While half the country burns and river levels are a matter of daily concern, Lake Ohrid looks as if it has not noticed it is August 2026. The water level today stands at 693.57 metres above sea level, according to data from the Hydrometeorological Administration.

That is 11 centimetres above the average August level of 693.46 metres and a full 47 centimetres above the permitted minimum of 693.10 metres. For a lake that in recent years is routinely mentioned in the context of drying out and a threatened ecosystem, this is a rare piece of good news.

There is a second number, and it is less comfortable. The water temperature, measured at 7:30, was 26 degrees Celsius. The August average is 23.5 degrees - meaning the water is 2.5 degrees warmer than usual for this period.

The two numbers tell the same story from two sides. The level is holding, the temperature is running away. A lake that is millions of years old and lives on cold, stable water is not measured by how pleasant it is to swim in during August. It is measured by what happens to the species that cannot tolerate a two and a half degree difference.

For now the figures are tidy and published every day. The question is whether anyone reads them as a series rather than as a daily bulletin - and whether there is a plan for the day when the temperature becomes the news and the level no longer is.