Penguin Travel

Massive, mighty peaks rising up among old beach forests. Paths, winding through the lovely nature of National park Central Balkan and reserve Boatin that have preserved lots of rare European animal species. The route of this trekking follows the crest of the longest Bulgarian mountain, which has also given the name of the whole peninsula, and descends on the other side to the most beautiful Renaissance town – Koprivshtitsa.
The tour is very diverse – in the first days you follow lighter trekking in the lower parts of the mountain among picturesque villages and monasteries. But unlike our other Teteven Balkan tour, which focuses more on ethnography and pastoral nature, here the emphasis is on the experience in the high mountains. However the trek requires good physical and alpinist experience – some parts of the trail are quite long, on some days you have to carry more luggage.

Tour Highlights:
The Central Balkan National Park (716 sq. km) was established for the conservation of the unique nature of the Central Balkan Mountains. One-third of the Park’s territory comprises nine reserves, four of them – Boatin, Tsarichina, Steneto and Dzhendema are part of the world Biosphere Reserves Network under the UNESCO “Man and Biosphere” Program.
Ribaritsa village is a beautiful mountain resort with numerous little country houses and villas, which according to latest measurement has the biggest concentration of oxygen in the air in Bulgaria.
Glozhene Monastery was built in the 13-th century by the Ukrainian prince Glozh, housing an icon at the age of about 1000 years.
Koprivstitsa is a historical town, an architectural reserve, still preserving the atmosphere of the Bulgarian National Revival period.

Itinerary:
Day 1. Arrival to Sofia Airport. Transfer to the village of Golyam Izvor (90 km, 450 m.a.s.l.). Accommodation in a guesthouse. /dinner/
Day 2. You start the day with a walk from the outskirts of the village to Glozhen Monastery, perched on a cliff high above the valley of Vit River. A 1000-year old icon of St. George can be found in the monastery. Afterwards you descend through an old beech forest to the road in the foot of the mountain, where a car will pick you up to drive you to the town of Teteven (415 m a.s.l.). Accommodation at a hotel. The afternoon is to be spent with a walk to Mount Cherven (1221 m) – the most east located peak of the three peaks rising north of the city. The trail starts in Teteven, passes by deciduous forests and lush meadows, and leads to the mount’s rocks, which reveal a splendid view of the town and the river valley. From here you take along a new eco-trail, leading to the village of Babintsi. You descend from the village to Teteven. Ascent / descent: 700 m / 700 m /breakfast, dinner/
Day 3. Short transfer to the village of Ribaritsa (550 m a.s.l.), from where the today’s trek starts. At the beginning the route passes by an area with summer houses and meadows along the Kostina river to the place, where the Bulgarian revolutionary Georgi Benkovski perished. From here following a dirt road and then a path in the beach forest of reserve Boatin, you will reach the village of Divchovoto (700 m a.s.l.). Accommodation at a hotel and overnight. Ascent / Descent: 550 m / 400 m /breakfast, dinner/
Day 4. Today you climb higher up in the mountain. The trail passes through old beech forests and reaches Momina polyana hut (1740 m a.s.l.), where you will overnight. Ascent / Descent: 1000 m / 0 m. /breakfast, dinner/
Day 5. This is the day with the longest trekking. In the beginning the path still passes through beech forests, but soon you will come out in the open, and start gradually climbing up the mountain. Then you ascend to the Mount Baba (2070 m a.s.l), where from you start going down to Popovi grobove saddle. Here you can choose between two route options. The first option is recommended in bad weather or poor condition – you continue descending till you reach the end point of the day – Vezhen hut, thus following a shortcut along the ridge and gradually lowering the height. There is only one more ascend in this route – in a beech forest in the second part of this route. The second option is a longer but more interesting route. The trail follows the ridge and you will come over a few peaks and narrow sections, which hide high risk of avalanche in the winter. Thus following the ridge you will reach Mount Vezhen (2198 m), from where you will start descending to the hut (1650 m a.s.l.). Option 1 ascent / descent: 900 m / 1100 m. Option 2 ascent / descent: 1100 m / 1200 m /breakfast, dinner/
Day 6. From Vezhen hut you start again climbing up the ridge to Mount Kamenitsa, where the trail follows the crest avoiding high peaks. In the end you reach Mount Yumruka and Eho hut (1675 m a.s.l.). The hut is situated on the very ridge and there is no access by car. Therefore on this and the next day you have to carry a little bit more luggage – things you will need for two days. Ascent / descent: 700 m / 650 m /breakfast, dinner/
Day 7. Today the trail descends on the other side of the mountain. The route is from Eho hut to the village of Rosino (550 m a.s.l), where the car will wait for you with the rest of the luggage in order to drive you to Koprivshtitsa. Koprivshtittsa is the most interesting, most beautiful and most important Renaissance town. Its distinctive architecture, colourful houses, cobblestone streets and old churches have the spirit of the breaking through decades in the life of modern Bulgaria. In the middle of 19th c. the economic and spiritual progress of Koprivshtitsa turned the town into a symbol of the reviving nation. Revolutionaries like Todor Kableshkov and Georgi Benkovski, writers like Naiden Gerov and Lyuben Karavelov, poet Dimcho Debelyanov were born here. Their houses are open to public visits. Ascent / descent: 100 m / 1200 m. /breakfast/
Day 8. In the morning you will be transferred together with your luggage from Koprivshtitsa to Sofia / Plovdiv Airport for departure. /breakfast /

