Umoljani

Umoljani stands at around 1,300 metres on the Bjelasnica plateau, a village of stone houses with stone-slab roofs strung along a slope above the Studeni potok, and its setting is the reason people come: the stream meanders in tight loops across a flat green basin below the village, a pattern unusual at this altitude and much photographed. A wooden mosque, rebuilt after destruction, stands in the village, and a local legend about a dragon turned to stone attaches to a rock formation on the ridge above. The village empties in winter and fills in summer when families return to the pastures. A trail runs from here to Lukomir and others cross the plateau.

What you actually see

• The meandering stream - the Studeni potok looping across the basin.
• Stone houses - the slab-roofed village buildings on the slope.
• The wooden mosque - the rebuilt village mosque.
• Plateau trails - the walking routes to Lukomir and across the pasture.

When to go

June to September, when the plateau is clear of snow and the village is inhabited; the meanders are greenest in early summer. Winter closes the roads and most of the village. Nights are cold in any month.

Honest expectations

The road up is rough and closed by snow for much of the year. The village is small and half empty outside summer. Facilities are a couple of village restaurants. Mines from the 1990s remain in parts of the massif and marked paths should be kept to.

Nearby

Lukomir lies east along the plateau; Bjelasnica summit is north.