Lake Ohrid, the Oldest Lake in Europe
When we arrived to the town of Ohrid, the sun had already set. Since we were hungry, we decided to go out and eat in a restaurant (our dry food didn’t seem appealing anymore) and stroll around the city as well. The first photos we took of the lake was in total darkness. I’ll talk about the city itself more in a separate post, but I just gotta say that the lake’s strong presence is a huge part of the city itself, and it would be hard to imagine a town here without Ohrid Lake.
After our evening stroll we went to bed, only to wake up at 7 in the morning and start our half-day of sightseeing at 8 o’clock. In the morning, the clouds were just lifting from the lake, and the morning was a bit grey, nevertheless, I enjoyed taking photos of the sky and the lake together with a couple of swans here-and-there.
As the clouds lifted, a lovely blue sky emerged. Before we got to the lake I read a bit about it in the Bradt guidebook (thanks, Andreas!), and I found out that Ohrid is one of the oldest continuously-existing lakes on the continent, estimated to be between 3 to 5 million years old. (!!) I also found out that it’s one of the deepest lakes in Europe, with a maximum depth of 288 meters. Fascinating, right? For more facts about lake Ohrid, visit Lakepedia, the Online encyclopedia of Lakes around the World.
After a short walk around some of the iconic sites in the city we headed towards the scenic Church of St. John at Kaneo. During our walk we just couldn’t put our cameras down, as the angles of the lake and the town became more and more beautiful. A cute little pup tagged along, and didn’t leave our side until we got back to the city center.
As we spotted the huge cliff, my jaw dropped. You guys must know by now that I’m a sucker for rocky cliffs and beaches, and would choose a rocky beach over a sandy one in a heartbeat. The cliff was very picturesque, surrounded by small boats and had a lonesome fisherman on top. It was one of my favorite landscapes of the whole Balkan trip!
And then I saw it.. the church. It is located in an absolutely amazing and awesome and stunning and beautiful location, with a panoramic view of the lake. Needless to say, I had to get my picture taken here..
I especially liked that the church was so old, yet in such a stunning condition, with the lake serving as its backdrop. I kind of wanted this post to be a picture-oriented one, and I think I wrote to much as it is.
What do you think of Lake Ohrid? Would you ever consider visiting it?
I’ll be waiting for your answers in the comment section below! 🙂
If you liked the article, don’t forget to pin it, so that others can enjoy it as well! And stay tuned for the next post, The must-sees of Ohrid Town! If you’re in search of another curious place in the Republic of Macedonia, I recommend Skopje, the Capital of Contrasts – it’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen before!
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The lake area is so mesmerizing. I would love to be there some day!
I had a similar experience when i covered the Lakes Region of New Hamsphire in the US. A post on the same is here:
https://singhalalok.wordpress.com/2015/10/05/the-lakes-region-of-new-hampshire/
It looks stunning! I am a huge fan of lakes, and love to include them in my itinerary! Thanks so much for sharing!
Beautiful pictures, I had no idea that it’s the oldest lake in Europe! I need to visit the Balkans asap 🙁
Oh yes you do! Make sure you ask for a list from me first 😉