) , photo_size = , elevation_m = 2406 , elevation_ref = , prominence_m = , prominence_ref = , listing = , range = Albanian Alps , location = Albania , map = Albania#Montenegro , range_coordinates = , map_caption = , map_size = , label_position = bottom , coordinates = , coordinates_ref = , type =

dolomite Dolomite may refer to: *Dolomite (mineral), a carbonate mineral *Dolomite (rock), also known as dolostone, a sedimentary carbonate rock *Dolomite, Alabama, United States, an unincorporated community *Dolomite, California, United States, an unincor ...

, Limestone , age = Triassic , first_ascent = , easiest_route =

Rock climbing Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically and ...

, language =

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

Maja e Thatë () is a mountain peak of the Albanian Alps ( Accursed Mountains) in Albania.Military topographic map of Albania (1:25 000): K-34-52-D-a (M. JEZERCES) It is located within

Valbonë Valley National Park The Valbona Valley National Park ( sq, Parku Kombëtar i Luginës së Valbonës) is a national park inside the Albanian Alps in northern Albania. The park covers a total area of , encompassing Valbona River and its surrounding areas with mountai ...

, roughly northwest of

Valbonë Valbonë ( sq-definite, Valbona) is a village in the Kukës County, northern Albania. It is part of the former municipality Margegaj, and situated in the valley of the river Valbonë, south of the mountain Maja e Thatë. At the 2015 local governm ...

and rises more than above the village. The mountain's southern and western lower slopes are relatively rich in

beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...

and pine forests, while the higher slopes consist of very steep

and limestone rock walls, suitable for mountaineering and rock climbing.

Overview

Maja e Thatë has an elevation of and is located northwest of

village, in the district of Tropojë, Kukës county, in Albania. It lies within the massif of Kolata, in the eastern part of the Albanian Alps (Accursed Mountains) range. Maja e Thatë rises above the village of

by more than , but being surrounded by higher peaks within its massif and because high-altitude

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...

es connect it with them, Maja e Thatë's topographic prominence is insignificant. The

Qafa e Rupës (Qafa e Kuqe) at 2130 m elevation, northwest of Maja e Thatë, detaches it from Maja e Rosit (2524 m), while the tectonic-erosive mountain pass of Rrethi i Bardhë ( sq, Qafa e Rrethit të Bardhë) in the east detaches Maja e Thatë from Maja e Lugut të Ujit (2482 m), which is part of Kolata block. Glacial activity north of the mountain has created several small cirques in its surrounding troughs ( sq, Lug): Lugu i Rupës, which stretches along east-west direction and Lugu i Persllopit, northeast of the mountain, along SW- NE direction. The shortest trail connects its nearest village,

with Maja e Thatë through Lugu i Rupës. The mountain can be reached from

Vusanje Vusanje ( sq, Vuthaj; cnr, Vusanje/Вусање) is a village in Gusinje Municipality, Montenegro. According to the 2003 census, the town had 648 inhabitants. Geography Vusanje is located within the Plav municipality, below the town of Gusinje. I ...

in Montenegro through the mountain pass of Persllopi (2039 m), which is part of the border between the two countries, which subsequently continues with Persllopi trough ( sq, Lugu i Persllopit) west of Kollata mountain (2555 m) until the feet of the rocky northeastern face of Maja e Thatë. The peak seems insurmountable from the northeast owing to its very steep rocky faces, which start directly from the trough surface. The summit is a sharp ridge, and its crest has jagged edges. Horizontal

monocline A monocline (or, rarely, a monoform) is a step-like fold in rock strata consisting of a zone of steeper dip within an otherwise horizontal or gently-dipping sequence. Formation Monoclines may be formed in several different ways (see diagram) * ...

s are visible through all the mountain's northern rocky face, giving it an imposing appearance. Maja e Thatë can be seen quite impressively from the highest peaks of Grykat e Hapëta – Zhaborre mountain range, running in southwest-northeast direction, south of the villages Rragam and

, as well as from Maja e Rosit.

Geology

The whole territory of Albania lies on the assemblage of geological structures called Albanides, which are part of the Alpine orogenic belt. Albanian Alps are included in the External Albanides and form the Alps Zone, consisting of limestone

s, combined with smaller anticlines. Carbonate rocks are the constituents of Kolata massif and Maja e Thatë, as a part of this massif, is entirely composed of Triassic

and limestone formations. On the northern rocky face of Maja e Thatë mountain,

s are clearly visible from the level of the

trough Trough may refer to: In science * Trough (geology), a long depression less steep than a trench * Trough (meteorology), an elongated region of low atmospheric pressure * Trough (physics), the lowest point on a wave * Trough level (medicine), the l ...

of Rupa, up to the very summit. Ice and frost's erosive activity and the periglacial environment on the surface of Kolata massif have led to solifluction, reaching the eluvian

stratum In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as ei ...

