Bouncing past the burned-out and rusted shells of vehicles that hadn't made it, we maneuvered the curves and banks of the goat trail that passes for a road. Then, at its foot, on the southwest edge of the capital, we dashed to the relative safety of government-held territory.
Getting in and out of Sarajevo has been complicated and usually dangerous ever since Serbian separatists surrounded and isolated the city in April 1992.
Until a few months ago, UN peacekeepers had control of the Sarajevo airport on the western edge of the city.
Then the Serbs started shooting at the planes and placed a number of restrictions on who could fly, and when. Finally, in an effort to further tighten their stranglehold on Sarajevo, they closed the airport altogether.
The only access to the city became the rutted, switchback road over Mount Igman. The pine-covered mountain is controlled by troops of the Moslem-dominated Bosnian government, but the last six kilometers of the road are within range of Serbian gunners based in surrounding territory. They routinely shell and snipe at vehicles that attempt to navigate the mountain.
Still, it was the only way in. I decided to make the run.
To reach Sarajevo is a journey through logistic entanglements and physical barriers.The Croatian port city of Split on the Adriatic is the starting point. There, news organizations maintain fleets of armored cars for use in Bosnia.
After flying into Split, I make the rounds of the networks in search of someone who might have room in an armored car. I luck out: ABC Television had a last-minute cancellation, and the seat is mine.
We motor through central Bosnia and, about eight hours after we started, approach Mount Igman.
Going up the western slope is not a problem, but Bosnian government troops stop us near the top. There has been some shelling and we might want to wait it out, they say. Several dozen civilians are gathered at the side of the road.
Checkpoints are ubiquitous in this area. Because the separatist Serbs do not recognize the Bosnian government or Sarajevo as its capital, they consider themselves entitled to stop anyone anywhere. At Serbian checkpoints on roads leaving Sarajevo, guards would ask for a passport even though, ostensibly and officially, the traveler was not crossing an international frontier. In the separatists' view, the traveler was entering the Bosnian Serb Republic.
After about 20 minutes, atop Mount Igman, we decide to make the run. We put on our flak jackets and helmets, and we're off, not daring to stop until we reach the bottom of the road, out of the Serbian gun sights. Only there do we stop to see if the car has been hit by fire. It hasn't.
Today, the Mount Igman adventure is unavailable. When the Bosnian army launched a massive offensive last week, after our truck had reached Sarajevo and what passes for security there, the Bosnians closed the Mount Igman route.
Now the city is completely sealed off. No way in. No way out.
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