The Blue Eye

Syri i Kaltër — the Blue Eye — is a karst spring in southern Albania, nestled at the western foot of the Mali i Gjerë mountains east of Saranda. With a discharge of around 6 cubic metres per second, it is the most prolific freshwater spring in the country and feeds the Bistrica River. Its name comes from the pool's appearance: concentric rings of turquoise and deep blue surround a near-black central void whose full depth no diver has ever confirmed. The water maintains a constant temperature of roughly 10 degrees Celsius year-round and is strikingly clear. A shaded riverside trail leads through riparian woodland to the spring, which has been protected as a nature reserve since 1996.