Mali i Thatë, or “The Dry Mountain,” is a striking limestone range forming the natural divide between Lake Ohrid and Lake Prespa. Spanning from Albania into North Macedonia, this rugged massif is known for its sparse vegetation, karst topography, and expansive high plateaus. Its highest point, Pllaja e Pusit, towers at 2288 meters and offers one of the most rewarding viewpoints in all of southeastern Albania.

Your hike begins in the small village of Alarup, nestled quietly at the foot of the mountain just 20km from Pogradec. The trail immediately begins to climb, winding steeply up the mountain’s western face. You’ll traverse grassy slopes, with occasional rocky patches. As you gain elevation, the terrain opens into high alpine meadows.
Reaching the broad summit plateau of Pllaja e Pusit, you’ll be rewarded with commanding 360° views. On clear days, you can admire the views over Lake Ohrid and Lake Prespa lying below, and panoramic vistas reaching across into North Macedonia and as far south as the mountains of Greece.
Your descent follows a different route: an easier, more gradual trail that curves gently around the mountain’s western slopes, eventually bringing you back to the village.

• Hiking Grade: Challenging
• Technical Difficulty: T3
• Total ascent: 1250 m
• Total descent 1250 m
• Distance: 13 km
• Time of the hike: 7 hours (Hiking time without breaks)

The price includes:

• Emergency telephone support during the hike
• Road Book App with detailed information and route descriptions in English

The price does not include:

• Other costs and services not mentioned in the program
• Guide
• Meals
• Transportation
• Any type of Insurance

This trail starts and ends at the village of Alarup. You have to drive to the starting point of the hike yourself. Free parking is available nearby.

Orientation:
To assist you, we provide a detailed information package, including route descriptions, digital maps and information about transportation options. All this will be available in a dedicated mobile app, which you can download to your smartphone before your adventure.

While most hiking trails are signed, some markings may be unclear or difficult to see. Certain sections might not be well-marked, and poor weather can make navigation more challenging. Good navigation skills are necessary to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience.

Hiking Time, Grade and Technical Difficulty:
Our tour descriptions give detailed information about terrain, technical difficulty, estimated activity times, ascent/descent in meters and distance in kilometres. We kindly ask you to read these very carefully and consider them while choosing your tour.

The estimated difficulty of hikes is given in the SAC scale, starting from T1 to T6. These grades are guidelines that must always be used in conjunction with your own experience, intuition and careful judgment. Explanations for the difficulty scale can be found here.

Estimated hiking times are given for each day. These times do vary according to the day’s weather conditions and your fitness levels. These times do not include times taken for meals and breaks. The hiking times are all calculated in accordance with the Albanian national standard for hiking trails, which is based on the Swiss Alpine Club adaptation of the DIN44366 standard.

General Information:

• Confirmation will be sent within 48 hours of booking
• Not wheelchair or stroller accessible
• Not recommended for pregnant travellers
• Not recommended for travellers with heart problems or other serious medical conditions
• Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
• For any other request or question, please write to us here

Free cancellation at any time before app download. Once the app has been downloaded, cancellations are no longer possible.