Friday, October 13, 2017

Lake Komani, Albania

Lake Komani, Albania

11 Sep 2017

Today we would be taking the Alpin ferry to cross the Komani Lake from Fierze to Koman. We spent the day before at the lovely mountainous village of Valbona, just enjoying the view. We didn't go for a hike due to time constraint, which is a shame as the trekking routes are great!

Our ferry would depart at 9am, so we hired a taxi, arranged by our host at Villa Dini for EUR 30. The journey from Valbona to Fierze would take about 1 hour, so the taxi came to fetch us at 7.30am. We had our breakfast at 7am (included together with room rate) and then we were ready to go.

The view of our 2 hour journey from Fierze to Koman via the Komani Lake was simply breathtaking! The ferry ride cost EUR 8 per person. This would be a must do if you are in the vicinity.  The lake was formed when the hydro-electric power station at Koman, on the Drini River, was built in 1986. Enjoy the pix of Lake Komani.

our Alpin ferry at Fierze jetty

Albanian flag



mirror lake




small island on the lake
end of the lake at Koman dam

Koman ferry landing

At Koman, there was a minibus, or furgon waiting to take us to Shkoder for EUR 2. Since the minibus is a public transport, our minibus made many stops, even stopping for almost an hour at a school to wait for the pupils and their teachers. It was indeed a unique experience. We finally arrived at Skhoder at 2pm. Our final destination for today is Kotor, Montenegro so it was still a long journey. We would have to go to Ulcinj in Montenegro first, then take another bus to Kotor. If you are heading to Kotor and have sufficient time, it is better to stay overnight at Shokder and take a direct bus to Kotor at 10am the next morning. By doing this, you could take a later ferry Berisha from Fierze to Koman at 1pm and get to enjoy Valbona for a bit longer.

Koman hydroelectric dam

minibus at Koman

leaving Koman for Shkoder

our minibus stopped at this school to pick teachers and pupils

There was supposed to be a minibus from Shkoder to Ulcinj, Montenegro at 2.15pm, but when we arrived there was none. Only the 4pm minibus to Ulcinj was there. So we decided to wait until 4pm. The location to take the minibus from Shkoder to Ulcinj is exactly at the location where the minibus from Koman to Shkoder dropped us, but at the opposite side of the road. It is located right at Ebu Bekr mosque or Xhamia e Madhe at Rruga Teuta road. Our minibus from Shkoder to Ulcinj cost EUR 5 per person.

Ebu Bekr mosque, Shkoder

minibus stop at Shkoder for Ulcinj

We were glad to see the sight of a bus station again in Montenegro when we arrived at Ulcinj at 6pm. From Ulcinj, we took the 6.45pm bus to Kotor for EUR 9 per person, additional EUR 1 per bag stowed in the lower bus compartment. We arrived Kotor at almost 10pm. Today was the longest journey that we took starting from Valbona in the morning at 7.30am and reaching Kotor at 10pm, covering about 300km by various mode of transportation, i.e. car hire, ferry, minibus and bus.

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