Biodiversity

Biota Biota may refer to: * Biota (ecology), the plant and animal life of a region * Biota (plant), common name for a coniferous tree, ''Platycladus orientalis'' * Biota, Cinco Villas, a municipality in Aragon, Spain * Biota (band), a band from Color ...

is especially rich in the southern and southwestern part of the mountain, mostly favoured by the abundant water sources of

Valbonë river The Valbona ( sq, Valbonë) is a river in northern Albania. It is still relatively untouched. Its source is in the Accursed Mountains, near the border with Montenegro. The Valbonë flows generally east through the municipality Margegaj (mount ...

and the stream of Kukaj. The European black pine (''Pinus nigra'') and

Bosnian pine ''Pinus heldreichii'' (synonym ''P. leucodermis''; family Pinaceae), the Bosnian pine or Heldreich’s pine, is a species of pine native to mountainous areas of the Balkans and southern Italy. Description It is an evergreen tree up to in height ...

(''Pinus heldreichii, P. leucodermis'') as well as

(''Fagus Sylvatica L.'') are widely spread in the south and west of the mountain. The

Norway spruce ''Picea abies'', the Norway spruce or European spruce, is a species of spruce native to Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. It has branchlets that typically hang downwards, and the largest cones of any spruce, 9–17 cm long. It is very close ...

(''Picea excelsa'') is sparsely found in the lowest slopes and mostly in the valley of Valbona. Because of the diversity of natural conditions, a rich variety of animals lives in the Alps region and in Maja e Thatë's area specifically. The most common animals are wolf,

fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

, the European hare (''Lepus europaeus''),

squirrel Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae, a family that includes small or medium-size rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrels. Squ ...

, and

chamois The chamois (''Rupicapra rupicapra'') or Alpine chamois is a species of goat-antelope native to mountains in Europe, from west to east, including the Alps, the Dinarides, the Tatra and the Carpathian Mountains, the Balkan Mountains, the Ril ...

(''Rupicapra rupicapra''). Few specimens of the potentially endangered Eurasian lynx (''Lynx lynx'') still live in the central part of the Albanian Alps, while its hunting is prohibited by law. Characteristic birds of this region are the chough (''Pyrrhocorax graculus''), the

shore lark The horned lark or shore lark (''Eremophila alpestris'') is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae found across the northern hemisphere. It is known as "horned lark" in North America and "shore lark" in Europe. Taxonomy, evolution and systema ...

(''Eremophila alpestris'') and the water pipit (Anthus spinoletta). The most widespread species are the rock partridge (''Alectoris graeca'') and golden eagle, which is also Albania’s national animal. The waters of

are a notable habitat of trout.

Attractions

Hanging glacial valley of Kukaj, Valbonë, Albanian Alps

Maja e Thatë has a well-distinguished peak and represents a tourist attraction for nature and mountain lovers, mountaineers and hikers in general. Apart for the mountain's aesthetic values, three natural monuments are located in its southern vicinity. ;Cave of Haxhia The Cave of Haxhia, a Nature Monument of Albania, is located on the southern slopes of Maja e Thatë, near Valbonë village, at above sea level. Its length was previously affirmed as being long, but in summer 2009,

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

speleo-expeditions explored length of the cave. A very cold water spring of was discovered inside it. ;Hanging glacial valley of Kukaj The hanging glacial valley of Kukaj ( sq, Lugina e varur akullnajore e Kukajt) lies beneath the southwestern slopes of Maja e Thatë, surrounding the stream of Kukaj, (a tributary of

) between the massif of Jezercë in the west and that of Kolata in the east. It is long and covered by beech forest and European black pine. The valley is a Nature Monument of Albania. ;Norway spruce of Valbona Situated on the valley of Valbonë, between the villages of Rragam and Valbonë, the

of Valbona ( sq, Hormoqi i Valbonës), is the largest forest of its kind in Albania. It is declared a Nature Monument of Albania.

Cultural works

Maja e Thatë and the Valley of Valbona are the subject of several paintings by the Albanian contemporary painter Pashk Përvathi. They are the central theme of his

landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or man-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes the ...

oil painting ''Maja e Thatë, Valbonë'' (dimensions by ) which was exhibited in Pristina, in the Art Gallery of Kosovo.

References

External links

Journey to ValbonaValbona Valley at visitkukesregion.org
{{Portal bar, Geography Mountains of Albania Accursed Mountains Two-thousanders of Albania