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Packrafting on the Vjosa River. Blue Eye Section and waterfalls near Këlcïrë, Albania

Solo combination of bicycle + packraft to enjoy one of the best stretches of the Vjosa River in Albania.

By Packrafting.cat

January 4^th, 2026

The Vjosa River or the Aoos River

The Viosa River (Vjosë, Vjosa; Vijosë in Albanian; Aóos in Greek and Aous in Latin) is a coastal river that flows through north-western Greece and south-western Albania. Its total length is 272 km, of which 80 km flow through Greece. It is the river Aoo of classical sources. It rises in the Pindus Mountains, in the north of Epirus.

Packrafting on the Vjosa River. Blue Eye Section and waterfalls near Këlcïrë, Albania

Its catchment area covers 6,706 km² and has an average flow of 195 m³/s. The main tributaries are the Voidomatis River (Vikos Gorge), Sarantaporos, Drino, and Shushicë.

It originates in Pindus, in Epirus (Greece), and flows in a north-westerly direction. The river flows through the Vikos-Aoos National Park, where it forms impressive canyons.

The two most important rivers in Epirus are the Aoos and the Voidoimatis with its Vikos Gorge.

Let's see if one day the Pindos Kayak Festival!

The Aoos River enters Albania near Çarshovë and becomes the Vjosa River, its Albanian name, flowing into the Adriatic Sea north of Vlorë. Generally wild and unpolluted, the river is surrounded by the Vikos-Aoös National Park in Greece and the Vjosa-Narta Protected Landscape near its mouth. In December 2020, the government designated the Albanian part of the river a "Managed Nature Reserve". A campaign by environmental groups to designate the entire Albanian section of the river as a national park, in order to protect it from potential hydroelectric projects, ultimately resulted in the creation of the Vjosa Wild River National Park on 15 March 2023.

It flows into the Adriatic Sea, north of Vlorë. Towns along the river include Konitsa in Greece and Përmet and Tepelenë in Albania.

In Greek mythology, Aoo is an epithet or name for Adonis. King Aoo was also the first king of Cyprus. A river and a mountain in Cyprus were also named after Aoo.

Hecataeus (550–476 BC) refers to the river as Aias (in Greek, Αίας, Αἴας). The name Anios (in Greek, Ἄνιος) is used by Plutarch in Parallel Lives, in the biography of Caesar, while Polybius, Livy and Strabo use the term Aoos.

El río Aoos / Vjosa desde sus fuentes hasta el mar Adriatico.

It is said that in ancient times, the river flowed further north than it does today, towards where Fier is now located. Due to an earthquake in the 4th century, it changed its course to its current one. This earthquake and the changes to the river are the main reasons why the river flows towards the ancient city of Apollonia.

The route

In this article, I will explain the first route I did on the Vjosa River, a solo route using a bicycle, packraft, and van for logistics. To do this, I left the van at the disembarkation point (which, incidentally, is a Park4Night where I spent the previous night) and cycled up to the embarkation point. The route can easily be done by bikerafting, but for convenience I preferred to hide the bike at the embarkation point and pick it up on the way to Greece once I had collected the van at the disembarkation point.

I have been to this area of Albania three times. In this post, I describe the first time I arrived in this area wanting to discover one of the rivers that is becoming increasingly popular in Europe among packrafters, the Vjosa, together with its Greek section called Aoos. Many packrafters are attracted by the wild nature of this river, surely the only one of this size without any human dams. Furthermore, Albania itself is already a fairly wild destination that is booming.

The second time I came with Borja, but we decided not to go into the river because of its low volume in August, and on top of that, the recent rains had not brought enough water; on the contrary, they had made the Blue Eye disappear, or to be precise, the Blue part of the Eye.

IMPORTANT: Please bear in mind that, depending on the time of year and rainfall, the Blue Eye and the waterfalls of Kelcyrë Canyon may lose much of their appeal.

The last time this happened was when I joined (or rather, invited myself 😉) the navigation part of a route that the folks at Planeta Packraft had been designing for some time to travel the Aoos/Vjosa River from its first drop in the Pindos Mountains of northern Greece to its mouth on the Adriatic Sea in Albania. My companions on this route were Edu, Óscar and Jose Mijares. I hope to soon be able to share the super-mega article that they will soon be writing on the pioneering packrafting blog in Spain:

Planeta Packraft.

