Bulgarian Adventures

Discussion in 'Adventure, Hiking, Backpacking and Travel' started by Bozho, Jun 2, 2019.

  1. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    Such a great trip!
    On Saturday around noon we started hiking to hut Rai (Paradise in English) - http://gowhere.bg/en/places/mountains/mountain-hut-rai/

    The weather was very warm and the mountain is amazingly beautiful during the Autumn. The views were stunning. The hike was around 3 and a half hours and was easy.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    More to come!
     
  2. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    The hut :)

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Little dudes

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    And their mama

    [​IMG]

    More to come!
     
  3. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    More animal friends

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    This little church is located a hundred meters from the hut
    [​IMG]

    The weather was awesome during the day, it got colder at night, but there is a huge fireplace inside the hut and it was warm inside. There is a really cool waterfall behind the hut, unfortunately there was almost no water in it currently - it is best to see it during the Spring, it is spectacular. It is the highest waterfall we have here.

    The woods are very dense in this region and there is a lot of wildlife. Also there are many free ranging cows and horses, sometimes guarded by big, bad shepherd dogs.

    More to come
     
  4. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    At the next day we decided to go to peak Botev - 2376 meters above sea level - the highest peak of Stara Planina mountain. It is named after our national Hero Hristo Botev - the poet revolutioner as we call him, as he did not only fought for our freedom, but also has written many awesome poems that speak to the heart.

    Hristo Botev - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hristo_Botev
    Peak Botev - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botev_Peak
    Stara Planina mountain - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balkan_Mountains
    Central Balkan National Park - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Balkan_National_Park

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    You can see the hut in the distance, we are going UP

    [​IMG]

    The beginning of the "Tarzan path" - it has steel cables to help you with the slippery rocks, as they are wet most of the time

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Finally - the Peak !

    [​IMG]
     
  5. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    Some random things and thought about the hike..

    The hike took around 3 hours to the peak, another 2 and half hours back to the hut and then 3 more hours to the car parking.
    At the peak it was very windy, had a lot of mist - super high moisture and very cold. It was awful :)

    We drank a tea at the tourist shelter there and headed back to the hut. I was quite scared that the wife would get too cold, and there was so much mist on the top that you could not see more than 10 meters away. I was preparing of shooting one of the door locks, to get into an abandoned building for a shelter, good thing that she noticed the sign for the tourist shelter which was 50 meters away. I was really worried and would not hesitate to break into the building.

    Awful cold weather, this is actually the windiest place in the country - I will visit it only in the summer from now on! You could literally freeze to death there and there are such cases every year- crazy! It was around zero Celsius there, which with the moisture and wind was feeling like -10. At the hut it was around 15 Celsius and 800 meters lower - quite a difference.

    Everything went well and this is what matters.

    How important it is to be prepared - somehow I have twisted a tendon on my right knee the previous day, don't know how it happened as I felt absolutely no pain at any time the previous day, but at the middle of the Tarzan Path I was barely able to move my right leg :eek: It really hurt like a m@therf@cker. I always carry a quite stocked FAK - which of course had pain killers. Without it I would have been in a bad situation as we had 5-6 more hours of walking remaining. I took a sachet of Nimesil and was ready to move on. It still hurts today but a lot less.

    The Garmin GPS was a great tool, as the majority of the time there was extremely thick mist - it never lost connection and helped us stay on track. It ran for more than 8 hours with a single set of black Eneloops (2500 mAh each). On the way from the hut to the parking lot I set a new pair of batteries, as the charge was showing 1/4 . A great device and I will carry it on every adventure. I am very glad I purchased it. Not cheap, but worth it.

    We were thinking of not going back to the hut, but walking an alternative route from the peak to the parking lot - we decided not to do it due to the mist and the nasty weather. Good think we did not went from that route - when we were taking a break and looking at the high rocks, at the place from which we were thinking of going - we saw something. We thought it is a pretty large mountain goat, until it turned towards us - a bear :D Luckily it was around 500 meters away and at some very high rocks, no way it could come in our direction. Still I got the Glock at hand, just in case - there were some fresh bear scats along the way. Not that 9x19 is a bear stopper, but it is better than nothing.
    Next year I will apply for a second gun permit - for a .357 or .44 revolver for the woods, while keeping the Glock for more urban areas.

    It was a great trip, a real adventure. Lots of adrenaline and lots of walking on the second day. Lots of beautiful views and for the first time in my life I saw a bear in the woods.
     
    BobbyRatTail and Strigidae like this.
  6. Strigidae

    Strigidae Administrator Staff Member

    Messages:
    21,004
    Likes Received:
    15,831
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    United States
    Such an amazing place!!!!!!
     