Detailed road book and map will be provided upon arrival

Accomodation: Family-run hotels with en-suite facilities (days 2, 3 & 7), guesthouse with shared facilities (day 1) and in mountain huts (days 4, 5, 6). The meal plan is based on HB (breakfast and dinner included), except day 7. Lunchpacks can be ordered in most of the hotels/huts, but you may buy some food supplies (cheese, ham, sausages, bread) from the local shops en-route. Water fountains are scarce thus make sure you have the right amount of water for each of the days.

Please note that we use this region due to its unspoiled by the mass tourism environment, where the locals are still not used to deliver the best hotel services and some gaps may occur.

Luggage transportation:  Unnecessary luggage will be transported as follows:
Day 2: Pack and leave your luggage at the entrance of the guesthouse. It will be taken in the morning and delivered to the hotel in Teteven town in the afternoon, where you check in before going on a afternoon hike.
Day 3: Pack and leave your luggage at the reception of the hotel. It will be taken in the morning and delivered to the hotel in Divchovoto.
Day 4: Leave your unnecessary luggage at the reception. It will be taken and delivered to the next accommodation place – Momina Poliana hut.
Day 5: Leave the packed unnecessary luggage at the entrance of the hut. It will be transported to Vezhen hut, where you stay for overnight.
Day 6: Bring all the items you will need for the next 2 days. The luggage will be transported to Koprivshtitsa town, where you will find it on day 7. *Please note that on day 6 you will spend the night in a picturesque mountain hut, above the tree line, where luggage transportation is not possible.
*Bag weight – Please bear in mind that you will have to carry it, therefore keeping the weight down is essential.

Difficulty grade: C

Best period: May-September

Weather: Temperatures expected for this period are between +10 and +30oC. Sometimes noontime could be a little exhausting for trekking on open territories (e.g. a part of day 6). Rainfalls or short but heavy showers are possible, being a bit prolonged during spring and late autumn.

Equipment and clothing: Necessary items: mobile phone (ESSENTIAL! In case of emergency in the mountains).

Group size: Min. 2 persons.

The price includes: transfers to/from Sofia and Plovdiv airport; detailed roadbook and map; luggage transfers, accommodation and boarding as mentioned above; VAT and all local taxes.

Not included: tips, lunchpacks and dinner day 7, entrance fees, drinks,  and other personal expenses.
Single room supplemenet: 80 EUR. 

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