Which mountain range runs along the Adriatic coast of the Balkan Peninsula?

The mountain range running along the Adriatic coast of the Balkan Peninsula is the Dinaric Alps.

Also called the Dinarides, the Dinaric Alps form a rugged chain separating much of the Balkan Peninsula from the Adriatic Sea. They extend for approximately 645 kilometres from the Julian Alps near northeastern Italy and Slovenia through Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo, Serbia, and Albania. Their partially submerged western sections help create Croatia’s many islands, harbours, and deeply indented coastline.

The range is largely made of Mesozoic limestone and dolomite, producing classic karst landscapes. Underground drainage, caves, sinkholes, limestone plateaus, and enclosed depressions called poljes are common. These features also explain why the word “karst,” now used worldwide for limestone terrain, is associated with the broader Balkan region.

The highest summit is Maja Jezercë in Albania, at 2,694 metres, within the dramatic Accursed Mountains. The Dinaric Alps are sometimes confused with the Balkan Mountains, but the Balkan Mountains lie farther east, mainly across Bulgaria and Serbia. The range takes its name from Mount Dinara, on the Croatia–Bosnia and Herzegovina border.