Kučaj
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Kučaj ( sr, Кучај, ) is a
mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...
in eastern
Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
. Its highest peak, ''Velika Tresta'' has an elevation of 1,284 meters above sea level. They belong to the Serbian extension of
Carpathians The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Urals at and the Scandinavian Mountains at . The range stretches ...
, which separate the valleys of
Great Morava The Great Morava ( sr, Велика Морава, Velika Morava, ) is the final section of the Morava ( sr-Cyrl, Морава), a major river system in Serbia. Etymology According to Predrag Komatina from the Institute for Byzantine Studies ...
and
Timok The Timok (Serbian and Bulgarian: Тимок; ro, Timoc), sometimes also known as Great Timok ( sr, Велики Тимок, Veliki Timok; ro, Timocul Mare), is a river in eastern Serbia, a right tributary of the Danube. For the last 15 k ...
.


Geography

The area is a plateau in form, of complex tectonic and morphological structure, subdivided by the river valleys. One of the main features is the Resava Cave. North of Resava Cave is the
natural monument A natural monument is a natural or natural/cultural feature of outstanding or unique value because of its inherent rarity, representative of aesthetic qualities or cultural significance. Under World Commission on Protected Areas guidelines, na ...
Lisine, which comprises two waterfalls, Veliko Vrelo and Veliki Buk. The Lisine hydro-complex and Resava Cave are under one administration. In 2017 the Government of Serbia and Institute for Nature Protection began preliminary actions into creating a new national park, which would cover the mountainous Kučaj-
Beljanica Beljanica () is a mountain in the Homolje region in eastern Serbia, near the town of Žagubica Žagubica ( sr-cyr, Жагубица, ; ro, Jagubița or ) is a village and municipality located in the Braničevo District of the eastern Serbia. ...
region. It is supposed to be the sixth and the largest national park in Serbia encompassing the Resava Cave, Lisine complex and some of the oldest,
intact forest An intact forest landscape (IFL) is an unbroken natural landscape of a forest ecosystem and its habitat–plant community components, in an extant forest zone. An IFL is a natural environment with no signs of significant human activity or habitat f ...
in the country, like the Vinatovača rainforest, which remained intact since the mid 17th century. The study on protection was finished in 2020. It concluded that the area is the most forested one in Serbia, and described it as the proper wilderness.


Features


Sinking rivers

The karst region is location of numerous
sinking river A losing stream, disappearing stream, influent stream or sinking river is a stream or river that loses water as it flows downstream. The water infiltrates into the ground recharging the local groundwater, because the water table is below the bo ...
s: * Kločanica; with the length of , it is the longest sinking river in eastern Serbia. It sinks into the abyss at an elevation of , flows underground for and resurfaces in the Resava valley, at an elevation of . * Klencuš; long, it sinks into the chasm at an elevation of and reappears after an underground flow of at an elevation of as the Zlot springs which form the river of Zlotska. * Velika Tisnica; it springs at the
Beljanica Beljanica () is a mountain in the Homolje region in eastern Serbia, near the town of Žagubica Žagubica ( sr-cyr, Жагубица, ; ro, Jagubița or ) is a village and municipality located in the Braničevo District of the eastern Serbia. ...
mountain and is long. It disappears at , flows below the ground and springs out again at as
Žagubica Žagubica ( sr-cyr, Жагубица, ; ro, Jagubița or ) is a village and municipality located in the Braničevo District of the eastern Serbia. It is situated in the geographical region of Homolje. In 2011, the population of the village is 2 ...
Spring. From there, it flows as the long Mlava river. * Nekudovo; long, sinks at and after springs out at as the source of the Crnica river. * Demizlok; it is long and goes underground at in the sinking cave. It resurfaces after at in another cave, Lazareva Pećina, which is the longest explored cave in Serbia. * Mikulj; long stream sinks at and after springs out at the Zlot springs.


Veliki Buk Watefall

Veliki Buk (or Lisine) waterfall is located in the watershed of the Resava River in east Serbia. It is carved in the karst area, where the
sinking river A losing stream, disappearing stream, influent stream or sinking river is a stream or river that loses water as it flows downstream. The water infiltrates into the ground recharging the local groundwater, because the water table is below the bo ...
of Resava springs again from the ground in the canyon-type valley of Sklop. The waters springs from the
karst spring A karst spring or karstic spring is a spring (outflow of groundwater) that is part of a karst hydrological system. Description Because of their often conical or inverted bowl shape, karst springs are also known in German-speaking lands as a ''T ...
Veliko Vrelo, forming a short stream of the same name which falls into the Resava. With the height of , it was considered the highest waterfall in Serbia until the 1990s when the higher waterfalls were discovered on the
Kopaonik Kopaonik ( sr-cyr, Копаоник, ; sq, Kopaoniku) is a mountain range located in Serbia and Kosovo. The highest point is the Pančić's Peak with . The central part of the Kopaonik plateau was declared a national park in 1981 which today cove ...
and in the Visok region of the Stara Planina. The waterfall is situated at an elevation of and east of
Despotovac Despotovac ( sr-cyr, Деспотовац) is a town and municipality located in the Pomoravlje District of central Serbia. It is 130 kilometers southeast of Belgrade. Its name stems from Despot, a title of Serbian medieval prince Stefan Lazarevi ...
. It is formed on the
tufa Tufa is a variety of limestone formed when carbonate minerals precipitate out of water in unheated rivers or lakes. Geothermally heated hot springs sometimes produce similar (but less porous) carbonate deposits, which are known as travertin ...
rocks and the water falls into the deep lake. In August 2017 the waterfall was embellished with the color-changing decorative lights, becoming the first hydrology object in Serbia with such lights. The access roads are arranged with several restaurants but as of 2017 there is no mobile phone signal in the area, which the local tourist guides say is "probably a positive thing". There is also an stream water mill, "Mija's watermill" within the complex. It is built in 1918 and is still operational, though it is adapted into the tourist attraction, equipped with the objects from the century ago.


References


External links

Mountains of Serbia Serbian Carpathians {{Serbia-geo-stub