Nderylsa to Kapreja and the Syri i Kalter / Blue Eye - Path to the forgotten village

The "Blue Eye" (Shqip: Syri i Kalter) is a must see of every visit and one of the most popular destinations, still the trail is not completely marked. It's a karst spring fed from an underground source as well as by a gushing mountain stream that enters from the beautiful Valley of upper Kapreja.
It shimmers in a beautiful play of colors it owes its name to and the "Eye" itself as well as the basin further down the river, near the trailhead in Nderlysa, are highly frequented swimming spots.

Either drive or walk to the trailhead should you be staying in Theth (see separate track) or stay with Dede Nika in Nderlysa. From his place it's a mere 400m to the ruined school where you can park your car and ascend to the little bridge with beautiful views over the basins and the glacial mills behind it. Two improvised cafes been openend here in 2012 and offer refreshments.
Instead of crossing the bridge you stay on the right side of the river, cross the gravel field and follow the good mule path up and through the small canyon until you descend again towards Syri i Kalter. From the highest point you can already see Martin's house on the left (just above the Blue Eye) and some others further up that form the hamlet of Kapreja.

After crossing the bridge don't follow the broader path along the wall to the right, instead turn up left and cross a tiny stream. Few meters ahead you will find a water channel that takes you to the beautiful hamlet of upper Kapreja.

(Update December 2012: The bridge has been destroyed, you will have to cross the river for now by jumping from rock to rock or by utilizing a tree trunk as a brige)

Only one of the houses is inhibated, Christian worked in Greece for several years saving money to open a guesthouse. He's now working together with his father to restore their house, which is the one furthest at the back to the right. In front of it is another restaurated building for sale, have a look inside, it's usually unlocked. Most of the detoriated houses offer interesting insight into the lifestyle of the last century, watch out for rotten floors though.

On your way back, where you joined the channel, watch out for a right turn where the trail descends. A small wooden structure supports the now aqueduct style channel and another bridge overgrown with moss leads you across the stream that feeds the "Blue Eye" below you. The path takes you to Martin's house. He usually sells cold drinks either here or down at the "Eye" itself. Stay on the left side of the field and follow a small path that comes down to the Syri i Kalter (short part of the track is missing here due to bad GPS signal)
You can cross the stream over stones and a trunk of a tree. Follow the narrow path on this site, cross yet another river and climb the river bank and you will meet again the trail you arrived on. Turn right and make your way down to Nderlysa.

The return walking time for this track should not exeed 3h, but plan to spend more time to be able to fully enjoy the various sights. Beware that temperatures can become quite hot in the valley during the summer, start early.

ZalaZ offers guided and self-guided walks to single summits, tailor made walking holidays and multi-day trekking tours in Montenegro, Albania and parts of Kosovo. Visit our website for more information and get in touch if you have any questions: welcome@zalaz.org