Jezercë

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title: "Jezercë" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["mountains-of-albania", "accursed-mountains", "two-thousanders-of-albania", "valbonë-valley-national-park", "ultra-prominent-peaks-of-europe"] description: "Mountain in Albania" topic_path: "general/mountains-of-albania" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jezercë" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Mountain in Albania ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox mountain"]

Field	Value
name	Jezercë
other_name	Maja e Rinisë
photo	Jezerski Vrh (2694) sa Karanfila (2480).jpg
photo_caption	Maja Jezercë as seen from Karanfili peak
map	Albania
elevation	2694 m
prominence	2036 m
listing	Ultra-prominent
parent_peak	Jezercë
isolation	93.3 km
coordinates
translation	Lakes Peak
country
region	Northern Mountain Region
settlement_type	Municipality
settlement	Shkodër, Tropojë
range	Accursed Mountains
age	Triassic
type	massif
geology	limestone, dolomite
first_ascent	1929 by Sleeman, Elmslie and Ellwood
easiest_route	North slope
::

| name = Jezercë | other_name = Maja e Rinisë | photo = Jezerski Vrh (2694) sa Karanfila (2480).jpg | photo_size = | photo_caption = Maja Jezercë as seen from Karanfili peak | map = Albania | highest = | elevation = 2694 m | prominence = 2036 m | listing = Ultra-prominent | parent_peak = Jezercë | isolation = 93.3 km | coordinates = | length = | width = | area = | volume = | etymology = | nickname = | translation = Lakes Peak | location = | country = | region = Northern Mountain Region | settlement_type = Municipality | settlement = Shkodër, Tropojë | range = Accursed Mountains | borders_on = | formed_by = | age = Triassic | type = massif | geology = limestone, dolomite | first_ascent = 1929 by Sleeman, Elmslie and Ellwood | easiest_route = North slope Jezercë (Jezerca) is the highest peak in the Dinaric Alps, the second highest in Albania and the sixth highest in Southeast Europe, standing at 2694 m above sea level. It is the 28th most prominent mountain peak in Europe, and is regarded as one of the toughest and most dangerous climbs in the Albanian Alps.

Etymology

The toponym Jezerca derives from the Slavic word jezero 'lake', in reference to the cirque lakes in the lower part of the Buni i Jezercës on the northern side of the mountain. During communist rule, it was given the name Maja e Rinisë (), which never stuck.

Geology

Jezercë is situated within the Accursed Mountains range, which is noted for several small glaciers - among the southernmost glacial masses in Europe after Snezhnika glacier (latitude of 41°46′09″ N) and Banski Suhodol Glacier in Pirin mountain in Bulgaria. Apart from certain areas north of the peak, the limestone mountain massif is part of the Alps of Albania National Park. It can be climbed from the north; most climbers come from Gusinje in Montenegro as well as from Theth.

The summit is 5 km from the border with Montenegro, between the valleys of Valbonë to the east and the Shala to the west. In part, the whole floor between the valley of Valbonë, Shala, Ropojana and Maja e Roshit 2522 m is known as the Jezercë Block. Additionally, Jezercë borders other peaks such as Maja e Popllukës 2569 m and Maja e Alies 2471 m to the west, Maja a Rragamit 2478 m to the east, Maja Kolaj 2498 m, Maja e Malësores 2490 m, Maja e Bojës 2461 m in the northwest, Maja e Kokërdhakut 2508 m and Maja e Etheve 2393 m in the north.

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Accursed_Mountains_ISS_satellite_image_(2002).jpg" caption="ISS]], with Jerzeca Block at the center (2002)."] ::

Jezerca is a large rocky peak of dolomitic limestone. There is almost no vegetation there. North, east and west of the mountain top is in great cirque from that in the glacial periods when glaciers were more extensive than today. Today the northern cirque is called Buni i Jezercës at a height of 1,980 m and 2,100 m in height around 400 m. Because it is located in the wettest region of Europe with around 6 m of rainfall equivalent believed to fall on the western slopes, snowfall is so great that only in dry years do even the less exposed sections melt away.

References

References

1. "EUROPE ULTRA-PROMINENCES 99 Peaks with Prominence of 1,500 metres or greater".
2. "Summipost: Jezerca".
3. "Feasibility Study on Establishing a Transboundary Protected Area Prokletije / Bjeshkët E Nemuna Mountains".
4. (2010). "Europe's southernmost glaciers: response and adaptation to climate change". Journal of Glaciology.
5. (2008). "Pleistocene glacial relief of the central part of Mt. Prokletije (Albanian Alps)". Quaternary International.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::