After spending a wonderful week in the Macedonian capital of Skopje, exploring both the quirky modern architecture, the ancient Ottoman cobbled streets and even attending a protest against the government…we wanted to escape the chaos of the city and have a true adventure in the Macedonia countryside. From the capital a day trip to Matka Canyon is a popular local adventure our hosts recommended to us. So we headed off on a short bus trip deep into this stunning gorge for a day to remember and a highlight of backpacking the Balkans and a perfect off the beaten track Europe spot.
Matka Canyon Matka Canyon is actually a man-made
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Matka Canyon
Matka Canyon is actually a man-made gorge just to the west of Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia. By man-made what we mean is that the stunning lake that sits in this mountainous canyon is a result of the dam built right at the main entrance! The rest is a wonderful display of the beauty of nature and a real off-the-beaten-track Europe highlight.
Steep peaks surround the waterside which can be traversed on the many constructed paths. Some take a gentle stroll clinging to the steep walls, whereas others require a strenuous hike up to the various vantage points dotted with centuries-old monasteries!
Matka Canyon is a popular area for the capital’s residents to escape the city and head to the hills for some adventure as well as those backpacking the Balkans. The sheers walls of the gorge are home to many rock climbing routes (if only we brought our gear!) as well as regular ferries, kayaks, SUP hire and one of the world’s largest cave systems, how’s that for off-the-beaten-track Europe!
Built in 1935 the dam created the thin Matka lake that now covers a roadway used to travel through Macedonia, called the “Road of Strength”. Along this route many churches and monasteries were built to provide spiritual reflection to the rich merchants bringing goods to sell in Skopje.
The narrow Matka canyon is actually the oldest artificial lake in Macedonia and a highlight of our time backpacking the Balkans in many ways reminded up of our epic ferry ride through a similarly created mountainous lake in Albania: Koman!
Sort Your Tours & Tickets Out
Best Place to Organise Your Tour & Much More
A great site to check out if you’re looking to book tickets or organise a tour is Viator
Viator often offers different tours to other companies, ones that aren’t otherwise available or have tickets still on sale when they have sold out. It’s the company we trust the most when it comes to booking top quality, unique and exciting tours when travelling.
Kayaking down the gorge
Having left our harness out of our already heavy backpacks we decided to instead rent out one of the many kayaks and explore the lake and Matka canyon in a more intimate manner. Instead of taking one of the many tourist ferries that run up and down the length of the canyon we headed for more of a real adventure!
The 6km long lake is wedged between huge limestone towers that at times sit almost impossibly close. As we set off down the canyon the once crowded and noisy lakeside retreated into silence. The sheer amount of wildlife surrounding the lake became more evident than ever as birdsong filled the air and the wind blew through the colourful wildflowers.
In the beginning, we took the paddling very easily, not really having much of an understanding of just how far we had to go if we wanted to make it down Matka Canyon!
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The beauty of the 800ft cliff face plunging into the turquoise lake took our attention just a little! As the canyon walls grew and grew the walls stood towering above us only a few feet wide! We had found paradise!
After around half an hour on the water swanning our way down the stunning gorge, past tiny settlements, tree houses, deep forests and awe-inspiring cliffs we realised just how far we still had to paddle! The narrow lake would wind its way around the gorge walls, corner after corner of amazing views…but no sign of the cave in sight!
The periodic ferries going past to explore this natural underground wonder were beginning to thin out! Had we gone too far and missed the hidden entrance to the Matka Cave? Had we even gone the right way? (We did get lost an awful lot backpacking the Balkans!)
Our Favourite Backpacks
No longer surrounded by people either on the water or on the narrow walkways high above and having paddled for over an hour we felt somewhat isolated in the incredible Matka canyon!
But on we went, beginning to tire as the sun rounded the corner and beat down on us. Our wet hands on the slippery paddles were getting sore and we had not seen a soul in the last half an hour of our hour-and-a-half-long journey down the Matka canyon. Passing a dead forest drowned by the rising water we eventually reached the dock for the Matka cave! Here at last!
Exploring the cave hidden in Matka Canyon
There is no other way to get to the amazing Vrelo Cave than the water. One of Europe’s most impressive cave systems much is still unknown about what really lies underneath the ground here. We were lucky enough to time our visit on the kayaks with that of a passing tourist ferry boat. The captain on which kindly switched the lights on for his guests just as we entered!
This meant we could explore the Suva section of these beautiful caves with the benefit of the lighting system fitted down here. Once powered up it reveals the amazing nature of the huge stalactites and stalagmites this cave is known for including the massive “Pine Cone” right in the centre of the main chamber. Our backpacking the Balkans adventure was all about seeking out these amazing highlights of off-the-beaten-track Europe!
