This is a “out and back” hike of almost 7 km with a bit over 600 m ascent from the village Elshani at Lake Ohrid to the cross named “Krst Vetrogumno”, which translates as “Cross at the Windy Hill”.
Usually we try to do a loop trail instead of an out-and-back hike, and that was also the plan for this hike. We planned to follow the loop trail described here. However, as he already wrote in the comments on Wikiloc, there is no good trail for some km after the cross. We tried to follow his trail after the cross for about 1.5 km and then decided to back because it was too tiring to navigate through and around the vegetation continuously. I think it should be possibly to follow his trail but for us it was not the kind of hike we had hoped for.
There is ample parking space at the square in Elshani, where several hiking trails start.
The trail from Elshani to the cross is good and easy to follow. In fact, we had followed this trail before when we hiked from Elshani to the Chumo Vlaga Peak, except for the last 400 m to the cross, which we did not visit during that hike. Some markings along the trail indicate that this trails is part of the Ohrid Ultra Trail (www.ohridultratrail.com).
There’s a small chapel dedicated to St Bogojavlenie (St Divine Revelation or St Epiphany) and a spring/fountain near Elshani.
Along the trail there are also several ruins, I am still wondering from what kind of buildings they are. So please contact me if you know!
Although the hike was a bit of a disappointment because we had to give up on the loop trail, the great views from the Cross over Lake Ohrid were magnificent.
If you’re looking for a short hike with relatively a lot of ascent and a rewarding view, this is a good hike for you. Personally I would continue this trail after the cross to follow the hike to the Chumo Vlaga Peak in the link above.
This hike gets 3 out of 5 stars.
You can view and download the GPS track of this hike here: https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/elshani-to-the-cross-240337775
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