Zaovine, Tara - Serbia

Welcome, to a little mountain heaven. With countless green hills, meadows full of flowers, with stunning lake views and fascinating landscapes, that look like it was plucked from the pages of a fairytale. Salvine located in western Serbia, at the municipality of Baina Basta. Village Salvine is made of 28 smaller hamlets, on mountainous terrain covered with forest. Due to the rich nature and mountain climate, the tourist potential has been used by building a large number of lodgings and houses, that are available for renting throughout the year. In the central part of the village is the lake Salvine, a reversible accumulation lake of an irregular star-like shape, with crystal clear water and stunning mountain views. It belongs to Tara National Park. It spreads out between the villages of Salvine to the southwest and Metrovac, major tourist resort on Tara, to the northeast. This lake is a real paradise, for all those who enjoy calm and beautiful nature. The lake is surrounded by vast woods, as forestation of Tara Mountain is 75%. The lake was formed between 1975 and 1983. Its creation was influenced by the dam, on the river Beli Verza. The dam is 130 meters high, and the depth of the lake is 80 meters. The specific characteristic of this lake, located at the altitude of 892 meters, is that the water from Drina River, is pumped into Lake Salvine through pipes that are 6 meters wide and 8 kilometers long. The clean water of Lake Salvine, which is used for drinking with minimal processing, attracts swimmers, fishermen and campers. There are many boat tours available for very reasonable prices. On the lake, there is also a big fish pond with trout, owned by the National Park Tara. In hot summer days, it is an ideal place for fishing and picnic. Near the lake is a restaurant Tarsko Jezero which offers a varied menu, especially fish specialties. There is no landscaped beach on the lake, but that does not prevent swimmers from enjoying the water on several wild beaches. It is recommended to swim at the Lazici Dam or on Lake Speici, where the water and climate are more pleasant, and perfect for camping and picnics. On the high rock near Lake Speici, are the ruins of a medieval fortress. Owing to the coniferous trees surrounding the lake, this place has fresh air, and the chirp of birds makes this whole ambient unique and almost unreal. Therefore, it is an ideal place for refreshment in times of high summer temperatures. The locality which is nowadays known as the Lazici Dam, is where the most famous Serbian botanist Josef Pančić made his discovery, of a new species of coniferous tree in 1875, Pančić spruce, which is one of the symbols of Tara. Zavinaj is the only place on which Pančić spruce can be found on serpentines. There are approximately 600 plant species here and the prevailing ones include the abundant forest vegetation of spruce, Pančić spruce, fir, beech, European black pine and scots pine. The most significant fauna representative is the Pančić's grasshopper, another relic and endemic insect species, that inhabits only the area of 10 square kilometers of this region. This is also the habitat of 14 species of fish, 6 species amphibians, 5 species of reptiles, 108 species of birds and 36 species of mammals. Zavinaj are ideal place for water sports, fishing, orientation, eating in nature etc. Due to their unique, rare and rich flora and fauna, Zavinaj were proclaimed a landscape of outstanding features. If you're coming to Western Serbia, even if you are just passing through, it is worth taking a day to see part of what Tara National Park has to offer. Join us and subscribe to our channel if you haven't done so already. Thank you very much for watching, and see you again soon!