Leskoec

See https://mymacedoniablog.wordpress.com/ for more info about sightseeing and hiking in Macedonia

This hike starts in the village Leskoec (Leskoets) near Ohrid and is about 16 km long with 1000 m ascent. The amount of climbing makes the hike harder than you may expect. There are 6 churches along the trail. The hike offers several good viewpoints where you can see Ohrid, the lake, and the valley below. Because parts of the hike are through forest area the views are not great all the time and there are not so many other rewarding moments. However, the part with the two peaks in Galicica National Park is nice.

There are some shops near the beginning of the trail at the main square of Leskoec, right at where you leave the main road to Ohrid. I think there’s also a bus stop at the square.

The first part of the hike from Leskoets to the peak Vishesla is relatively well marked, but from there the marking stops and you have to go freestyle and reply on the GPS until you pass the second peak and you reach the dirt-road on your way back to Leskoets.

The first church is the Church of St Ilija (St Elias).

From there it’s quite steeply uphill through forest.

You’ll pass a crossing where there is a spring named Livajca when you follow a trail about 50 meters to the left.

From there you climb to the first viewpoint, indicated with a sign a “Kamen Ramnishta” (Flat Stone?).

The second viewpoint, almost exactly above the first viewpoint, is a bit more challenging to climb.

Between the second viewpoint and the peak Vishesla there is an area that looked like it was recently burned (I was here in July 2021).

Next you’ll go without a clear trail to another peak with good views all around and that offers the perfect conditions for a lunch break. I visited this peak also a year before during a nice hike from Velgosthi to Skrebatno (https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/velgosti-skrebatno-in-galicica-national-park-55306666) .

Then you go down where you will reach a broad and rather boring dirt-road. This dirt-road was also included in hike from Resen to Ohrid (https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/resen-ohrid-in-galicica-national-park-55186505) that I also did a year earlier. Funnily, I met another Dutch guy with his Brazilian friend on this dirt road, who where walking the Via Egnatia Trail towards Resen (https://www.viaegnatiafoundation.eu/).

The second church on the trail is the Church of St Peter and Paul, that a year ealier was still under constructions. The church includes a picnic site with toilets and a playground.

Then there’s the Church of St Naum, where there are already construction works for ages to built a monastery. This church was open.

The following church is the old Church of St Spas on a graveyard. The church dedicated to the Ascension of Christ, known as St Spas, was consecrated in the year 1462, which is mentioned in the founding inscription from the nave. The founders of the church were Tode and his wife Vulka, representatives of the Christian nobility within the Ottoman Empire. The portrait of St. Clement is painted next to the representation of the founding couple on the south wall. The role of St. Clement as protector of Ohrid is emphasized through his frescoe where he hold a model of the city that he brings to the miracle worker and healer St. Nikola Miriliski (http://stklimentpath.uklo.edu.mk/mk/sv-spas-s-leskoec.html). The church of St Spas unfortunately was closed so I could not see the frescoes.

The Church of St Nikola can be found just in the next turn in the road. It is a modest church and was open.

The last religious buildings are the small chapel for St Petka and the Church of St Toma. I had seen the Church of St Toma as well in 2008 when it was still under construction.

The last part of the hike takes you though a strange part that seems like a garbage dump at some places. There are some remarkable stone structures/ruins that look like some kind of ovens. Maybe these structures are lime ovens, At least one of them seemed to be still in use.

This hike gets 3 out of 5 stars. It was quite demanding without too many rewards in the form of good views.