Boarding

I reached the embarkation point after a pleasant 16 km bike ride from the disembarkation point. Boarding takes place on a pebble beach on the right bank of the river, which is accessed via a short track from the SH75 road towards Greece, about 6 km past Kelcyrë, the most important village in the area.

Just before crossing the Dragout Bridge on the right bank, just after the last rapid, you can disembark and exit at the petrol station to collect the car you left at Park4Night the night before.

The most important kilometre points are:

Km 0 Boarding point. Pebble beach located on the right bank.
Km 3.1. First bridge on the route, a typical Albanian bridge.
Km 4.3. We arrive at the village of Kelcyrë. As is often the case in the Balkans, and specifically in Albania, passing near a town increases your chances of seeing litter. In Kelcyrë, I am struck by the smell of detergent that I notice every time I pass through the area.
Km 5.4. The Blue Eye (if you are fortunate with the water levels and colour) is the gem of this section. A special place.
Km 5.5. Just after Kelcyrë, one of the most beautiful stretches of the Vjosa River begins: the short Kelcirë Canyon.
Km 7.4. Vjosa Waterfalls. With this "spectacular name," we arrive at a tourist area, where a bridge provides access to a nice restaurant and accommodation on the left bank. If you are fortunate and there is sufficient water, in this narrow part of the gorge you can see water springs and waterfalls on both sides of the gorge.
Km 7.5. Puente de las Vjosa Waterfalls.
Km 10.7. Tributary on the right bank and possible campsite or alternative landing area on the left bank.
Km 12.9. We cross a bridge; in this area, the river widens.
Km 16.6 Disembark just before the Dragout Bridge on a pebble beach on the right bank.

Blue Eye

Not as well known as the Blue Eye near Ksamil, but much more secluded and just as interesting. This spring feeds the Vjosa River, and the water temperature is very, very cold.

It is located near the village of Kelcyre and appears on Google Maps under the name Uji i Zi, which means "Black Water" in Albanian. It is located on the left bank of the Vjosa River and is easy to miss if you are not paying attention. Once you reach Kelcyre, when the village ends on the right bank, you will see a petrol station, and just opposite on the other bank is this marvel.

More photos of the Blue Eye

Por que le llaman Uji i Zi (Agua Negra) ?

El auténtico Blue Eye de Albania a mis pies y para mi solo!

Eduardo at the Blue Eye. It was my second time at the Blue Eye, on a later trip, and here you can see how the Blue Eye is transitioning between a gray color due to the rains and its natural blue state.

Kelcyre Canyon

This short stretch of just 2.5 km is one of the most beautiful sections of the Vjosa River. You will navigate through a low but narrow canyon where the green colour of the vegetation contrasts with the intense blue of the water. Beyond the first walls, you can also see the high mountains that form part of the foothills of the Pindos Range.

NOTE: If it has rained recently, especially after periods of drought such as after summer, the colour of the water may not be blue at all. The following photo was taken a few days after descending the canyon, with a much browner colour due to recent rainfall.

Vjosa waterfalls

The Vjosa waterfalls is the tourist name for this area of the Kelcyrë canyon, where you can see waterfalls cascading down the canyon walls.

Camp

Obviously, for a day trip, it is not necessary to set up camp, but the second time I paddled this stretch of river, I joined a multi-day expedition down the Vjosa organised by Planeta Packraft, and we did camp.

My fellow firefighters taught me the pyre technique for lighting fires. As on the other days of that expedition, the camping experience and the company were the best parts of the trip.

As always, if we are fortunate enough to have Dirk visit us, we will have an extraordinary hand-drawn map:

Of the three sections, the one that partially coincides with the route described in this post is as follows:

Packrafting y Bicicleta - Albània. Rio Vjosa. Blue eye section.

Google My Map

Aoos | Vjosa

Videos

See you at the river! Woo-hoo!

The river is a living, changing environment that is subject to constant development. The publishers of the river sketches and the creators of this website cannot be held liable in any way for any inaccuracies, omissions or errors in the river sketches. The publishers of the sketches and the creators of the website decline all responsibility in the event of any accident that may occur on the rivers described in this guide.