Poreche is said to be one of the most beautiful areas in western Macedonia. Dense forests, many rivers, clear air, but this place hides many secrets, too.
Just because there are people who hear about this place for the first time, Poreche is located in northwestern Macedonia, ie it stretches along the Treska river.
As we wrote earlier, Poreche hides many secrets. One of them is the Peshna cave, which is known even beyond borders of our country.
It is located eight kilometers from Makedonski Brod, and according to speleologists, Peshna is a cave with the largest hole on the Balkans - the height of the opening is 40 meters, the width 56 meters and the length of the cave is 124 meters.
The beauty of the cave is proven by the fact that the "New York Times" compared it with the scenes from the movie "Lord of the Rings".
Special about this cave is that it hides many secrets, and some of them have been revealed by the granny Stojanka, who spent her childhood here, playing in and around Peshna.
"I was born in the village of Lokvica, which is located seven kilometers from Peshna but, I remember in my childhood, that we came to play here. I remember that then there were still those 13 mills whose owners were my fellow villagers, and also my family had one mill of his own. But unfortunately, I did not get to see them as a child, I remember only the remains of them", granny Stojanka said.
If you go to visit the cave Peshna you will pass by the eco-camp "Dedo Ilija", which is owned by granny Stojanka.
The flour produced by these mills was supplied to the villagers of Lokvica, but they also used it to feed the livestock.
Otherwise, what is also specific about this cave is that strong spring breaks emerge from the northern part of the cave after a heavy rain and melting snow, which in the dry periods of the year completely dries up.
According to the locals, the water sinks from the Krapa village, which is located at a higher altitude and is forming several ponds and waterfalls in the largest cave system in our country, which is assumed to be long even ten kilometers.
The granny Stojanka recalled her time as a child, that they were discovering human bones in front of the cave.
"There were tombs in front of the cave and as a children we could often see bones, and it is interesting that according to the construction of those bones it could be seen clearly that they belonged to tall and big people".
But the legend everybody tells is that one of the sisters of the hero Krale Marko lived in this cave. She was called Peshna so it is believed that the cave got its name after her. Today, remains of the fort are still visible. The stone walls that are one to two meters thick, probably harbor many stories which, unfortunately, will not be retold.
However, one of the many legends speaks of mysterious underground tunnels. On the other side of the road, particularly across the Peshna cave, the remains of the fortress of Deva, the second sister of Krale Marko can be found. According to the tells, the two forts were connected by corridors and tunnels which led through the underground, but to date nothing like that was found.
These legends was confirmed by history professor from Makedonski Brod, Zoran Trpceski. He says that the first data about life in Peshna are from Neolithic period, or 5,000-6,000 BC, and the life in it lasted until the 15th century.
"According to the data we have, here there was a Roman settlement, and this was confirmed by the remains of the tombs beside Peshna. As you already know, this cave has many myths, many legends, one of them is about the sister of Krale Marko. In the history, Peshna also served as a refuge for Komiti and the Partisans", professor Trpceski explained.
The Cave so far has been examined by speleologists from Montenegro, Poland and France, and the news is that in the cave there is an ongoing construction of a stage where musical events, exhibitions should be held.
German/Deutsche Übersetzung: Geheimnisse der Peshna Höhle: Krale Marko, Komiti und Partisanen
