The sights of Ani are worth seeing, so if you missed it:
1. Kom – Emin. Walking on the spine of the Balkans
2. Com – Emin. Along the spine of the Balkans
The third part, we reached it without realizing it
Day 8
Another charging day on the mountain Stara Planina, which began almost in the dark Dermenka hut through the forest path on the border of the Steneto reserve.
Definitely, what caught my attention was the fact that here, in the valley of Black Osum, The species still live in the reserve. Rare species such as the tish, the kazhskaya hvoyna, the baisno tree and the silvryak coexist in their reserve. Particularly interesting are the communities of beech and laurel trees, which are relics of the warm climate of the Terciera, which began 65 million years ago and led to the mass extinction of the dinosaurs.
At Gerdektepe A mist enveloped us and it suddenly became very cold. The water droplets in the air suddenly made the hundreds of spider webs that had remained hidden on the side of the road until then, visible. The offspring of Arachna had new guests, eager to photograph their elaborate homes.
The forest path quickly led us to the Dobrila hut
And while we were drying our jackets and shoes, we also had time to have one yogurt with blueberries. We filled up our water bottle for the whole day and continued climbing towards the summit. Ambaritsa peak. There, in the open air, the clouds chased us over our heads until evening. A thick fog enveloped us and The Grand Cup, But we stayed dry until the Boetov barrier.
Once again, the weather was on our side and we enjoyed the most magnificent views from the „spine of the Bulgarian dragon“.
The green waves of the mountain follow one after another all the way to the horizon.
The stunning picture is framed by a dark green band of coniferous forests.
After every turn on the trail, more impressive cliffs and overhangs are revealed.
It’s as if huge stone cathedrals were deliberately placed here by nature to remind us that we live in a blessed land…
They line up The Crocodiles, the Tortoise, the Yellow-crested and the Milky Chalet. We are slowly descending towards Botev shelter And there, the lovely playful guard dog greets us with a joyful bark. After 29 km of walking, I ended the day with a delicious dinner, a cold shower, and a warm bed in the renovated shelter. I set my alarm for 3:00 AM and fell asleep.
Day 9
Our earliest wake-up time
We get up at 3:00 AM and leave at exactly 4:00 AM.
We hurry to climb up to Mount Botev, and millions of twinkling stars are scattered above our heads.
And the mountain is still sleeping.
I don't want things to rush and I don't want the choir singing nonsense.
I wish I could stay heard in the silence.
We climbed up at 04:45 and at 05:00 we slowly started to move away from the artificial lights of the tower. We passed a herd of silent cows that curiously turned their heads after us.
As we descended from the summit, between the metal poles of the winter markings, we looked at the pink band of dawn.
The new day was born in a golden glow.
This is that rare moment when darkness and light meet and shake hands.
How many of you manage to capture this moment of creation? And to silently let it go after it has passed, to blend into the endless cycle of days?
At the Mariinka barrier we continued on our way.
Step by step we walked east towards the rising sun, while its first rays bathed the mass of Botev behind our backs in light.
The fog had almost lifted when we left the wide, paved road and headed towards Yurushka peak mountain.
To the south of us in the area Chicken fillet The sources of the Selka River remain, which give rise to the Tundja.
The descent to the Taza and Mandrata rivers passes through our well-known areas of juniper and centuries-old beech forests.
The ascent of the Pašovic Ridge is again through beautiful broad-leaved forest. Last autumn I wished to take this path again, which would now be in a new yellow-red color scheme.
The mountain rewarded us with spacious panoramas in all directions. To the south, the backbone of the Great Kademlia, Little Kademlia and Mazalat peaks emerged, and in front of us awaited Singing rocks and the deep valley of Gabrovnica River.
Enjoy the clip:
There was no wind and we didn't hear the song of the rocks, but the scenic path offered us memorable views of paradise.
Ahead of us lay the fork in the road Masalat hut, Where we were greeted with a warm homemade lunch and a chilled watermelon.
On the path just below Mount Kurtbastitsa (Vlacha Gapa)
I was drawn to several carved circles in the rock with an ideal shape. They were definitely the work of human hands.
Their shapes are so precise and they are found in different directions on the same rocks. The rainwater and the melting snow would not carve such wells; they only level them and gradually destroy them.
Are they ancient altars or niches for hidden treasure? And what do the wolves have to do with it? Thousands of unanswered questions keep swirling in my head.
The descent to the Partizanska Pesenka hut was a silent stroll through the beautiful forest, interrupted by the gentle steps of 8 little little goats who quickly crossed our path and hid in the bushes.
