In the night I heard the sound of some animal coming up the track, then it stopped, evidently spotted my tent, and retreated, rushing off at speed. Leaving my cosy sleeping bag this morning I continued on the track I had used yesterday to climb out of the gorge. As I hoped it soon intersected the route of the E4. Many kilometres of track followed through woods, scrub and grassland. Quite a few tortoises were sharing the trail with me, although they quickly tucked their heads into their shells if I came close enough to photograph them.
At one location Waymarkedtrails.org and two mapping Apps showed the E4 turning left off the track I was following. My map also showed a gravel road in the indicated direction but there was nothing, only long grass and bushes where it should have been. I walked around where the track had been marked but found no trace of it. If there was one in the past it had fallen out of use a long, long time ago. It made me suspicious that the E4 route reported by a number of sources was based on out of date maps, but that no-one had actually walked the trail to check if the tracks still existed and were passable. Ignoring the Internet route of the E4 I followed the one I had walked seven years ago which was based on tracks seen on satellite pictures.
In time I turned onto a quiet tarmac road. There were a few cars, and also trucks, tractors and trailers loaded with logs, from their size I assumed for firewood, or maybe for turning into pellets for boilers (I later passed a factory making them). The old Zastava trucks, fully laden, strained to climb the hills in a low gear.
Jabakovic was a small town, more prosperous than I recalled. Probably because of poor weather last time, today was Sunday and the sun was out. Old age pensioners gathered in one building, ladies with head scarfs like my mother once wore carried their shopping home, older men were grouped around benches by the drinking fountain in friendly argument and there were a few market stalls selling fruit and vegetables, and sweet pastries. My small, strong coffee at the café by the market was served with fizzy water and a piece of Turkish Delight, just as I remembered last time, although the café had moved to larger premises next to the old one. Most of the men were drinking beer today and ordering hamburgers in flatbread. I wondered about asking for one but did not know the words and the waiter looked harried. It would probably have hung heavy on my stomach as I walked and I had only completed half my planned distance. Instead I bought a stick of fried dough from a market stall, like a doughnut but straight, not round. I ate it by the large war memorial.
Although a bit apprehensive I followed the E4 route I downloaded to Vratna gorge. Initially there were finger posts pointing the way, at least as far as a large group of charcoal burners, but the signs then disappeared. As I approached the small river, the E4 turned off the main track onto a "path" I could find no sign of. The forest floor was covered with an unblemished carpet of yellow flowers called Perfoliate Alexanders according to PlantNet. I accumulated a rash of yellow pollen spots on my trousers as I searched for the elusive path. Unable to find it I continued on the forest track I was on which, although overgrown, was easy to follow. It forded the Vratna river at a point where it looked deep but I could paddle across a little downstream.
Plenty of people were about at Vratna Monastery. I visited the church. Unlike at Bukovo yesterday all the frescos depicted stiff, solemn people in the traditional Orthodox style, there were scenes from the Bible, saints and angels. At the entrance to the compound a nun was selling monastery produce from a stall; wine, spirits and lavender products. I indulged instead in a coffee and ice cream (of the "Magnum" type but cheesecake flavour).
Suitably refreshed I viewed the first two of the natural limestone arches in the gorge behind the monastery, the third would have required a longer walk. The first arch was lost in the trees, but the second you could stand under and appreciate its size, the opening being 30 metres high according to a sign.
Leaving Vratna I was again following the E4 trail I downloaded. Last time I had trouble finding the route and was forced into a long road walk, but this time I had a gpx track alleged to be correct, it ran further west than I thought last time. The climb out of Vratna valley through oak woods was straightforward and led to a gravel road where there was a memorial to a fight between Serbian partizans and Chetniks in the Second World War. A little down the gravel road my route turned off onto a track. As it was well used I had some confidence it would lead me to and across the river that had caused me to divert onto the long road walk last time. My confidence took a hit when the track was blocked by a large pile of logs and cut branches. The well used track ended. After searching I found the continuation of my route, now a little overgrown. As forecast by my map the track thinned to a path, which was barely visible or not visible at all. I could detect from the flattened grass that someone had recently walked this way which gave me hope that I could avoid a long diversion. I progressed into woodland where the canopy had suppressed the undergrowth and the track reappeared, heading downhill into the valley, and I was soon in a meadow by the river, a rough gravel road down the valley in front of me. After checking the river was easily foldable I decided to make camp for the night having walked over 30 kilometres. Although the grass is long the ground is flat but flies have driven me inside my tent.
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