Vlasina Lake

Vlasinsko Jezero was made in 1947-1951 by damming a high peat bog at around 1,200 metres - at sixteen square kilometres the highest and largest artificial lake in Serbia - and when the water rose, sections of the peat floor tore loose and floated, so the lake carries drifting islands of vegetation that move with the wind and can be several hundred square metres in area, some carrying full-grown birch. They are the lake's distinctive feature and are protected. The surroundings are open highland with juniper, blueberry and bog flora, including carnivorous sundews in the remaining peat, and the air is notably clear. A road runs around the shore with hotels and holiday houses at intervals. It is a quiet, cool place, popular with Serbian visitors escaping the summer heat and largely unknown to foreign ones.

The landscape

• Floating peat islands - drifting vegetation rafts on the water.
• Highland bog flora - juniper, blueberry and sundews around the shore.
• The shore road - a circuit with viewpoints and holiday settlements.
• Clear highland air - the cool climate at 1,200 metres.

When to go

May to September; the lake is cold and the region snowbound in winter. July and August are the busiest and warmest, though evenings stay cool at this altitude. Autumn brings colour on the surrounding moors.

Things to know

Swimming is possible but the water is cold year round. The floating islands move unpredictably and may be far from shore on a given day. Accommodation is dated holiday-base style. Getting there means slow mountain roads from any direction.

Nearby

Surdulica lies west; Vranje is southwest.

Key facts