Tara (mountain)

Tara
Тара
Highest point
Elevation 1,544 m (5,066 ft) [1]
Coordinates 43°50′54″N 19°27′34″E / 43.84833°N 19.45944°E / 43.84833; 19.45944Coordinates: 43°50′54″N 19°27′34″E / 43.84833°N 19.45944°E / 43.84833; 19.45944
Geography
Tara

Location in Serbia

Location Western Serbia
Parent range Dinaric Alps
IUCN category II (national park)

Tara National Park
Area 220 km²
Established 1981

Tara (Serbian Cyrillic: Тара, pronounced [târa]) is a mountain located in western Serbia. It is part of Dinaric Alps and stands at 1,000-1,500 metres above sea level. The mountain's slopes are clad in dense forests with numerous high-altitude clearings and meadows, steep cliffs, deep ravines carved by the nearby Drina River and many karst, or limestone caves. The mountain is a popular tourist centre. Tara's national park encompasses a large part of the mountain. The highest peak is Zborište, at 1,544 m.

National park

Tara's national park was established in 1981 and it encompasses Tara and Zvijezda mountains, in a large bend of the Drina River. The size of the park is about 220 square km with altitudes varying from 250 to 1,500 metres above sea level. The park's management office is located in nearby Bajina Bašta.

The national park consists of a group of mountain peaks with deep picturesque gorges between them. The most striking of these gorges is the Drina Gorge, with its sheer drops from 1000–250 metres and extensive views of western Serbia and nearby Bosnia. The area is also characterised by karst caves, pits, springs, and breathtaking vista points.

Forests account for three quarters of this national park's area, some of them being the best preserved and well-kept in Europe. Tara also boasts a rare endemic Tertiary species, the Picea omorika, or Serbian Spruce, which is now protected in a small area of the park. Because of its rarity and scientific importance, it has been placed under national protection. Locally, Tara is home to many different species of wildlife, including brown bears, chamois, roe deer, lynxes, otters, wolves and others. More than 100 bird species also make their temporary or permanent homes on the slopes of the mountain: the golden eagle, the griffon vulture, the peregrine falcon, the Eurasian eagle owl, the black grouse, among many others.

Tourism

The main tourist points are Kaluđerske Bare on the north, close to Bajina Bašta, and Mitrovac on the south. Hotels Beli Bor and Omorika, as well as several smaller ones, are located on Kaluđerske Bare, while Mitrovac hosts eponymous children's recreation hotel.

The National Park can be reached from Bajina Bašta directly (by the Bajina Bašta - Kaluđerske Bare road), from Perućac via Bajina Bašta (by the Perućac - Mitrovac road) and from Kremna (the Kremna - Kaluđerske Bare road). The Drina gorge, which is an integral part of the park, can be toured by boat.

Interesting locally made items are woolen handcrafts, various dairy products, juniper and plum spirits and honey, particularly Pine honey.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Tara".
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