Dolovi Lalevića katun

Summer herders' settlement on a small plateau at 1,685 m on Bjelasica, 7 km by macadam road from Biogradsko jezero: families selling cheese and kajmak, huts to rent, a rest shelter, and the Bendovac trail and park bike route 1 passing through.

Bjelasica, Kolašin municipality

Photo: Milica Buha · CC BY-SA 4.0

Dolovi Lalevića is a katun, a summer settlement of herders' huts, on a small plateau between two hills at 1,685 m on Bjelasica, above the forest line among the pastures, 7 km by macadam road from Biogradsko jezero. The road runs on through the katun to Zekova glava and the other katuns of the mountain, several families sell milk, cheese, kajmak and meat from their huts, and there is a rest shelter. The marked trail to the Bendovac viewpoint and bike route 1 of Biogradska gora National Park pass through it, and its meadows are one of only two places in Montenegro where Lakušić's carnation grows.

Key facts

Elevation	1,685 m
Road	macadam, 7 km from the Biogradsko jezero car park, continuing to Zekova glava and the other katuns
On the katun	families selling milk, cheese, kajmak and meat; a rest shelter
Huts to rent	€5-20 per night at the Janketić household
Park ticket	€4 per person per day
Walks	Bendovac viewpoint, 1,774 m; Pešića jezero over Svatovsko groblje
By bike	park route 1 from the lake; the 63 km loop Dvije glave i pet jezera
Season	May to the end of October on Bjelasica

The katun

The katun lies above the forest line on a small plateau between two hills, among the pastures where the families keep their animals in summer; the macadam road through it links it to the lake below and to Zekova glava and the other katuns of Bjelasica above. The park's management plan counts it among the Bjelasica katuns along the edge of the Biogradska gora old-growth reserve. Several families sell milk, cheese, kajmak and meat to visitors, and the Janketić household lets huts at €5 to €20 a night, offers tastings of its own produce and board games after a day's walking, and takes guests to the lakes of the mountain: Malo and Veliko Šiško, Ursulovačko and Pešića jezero. A viewpoint about ten minutes' walk from the huts looks down on Biogradsko jezero and the forest.

The pastures around the katun are one of the few sites of Lakušić's carnation (Dianthus nitidus subsp. lacusicii), an endemic plant recorded in Montenegro only on Bjelasica, at Lalevića dolovi and Pitoma smetina. Keep to the road and the paths.

Walks and rides through the katun

Biogradsko jezero (1,094 m) to Bendovac (1,774 m): 6.8 km, about 700 m of climb, 2 h 30. From the car park the trail follows the gravel road along the left side of the lake up towards Dolovi Lalevića; from the wooden tower at Lazovi, short-cut paths cut the bends of the road. At the first hut of the katun a path climbs diagonally to the right to the viewpoint, the finest over the lake.
To Pešića jezero: from Biogradsko jezero via Ganovača to Dolovi Lalevića, then to Svatovsko groblje and along the Bjelasica ridge. The CT-1 transversal Planinama Crne Gore, part of the European route E-6, crosses the park by Vranjak, Crna glava and Svatovsko groblje.
By bike: the park's bike route 1 runs from Biogradsko jezero to Dolovi Lalevića, and the 63 km loop Dvije glave i pet jezera (two peaks and five lakes), 8 to 9 hours, passes the katun and Svatovsko groblje; the park hires bikes at €3 an hour or €8 a day. See the cycling page.
By jeep: the park's short jeep tours, from Kolašin via the source of the Biogradska rijeka or the lake to Dolovi Lalevića, cost €10 per vehicle per day; a park guide is €40 for four hours and €80 for eight.

A gravel path through tall beech and fir forest with fresh green undergrowth — A trail through the forest of Biogradska goraPhoto: Milica Buha, CC BY-SA 4.0

Getting there

Biogradsko jezero is 22 km from Kolašin on the road towards Mojkovac: turn right at a small bridge, pay the park ticket at the barrier at the park entrance and follow 4 km of asphalt to the lakeside car park (car €1 an hour). From the car park the 7 km macadam road leads up to the katun, on foot, by bike or by car, and continues to Zekova glava; walked, it is the first part of the Bendovac trail.

A calm green lake reflecting forested slopes and white clouds — Biogradsko jezero, where the road to the katun startsPhoto: Javier Sánchez Portero, CC BY-SA 3.0

The name is written both Dolovi Lalevića and Lalevića dolovi; both are the same place.

Fees

Biogradska gora National Park charges €4 per person per day, visitor centre and educational trails included, at its checkpoints at Kraljevo kolo and Vranjak and online at ulaznice.nparkovi.me; an annual ticket for all five national parks costs €13.50.

When to go

The trekking season on Bjelasica runs from May to the end of October. The katun is a summer settlement: the families and their produce are there in the grazing months, and the road and the Bendovac trail are walked whenever they are clear of snow.

Nearby

Bendovac is the viewpoint above the lake reached through the katun. The lake, the old-growth forest and the park's fees are on the Biogradska gora and Biogradsko jezero pages; the mountain's other trails, the Vranjak eco-katun and the ridge to Crna glava and Zekova glava are on the Bjelasica page, and Kolašin is the town. Other walks are on the hiking page.

Questions

How do you get to Dolovi Lalevića?

By the 7 km macadam road from the Biogradsko jezero car park, on foot, by bike or by car; the road continues to Zekova glava. The lake is 22 km from Kolašin plus 4 km of park road.

Can you buy food there?

Several families sell milk, cheese, kajmak and meat on the katun in summer, and the Janketić household offers tastings of its produce to its guests.

Can you stay overnight?

Yes: the Janketić household lets huts at €5 to €20 a night, booked through Montenegro Village Explorer (mnevillage.gov.me); the park's 12 bungalows with 32 beds are down on the lake shore.