Natural Monument

The Sopotnica River is situated in the southwestern part of Serbia. It is around 315 km away from Belgrade and 17 km southeast of Prijepolje. It is situated at around 1000 meters above sea level. In its springing part, the River creates countless small waterfalls from which water gathers into three bigger watercourses. The waterfalls created by them are the most attractive ones, over 20 meters high. The water flowing over several levels of sediments of dripstone in the form of waterfalls disperses into tiny water drops creating around the waterfalls a belt of refreshing air that has a favorable impact on the guests and their state of mind. Water of the Sopotnica River is potable.
Apart from the waterfalls, other interesting tourist attractions of the Sopotnica River are the watermills and cloth watermills, where once cereals used to be ground and cloth milled.
The village of Sopotnica is well known for door dairy products, mountain lamb meat, spinach, cheese, buckwheat pies, and honey. A special specialty of the Serbian households offered to chance travelers is brandy of wild pears, as well as the brandies “šljiva“ of plums Prunus domestica and “jabukovača“ of sweet apples. The specialty of the Bosnian (Muslim) households is “site“- fruit syrup of the best-quality sweet pears, apples, and other fruits. “Vodnika“ is a fruit juice of wild pears, wild apple, juniper, sloe-berries and hawthorn, and it is the specialty of both the Serbian and the Bosnian households.
Some households are engaged in the manufacture of wooden small tubs for cheese and cream, milk-setting bowls, wooden spoons and other utensils. Woolen products can be encountered in almost every household: sweaters, socks, gloves, shawls, bags, caps, etc.
Sopotnica has a lot of walking treks, which enable its tourists to tour gorgeous natural landscapes, pick medicinal plants and edible mushrooms while walking in fresh mountain air.
And yet, what makes the biggest impression on every visitor is the hospitability of these highlanders and the smile that does not disappear from their faces for a single moment.
In Sopotnica, 'honey and water' flow for the guests and much more than that.
By virtue of the Decree of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, Sopotnica was declared the natural monument by the end of 2005.

The village of Sopotnica nearby Prijepolje is famous for its waterfalls

 

God, give us water
Historical heritage and natural potentials of Prijepolje region represent an excellent basis for development of tourism. At 15 kilometers from the town, there is Jabuka with a memorial complex, and Babinska Plateau, Kamena Gora areas on the left bank of the River Lim, as well as the areas of Zlatar and Jadovnik Mounts, provide the potentials for mountain tourism, which have only a few regions in Serbia. On the other hand, the canyon of the River Lim and its tributaries, the Mileševka, Sopotnička, and Dubočica Rivers, abound in flora and fauna, which represents an opportunity for hunting and fishing.
Among the beauty spots, the Sopotnica River stands out in particular. Its marvelous waterfalls, at over a thousand meters above sea level, are something seldom encountered in the world. As if the Lord God has just climbed on Jadovnik Mt. and scattered a heap of pearls - thus the small River Sopotnica, which springs there, branches into several small and big waterfalls, or small rivers and brooks, making its small beds down the steep sheer rocks and a white curtain of millions of drops of the Sopotnica River waterfalls.
Legend has it that the first inhabitants in this village came as settlers from waterless Pešter, but the well by which they settled soon ran dry. Disappointed due to the bad luck that followed them, the newcomers decided to go on in search of water. The last night before their migration they heard a miraculous voice from the foot of Jadovnik Mt. and asked them: "People, choose what to give you, water or happiness"? The villagers shouted in unison: "Water, give us water, and we shall create happiness on our own, God willing". Thus, at least according to the legend, water started springing all over the place.