Vihren – Bulgaria’s Finest

Text and photos: Nick Iliev

Every mountain has its own unique charm and that invisible, irresistible magnetic pull that attracts a climber. Some mountains more than others – once you set your glance upon the summit and the spell is cast, the drive that pushes you forward – and on occasion this drive can border on irrationality or even sheer lunacy. Of all Bulgarian mountains, for me personally, nothing rivals the lure of Vihren.

It is the second highest mountain in Bulgaria, at 2914m, only 11m shy of Musala, the tallest in the Balkan Peninsula - but the Pirin range as a whole is a lot higher than Rila - there are two summits above 2900m, Vihren and Kutelo; seven above 2800m; 17 above 2700m; 32 above 2600m and 40 above 2500m and the highest granite peak in the Balkans is the Banderishki Chukar (2732m).

Pirin Mountain is the most rugged, alpine and hostile in appearance of all the mountain ranges in the country. Rila, Vitosha and the Rhodopes would appear gentle, rolling and inviting by comparison. Pirin, on the other hand, has "warning – come at your own risk" written all over it. But when you set your gaze upon Vihren, you will feel that butterfly feeling in your stomach, that burning desire to scale it and stand on the summit. Even the easiest route up the mountain is significantly harder than climbing Musala – the route that originates from the Vihren lodge and assaults the summit from the south face.

The first time we climbed Vihren, however, we started from Bunderitsa Lodge, which eventually leads to the north face, or rather the north edge of the mountain – a substantially harder way of climbing it. Compared to that route, climbing Musala is nothing more than a determined tab in the park. For those who want to experience the beauty of the mountain, and climb Vihren, but want to do it the easy way, drive from Bansko up the twisting mountain road all the way up to Vihren lodge, about 16km away. If you get there early enough, you may scale the summit three-and-a-half hours away and return in time for dinner and a pint, drive back to Bansko or spend the night at the lodge for 14 leva.

Alternatively, you may crave a more extreme experience - to climb the epic Koncheto Ridge, a several hundred metres-long ridge, at times only 25cm wide, with vertical cliffs on one side of above 400m, and 800m cliffs on the other at about 45 degrees slope.  Then summit Vihren from the north face – if you contemplate taking this route, your starting point is Bunderitsa Lodge, in a valley of unparalleled beauty sliced by the Bunderitsa river, and flanked on either side by the rugged, hostile towering monsters of Todorka at 2746m and Vihren.

Accommodation at the lodge is cheap, and the lodge is decent, clean and the food is the best I have ever had on any mountain before, both quality and quantity wise. Make reservations or, alternatively, if you are kitted out, spread your tent and camp in the gorgeous valley – we asked for permission to set our tent, made a fire, a brew, got a sufficient supply of beer and rakiya, which helped wash down the delicious food to the tunes of Pink Floyd and Iron Maiden, and we spent an unforgettable evening under the stars.

Setting off from Bunderitsa lodge, laden with 20kg Bergens full of water, food, survival and a first aid kit, it dawned on us that this route would live up to its hard reputation. Almost immediately after we passed the lodge, not 30m into the thick pine forest, the path became alarmingly steep, and remained so, unrelenting all the way to the Kazana (the Kettle). Before reaching the sub-alpine line where the pine forest gradually recedes as the elevation increases, eventually giving way to scrub and then windswept grasslands and rocks, you will have to negotiate a narrow, twisting, steep path - hard tabbing which will necessitate about two hours’ climbing to Kazana.

Unlike Rila and Vitosha Mountain, which are bountiful in water supply, this particular route does not pass anywhere near a river or a lake. So carrying an ample supply of water is absolutely essential – it is tiring and will slow you down, but you MUST  hydrate. To give you an idea, you must carry water that will last the hike itself – about 12 hours, so you need water that would last for double that period of time, allowing for any unforeseen eventuality.

Once you leave the fir and pine forest behind you, you will find a steep slope awash with shattered rocks and boulders of every size and description, which has to be negotiated carefully because the slope is demanding and you don’t have a sound, stable footing. Because this route is unfrequented by hikers and tourists, the path at times disappears completely, so special attention must be paid to the horizontal marking.

To the top
There is no winter marking, so don’t attempt climbing the mountain from that slope in deep snow if you don’t know the mountain well – and even if you do, the entire region is prone to avalanches. On top of the stone-fall, is the Kazana, a bowl-like natural formation flanked by the north-western extremities of Kutelo mountain, and other peaks around it. Give it a shout. The echo will reverberate for several long seconds in all directions. The sight is flabbergasting – behind a steep gorge, beyond it the Bunderitsa River and Todorka summit.

