our fourth stop on this outdoor tour of Serbia is among the top destinations for nature lovers. Near the town of Čačak in central Serbia, the Zapadna Morava River between the Ovčar and Kablar mountains has formed an impressive gorge that is part of a national park. Starting from the village of Ovčar Banja, the area can be explored on various hiking trails. For the most beautiful view over the Ovčar-Kablar gorge, a little breather is required, but the altitude difference to the top of Kablar is definitely worth it.

Also worth seeing are the 10 medieval monasteries nestled on the slopes of Ovčar and Kablar. After climbing the summit, we chugged downstream by boat and paid a visit to the Nikolje Monastery. For the lunch break we headed for the restaurant Santa Maria on the riverbank and once again enjoyed the hearty Serbian cuisine including schnapps.

#5 Recreation at the winery – wine from Serbia

On the way back from Čačak to Belgrade, we stopped in Topola, which is an important cultural center for the Serbian population. The town was once Serbia’s administrative and political capital. Nowadays, there is no trace of this in the city centre. The main attraction of Topola is located a few meters further up the Oplenac hill. There is the mausoleum of the Serbian royal dynasty Karađorđević. Admittedly, I only listened to the detailed explanations of the royal stories with half an ear. Royales is not really my thing. Instead, my eyes wandered along the individual pieces of the mosaic in amazement. What an architectural gem.

A stop in the Topola region is not only due to royal history, but also to the fertile soil on which sweet grapes ripen. What would an outdoor trip be without a leisurely dinner outside in nature? And so we end our tour through western and central Serbia at the Vrbica winery near Arandjelova and toast the adventures we have mastered together with a fine wine.

Note: The National Tourism Organization of Serbia invited us to this trip. Thank you very much for this! As always, my readers can be sure that I always represent my views and enthusiasm.