Sićevo Gorge

The Nišava cuts a gorge some seventeen kilometres long and 350 to 400 metres deep through limestone east of Niš, carrying the road and railway toward Bulgaria. On the terraces above, the villages of Sićevo and Ostrovica grow vines, and the painters' colony founded at Sićevo in 1904 by Nadežda Petrović, the oldest in Serbia, still runs. In 2008 a hominin jawbone was excavated in the Mala Balanica cave in the gorge. The Sveta Petka monastery sits in the rock beside the river, and the Kusača and Bigrena springs feed tufa formations. Cliffs in the gorge are used for climbing and griffon vultures pass overhead. It is a short trip from Niš and the combination of vineyard terraces above a deep gorge is unusual in Serbia.

The landscape

• The gorge walls - limestone cliffs above the river, road and railway.
• Vineyard terraces - the wine villages on the shoulders above.
• Sveta Petka monastery - the small foundation in the rock by the water.
• Climbing cliffs - bolted routes on the gorge walls.

When to go

April to October; September and October for the vintage in the villages above. The gorge road is open year round. Spring brings high water and the fullest springs.

Good to know

The main road through the gorge is busy and there is little space for pedestrians. The vineyard villages need a detour up steep side roads. The painters' colony is not generally open to visitors outside events. Facilities are limited to a few restaurants.

Nearby

Niš lies west; Jerma gorge is southeast toward the border.

Key facts