With my arrival at the Partizanska Pesenka hut after 37 km of hiking, my day of walking ended „gloriously“. First I treated myself to chocolate ice cream and cold lemonade, then I got into a car and went down to the Shipka Hotel, where I rested, bathed, packed my bags, had dinner, and waited for the group of tireless enthusiasts.
By 22:00 they arrived heroically.
They were extremely quiet and exhausted from the inhuman 18-hour transition.
I set the alarm for 5:00 a.m. and immediately fell asleep in the most comfortable hotel bed in the world, secretly envying all those with the „alien-like“ form who can do it in less than 10 days.
Respect!
Day 10
The path of friendship
I believe that every Bulgarian should walk through Kom-Emine at least once in their life.
It is indicated everywhere on the old signs as An international mountain route of friendship, But it certainly isn’t just a tourist route. And it’s not always friendly, easy, or beautiful. Just like life…
The day of Spruce up to Huge For me, it was the most difficult moment of the entire 18-day adventure.
In the morning we set off again at 06:00.
The sunrise greeted us right next to the Shipka monument, and from a distance I admired the stone lion that guards it.
For years I had been climbing up here on March 3rd, I have passed through the pass that connects my grandmother’s native Balkan village and my city of Kazanlak hundreds of times. I often tell people that in my family we have an old man named Opelchenets, who remains at the top forever.
My whole life and that of my ancestors is connected to the Balkan Mountains, so I love it and feel like a native. All the peaks and villages in the foothills of the mountain are familiar to me. I was at home and I was happy…
We also passed by Buzludja.
This huge monument
nostalgically preserving a memory of a bygone time of planned construction and mandatory celebrations. Today, there is no longer anything mandatory and everything that was built has fallen into ruin and decay.
As much as I love it Spruce And I am proud of the feat of our soldiers; yet a page of our history remains incomprehensible and distant to me, called Buzludza.
I never had the desire to enter the ghostly „dining room“ and for a long time I wondered at the huge interest of foreign tourists in this giant of absurdity.
Yes, it is true that in our family we also have yatties and supporters of the Nikola Lankov and I respect their beliefs, but I cannot agree with them.
My urge for freedom is too great to be put into a box.
The road along the ridge to the east passes through the wind power park Buzludzh-Vetrokom. The modern facilities are really huge.
And noisy too!
The steel structures of the wind turbines are over 85 meters high, and the span of their metal „arms“ is up to 80 meters. The dozens of „blades“ have forever changed the landscape and are received with mixed feelings by people on both sides of the Balkan Peninsula.
We stopped for lunch near the Gorski Dom Bulgarianka,
which unfortunately has not been maintained and is slowly deteriorating. We managed to rest for an hour on the trampled grass near the stone barrier behind the main building. The outdoor fountain was not working, and the tall weeds had engulfed the building and the fields around it.
There is nothing more sad than the sight of abandoned playgrounds and broken swings.
Well, it made me sad.
An ancient Roman road and dense thickets of broad-leaved forest led us to the Dobavski Prohod and the Krastets station. Here we can still see the entrance to the abandoned Black Coal Mine „Lev“ and the ghostly buildings of the mining settlement. We sat on the benches near the platform, but we did not wait for the train; we continued up the slope.
Send us the playful smile of the green „rubber“ frog, whose drawn blue eye was a good idea on a hot afternoon.
From The Dobov Pass Next to the sea, the wells and springs where there was still clear and cold running water counted on the fingers of one hand. It hadn’t rained for months and the rivers had dried up. There were problems with the water supply in almost all the villages along the way.
That day I decided that I would wear sneakers so that my feet could rest from the high and hard hiking shoes.
A huge mistake!
After the 10th kilometer, with my sneakers on, I could already feel every pebble on the cobblestone road.
My feet were swollen and the sneakers were already squeezing me. The accumulated fatigue, my swollen feet and the uncomfortable shoes stopped my momentum and I started walking much more slowly through the old beech forests and golden meadows.
Extremely grateful to our leader Katrin Kozhuharova, who stayed with me to walk the last 3 hours of the transition together.
The few extra breaks, the jar of liquid chocolate, the oatmeal biscuits and the serving of protein gave me new strength to continue.
After the 48 km journey that took place slowly and painfully at 8:00 p.m., I was at the Gramadlivda hut and solemnly promised that the next day I would stay with the group’s driver to recharge my batteries and so that the drivers could rest a little from me and from my slow pace of walking.
There is a sequel coming; we are only halfway through with Ani…
See more about the author Ani Orozova here
