Add a review about the gorge Iron Gate and the Golubatskaya Fortress

Djerdap Gorge (Iron Gate) is located on the territory of the national park of the same name, in the place where the Stara Planina are approaching the Carpathians, forming a river gate in the Danube River . The length of the gorge is approximately 15 km, width - more than 150 m . This gorge is not only the main attraction of the magnificent Serbian national park Djerdap, but also one of the most beautiful natural places in Eastern Europe . In the most narrow places, where the depth of the river reaches 50 m , the height of the cliffs hanging over the Danube reaches half a kilometer, and this is truly a magnificent sight .

The entrance to the Iron Gate is still guarded by the majestic Golubatskaya fortress . This medieval fortress on the rock was built in the 14th century and descended directly to the water , in the place where the ancient Romans settlement used to be . During the 15th century the fortress was a real battlefield: it was captured by the Turks, and unsuccessfully tried to recapture the combined forces of the Hungarians, Poles and Italians . No wonder: fortified position the fortress ty and its architecture itself is hardly anticipated an easy victory . Today you can see the powerful 9 towers, situated at different levels on the cliff; the height of each tower is 20-25 m . All the towers are rectangular, except for the polygonal dungeon, and all are joined by a solid wall of stone, the thickness of which reaches in some places almost up to 3 m . The only way to get inside the fortress was to to pass through the bridge through the water ditch .

All the towers are rectangular, except for the polygonal dungeon, and all are united by a solid wall of stone, the thickness of which reaches up to 3 m in some places.

B top of the dungeon, a fragment of the cylindrical th form, by virtue of which the tower is often called the "tower in the hat." One of the legends says that the Byzantine princess Elena was imprisoned in this tower, which began to tame pigeons in order to brighten up her loneliness, and this gave the name to the city and fortresses.

The shape of the towers of the Golubatskaya fortress definitely indicates that it was built in era before firearms. After its spread, the towers along the western wall were reinforced with new stone massifs, and the inner towers remained in their original form.

Just behind the Iron Gate, the Danube expanded and became very shallow, exposing the rocks. A lot of shipwrecks happened at the time, and until the end of the 20th century ships did not float at all: they were transported by rail.

In recent times the name "Iron Gate" has become associated not so much with natural beauty as with HPP, build which helped the Soviet Union. It's easy to believe that this one built in the 70's. The power station greatly spoiled the gorge ecosystem (and continues to spoil so far). Nevertheless, its stunning natural beauty has remained and strongly resembles the Norwegian landscapes

Golubatskaya fortress

Practical information

The gorge is located about 150 km from Belgrade, it can be reached by its own car or by bus to Golubac (time in way - about 4 hours). The road between Golubatz and Kladovo (just on this site there is a fortress) is a picturesque mountain serpentine above the Danube, and it is worth to ride it.

Address of the tourist center: 19220, Donji Milanovac, ul. Kralja Petra, I 14a

Gorge Iron Gate and Golubatskaya fortress, Serbia Gorge Iron Gate and Golubatskaya fortress
Iron Gate Gorge and Golubatskaya fortress