I was unfair to Montenegro. I came on holiday here for years, and I had no idea that – in addition to the sea and Durmitor – there’s an entire world waiting to be discovered. If it’s any consolation, I wasn’t alone in that ignorance. Few know that Montenegro has many canyons, real masterpieces that only nature can so skilfully in- corporate into steep cli s. And although the Tara River Canyon is the most famous, due to it being the deepest in the world after Colorado’s Grand Canyon, few in our 20-person tour knew that there are as many as ve canyons in the area around Bar, and even fewer of us have enjoyed adrena- line tours. I don’t have to explain how happy and excited we were ahead of this challenge that awaited us just ve or six kilometres from the comfort of civilisation. The Canyon of the River Bunar is lo- cated below Rumija Mountain, the massif of which separates the hin- terland of the Adriatic Sea from Lake Skadar, the largest lake in the Balkans. Alongside the main entrance to Bar’s Old Town, it can be reached via a narrow local road, to the Menka Bridge, below which you enter the river, but it’s best to set out from Bar with a guide, be- cause the road to it is also a special adventure. We drove jeeps along that old regional road and enjoyed the pristine nature, and we even passed through a long, narrow tunnel that was once traversed by trains but which hasn’t served people for a long time. Animals of- ten seek salvation from the heat there, so in the deep shade and darkness of that tunnel we were awaited by a family of horses and several cows. They were good enough to go ahead of us, because we were unable to go around them, and in the end we emerged on the other side. I knew that the real excitement still awaited me, but this moment was also somewhat surreal. And when we reached our destination, it was clear that something was coming that we couldn’t quite fully imagine. I consider myself a brave and courageous man, yet I didn’t feel indi erent when they began explaining in detail everything that awaited us and how we had to behave in the canyon. And even more so when they gave me a helmet so I wouldn’t possibly break my skull... OK, Luka, everything is OK; you can do it. And so we entered a canyon that has as many as ve waterfalls of up to 12 metres in height, and which have for cen- turies been ground and polished by the icy and clean mountain riv- ers, in the battle between water and stone. This canyon that was my rst is also the best for beginners, because it is the easiest to traverse; it is like a kind of preparation for the terrifying Nevidio or the even more beautiful and larger Međurečje. But even my Rikavac, as they call it, isn’t for young children. We were awaited at the start by the greatest trial. We could ei- ther climb down the rst descent by rope or jump from a height of seven metres. I’m great at jumping, and even by the sea I clamber up onto some high rocks, but the problem was reaching a place from which you could jump. It was necessary to pass a few metres with your back stuck to the rock face below the waterfall. You stand on slippery rocks and literally edge along, a centimetre at a time, praying that you don’t slip, because you have nothing to grab on to. You have no equipment, are not protected and beneath you are only rocks. But when the guide asked who he wanted to do it, I im- mediately said yes. Of the 20 of us, only ve headed along that cli . I was unimaginably happy when I reached the point we were to jump from, because I love that. I force myself to take a step, feel- ing horri c until I do that, and then the fear dissipates, I know there’s nothing left on me any more and let myself go. It’s an indescriba- ble feeling when everything goes right and you emerge from the water, happy to be alive... It’s true that I often ask myself why I need that, why I do it. My mother would tell me that I’m not right in the head, but challenges attract me and there’s nothing I can do about it. After this rst descent, the guide gathered us together. “Well, people, from here there’s no left or right, and backwards least of all.
Odavde nema ni levo ni desno, a najmanje nazad. Možemo samo napred i naredna tri sata smo u kanjonu Here there’s no left or right, and backwards least of all. We can only go forward and for the next three hours we’re in the canyon
se pentram po nekim visokim stenama, ali problem je bio stići do mesta sa kojeg možeš da skočiš. Trebalo je proći nekoliko metara leđima zalepljen uz stenu ispod vodopa- da. Stojiš na klizavom kamenju i bukvalno miliš centime- tar po centimetar, moliš se da se ne oklizneš jer nemaš za šta da se uhvatiš. Nemaš opremu, nisi zaštićen, a ispod tebe je kamenje. Ipak, kad je vodič pitao ko hoće, ja sam odmah rekao da želim ja. Od nas 20 petoro je krenulo ka toj litici. Bio sam nezamislivo srećan kad sam stigao do mesta za skakanje, jer to volim. Nateram sebe da zakoračim, jezi- vo mi je dok to ne uradim, a onda prestaje strah, znam da više ništa nije ništa na meni i prepustim se. Nezamisliv je taj osećaj kad sve prođe kako treba i izroniš iz vode, srećan što si živ... Istina, često sebe pitam šta mi to treba, zašto to radim. Mama bi mi rekla da nisam normalan, ali me izazov privlači, nema tu pomoći. Posle ovog prvog spusta nas je okupio vodič. “ E pa, lju- di, odavde nema ni levo ni desno, a najmanje nazad. Mo- žemo samo napred i naredna tri sata smo u kanjonu”. Gle- dam lica oko sebe i svi gutamo knedlu. Ali tu smo, što reče čovek – nema nazad. Kanjon nije odmah strašan jer je širok dva-tri metra. Ja sam fizički prilično spreman i nije mi bi- lo naporno, ali je pravi izazov hodati po tom klizavom ka- menju. Jedan neoprezan korak i možeš da uganeš nogu i ćao, posle čekaš gorsku službu da te vadi napolje. A malo je i čudno gaziti tu mutnu vodu i ne znati šta je ispod. Mi- slim, voda je bistra i čista, ali onaj ispred tebe diže mulj, pa se stvari dodatno komplikuju. Vodiči su na početku i na kraju kolone, međusobno su neprekidno u komunakaciji voki-tokijem, osećaš se ti zbog njih bezbedno, a ipak, mo- zak grozničavo radi. Inače, moram to posebno da naglasim, sam u kanjo- nu nemaš nikakve šanse. Neki koji su krenuli bez vodiča nisu dobro prošli, zato ni u ludilu nemojte bez njih. Na ne- kim mestima oni su bukvalno fizička pomoć jer se zagla- ve među stene, pa sa njihovih nogu preskačeš i ideš dalje. Osim toga, dobar deo kanjona smo se spuštali konopcima, 90 stepeni u odnosu na stenu, glatku i klizavu. Vezan si za tu malu sajlu, ali je poenta u vodiču koji je dole, koji te čeka i kontroliše silazak. Ako se oklizneš i sklizneš, on je taj koji
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