10.01.2022. 11:25 Written by 'Sarajevo Outdoor City' team
There are several excursion areas in Sarajevo's Ozren known to all Sarajevans. Via Barica, Čavljak, Crepoljsko (1524 m / above sea level), Bukovik (1534 m / above sea level), to the Skakavac waterfall, which was placed under state protection in 1954. Today, the area around the waterfall is arranged as a real picnic area. Even the macadam road leading to the entrance to the protected zone has been restored and in some places asphalted in the most critical parts.
Skakavac Waterfall is located north of Sarajevo, and is some 12 km from the city center. We came by way across Nahorevo. The second and a little further road is through Bukovik. We left the car by the road, a hundred meters below the wooden gate.
Immediately behind the gate there is a small crossroad where you can choose whether to approach Skakavac from the top, or from the bottom, below the waterfall. A smaller road, which goes downhill and through the forest leads under the waterfall. I think it’s much better (and easier) to go up the upper path, see the waterfall from the lookout, then go down below and go back down the lower path.
Basically, the upper road is nicely decorated, just wide enough for a passenger car to pass. There is shade all the way because the road leads through the forest. After only a few hundred meters we came across a fountain on the left side of the road. This place is arranged as a small resting place and several benches have been set up. 2.5 kilometers down that road is a crossroad where the road to Bukovik separates.
There is also a ramp so that those nature lovers who started with a car must step on the ground. Behind the ramp, the protected zone of the Skakavac nature monument begins. Posters describing the flora and fauna of this area have been placed along the road. The vegetation around the waterfall itself is rich in endemic species.
Spruce-fir forests and beech-fir forests are the most common in this area, with spruce being more present on more steep terrains. In the immediate vicinity of the waterfall, thermophilic forests have developed, as well as thickets of black hornbeam, autumn sedge, and black ash.
Another kilometer of pleasant walk and we reached Skakavački Potok. Just above the road is a lodge that was demolished in the war and never rebuilt. Below the lodge, on the right side, there is a fountain with drinking water. To the left of the stream is a wooden signpost marking the way to the lookout point, above the waterfall. From this place you will be able to see the very top of the 98 meter high waterfall which, although it does not have a large flow of water, is characterized by exceptional beauty, especially in winter when it is frozen.
Above the lookout passes a road that curves down towards the foot of the waterfall. The road is quite arranged and fenced so that the descent is safe. 98 meters below there is a view of the waterfall, but now from another perspective, from its foot. Although this space is quite tidy you have to be careful if you walk on rocks as it is always wet and slippery. We also found a large number of excursionists there, in our estimation a lot more foreigners than people from Sarajevo. Unfortunately, most of our fellow citizens have never seen this waterfall even though it is a few kilometers away from the city. The road we took back on is a real forest road, only wide enough for two men to barely pass. In a few places it is intersected by streambeds that are active only in the spring and after heavy rains. Wooden bridges are improvised over these courts.
A tour from Sarajevo to the Skakavac waterfall is considered an easy half-day tour. Lately, frequent visitors to Skakavac are also fans of mountain biking.
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