Rila - cirque lakes, severe peaks and mysticism

   Hello. We decided to make this trip in order to be at some of the most charming places in Bulgaria, namely the Rila Mountains. This place is perfect for walking and hiking tourism. If we want to make you feel at least some of what we felt, a whole night won’t be enough. Because this experience is a mixture of different senses - time, atmosphere, sounds, smells. But let’s try.
   The highest mountain in Bulgaria and the Balkans, Rila, is located about 100 kilometers far from Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. One of its characteristics is the great variety of climatic zones, over 2300 meters the mountain is entirely alpine. Indeed, all around us, imposing rocks without vegetation make us feel respect for natures power, they inspire us and make us sigh as we are passing by this beauty out of time…
  

The first day.

The bus from Samokov (60 kilometers far from Sofia) drived us to the village of Govedartsi, one of the starting points for Rila. Carrying sleeping bags and a tent ( In August it’s not so cold to sleep outside), food for several days and a very good mood , we found ourselves on the road to Malyovitsa, a popular tourist destination. Yes, but our plan was to reach Vada chalet and from there to get to the Seven Rila Lakes. I have only heard about this place, my expectations were for something magical. So it was.
  After almost two hours of walking, from Vada chalet, climbing the slopes of the mountain, with the opportunity to enjoy the blueberries growing in abundance on the way, we were reaching our point. Several times we have reproached ourselves for the heavy luggage, but we knew we would spend some time in the mountains. Our first stop was the lowest lake - Dolnoto. And the story started .
  Imagine a lake with crystal water, trout, cheerfully  jumping over the water. And a rocky mount that keeps its beauty. The Fish lake – Ribnoto. The photography is obligatory . Right beside it is the Seven Lakes hut. Furniture is obviously left from the age of communism, like the chalet itself. As were some of the chalet keeper manners. While seeking a place for camping we saw a white rope. They told us that the Danovists are having a traditional congregation.
   Danovists are followers of Peter Dunov, mystic, leader and religious figure. As Einstein said: "The whole world bow to me, I bow to the teacher Peter Dunov from Bulgaria. Petar Dunov’s doctrine is covering themes like Christianity, Buddhism, philosophy, space energy as well. It goes back to 1906, when he, together with followers founded Society for the Elevation of the Religious Spirit of the Bulgarian People as well as the international White brotherhood, with followers in many countries. In 1929 he has climbed Rila, just around these samelakes,  to tell parables, to interpret the words of Christ, to preach love and brotherhood. At that time started  the traditional meetings every year.
   They told us that if we want to camp in the White fraternity’s area , we shouldn’t eat meat, smoke cigarettes, or drink alcohol. Therefore, we stretched our tent a little bit further, and we spent our first night under the stars.
 

Second day.
We woke up early and we started to draw the plan for the second day. We wanted  to see everything – a difficult task for only one day. You can see the itinerary on the added map, thanks to Google.  So we started our walking and hiking adventure in Rila. After the Fish lake,  is the lake Trefoil - Trilistnika, a relatively small lake with a specific form. Next is the Twin - Bliznaka, the largest lake in the group with clear water and snow melting down into small rivers in it.
  We have noticed that around the lakes, there are a lot of tourists. Indeed, it was weekend and  a lot of people prefer to see the notorious lakes. Most came with the lift. We,from EKO Club voted against this lift because they chopped away many  trees and in the mountains you could meet unprepared people - high heels and silk skirts. All these people do not apply to this sacred place with the necessary respect.
   After a short climbing we have  found ourselves in front of one of the most famous lakes – the Kidney-Bubreka, with the steepest shores, so called because of its form, remarkably resembling a kidney. The most difficult part of the route followed – the ascent of the mountain towards the Eye- Okoto. The Eye, the deepest lake (37 meters) waited there, a nestle between the mountain slopes, facing the people with its periphery, with deep blue water, creating the impression as if you dive into the blue eyes of a strange beauty.
   The transition from the Eye up to the top exhausts  even the most tough ones. Those who have decided to go further,  over the top, are rewarded with incomparable view of 6 of the  lakes. At the top there are nearly two meters high piles of flat stones, putted by the passers-by -  anyone who come here can  put a stone to remind of themselves  and that they have been there.

  Our journey continues where most people stop. After passing along the last lake – the Tear - Sulzata, called so because of its transparent waters, we continued further, moving along the periphery of the cliffs. We admired the view, momentarily opened before us. And there was a challenge – the peak Haramiyata , the one guarding the  Fish lake. Dangerous pinnacles are promising fascinating landscapes to  everyone dared to climb a steep path. We did it too. We leave the photos to you,  as we are impatient to return to this place. After such experience, the break is deserved, after all day climbing and making photos.
Third day. Our next goal was the peak Malyovitsa - one of the highest in Rila mountain - 2729 meters. For this purpose, we took a part of the yesterday’s route. The road goes to Malyovitsa passing by a lot of peaks,  as the views down are amazing - Urdinite lakes – Urdini ezera, shepherds, single tents, distant peaks , even the Rila monastery is only a few hours far from here. The journey to the very top was nice; the final climb pressed us a little bit. But the rewards were without value - a panoramic view of  most of Rila. And our first photos of wild goats. Overall we saw about 20 goats, some of them  were small. I always enjoy it, when I see wild animals that are not in a zoo. The dusk arrived, so we rushed in the majestic valley of Malyovitsa heading to the same hut, a starting point for many tourists. Placing our tent next to the river assured us , as the sound of flowing mountain spring will help us to restore our physical strength and to be charged with energy. We leave the photos to you, as we hope one day you could feel what we felt during these magic nights of July and August .

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