Veles Traverse - Three Times Lucky

We had climbed the north summit of Veles a few years ago from Rraboshtë, and its main (southern) summit in 2013 from the village of Veles. The northern and the main summit are separated by an interesting ridge, about one kilometer long. For traversing this ridge, your return hike to from where you started becomes quite long, as both from Rraboshte and also from Veles you start very close at sea level.

But from our earlier inspections, this ridge is too good not to be traveled. Our solution therefore was to to find an approach to the village of Vele-Vendi, half way up the mountain, and connect parts of our earlier routes to a circular hike.

This becomes a racy alternative to the two other out-and-back options. The climb takes some of the challenging bits of the other hikes, combines them with a hike across an airy ridge with a very alpine feeling, and returns via an abandoned stan to the village of Vele-Vendi, which is so near to Lezhe and still so far.

The downside is that you have to reach Vele-Vendi first.See wikiloc #6474219. The road used to be for 4WD only, but apparently has been improved and recent visitors managed to drive to Vele Vendi with a regular car.

There are only 15 or so families still living in Vele-Vendi. A teacher comes every day by motorbike from Lezha, and teaches all children he can find, regardless of their age, in the white-washed school house opposite the church.

The hike first follows a disused logging road to one of the main ridges of Veles mountain. At waypoint 02-Pass, you meet the trail coming from Rraboshtë. From here, there are a few trail markings, but not for too long. The trail passes below a somewhat triangular rock face into the bowl, a bowl-shaped part of the mountain with ledges that facilitate the climb up to the ridge leading to the weatherstation. For many hikers and worshipers, this is the objective (there is a statue of the Madonna in the stainless steel pyramid of the weatherstation, and the people living around the mountain do care more for her than for the weather recordings).

If you don't find the view of the ridge to the main summit too intimidating, continue the hike. Always stay on top of the ridge. The most difficult part of the hike is near the waypoint 05-Crux, where a rocky part of the ridge has to be managed on its western (towards the sea) side. It is easy scrambling, for only a few meters. Once descending from the main summit, do not miss the turn off to the abandoned stan, on the west side of the ridge. If you miss our waypoint, continue a few hundred meters until you reach a metal cross. Turn right to the abandoned stan here.

The stan sits on a little plateau, with water, high above Vele-Vendi village. A sort of staircase leads down the escarpment and on to a path towards the village. From there, presumably several paths will take you back to the car - an option that we did not take is to turn left at waypoint 10.

Veles summit is about 1170 Meter, and can be hot and and dry in summer. Spring, fall and winter are good times to hike Veles. Take plenty of water.

Also see wikiloc #4391970 and wikiloc #6468535