From there the climb leads up to Premkata, (the loop) which separates Vihren from Kutelo. However, before reaching Premkata, the rugged path will lead right below the east face of Vihren, a 400m vertical wall and eventually before your gaze the northern ridge will appear which must bee scaled, eventually. But don’t make the mistake of gazing too much at the mountain instead of looking where you are walking – otherwise you will end up losing the path as we did. The scant horizontal marking approaches underneath Premkata where a climber has to negotiate an almost vertical 20m rock wall, but the path is well cut into the boulders and it is actually not that difficult to overwhelm it.

Alternatively, you might end up 100 or so metres either side of the path, and you will have to climb the wall and the adjacent stone river the hard way: crawling, tooth and nail, no secure footing and with rocks falling and sliding all around you. Make sure you never climb immediately behind someone, but parallel to them. That way you don’t risk getting knocked unconscious by a falling rock unearthed by the person before you. From there the climb to Premkata is 30 minutes away, where you will see Vihren to the left, Kutelo at 2909m to the right, and the imposing, epic Koncheto ridge, stretching all the way from Kutelo to Banski Suhodol, at 2886m.

From Premkata, the ascent to the summit of Kutelo at a normal pace would demand around 50 minutes, the terrain is steep and you would be forgiven if your head starts spinning from the height. Once on the summit you will see the town of Bansko far below in the distance, Todorka, Vihren, expansive portions of Pirin mountain...and the dreaded Koncheto Ridge. Koncheto ("The Horsie") at an altitude of about 2780m, runs for several hundred metres, and presents the most dramatic, beautiful and epic climbing route everywhere in Bulgaria.

The slopes are steep - the north-western face is almost vertical and approximately 350 to 400m deep, while the south-western side is about 45 degrees, but substantially deeper, exceeding 800m. You have to negotiate this narrow ridge, which at times is as wide as a foot. There is a steel cable rigged along the top of the ridge to help hikers across. It is said that some less experienced hikers go through Koncheto by saddling the ridge edge like a horse and slowly advancing forward, hence its name.

I would not recommend it for hikers with acrophobia – I do have a mild case of it myself and after passing Koncheto twice (you need to return along the same ridge to scale Vihren) I almost wished I had included nappies in my survival kit. You may continue on to Banski Suhodol and then to Yavorov lodge or retrace your steps back towards Kutelo and then descend again to Premkata at the foot of Vihren’s north face. Whereas scaling the mountain from the south face would require nothing more than hard tabbing, the north face would mean one has to literally climb on all fours along the steep rock-face.

Although no words can do justice to the view below and around I was determined only to look forward and ahead of me, making sure I was placing my feet and hands where I can have secure footing. The wind was sustained, lashing from southeast and occasionally it came in gusts which caused problems as it was applying pressure on my Bergen. On several occasions it felt as if I was about to lose my balance, meaning I had to lie down on my belly and wait for it to pass. The marked route along the north face is demanding enough but if you lose it, as I did, it becomes worse.

Only several metres deviation from the path translates into one having to make his own way along and around over large boulders. Once you approach the summit, the slope eases up and you can finally sit down, relax, let the scenery sink in and take a picture – 20m later and you are on the summit, market by stones and a Bulgarian flag. The view is indescribable. 

After spending two hours on the summit, hydrating and eating to get the energy going, our next stop was the Vlahino Lake under the summit. Descending to the lake from the south face is easy, and one can enjoy the surroundings without fear of falling – the tab to the lake will be a little more than an hour away. Reaching it, you find yourself surrounded by peaks from everywhere, the water is crystal clear and cold, and fishing is forbidden although we saw two men who had set up a tent (camping in Pirin Park is illegal unless by a lodge and only with permission) openly fishing protected fish.

We all greeted their relatives mentally, and then sorted ourselves out with chocolate and a hot brew. Following an hour’s break by the lake, we headed towards Vihren Lodge, which is about three-and-a-half hours away, and then along the asphalt road, back down to Bunderitsa Lodge, 25 minutes further down. The hike started at 6.30am and we were in Bunderitsa at 9.30pm.

*Mountain Rescue Patrol emergency hotline numbers are 1470 – for MTel, Vivatel and 02 963 2000 – BTC and all other operators. International EU emergency call: 112

This article was originally published in The Sofia Echo on May 08 2009