The sunken church
In Lake Mavrovo.
Makedonski biseri — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Makedonski biseri — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Petrovskyz — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Petrovskyz — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Bijonse — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Risto Rolevski — CC BY-SA 3.0
Mavrovo National Park is the largest of North Macedonia's four national parks, covering about 780 square kilometres in the west of the country; it was declared in 1949. Its land is one of deep canyons, lakes and dense forests rich in wildlife, spanning three mountain ranges, Šar, Korab and Bistra, and holding Korab, the country's highest peak at 2,764 metres. Between the mountains the gorge of the Radika river runs for more than 25 kilometres beneath vertical cliffs over 300 metres high. The park also has one of the highest waterfalls in the Balkans, with a sheer drop of about 120 metres, Ice Age alpine bogs, karst caves and glacial lakes. In the artificial Lake Mavrovo stands the Church of St Nicholas, flooded in 1953: it emerges fully when the water drops in summer and stands half-submerged in other seasons. In winter Mavrovo is the country's best-known ski resort; in summer it draws walkers and campers looking for cool air. It is about an hour and a half by car from Skopje, and the mountain roads wind, so drive carefully.
In Lake Mavrovo.
300 m cliffs.
In winter.
Western North Macedonia, about 100 km west of Skopje
It emerges fully when the lake drops in summer and stands half-submerged in other seasons.