) , photo_size = , elevation_m = 2406 , elevation_ref = , prominence_m = , prominence_ref = , listing = , range =

Albanian Alps The Accursed Mountains ( sq, Bjeshkët e Nemuna; sh-Cyrl-Latn, Проклетије, Prokletije, ; both translated as "Cursed Mountains"), also known as the Albanian Alps ( sq, Alpet Shqiptare), are a mountain group in the western part of the B ...

, location =

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

, 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 Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

, age =

Triassic The Triassic ( ) is a geologic period and system (stratigraphy), system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago (Year#Abbreviations yr and ya, Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.36 ...

, first_ascent = , easiest_route = Rock climbing , language = Albanian , module = Maja e Thatë is a mountain peak of the

(

Accursed Mountains The Accursed Mountains ( sq, Bjeshkët e Nemuna; sh-Cyrl-Latn, Проклетије, Prokletije, ; both translated as "Cursed Mountains"), also known as the Albanian Alps ( sq, Alpet Shqiptare), are a mountain group in the western part of the ...

) in

.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 mounta ...

, roughly northwest of Valbonë and rises more than above the village. The mountain's southern and western lower slopes are relatively rich in beech and

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accepts ...

forests, while the higher slopes consist of very steep

and

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

rock walls, suitable for mountaineering and rock climbing.

Overview

Maja e Thatë has an elevation of and is located northwest of Valbonë village, in the district of

Tropojë Tropojë (; sq-definite, Tropoja) is a municipality in Kukës County, northeastern Albania, within the historical ethnographic region of the Gjakova Highlands. The municipality consists of the administrative units of Bajram Curri, Bujan, Bytyç, ...

Kukës county Kukës County (; sq, Qarku i Kukësit) is a landlocked county in northeastern Albania, with the capital in Kukës. The county spans and had a total population of 74,388 people as of 2021. The county borders on the counties of Dibër, Lezhë a ...

, in

. It lies within the massif of Kolata, in the eastern part of the

(Accursed Mountains) range. Maja e Thatë rises above the village of Valbonë by more than , but being surrounded by higher peaks within its massif and because high-altitude mountain passes connect it with them, Maja e Thatë's

topographic prominence In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...

is insignificant. The mountain pass 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 A (; from the Latin word ') is an amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion. Alternative names for this landform are corrie (from Scottish Gaelic , meaning a pot or cauldron) and (; ). A cirque may also be a similarly shaped landform ...

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, Valbonë with Maja e Thatë through Lugu i Rupës. The mountain can be reached from Vusanje in

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

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 monoclines 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 Valbonë, as well as from Maja e Rosit.

Geology

The whole territory of

lies on the assemblage of geological structures called Albanides, which are part of the Alpine orogenic belt.

are included in the External Albanides and form the Alps Zone, consisting of limestone monoclines, combined with smaller

anticline In structural geology, an anticline is a type of fold that is an arch-like shape and has its oldest beds at its core, whereas a syncline is the inverse of an anticline. A typical anticline is convex up in which the hinge or crest is the ...

Carbonate rock Carbonate rocks are a class of sedimentary rocks composed primarily of carbonate minerals. The two major types are limestone, which is composed of calcite or aragonite (different crystal forms of CaCO3), and dolomite rock (also known as dolosto ...

s are the constituents of Kolata massif and Maja e Thatë, as a part of this massif, is entirely composed of

and

formations. On the northern rocky face of Maja e Thatë mountain, monoclines are clearly visible from the level of the trough of Rupa, up to the very summit. Ice and frost's erosive activity and the

periglacial Periglaciation (adjective: "periglacial", also referring to places at the edges of glacial areas) describes geomorphic processes that result from seasonal thawing of snow in areas of permafrost, the runoff from which refreezes in ice wedges and o ...

environment on the surface of Kolata massif have led to

solifluction Solifluction is a collective name for gradual processes in which a mass moves down a slope ("mass wasting") related to freeze-thaw activity. This is the standard modern meaning of solifluction, which differs from the original meaning given to it ...

, reaching the eluvian stratum.

Biodiversity

Biota is especially rich in the southern and southwestern part of the mountain, mostly favoured by the abundant water sources of Valbonë river and the stream of Kukaj. The

European black pine ''Pinus nigra'', the Austrian pine or black pine, is a moderately variable species of pine, occurring across Southern Europe from the Iberian Peninsula to the eastern Mediterranean, on the Anatolian peninsula of Turkey, Corsica and Cyprus, as wel ...

(''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 beech (''Fagus Sylvatica L.'') are widely spread in the south and west of the mountain. The Norway spruce (''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 The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly un ...

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 The European hare (''Lepus europaeus''), also known as the brown hare, is a species of hare native to Europe and parts of Asia. It is among the largest hare species and is adapted to temperate, open country. Hares are herbivorous and feed mainly ...

(''Lepus europaeus''), squirrel, and chamois (''Rupicapra rupicapra''). Few specimens of the potentially endangered

Eurasian lynx The Eurasian lynx (''Lynx lynx'') is a medium-sized wild cat widely distributed from Northern, Central and Eastern Europe to Central Asia and Siberia, the Tibetan Plateau and the Himalayas. It inhabits temperate and boreal forests up to an eleva ...

(''Lynx lynx'') still live in the central part of the

, while its hunting is prohibited by law. Characteristic birds of this region are the

chough There are two species of passerine birds commonly called chough ( ) that constitute the genus ''Pyrrhocorax'' of the Corvidae (crow) family of birds. These are the red-billed chough (''Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax''), and the Alpine chough (or yellow- ...

(''Pyrrhocorax graculus''), the shore lark (''Eremophila alpestris'') and the

water pipit The water pipit (''Anthus spinoletta'') is a small passerine bird which breeds in the mountains of Southern Europe and the Palearctic eastwards to China. It is a short-distance migrant; many birds move to lower altitudes or wet open lowlands i ...

(Anthus spinoletta). The most widespread species are the

rock partridge The rock partridge or common rock partridge (''Alectoris graeca'') is a gamebird in the pheasant family, Phasianidae, of the order Galliformes (gallinaceous birds). It is native to southern Europe, and is closely related and very similar to its ...

(''Alectoris graeca'') and

golden eagle The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known birds of ...

, which is also

’s

national animal This is a list of countries that have officially designated one or more animals as their national animals. National animal {, class="wikitable sortable" ! Country ! Name of animal ! Scientific name (Latin name) ! class="unsortable", Picture ...

. The waters of Valbonë river are a notable habitat of

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salm ...

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 Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

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 Valbonë river) 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 Norway spruce of Valbona ( sq, Hormoqi i Valbonës), is the largest forest of its kind in

. 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

oil painting Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of ...

''Maja e Thatë, Valbonë'' (dimensions by ) which was exhibited in

Pristina Pristina, ; sr, / (, ) is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. The city's municipal boundaries in Pristina District form the largest urban center in Kosovo. After Tirana, Pristina has the second largest population of ethnic Albanians an ...

, in the Art Gallery of Kosovo.

References

External links

Journey to ValbonaValbona Valley at visitkukesregion.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maja e Thate Mountains of Albania Accursed Mountains