Piva Canyon

The Piva cut a canyon over a kilometre deep through the limestone of northwestern Montenegro, and in 1975 a dam at Mratinje flooded the lower part of it, creating a reservoir some forty-five kilometres long between vertical walls. The road along it was cut into the cliff with more than fifty tunnels and galleries. The monastery of Piva, which would have been drowned, was dismantled and rebuilt stone by stone on higher ground.

What you actually see

• The reservoir - a lake some forty-five kilometres long between canyon walls.
• The tunnel road - a route cut into the cliff with over fifty tunnels.
• The Piva monastery - a sixteenth-century monastery moved stone by stone above the water.
• The Mratinje dam - the arch dam that created the lake.

When to go

May to October; the road is open year round but winter conditions in the tunnels are poor. Summer is the season for boat trips on the lake. Mornings are best for the light in the canyon.

Honest expectations

The tunnels are unlit, narrow and wet, and driving them takes concentration. The reservoir has drowned the original canyon floor, which some find a loss. Facilities along the road are sparse.

Nearby

Pluzine is at the lake, and Trnovacko Lake is northwest.