The once hot air from the Matka Canyon atmosphere outside of the cave had become cold and damp down here. We could see our breath as we explored at our own pace every corner of this mysterious subterranean system.
The cave system is relatively small above the water but at the far end of the cave sits two perfectly still lakes reflecting like a mirror the amazing detail of above. The underwater sections of the Matka cave are some of the deepest in the world and still have yet to be fully explored.
Our Favourite Travel Camera & Lens
Sony A7IV & Sony FE 24-105 f4
The Sony a7IV is the perfect travel camera. Offering incredible image quality, great portability and a varied lens selection.
Our favourite travel lens is the Sony FE 24-105 f4. it’s a great all-rounder, super sharp and a perfect focal range for travel.
So far divers have reached depths of almost 1000ft below the surface and more is still to be explored. Currently, the cave is the deepest in the Balkans and may even be the deepest in the world! It’s crazy really what lies below!
How to get there/ How to rent kayaks
Getting to Matka canyon from Skopje:
Take the number 60 bus from Skopje‘s main public bus station (the red buses)
The journey takes between 45 and 60 mins depending on traffic and costs around 35 Denars each way (£0.50/ $0.62)
The buses run quite often but do check the return time. We missed one and would have had to wait an hour for the next, so instead we hitchhiked back to the city. Hitchhiking is easy and common in Macedonia and the Balkans as a whole and most people will be heading back towards the capital from Matka Canyon.
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Renting kayaks/ getting to the cave on a ferry:
You can either rent kayaks and paddle for 1.5 hours to the cave or take the tourist ferry.
Kayak rental:
You can rent out either a double or single sit-on-top kayak from the start of the canyon.
Rental is 200 Denar per hour (£2.77 / $3.50) per person but this is slightly cheaper for the double kayaks.
Taking a tour?
Another option is to combine visiting Matka Canyon with a tour of the surrounding countryside or a guided tour of Skopje if you are short on time. Taking the bus back to Skopje after visiting can sometimes be troublesome given the limited schedule so for those wanting to be sure to fit a visit in and get a more in-depth look at the surrounding area then a tour might be the best option.
Tips:
* Be sure to bring with you a dry bag to keep your camera, wallet etc. dry as it’s quite easy to get everything wet or capsize!!
* Try to find out the time of the buses back and time it, you can be waiting an hour so you might as well spend that time in the canyon.
* Wear some good shoes as the cave is slippery and muddy, you also might want to do some of the hikes if you have time.
Ferry:
The ferry takes around an hour and includes an entrance to the cave and a tour of Matka Canyon. The price is 400 Denar each (£5.50 / $7.10)
Book your accommodation here
Have you ever visited Matka Canyon or heard of the amazing caves here?
Related posts:
A guide to Skopje: The modern, quirky & politically charged Macedonia capital with hidden history!
We protested the government in Macedonia as part of the “Colourful Revolution” in Skopje!
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Yo, I’m Nic (they/them), one-half of The Roaming Renegades.
I’m an adventure (and halloumi) obsessed traveller with a passion for hiking mountains, exploring cities, watching Arsenal win, moshing out to Rammstein in random European fields and getting hopelessly lost on a motorbike somewhere in Asia! I am also a proud member of the LGBT+ community.
I’ve explored 80 countries, lived in Australia and New Zealand, and spent months wandering Southeast Asia, South America and Eastern Europe, all while trying to avoid growing up!
Did it work? I dunno, but my back hurts, and I still collect Pokémon cards! Who wants in?!
Wow, what an adventure! 3 hours to get there! Thankfully you guys got to it, great post!
Well, 3 hour round trip but still, a tiring but amazing day!
I love going kayaking especially when you can go through caves. This sounds like the perfect thing for me!
It was such an amazing thing to do, one of the best places we have explored.
I’ve been trying to figure out how long the canyon is for a while, as we were also pleasantly surprised by it’s length and you’re the first one to mention 6km. Your 3 hours to the cave and back seem somewhat exaggerated though as we went to the end of the canyon and back in 2 hours and the cave was only half way to the end. We don’t have any training, so anyone in good health can reach the cave in under an hour. We recommend going further as few motorised boats or kayaks go there and you can finally enjoy some real quietness and nature (the boats and entrance area are quite noisy).
To be honest we stopped a lot on the way there to take photos and look around whereas the return trip was a lot quicker. The three hours does include exploring the cave too and again we spent probably more time in there than most! I don’t know if it was the season we visited or not but there was only 1 boat at the cave entrance when we arrived and they left before us so we had it all to ourselves. Same for the canyon in general, it was very quiet, we would get a boat or so going passed us very rarely.