Mali i Fagut from Kllojkë

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Mali i Fagut from Kllojkë

Summary: January and February of 2013 were articularly rainy in Tirana, and it was difficult to catch a weekend with benign weather. At one of those, we "ticked" Mali i Fagut, a mountain that is not very visible from Tirana, as it hides behind the front range made up of Dajti Mountain, Priske Mountain and so on. For those who ventured behind or on top of the mountains of the front range, Mali i Fagut stands out prominently. Endrit Shima laid a GPS track up Fagut last year, in winter, from the road to Shengjergj. This time, we took the approach from the Elbasan road to the hidden hamlet of Kllojkë, to try an ascent from the south-west.

The Drive to the Trailhead: Leave Tirana for Elbasan, and turn into the direction of Ibe and Pellumbas. Follow the road through Pellumbas and continue up Mali i Pashkasheshit. after 17 kilometers or so from the Tirana - Elbasan road, having passed the schhol in Kllojkë, you reach the fork towards the trailhead. Turn left htere and continue for a few hundred meters. Park where convenient and start walking.

Maximum altitude:	792 meter
Minimum altitude:	198 meter
Cumulative height:	694 meter
Cumulative length:	17,2 kilometers
Difficulty	easy
Time:	1 hour
Date of this record	February 2013
Download GPS info:	To the trailhead of Mali i Fagut

The Hike:

Maximum altitude:	1426 meter
Minimum altitude:	588 meter
Cumulative height:	855 meter
Cumulative length:	4.82 kilometers one way
Difficulty	moderate
Time:	3 hours up, 2 hours down
Date of this record	February 2013
Download GPS info:	Mali i Fagut from Kllojkë

General location and approach: Mali i Pashkasheshit (see first image) usually prevents the view to Fagut, though Fagut is considerable higher. It is also fascinating that one has to drive virtually to the top of Pashkasheshit, just in order to take a slow winding road to Kllojkë. The farmland here is abundant and rich, and ofters nice contrasts to the higher mountains around and the busy roads near the Tirana axis.

Other Information: Near the summit, our trail joins Endrit Shima's trail (to be seen on Wikiloc). In principle, you could walk up one way and down the other. You only need to beam your car from Kllojke to Sheengjergj (or vice versa) or rely on rather unreliable public transport.

An overview of the area, as seen from the Tirana-Elbasan road. The village to the left is Pellumbas. A road goes up to the right, almost to the top of Mali i Pashkasheshit. Once around the corner, the mountain is heavily mined for gravel, used for the new highway that will connect Tirana and Elbasan. Behind Mali i Pashkasheshit is Mali i Fagut. The village of Kllojkë is at its foot.

View from the road to Kllojkë. Left of the center is Priske mountain.

Mali i Fagut, seen from the approach from Pellumbas village

Approaching the Trailhead to Mali i Fagut

At our trailhead. It is possible to drive on for hundred meter or two before hitting the hiking trail, but this was a good parking spot.

The trail leads through many grazing areas, which are pleasant to hike

A Fushe, or grassy area, high up on the mountain

The summit of Mali i Fagut, with Priske and Dajti Mountains in the distance

Mali i Snojt - in our view the most underrated peak in central Albania. It can be seen from almost any other mountain.

View towards the Shebenik (right) and Jablanica (left) range, on the border to Macedonia.

Thw eather wasn't particularly friendly, and while in the valley it was 17 degree celcsius, the icecold winds drove us quickly back from the summit

On our return, with a welcome sun, on a February day

Mali i Fagut from the west.The picture doesn't show that its eastern face was covered in snow - for the last 200 altitude meters.

On our return in the evening light. Mali i Fagut on the right, with 1425 Meter altitude. Mali me Gropa (the mountain with holes) to the left is fully covered in snow, although it is only 400 Meter higher than Fagut.

GPS and trailmaps: The map and trailinformation is generated by , based on GPS information collected from the actual hike. Waypoints can be downloaded to a GPS device from Wikiloc. If necessary, use GPSBabel to convert GPS data to different formats. For more hike descriptions by Palmtreetreeproduction, browse this website or visit Wikiloc and search for "Palmtreeproduction". You may also find nearby trails from other authors.

Google Earth: You may also view the trail in 3D when viewing it in Google Earth, which you need to have installed on your computer. The 3D perspective allows a good preview of gradients, steepness, possible views and is generally helpful when planning a trip.