Not as difficult as I expected, I enjoyed some clambering over rocks on a sunny day.
I rose at 6:00 am trying not to disturb the others in the crowded dormitory, and was on my way at 6:30. I thought I was first away but I caught up with another group from the night, two British lads and two Bulgarians. We agreed it was helpful to have Bulgarian friends to deal with the language difficulties! They sent me ahead of them.
The climb up from the hut was the reverse of yesterday's descent but up the adjacent valley. First tall conifers, then dwarf pines and grassy clearings but today I climbed above the tree line to reach the ridge.
Turning south the red waymarked path that was the E4, skirted around various summits traversing steep and rocky slopes. It was a game of spotting the waymarks to be sure I was following the trail. In places slabs of white rock extended above and below the trail, elsewhere the rock formed ledges or blocks. At one point I disturbed a herd of deer enjoying the grazing before the tourists arrived.
I reached the famous Koncheto saddle where a heavy wire was stretched between stakes to help you across a narrow ridge with some big drops. Actually a bit of an anticlimax, not as scary as some of the photos suggest, or maybe it was the scrambling course I took at Plas-y-Brenin which gave me confidence. It taught me to evaluate the difficulty of a section by looking for the foot and hand holds, as well as the size of the drop. There were plenty of ledges to securely place my feet and hands so I knew I could cross safely. The wire got a bit in the way as it kept you to one side of it, not being easy to hop under or over with a large rucksack. I peeled off to the right before the end of the saddle to follow the E4 as it skirted another mountain so maybe I missed a narrower bit.
The final climb was up Mount Vihren, at 2914 metres the highest peak to date on my E4 walk. It was a fun climb, first up the northern ridge line, then a leftward traverse up a long cleft in the rock, and finally straight up to the summit, all climbing over bare rock on a steep sided mountain. Chains were attached to help you up but were not necessary today as the weather was dry making for good grip. As you might expect, distant views in all directions on the summit and people taking pictures of themselves, including a lady and some gentlemen who looked the far side of 70. Hope I am climbing mountains at their age.
After the climb to the top of Mount Vihren it was a very long and steep descent, tiring and painful on the knees. It was therefore a relief to arrive at the Vihren hut.
A lot of people and cars were at the hut. I bought a beer from a stall outside and watched while a shepherd drove his sheep into the meadow above me. His brown and white dogs looked a bit like the sheep! Inside a large orange cat had pride of place on a chair in the canteen. A sign on the door said no dogs!
Diahorrea again! Not so nice in the rather over subscribed "squat" toilets.
I rose at 6:00 am trying not to disturb the others in the crowded dormitory, and was on my way at 6:30. I thought I was first away but I caught up with another group from the night, two British lads and two Bulgarians. We agreed it was helpful to have Bulgarian friends to deal with the language difficulties! They sent me ahead of them.
The climb up from the hut was the reverse of yesterday's descent but up the adjacent valley. First tall conifers, then dwarf pines and grassy clearings but today I climbed above the tree line to reach the ridge.
Turning south the red waymarked path that was the E4, skirted around various summits traversing steep and rocky slopes. It was a game of spotting the waymarks to be sure I was following the trail. In places slabs of white rock extended above and below the trail, elsewhere the rock formed ledges or blocks. At one point I disturbed a herd of deer enjoying the grazing before the tourists arrived.
I reached the famous Koncheto saddle where a heavy wire was stretched between stakes to help you across a narrow ridge with some big drops. Actually a bit of an anticlimax, not as scary as some of the photos suggest, or maybe it was the scrambling course I took at Plas-y-Brenin which gave me confidence. It taught me to evaluate the difficulty of a section by looking for the foot and hand holds, as well as the size of the drop. There were plenty of ledges to securely place my feet and hands so I knew I could cross safely. The wire got a bit in the way as it kept you to one side of it, not being easy to hop under or over with a large rucksack. I peeled off to the right before the end of the saddle to follow the E4 as it skirted another mountain so maybe I missed a narrower bit.
The final climb was up Mount Vihren, at 2914 metres the highest peak to date on my E4 walk. It was a fun climb, first up the northern ridge line, then a leftward traverse up a long cleft in the rock, and finally straight up to the summit, all climbing over bare rock on a steep sided mountain. Chains were attached to help you up but were not necessary today as the weather was dry making for good grip. As you might expect, distant views in all directions on the summit and people taking pictures of themselves, including a lady and some gentlemen who looked the far side of 70. Hope I am climbing mountains at their age.
After the climb to the top of Mount Vihren it was a very long and steep descent, tiring and painful on the knees. It was therefore a relief to arrive at the Vihren hut.
A lot of people and cars were at the hut. I bought a beer from a stall outside and watched while a shepherd drove his sheep into the meadow above me. His brown and white dogs looked a bit like the sheep! Inside a large orange cat had pride of place on a chair in the canteen. A sign on the door said no dogs!
Diahorrea again! Not so nice in the rather over subscribed "squat" toilets.
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| Koncheto Saddle |
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| Climbing up Mount Vihren |
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