Part of the abandoned Bobsleigh run up in the hills above the city

In 1984 Sarajevo hosted the winter olympic games.

I had heard about an abandoned bobsleigh run, left to rot in the Trebevic mountains above the city.  Being a massive fan of abandoned buildings I thought I should set off and track it down.

It’s been a while since there has been a bobsleigh on this track. During the war it was used as a hideout by snipers and then it was deserted and left to decay. Long forgotten and overgrown with grass, it is now enjoying a bit of a renaissance as an offbeat tourist attraction.

The track has become covered with graffiti and is a delight for photographers.

You can trek up to it, and there are lots of blogs detailing how to do that, however it is a hard, uphill slog. Also there have been some stories about robberies happening on the track up and so I didn’t want to do it on my own.

In the end I hired a driver to take me up there.  Luckily I met another solo adventurer interested in doing the same trip and so we were able to share the cost.

On the way back down to the city we also stopped at this derelict hotel, burnt out during the war and then left to decay.

You can also enjoy some fab views of the city on the way up the mountain, so even if you’re not interested in abandoned bobsleigh tracks it is worth going up.

view over the city

On the opposite side of Sarajevo, the Bjelsnica mountains contain this ski run. No snow in September but this has been developed into a nice picnic area with a restaurant and other facilities. There are excellent hiking trails nearby.