#3: [16-Oct-24]

#1: [02-Mar-07]

24-Jan-2015 -- This is the first out of 6 reports, describing confluence visits in Bosnia/Herzegovina, Croatia and Hungary.

How about making a confluence trip to Bosnia just for a weekend in January when snow and rain are forecast? This sounds crazy enough to do it. So I flew on Friday after work from Zurich to Ljubljana and drove a rental car to the little town Velika Kladuša located 25 km from this confluence point in the north-western corner of Bosnia and spent the night there.

The next morning, I was woken up at 6 AM by the muezzin since my hotel was right next to the mosque of Velika Kladuša. I deliberately waited until 7 AM when breakfast was supposed to be ready. But the cook was still in bed, recovering from the late night. As an alternative, I filled my stomach at a pastry shop.

It had rained all night in Velika Kladuša, but when I got to Cazin the rain turned into snow. The drive up to the top of a little pass just behind the village Donja Koprivna was snow covered. The confluence is located almost at the top of the hill. I parked my car 150 m from the confluence and was able to walk a forest track up to 95 m distance – enough to create a complete confluence visit.

Every visitor of confluences in Bosnia and Herzegovina should be aware of the land mine contamination. By 2013 still 2.4% of the country’s territory is mined. Most contaminated areas are marked and sign-posted, but not entirely. It still happens that people become victims walking in unmarked areas although the numbers have decreased to less than 10 fatalities per year.

While roads and tracks are safe, walking cross-country through forests can be dangerous. The map of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Mine Action Centre (BHMAC) shows that this confluence point is far from any minefield. So I decided to visit the exact zero point. Nevertheless, I minimised the walk length across the forest – since there was snow on the ground, I was able to lower the chance to step into a mine by 50%! Why? Because I was able to step in exactly the same footprints on my return!

The nearest house is just 200 m from the confluence point.

CP Visit Details:

• Distance to a road: 150 m
• Distance to a track: 95 m
• Distance of car parking: 150 m
• Time to reach the CP from the road: 10 minutes
• Time at the CP: 9:11 AM
• Measured height: 497 m
• Minimal distance according to GPS: 1 m
• Position accuracy: 4 m
• Topography: hilly, on top of a hill
• Vegetation: mixt forest with young confier and deciduous trees.
• Weather: light snow, 0° C (felt temperature)
• Given Name: The Snow Hill Confluence

The story continues at 45°N 17°E.