The most beautiful natural sites to discover Ohrid

The natural region of Lake Ohrid has recently been protected by three different international conventions, two of which extend across the border with Albania. Since 1979, only the part located in Northern Macedonia, and in particular the old town of Ohrid, had been listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site. But in 2019, this site was extended to include the entire area around the lake, forming the "Ohrid region": an area of 947 ^km2 that is now classified as a Unesco "natural and cultural heritage" site. This includes not only the lake itself (349 ^km2), but also the Albanian shores, notably the town of Pogradec (population approx. 60,000), south of the lake and 8 km west of the St. Naum monastery, and the peninsula of the village of Lin (population approx. 500, Albanian and Macedonian), west of the lake and 22 km south of Struga. Lake Ohrid is also part of the "Ohrid-Prespa Transboundary Biosphere Reserve", which extends over 4,462 ^km2 around Lake Ohrid and Lake Prespa. This was created in 2014 by North Macedonia and Albania under the aegis of Unesco. It is managed by the German-based organization PONT (Prespa Ohrid Nature Trust) (pont.org). Finally, since 2021, the 250 ^km2 North Macedonian part of the lake has been listed under the Ramsar Convention for the preservation of wetlands of international importance with a high concentration of birds and fish.

This beautiful and venerable plane tree (Охридскиот Чинар/Ohridskiot Činar)is the most famous tree in the country. Referred to by the generic Turkish term çınar ("sycamore"), it is actually an Oriental plane tree(Platanus orientalis). Legend has it that it was planted in the ^10th century by St. Clement of Ohrid himself. A plaque installed on site by the municipality in 2019 accredits this theory. But its presence is actually more recent. It dates back to the ^fifteenth century, at the beginning of the Ottoman period, when the charchia was built.

This lake (Охридско Езеро/Ohridsko Ezero, Liqeni i Ohrit) is one of the oldest in the world and the deepest in the Balkans. Good for swimming in summer (the water temperature then exceeds 23 ° C), it extends over 349 ^km2 on both sides of the border with Albania, including 250 ^km2 in Northern Macedonia, which makes it the second largest lake in the Balkans after the lake of Shkodra, between Albania and Montenegro, which displays an area of 370 to 530 ^km2 depending on the season. However, the latter contains barely 2 million cubic metres of water, compared with over 55 million cubic metres for Lake Ohrid. Bordered by the towns of Ohrid and Struga, in Northern Macedonia, and Pogradec, in Albania, Lake Ohrid is also known as "Lake Pogradec" in Albanian (Liqeni i Pogradecit). At an altitude of 693 m, it offers magnificent scenery: it is surrounded by mountains, particularly to the east, where Mount Galičica (2,254 m) separates it from the large Lake Prespa (259 ^km2). Its rich flora and fauna have earned it Unesco World Heritage status since 1979, and Ramsar status for wetlands of international importance since 2021.

An old cousin of Titicaca. Oval in shape, the lake is 30.4 km long from north to south and 14.8 km wide from east to west. Its average depth is 155 m, with a maximum depth of 288.70 m. That's almost as deep as Lake Geneva, between France and Switzerland, which drops to - 310 m. But it's a long way from Norway's Lake Hornindalsvatnet, which holds the European depth record at - 514 m. On the other hand, Lake Ohrid is one of the oldest lakes on the planet, along with Lake Titicaca (between Peru and Bolivia), Lake Baikal (in Russia), Lake Tanganyika (between Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania and Zambia) and the Dead Sea (between Israel, the West Bank and Jordan). All date from the same period: they were formed around four million years ago. Lake Ohrid is also distinguished by its very particular geology and hydrography. It is carved out of dense limestone rock, which prevents it from draining to the bottom. It is fed mainly by Lake Prespa, located at a higher altitude (853 m), whose waters flow through natural galleries beneath Mount Galičica to emerge as springs on the outskirts of Lake Ohrid. The most important of these resurgences are located on the south-eastern shore, around the St. Naum monastery, close to the Albanian border.

Translucent waters. Passing underground, the water is filtered and emerges particularly clear in Lake Ohrid, ensuring astonishing transparency at depths of up to 22 m. The lake is also fed by some forty rivers. The lake itself is the main source of the Black Drin, a 177 km-long river that flows from Struga (on the north shore) into Albania, where it joins the White Drin from Kosovo to form the Drin River, which flows into the Adriatic Sea. Lake Ohrid is the second largest watershed (2,600 km²) in Northern Macedonia, after the Vardar (22,000 km²). And yet its waters flow very slowly: it is estimated that they take seventy years to fully renew themselves, compared with just thirteen years for those of the great Lake Prespa.

Exceptional biodiversity. Lake Ohrid is without doubt the richest lake in the world in terms of biodiversity. Due to its age and natural properties, it is home to 1,200 animal and plant species, many of which are endemic, i.e. found only here. There are, for example, ten endemic fish species. The most emblematic is the Ohrid trout(Salmo letnica), served in many restaurants under the nameohridska pastrmka(koran in Albanian). Endemism is particularly impressive among plants and invertebrates, with a freshwater sponge, 12 crustaceans, 20 algae, 63 molluscs and 178 small organisms that are completely unique in the world. The whole complex is a vast larder for thousands of birds that winter here, particularly endangered species such as the rare and imposing Dalmatian pelican, the Ferruginous duck - an attractive diving duck - the Pygmy cormorant, the Screaming eagle and the Imperial eagle. However, the Lake Ohrid ecosystem is threatened by human activity. High tourist numbers are leading to increasing pollution, and almost all the marshes have been drained for agricultural purposes. All that remains is the Studenčište marsh (Studenčiško Blato), home to 79 types of birds and a rich variety of aquatic worms and insects. But it's located just southeast of the city of Ohrid, where hotel complexes are booming, so bird numbers are in sharp decline. Some endemic fish species are in danger of extinction, notably the Ohrid pike-perch(Salmo ohridanus), locally known as belvica(belushka in Albanian). Human pressure is most acute in the North Macedonian part of the region. Ohrid is the country's tourism capital. As the country has no access to the sea, the beaches on the eastern shore are crowded in summer. This part of the lake is nicknamed the "Macedonian Riviera".