Wooden church and twisted plum trees
The region of Radan and Sokolovica Mountain is quite far of the most frequent visited places in Serbia, but when you come here you will be surprised what it offers. It cherishes small lovely villages, few spa, interesting churches, and even a Devil’s town! Worth to visit…
At the entrance of the village Prolom there is a small, cute stone church, St. Petka, where, allegedly, headache (if one suffers of it) quickly disappears. At the other end of the village, however, lies another unusual church, which has its own story. This is where this cache brings you.
The wooden Church Lazaritsa
You’ll see a small church made of wood, built by the people that have settled here after they came from Mt. Golija in 1890. The church was erected on the foundations of an old church. The old church, called also “Lazaritsa” church, was built in 1375 in honor of Prince Lazar’s firstborn son and heir to the throne, despot Stefan. As the legend says, this is where Prince Lazar’s army had its communion before the Kosovo battle.
The twisted plum trees
However, the most interesting thing about this church, are 6 twisted plum trees growing in the church yard. The legend says that the trees started to twist while the Serbian army, too big for the small church, circled around the church, led by the priest. The plum trees remained twisted, waiting for the soldiers return when they would un-twist.... It is an enigma that there always grow only six twisted plum trees, because when one tree dies, in the same time new tree grows, twisted around, while plum trees that surround them grow straight!
And again: the twisted trees
How to get there: By car from the direction of Belgrade, it is best to take the highway to Niš, and then exit the highway toward Prokuplje and then Kuršumlija (don’t turn towards the city), all the way to the village Rudare, then turn left to Prolom (which is 10 km from the turn). From the center of the village there is a "dirty" road leading to this church. You can drive by car, but the way to streach your legs and to enjoy the beautiful nature is to hike. It's only 2.5 km away, no climbing. At the waypoint R1 from the asphalt road branches off the dirty road; this will lead you to Lazaritsa.
The cache is blue 300 ml plastic jar.
Sources: Internet sources. Photos: original (Galejnik)