Walking in Bulgaria's National Parks. Julian Perry

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      Descending from Todorina Porta into the Banderitsa valley with Vihren (2914m) on horizon (Walk 10)

      According to an old Bulgarian legend, when God had made the world and was partitioning out the land, the Bulgarian people ended up at the back of the queue. By the time their turn finally came, there was nothing left, so God decided to stitch together a tiny piece from all the other countries and give them this patchwork as their homeland. Indeed, despite its small area, just under 111,000km2 (less than half the size of the United Kingdom), Bulgaria is one of the most geographically and biologically diverse countries in Europe.

      During the 20 or so years that I have been exploring Bulgaria, I have witnessed many changes. Not only has the country emerged from behind the Iron Curtain, it has also successfully thrown off the shackles of its communist legacy to become a fully-fledged member of the European Union. Furthermore, in the last few years alone, Bulgaria has developed from being a country usually described as ‘forgotten’, ‘unknown’ and ‘secret’, to a place that is now regularly declared to be ‘one of the hottest new destinations’ for both tourists and property investors alike. However, despite these dramatic developments, one thing has not changed – Bulgaria still remains a paradise for walkers and naturalists.

      Cascade formed by the Retizhe river near Popovo Ezero (Walk 10, Day 1)

      INTRODUCTION

      Blessed with a favourable climate, a wonderful variety of landscapes, a uniquely rich flora and fauna and a wealth of hiking trails, the choice of where to walk in Bulgaria is pretty much limitless. For the author of a guidebook such as this, it also makes the choice of what to include and what to leave out very difficult. In the end, I decided to limit the focus to Bulgaria’s three national parks – Rila, Pirin and Central Balkan. These national parks not only occupy the highest and wildest mountains in the country, but they are also threaded with a network of well-marked hiking trails. These paths typically lead through spectacular scenery and offer an unrivalled opportunity to encounter some of Europe’s rarest plants and animals.

      As well as providing detailed route descriptions for many of the most outstanding walks offered by these three national parks, I have also included a great deal of background information about the history and geography of places passed along the trails, along with comprehensive details of the wildlife likely to be seen. Mountain walking in Bulgaria’s national parks provides more than simply a physical challenge – it is a unique opportunity to experience wilderness and to glimpse the rare flora and fauna that still manages to find a safe refuge there.

      View towards Popovo Ezero, with Sivriya (2593m) to the left and Dzhengal (2730m) to the right (Walk 10, Day 1)

Geography

      Bulgaria lies in the southeastern corner of Europe, and has the rough outline of a large irregular rectangle some 520km from west to east and 330km from north to south. The country makes up about one-fifth of the Balkan Peninsula, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, and Greece and Turkey to the south. Its eastern boundary is formed by a 378km stretch of the Black Sea’s western shore.

      Bulgaria has 37 distinct mountain ranges, of which 14 can be classed as ‘high mountains’ over 1600m. These include eight mountain ranges which reach altitudes of over 2000m – Rila (2925m), Pirin (2914m), Stara Planina (2376m), Vitosha (2290m), Osogovo (2254m), Slavyanka (2212m), Rodopi (2191m) and Belasitsa (2029m).

      Cascade formed by the River Odzhovitsa below hizha Belmeken (Walk 8, Day 1)

Climate

      Bulgaria lies on the boundary between continental and Mediterranean climatic zones. The significance of these competing climatic influences is, however, greatly controlled and modified by the country’s mountains. Most significant is the Stara Planina range, which runs west to east right across Bulgaria, helping to hinder cooler and wetter continental air masses as they move in from the north. Likewise, the Rodopi Mountains, which occupy a large part of southern Bulgaria, tend to hold up any Mediterranean weather systems coming in from the south. This means that the central part of the country, between these СКАЧАТЬ