On the Way to Lura

I had wanted to go to the Lura Lakes region of north central Albania since reading about it in our guidebook. There are seven lakes high in the mountains, and it was by reputation one of the most beautiful places in Albania, albeit somewhat less than in its prime due to illegal logging. It looked reasonably close on the map, and the highway was a nice big red color so it should be reasonably accessible. The prosecutor who is the head of the JIU was familiar with the area, having grown up not too many miles away, and he volunteered to organize an expedition. We left Tirana on July 3rd in a caravan of seven vehicles. These photos are in reverse order.

Immediately below is the old copper mine smelter in Kurbnesh.

You can see the highway from the left of the photo down through the middle. All three of these pictures are looking more or less to the west, the direction from which we had come.

About an hour out of Tirana the paved highway ends, and this photo is the beginning of the "real" trip. The road got progressively worse and worse. It is about a two and a half hour drive from here to Lura with Cindy driving, although our driver on the way home was determined to make it in two hours. It rained once we got there, and on the way back the road was muddy and slippery. One of guys drove our car and we rode in another car.