Things to see and do Badar

This small spa (Катлановска Бања) is located in a meander of the Pčinja River. The 40 °C water that emerges here from a deep fault has virtues against rheumatism and skin lesions. You can bathe in a cave along the river or at the pool of the adjacent medical center (katlanovskaspa.com). Next to this building is a monument to the memory of the Greek and Yugoslav wounded who were evacuated and died here during the Greek civil war of 1946-1949.

These gorges (Бадерската Клисура/Badarska Klisura) stretch for 9 km along the Pčinja River, between Badar and Vardar where the Pčinja flows. Surrounded by hills between 400 and 500 m in altitude, they were an important strategic site in the early Middle Ages. Above the village of Badar, 1.2 km to the northwest, are the remains of the walled city of Baderiana/Бадеријана. This is the supposed birthplace of the Roman emperor Justin ^I (c. 450/452), founder of the first Byzantine dynasty and father of the great emperor Justinian.

This 15 m high stone tower (Маркови Кули/Markovi Kuli) was erected around the ^12th-13th centuries. Recently restored with its battlements, it was part of the Kožle fortress, the remains of which remain. The origins of this stronghold date back to the early Middle Ages, when it guarded the passage between the Byzantine provinces of Macedonia (south) and Mesia (north). The site is unkempt, full of garbage, and access is through thorny trees and along a ravine. But the views over the Badar Gorge are delightful.

Nestled against a cliff in the Badar Gorge, this small Orthodox monastery of Serbian origin (Кожленскиот Mанастир/Kožlenskiot Manastir) was founded in the ^14th century but completely rebuilt in 1918. The major interest is the access path that takes the "Stojan Bridge" (Стојанов Mост/Stojanov Most): an impressive 60 m long wooden and steel footbridge spanning the Pčinja. This structure was built in 2012 by Stojan Trajanovski, the janitor of the monastery. He and his wife sell fruits and vegetables at the top. Great views of the gorge.