Plav (Plav lake, Murino, Brezojevica, Lim river, Montenegro)

At about 950 meters above sea level, near the border with Albania, there is the small town of Plav, which can be reached from Kolašin or Beran by the main road via Andrijevica (see that). Plav is mentioned in the 13th c. The trade route from Kotor to Constantinople (Istanbul, Turkey) passed here. Plav maintained lively caravan connections with the Primorje, selling agricultural products and always high-quality meat and dairy products.

Due to the abundance of fish in the idyllic Plav Lake, the place was an important fishing center in the Middle Ages. Only the remains of the walls, the Redžepagić tower from the 17th century, and the Emperor's mosque, built in the 18th century, have been preserved from the former town, which give the place an oriental spirit.

In the Middle Ages, the city was surrounded by walls and was entered through two gates. The narrow winding streets still bear witness to the times when, from the bey towers and porches, the Turks supervised the everyday life of this picturesque place.

Plav is an air spa, located between Visitor mountain and the endemic mountain range of Prokletije (see Gusinje, Prokletije, Montenegro). The main tourist asset is embodied in Lake Plav, a water pearl, from which the river Lim flows. The lake, rich in trout, features steep forested banks and fertile small plains.

The lake is of glacial type, 4.7 km long, 1.7 km wide, with an area of 5.4 km2. It consists of two parts, connected by a narrow isthmus, with a depth of 5 to 10 m and originates from the river Ljuča, which originates in Gusinje (see that, Montenegro).

In summer, the lake turns into a pleasant bathing area, where small tourist boats cruise. That Plav is increasingly turning to tourism is evident already from the deck: the eye notices the newly built hotels right next to the coast at 900 m above sea level, restaurants and promenades. The surroundings of Plavo have always been interesting for mountaineers and hikers. The Visitor massif (2217 m) is the ultimate goal of many brave mountaineers. There is an ecological surprise in the massif - Visitor lake, which is reached by narrow mountain paths.

In the nearby village, in the Đurička Rijeka, there are springs of mineral acid water. Not far from the city, now already in tame Polimlje (along the river Lim), a favorite picnic spot is the place Murino, where the Murinjska river gurgles through wooded narrows with colorful rapids. Halfway from Plav to Murin is the picturesque Brezojevica, with the Brezojevica monastery.

Monastery Church of St. Trojice originates from the Middle Ages. The former school building was built in 1893. A word or two should be said about the extremely beautiful Lima valley. Starting from its source in Lake Plav, the river Lim flows through forests, spread over the slopes of steep mountains, and between cascading meadows. Lim is a fast mountain river. It undermines willow trees, beech trees, washes over the banks of the stone bed, flows towards the north of Montenegro, through Berane and Bijelo Polje (see that, Montenegro), widens its bed, and flows into the Drina. Lim is above all a romantic river, attractive, full of various forms of its watercourse. It is rich in trout, and interesting for sports fishermen.