Žijovo

Border massif of the Kuči mountains in the Capital City Podgorica, with Surdup (2,184 m), Štitan (2,182 m), an 8.5 km marked trail from Bukumirsko jezero and Rikavačko jezero reached by car.

2,182 m · Central Region

Žijovo (Žijevo in the official survey table) is the border massif of the Kuči mountains in the Capital City Podgorica, about 50 km from the city on the frontier with Albania. Its two highest summits, Surdup, 2,184 m, and Štitan, 2,182 m, are the goal of the marked Žijovo trail, 8.5 km from Bukumirsko jezero, and the view from the top covers most of southern and eastern Montenegro and parts of Albania and Kosovo. Two glacial lakes belong to the massif: Bukumirsko jezero at the trailhead and Rikavačko jezero at 1,313 m under the Žijevo peak, which a car reaches almost to.

Key facts

Highest summits	Surdup 2,184 m, Štitan 2,182 m
Other peaks	Žijevo 2,130 m, Vila 2,093 m, Suvi vrh 2,029 m
Marked trail	Žijovo, 8.5 km, from Bukumirsko jezero to the viewpoints on Surdup and Štitan
Lakes	Bukumirsko jezero, glacial, 19,320 m²; Rikavačko jezero, 1,313 m
Distance	about 50 km from Podgorica, by car through Kuči almost to Rikavačko jezero
Municipality	Capital City Podgorica (Kuči)
Emergency	112, which covers mountain rescue

Peaks

Surdup, 2,184 m: the viewpoint at the end of the marked trail
Štitan, 2,182 m: the highest point of the massif in the official survey table, next to Surdup on the ridge
Žijevo, 2,130 m: the peak that gives the massif its name, above Rikavačko jezero on the Albanian border
Vila, 2,093 m
Suvi vrh, 2,029 m

The state border with Albania runs over the massif. The Kuči mountains as a whole combine karst relief, high peaks and glacial lakes, and from their summits the view covers most of southern and eastern Montenegro and parts of Albania and Kosovo.

A grassy summit with scattered rocks and a range of bare peaks beyond — Looking west from SurdupPhoto: Martin Brož, CC BY 3.0

The Žijovo trail

The marked trail "Žijovo" is 8.5 km long, signposted with standard markings along its whole length, and runs from Bukumirsko jezero to the viewpoints on the highest peaks, Surdup and Štitan, which stand next to each other at the top of the massif. Plan it as a full day out: there is no mountain hut on the massif, so carry water and start early enough to be back at the lake in daylight. Trail rules are on the hiking page; the emergency number 112 covers mountain rescue.

Lakes

Bukumirsko jezero

A glacial lake in Kuči with a surface of 19,320 m², and the start of the Žijovo trail.

Rikavačko jezero

At 1,313 m in the Kuči mountains, near the Žijevo peak on the Albanian border, about 50 km from Podgorica. The Rikavac stream feeds it and flows on to the Cijevna and the Ribnica. The road through Kuči brings a car almost to the shore, which makes it the easiest point of the massif to reach.

A lake below a dark wooded slope with a sharp peak behind — Rikavačko jezeroPhoto: Martin Brož, CC BY 3.0

Kuči and the panoramic road

The Kuči mountains lie about 50 km from the Podgorica plain. The Kučka korita circuit, Krug oko Korita, is the first fully marked panoramic road in Montenegro: 65 km from Podgorica into Kuči and to the rim of the Cijevna canyon, sized for a day trip by car.

Getting there

Everything starts in Podgorica. The road through Kuči climbs to Rikavačko jezero, about 50 km, and a car gets almost to the lake; the Žijovo trail starts at Bukumirsko jezero.

Nearby

The Kuči mountains also hold the Kučka korita panoramic road and the canyon of the Cijevna. The Komovi nature park, between Bjelasica and Prokletije and the rivers Lim and Tara, lies partly in the Capital City. Other ranges are on the hiking page.