A LOTHERSDALE student has spoken of an experience of a lifetime which saw her trek through the Balkans.

Emily Jones took part in the expedition supported by a £200 Young Persons Travel Grant from Skipton Rotary Club.

She was among 11 young people who participated in the adventure, last September.

Speaking at a meeting of the Rotary club, Emily said the group walked long distances while their luggage was transported by pack horses, and they also travelled in 4x4 vehicles on mountainous roads.

Flying into the capital of Albania, Tirana, the group was first driven to Shkoder for a visit to Rozafa Castle, which had stunning views of the city, its lake and the Adriatic Sea, Emily explained.

The next day they had a three-hour ferry trip on the River Drin from Koman to Fierze, then were driven along rocky roads en route to the start of their first walk over the mountains – at a height of 1,800m – to Theth, for a two-night stay.

Unfortunately many of them were suffering from gastroenteritis at this point, said Emily, but thankfully most had recovered by the following morning. They then walked over the mountain pass to Montenegro, filling their water bottles with pure, clean water from mountain springs.

Emily described how the next day there was a violent thunderstorm which delayed the start of their walk until the afternoon, but they continued on to Plev, passing through a thickly wooded area where they spotted several fire salamanders before having a steep climb up to 1,876 metres.

The trip continued with a stop at a bitterly cold mountain lake, which they decided to swim across. Once they had warmed up beside a campfire they walked along a ridge to reach a point where they could stand in Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro all at the same time.

The following day saw the group experience the worst weather of the trip, and the longest walk. They climbed to the summit of Gjeravica, which at 2,656m is the highest mountain in Kosovo.

Emily travelled a distance of around 1,200 kilometres in total and raised £1,400 in sponsorship for Unseen UK, a charity which helps victims of modern slavery.

A spokesperson for Skipton Rotary Club said: "Any young person who is enthused by Emily’s adventure and would like to take part in something similar can apply for a travel grant."

For more details, email andrew.forman@skiptonrotary.org.