  7. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    Last year I was visiting the hut in the summer, but the autumn, at least for me is much more beautiful :)
     
    Strigidae likes this.
  8. Strigidae

    Strigidae Administrator Staff Member

    Messages:
    21,004
    Likes Received:
    15,831
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    United States
    You are the only window we have into Bulgaria. It seems to be an absolutely amazing place to be.
     
    Bozho likes this.
  9. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    I am really happy that you like it!
    For a small territory we are really rich in terms of nature. Perhaps the relatively small development of the country has preserved the wild nature to a larger amount that many other European countries. In most of the EU there are no bears and wolves, here there are many of them.
     
    Strigidae likes this.
  10. anrkst6973

    anrkst6973 Member

    Messages:
    2,701
    Likes Received:
    7,465
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Center, Texas
    Ruggedly beautiful...awe inspiring...words fail to truly define how pretty the vistas are. Nicely done Sir! Very nice!
     
    Bozho likes this.
  11. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    They are almost as good as the meals you post :)

    Cheers!
     
  12. Andy the Aussie

    Andy the Aussie Administrator of the Century Staff Member

    Messages:
    12,766
    Likes Received:
    18,542
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Australia
    Great pics as usual mate. That is some wonderful countryside you have to roam around in !!!
     
  13. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    Thank you, Andy!
    Stara Planina along with Rhodopa are my favourite mountains. Stara Planina separates the whole country to southern and northern parts and has a territory of 11 000 square kilometers, around 1/10 from the country.
    It's perhaps the most Bulgarian thing ever, had a huge role as shelter for the freedom fighters at the end of the 19th century.

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberation_of_Bulgaria
     
  14. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    At my personal heaven again :)

    IMG-d8e6d16a4793b65ade6b22c10e940227-V.jpg IMG-c8d0609296684f3b4c78f48164eba1e8-V.jpg IMG-bf6638bae370903222635f77fed40804-V.jpg IMG-7ff37b83961eb8091e7c13095f0be124-V.jpg IMG-dd2c83b9919c6be20623a190a3291254-V.jpg IMG-e1e27aac41bc3e024725a728d62652cf-V.jpg
     
    Datilite, BobbyRatTail, C99c and 2 others like this.
  15. Andy the Aussie

    Andy the Aussie Administrator of the Century Staff Member

    Messages:
    12,766
    Likes Received:
    18,542
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Australia
    Such places are great my friend..... I sadly lost access to one of mine a few years ago but have another that when I am there I feel quite contented..!!!
     
    Bozho likes this.
  16. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    I will be visiting this one more often in the next 6 months, as I have no job currently and the state will pay me 60% of my last 24 month salary, before taxes, for 6 months, so there will be more ourdoor time for me :cool:
     
  17. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
  18. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    In 7 hours I am heading to this place with some friends that are also knife and gun addicts

    IMG-ebc596e453c8fa9b8022b280d9fb12ea-V.jpg
     
  19. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    Great time with great friends.
    Lots of eating and drinking, lots of knives, axes and flashlights. It was a crazy day.

    IMG-4e09ef62fa17a8090061661a4c6b30c8-V.jpg IMG-7621c8c4e51750f0b8cc21a98a9cc9fc-V.jpg IMG-e5dc747d943c5516da1d5f5cf6adb2e3-V.jpg IMG-196a7fb1de248c76e71baee4744d3e28-V.jpg IMG-7a7f39c8aa3cf770502e4688d2b9f38f-V.jpg IMG-fa67732536983c8c82bb59e427cf9f97-V.jpg IMG-30ab4f65dffac3a654f2329e7f103ff7-V.jpg IMG-7c09158c0f3bd4de2c2bb50d252df1c9-V.jpg IMG_20191216_105528.jpg IMG_20191216_113329.jpg
     
  20. Bozho

    Bozho Member

    Messages:
    1,274
    Likes Received:
    3,663
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    BULGARIA
    Quick hike, fire, tea (brought from home :) )

    ESEE 6 and Silky Pocketboy are a top combo.

    I am really liking the alox SAK, feels great in the hand. It is my 4th :D The first one was lost, the second one was stolen, the third one was sold for a charity. This one is staying !

    12 degrees Celsius a few days before Christmas. It is Summer :p


    IMG_20191219_130142.jpg IMG_20191219_130157.jpg IMG_20191219_131325.jpg IMG_20191219_133515.jpg IMG_20191219_133935.jpg IMG_20191219_134819.jpg IMG_20191219_140444.jpg IMG-0f61975f1b639fdae36f2d66db6d7638-V.jpg IMG-30db845a5268c27465a50bf2152ed76f-V.jpg IMG_20191219_142236.jpg IMG_20191219_142406.jpg IMG_20191219_145641.jpg IMG_20191219_145709.jpg IMG_20191219_152731.jpg
     

Share This Page