WCRVBB-19-Biking Low Danube - STAGE 03 - Veliko Gradiste-Donji Milanovac 82 km

<<< Click for previous stage <<<           Click for entire route             >>>Click for next stage>>>
                                        Click here for the other routes of WCRVBB project

WCRVBB-19-Biking Low Danube-STAGE 03-Veliko Gradiste-Donji Milanovac 82 km

Etapa 3 de la Ruta que discurre por el bajo Danubio de Belgrado a Constanta, durante 1017 km hasta el Mar Negro en 10 etapas. Va de Veliko Gradiste a Donji Milanovac, haciendo lo que sería la primera parte del Iron Gate. En este punto el Danubio pasa de 5 km de ancho a poco más de 100 metros, haciendo el desfiladero más grande de Europa. Uno de los puntos culminantes es la fortaleza de Golubac, que con la crecida del río al hacer la toma de contención, quedó a ras de agua.

STAGE DESCRIPTION
This is the third stage, from Veliko Gradiste to Donji Milanovac. This is the first of the two stages crossing the Irong Gates, where the Dunav passes between the Carpathian Mountains in the north (Romanian border) and the Balkan Mountains (Serbian border). It's the greater gorges in Europe, where de Dunav passes from 5 km wide to almost 100 meters narrow.
The stage starts in Veliko Gradiste, crossing all the city. Then heads to the Dunav Border, where Dunav is every meter wider. You see an island, which maks to seem not so wide, but when the island finishes, after Usije, the Dunav turns to almost 5,7 km wide. It seems a huge lake. The road is good and every km with less traffic. After Golubac, where has a beautifule park and beach to something like the sea, you reach Golubac fortress. It's very impressive.
The road passes under steep cliffs and finelly crosses the fortress inside, with two gates. The dams increased the water level, so the fortress is almost in the water. This is one of the great spots of this trip. After the fortress, the Dunav turns very narrow, up to 100 meters. The road now is good and very lonely, with no cars, no tourist. Many kilometers seeing nobody. You start to pass many tunnels, one of them is almost 500 meters long.
After many kilometers of dramatic landscapes, with steep cliffs and good views to the other band of the river (the Romanian Border), you reach a crossing on the left, that leads to Lepenski museum (with paleolitic rests of the zone). Then you follow a narrow road with no one car, that passes next to the river, over a cliff. Then you go down and passes down a big bridge under the main road and a deep and impressive canyon, where the road turns non paved (but not bad surface). Then a steep uphill to reach once more the main road and get to the top of the route (Boljetin Mountain), with a very beautiful of the river. The rest of the stage is a good and wide road to Donji Milanovac. Here the river is not so narrow. You are now in the heart of the Iron Gate.

POINTS OF INTEREST
   - Veliko Gradiste.
   - Golubak Fortress.
   - Tunnels in the iron gate.
   - Lepenski museum.
   - Canyon of Boljetin.
   - Boletjin mountain and his views.

DESTINATION POINT
Donji Milanovac is a quite city in the heart of the Iron Gate, near the river. The Hotel Lepenski is a little high in the mountain and has excellents views and a superb down of the sun reflecting over the Dunav waters. Next to Dunav, it has a quiet park with a mamut monument and some restaurants with good views to the park and river.

ALTERNATIVE ROUTES
Just after Veliko Gradiste, you can take a path just over the dam (non paved). It's 2 km longer.