Munella
1,990 m
Albania
Also known as Mali i Munelles, Mali i MunellësAlso known as
Mali i Munelles · Mali i Munellës
- Elevation
- 1,990 m
- Prominence
- 1,033 m
- Difficulty
- 3/10
- Mountain hike
- Best Season
- Jul–Sep
- Routes
- 1
Routes
1Sources differ: Difficult (Wikiloc track rating (Palmtreeproduction, 2012))
A short but pathless ascent from the end of a 4WD logging road on the south side (about 1,470 m): past a shepherds' hut with water, a very steep, bouldery climb to the ridge above the western cliffs, then across a summit plateau full of deep dolines to Maja e Kryqit (1,990 m). About 8.4 km and 770 m of ascent return.
Elevation Profile
approximate line- Distance
- 5.1 km
- one way
- Ascent
- +690 m
- −158 m lost on the way up
- High Point
- 1,990 m
- Time Up
- 3h 15m
- DIN 33466
- Time Down
- 2h 32m
- DIN 33466 · same way back
Drive a 4WD logging road from the Reps or Fushë-Arrëz side to the start, high on the south side of the mountain. A few hundred metres before the trailhead there is a shepherds' hut with water, occupied in summer; its door is not locked and it may give shelter outside the grazing season. From the shepherds' high plateau the ascent to the ridge is very steep, with boulders hiding the way and no natural line; without a GPS track it is hard to find. Go in dry weather. The ridge is gained near the top of the western cliffs, which drop up to 300 m. The summit plateau is a maze of deep dolines and several tops of similar height. The first summit reached is the one visible from Gjegjan and Fushë-Arrëz; continue past two lesser tops to the main summit, marked on some maps as Maja e Kryqit. Return the same way. In poor visibility route-finding on the plateau is difficult. Allow 4–5 hours for the round trip.
Start
Munella south trailhead1,458 m
- None to the trailhead; a 4WD is needed for the logging road.
Stages
| Day | Stage | km | m ascent | m descent | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Munella south trailhead → Maja e Kryqit | 5.1 | 690 | 158 | 3h 15m |
Waypoints
- Trailhead: Munella south trailhead1,458 m
Start of the 2012 Wikiloc track; reached by 4WD
- Summit: Maja e Kryqit1,990 m
Key Passages
- Very steep, pathless climb from the shepherds' plateau to the ridge
- Navigating the doline-strewn summit plateau to the highest top
Equipment
0/5 packedDownloads
Route confidence 40%Overview
An isolated, flat-topped mountain (1,990 m) between the Great and Little Fan valleys in Mirdita, northern Albania, ringed by 300 m limestone cliffs and topped by a plateau full of dolines. Rarely climbed, and a breeding ground of the critically endangered Balkan lynx.
Munella (Mali i Munellës) rises on the boundary of the Pukë and Mirditë municipalities, between the Fan i Madh to the north-west and the Fan i Vogël to the south-east, and is the highest point of Lezhë County. It is an elongated massif about 6 km long and 3 km wide. Volcanic rock forms the lower slopes up to about 1,400 m; above sits a slab of Cretaceous limestone that breaks off in cliffs up to 300 m high on the north-west and south-east sides. From afar, especially from Burrel, it looks like a single molar with a flat top.
The summit is an undulating karst plateau tilted gently to the north-east, riddled with deep pits and dolines and with several tops of similar height; the highest, Maja e Kryqit, is at about 1,990 m. Oak forest grows up to about 1,100 m and beech to about 1,600 m; above, the mountain is bare alpine pasture used by shepherds in summer. Bears, wild boar and martens live here, and the mountain is an important breeding area for the Balkan lynx, monitored by the conservation group PPNEA.
The national tourism agency lists marked trails from the villages of Spaç, Bisakë, Klos and Domgjon, but little route information is published. The shortest known ascent starts high on the south side from a 4WD logging road and involves a steep, pathless climb to the plateau. The former communist labour camp of Spaç lies in the valley to the north-west.
Climbing Notes
The south route is short (about 8.4 km and 770 m of ascent return) but needs a GPS track: the steep climb from the shepherds' plateau has no natural line, and the summit plateau is a maze of dolines with four or five candidate summits. Go in dry, clear weather. Reaching the trailhead needs a 4WD on logging roads.
The longer ascent from Domgjon in the Fan i Vogël valley gains about 1,380 m and takes most of a day. There is no accommodation on the mountain; shepherds' huts may give emergency shelter outside the grazing season. Rrëshen and Fushë-Arrëz are the nearest towns with accommodation.
History
The copper and pyrite mines around the mountain (Tuç to the north-west, Reps to the south-east and the Spaç deposit) were worked under communism; Spaç prison, opened in 1968, was a forced-labour camp at one of these mines and is now visited as a memorial site.
Season
Best Jul–Sep- January: Not advisable
- February: Not advisable
- March: Not advisable
- April: Not advisable
- May: Possible
- June: Good
- July: Best (best window)
- August: Best (best window)
- September: Best (best window)
- October: Good
- November: Possible
- December: Not advisable
- Jan
- Snow; logging roads impassable
- Feb
- Snow
- Mar
- Snow
- Apr
- Lingering snow on the plateau
- May
- Snow patches; muddy roads
- Jun
- Shepherds return to the high pastures
- Jul
- Most reliable access; thunderstorms possible
- Aug
- Most reliable access
- Sep
- Good conditions; a 2025 ascent from Domgjon recorded in September
- Oct
- Late-October ascent recorded in 2012; shepherds' huts empty
- Nov
- Wet; first snow possible
- Dec
- Winter conditions
Access & Permits
- Hut Booking
- No huts. Stay in Rrëshen or Fushë-Arrëz, or camp; a shepherds' hut on the south side may offer shelter outside the grazing season.
- Getting There
Rrëshen; Fushë-Arrëz to the north
Tirana International Airport (TIA)
- By car: A1 Tirana–Kukës motorway along the Fan valley; for the south route, 4WD logging roads from the Reps or Fushë-Arrëz side
- For the Domgjon route: the village lies in the Fan i Vogël valley close to the motorway
Hazards
- Remoteness
- Weather
- Exposure