Ljubanci Monastery of St Nikola to Zdravec peak and Svinjski Kamen peak

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This hike starts at the Monastery of St Nikola near the village Ljubanci, approximately 15 km north of Skopje on the Skopska Crna Gora mountain. Bus 47 from Skopje should bring you to Ljubanci.

The hike is about 16 km with over 1000 m climbing. There is parking space at the Monastery, but in fact I parked at the dirt-road in the curve just below the monastery, where there also is a sign indicating the trail to the Zdravec peak as well to the Crn Kamen (Black Rock) peak.

The Crn Kamen peak we climbed in 2021 during a hike from the village Brodec and I climbed it again a couple of days after the current hike, starting from the center of Ljubanci.

I visited the monastery of St Nikola at the start of the hike and at the end of the hike (the first visit was deleted from the GPS track).

Although the trails to the peaks are marked, I used the GPS track and did not try to rely on the marking only. Often the marking is not good enough so I recommend to rely on the GPS track. Besides, the marked trails do not describe this circular version of the hike.

On the way up there are some attractive trails and there are some nice views of the Skopje valley, although the continuous views of the urban area also remind you that you’re not really out in the nature somewhere in the middle of nowhere.

The Zdravec peak was not very special, I actually would have hardly recognized it as a peak.

From the Zdravec peak onwards the trail is relatively flat. There were still some patches of snow in April 2022. The views from the next little peaks over the Kumanovo valley are also good, although again distracting from the nature.

I included the Svinjski Kamen (Pig Rock) just because the name made me curious but also this peak was a bit mediocre.

On the way back down you pass a few springs/water points, a sheep farm and a small village with a couple of houses that you could already see from a distance earlier during the hike. The downhill part is mainly via dirt-roads and not too interesting.

As mentioned before, you can park at the Monastery of St Nikolas or just below it.

According to the legend, this monastery St. Nicholas in the village Ljubanci was built in the middle of the XIX century after the dream that one of the village residents Boyko Raev had, named today as the founder of the church. The construction lasted from 1849 to 1858, built from his own personal contributions and those of the villagers from Ljubanci since this village has traditionally been dedicated to this saint. It is located in an area with good climate so during the World War II this monastery also served as a hospital and recuperation center for those ill of tuberculosis. This was a male monastery until 1960 but it was converted to female from 1998. The monastery church is small with a square base and built of delicate stone blocks from limestone laid down in straight horizontal layers. The iconostasis has a significant place in the interior of the church with throne icons made by the Dicho Zograf. Source: A guide to the monasteries in the republic of Macedonia (https://tourismmacedonia.gov.mk/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/A-gudie-to-the-monasteries-in-the-RM-1.pdf)

It’s a pleasant hike but not very special and it gets 3 out of 5 stars