A journalist and a passionate mountaineer Zehrudin Isaković published the book “Veličanstveni Prenj”, which is essential reading for anyone who would like to get to know this mountain in a more detail way. This is already the third book about BiH mountains, and he told Visit BiH Magazine that it was a “hybrid” version, where he combined a classic mountain guide with literary descriptions of his alpin climbing, as well as other elements that this book has.
– My “friendship” with Mount Prenj has been going on since I was 12 years old. Two years ago, we decided to write a book – a guide. This was followed by a detailed tour of the trails, checking the conditions on the ground, measuring heights… It seemed to me that I knew everything about Prenj, but in the last two years I have become convinced that getting to know this mountain actually takes a lifetime – says Isaković.
14 peaks
Many are amazed by the beauty of this mountain, so we asked him if there were any specifics in the book that were not known about this mountain until now.
– There are. It is a common misconception that there are 11 peaks higher than 2000 meters on the Prenj. Researching, I found that there are actually 14 of them – Zelena glava, Otiš, Mali Otiš, Veliki Botin, Mali Botin, Erač, Lupoglav, Ovča, Kerać, Vidina kapa, Herać, Mali Herać, Velika Kapa and Osobac.
The photos for the book were made by Dženad Džino, a man known to the general public as someone who simply adores Prenj. How did the cooperation with him happen?
-Dženo and I met on Zelena glava, the highest peak of Prenje, one year, when he said to me: “Hey, I’ve been to this peak three times so far. All three times I saw you”. It was a good introduction to the beginning of a sincere friendship that continues to this day. By the way, Dženad is my collaborator on all the guides so far, and I hope he will be in the future as well. With his high-quality photographs, which have a soul, he significantly influenced my books to have that plus factor, which makes them of higher quality than they would otherwise be – emphasizes Isaković.
According to him, the cooperation will continue, and for the next period they are planning a surprise for all those who follow their work.
All those who visited this mountain often, amazed by its beauty, say “Prenj is a planet”. We asked Isaković if there is any truth in that.
– Yes. Prenj is certainly a universe for itself. Magnificent mountain – he answered shortly.
So, when he is already so clear and loud when it comes to this, we asked for an additional explanation for this attitude, i.e. what is it that sets it apart from other mountains in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Reminds of the Alps
-Of all the high mountains in Bosnia and Herzegovina, it is the most reminiscent of the Alps with its specific star structure. Almost every peak in Prenj is a story of itself… These are free-standing proud giants, which, especially in winter, simultaneously lure you to them, but also warn you about the seriousness of the ascent. Prenj is also a charismatic mountain, perhaps because it decided to keep some of our best alpinists to itself. Prenj fans celebrate, love and somewhat jealously guard this giant – Isaković points out.
Except for Dženad Džino, who was in charge of the photographs, the review for the book was done by Edin Durmo, an alpinism instructor and a long-time friend of Zehrudin Isaković. In his review, Durmo wrote, among other things:
“Zehrudin Isaković’s book is exactly that – a hitherto unseen and unread display of our most beautiful mountain, the magnificent Prenje. Indeed, if we think about it, what other title would make sense to present this mountain of mountains except – MAGNIFICENT PRENJ/Veličanstveni Prenj! If I paraphrase Zehrudin’s first sentence, I would say that my heart beat faster when I flipped through the very first pages, after he sent his work to me to read it for a future review. Of course, he threw me into the fire, because writing a review for what he made puts a person in an unenviable position, at the same time challenging, responsible, measured, mixed with the emotions of his own experiences and the obligation to remain realistic and present on pages that radiate a special energy, specific for unsurpassed Prenj experiences.
And really, just when you think you know everything about the one mountain you actually live, when you think that time came to share a certain things with others, to transfer your emotion and experience on paper, to last and radiate that special energy that is always there when you think of Prenj, dream of it and live it… Zehrudin appears with his work of art… and you realize that it doesn’t make sense, because it can’t be better than this.
It should also be noted that the publisher of the book is Branko Kecman, Advantis Konsalting, Edicija outdoor B&H.
