RIVERS, LAKES AND PONDS

Vlasina, a mountain plateau at the altitude of 1,213 meters, better known for the lake of the same name, is situated in the southeast of Serbia, in the municipality of Surdulica, near the border with Bulgaria. This is an artificial lake, surrounded by mountains Gramada, Vardenik and Cemernik, and it was made following the construction of the dam in mid-twentieth century.

In the immediate vicinity of Subotica, the northernmost city in Serbia, and second largest in Vojvodina, only ten kilometers from the Hungarian border, lies the town of Palic and the lake of the same name. Many call it the blue eye of the Serbian grain basket. The surface of the lake covers bit more than four square kilometers, and at the deepest point it is 3.5 meters.

The Drina River has been known for centuries as the border between the East and the West, and the only Serbian Nobel Prize winner Ivo Andric wrote about it. For many, the Drina is asspciated with the popular regatta of various vessels and many tourists, who say it is an unforgettable experience.

The tourists who cruise the Danube say that the river banks in Serbia are most interesting, because along 588km of flow through Serbia, the Danube changes its appearance from the wide and calm river of the flatlands, into a fast and restless, a true mountain river. The Danube enters Serbia at its 1,433rd kilometer, and the first significant settlement on its banks is Apatin, the small town where the tradition of brewing beer dates back to 1756.

In the past few years, Serbia has been paying a lot of attention to the development of nautical tourism, not only because many sailable rivers, but also for the tourist attractions along the sailing routs. Jelena Gligoric has more on the subject.

Two centuries ago, the Obedska Bara marsh was said to be the paradise for birds. It was a famous ornithology reserve, while today it is a special nature reserve, spreading on 12 thousand hectares, located 50km from Belgrade, in the region of southern Srem. It is a swampy wooded area on the banks of the Sava River, and according to naturalists its greatest value is the complex of ponds, bogs, swamp vegetation, marshes and damp forests, where some of the endangers species grow.

In Croatia it is Kopacki Rit, in Serbia – Monostorski Rit. A natural reserve of rare and endangered plant and animal species also has one section in Hungary, and due to its unusual characteristics, naturalists sometimes compare it to Amazonia. By putting its area under state protection, Serbia has preserved the survival of the endangered European fauna of swampy habitats.

The Ludasko Lake is the second biggest one in northern Backa region of Vojvodina. It is located at the meeting point of two natural geographical areas – Dubotica-Horgos sands and Middle-Backa plateau, some 15km from Subotica.

The Serbian Government has declared the Carska Bara (imperial pond) the natural reserve, preserved and maintained in accordance with European standards. This area in Vojvodina is one of the biggest habitats of swamp birds in the Balkans, and as such a true paradise for ornithologists.