Peaks & Lakes of the Pirin and Rila Mountains

Today, we'll take a chair cable car to the Bezbog Hut, the starting point for our hike to the Polezhan Summit. This summit offers one of the most beautiful panoramas in the Pirin, overlooking 17 stunning glacier lakes. The hike is not too steep and takes approximately 5 hours.

We'll spend the day exploring one of the most picturesque parts of the Pirin: the Banderishki Lakes Cirque. Our trek will take us past some of the 16 glacial lakes, each revealing itself as we climb the terraces. We'll then descend into virgin fir groves to the Demyanitsa Hut and follow a shady path along the Demyanitsa River.

Our target today is Mount Vihren, the highest summit in the Pirin and Bulgaria's second-highest peak. As we ascend, we'll enjoy breathtaking views of the Golem Kazan area and the northern face of Vihren. The hike will take approximately 6-7 hours.

We'll bid farewell to Pirin and set off for Rila. Our first stop is the Rila Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the largest Christian monastery in Bulgaria. We'll then proceed to the Panichishte Resort, where we'll visit the Skakavitsa Waterfall before supper or simply ramble in the shady woods near our mountain lodge.

We'll take a cable car to the foot of the Seven Rila Lakes Cirque and trek past the lakes, each named after their most characteristic feature. We'll then descend into the valley of the same name and settle into a family hotel at the village of Govedartsi.

Today, we'll climb the Balkans' highest summit: Musala. A cable car will take us from the Borovets Resort to the starting point for the trek. The view from the peak offers a deserving end to the whole adventure, with vistas of all major mountain ranges in Bulgaria.