Seven Rila Lakes

The Seven Rila Lakes are the iconic Bulgarian mountain hike. The lakes are situated in an alpine area at between 7,000 and 8,000 ft. elevation. We had wanted to hike the Seven Rila Lakes when we planned our trip, but were not sure what the weather would be like this late in the season.

We drove to the chairlift, hoping the it would still be operating and that the weather would cooperate. It was just around freezing at the bottom, and when we got to the top of the chairlift the wind was blowing and we could see snow at higher elevations. We started on the trail, and very soon it was white all around. The trails were in poor condition (ice, overflowing creeks with no bridges, and later in the day, wet and muddy. However, the scenery was spectacular! In the end, we managed to see five of the seven lakes and made in down safe and sound even though we weren't really properly equipped for the conditions. And now that we're in our warm hotel room, it's a good memory and we're glad we did it.

The top chairlift station

Mountain lodge at the top of the chairlift

Looking towards the lodge at the upper chairlift station

Our hotel room tonight

Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria

We spent three nights in Blagoevgrad, a university town situated on a small river. It has an extensive pedestrian area with lots of restaurants, cafes, and stores.

For the first time on our trip, it rained heavily throughout both days, so we ended up spending more inside than usual (and still got thoroughly soaked on one walk).

Very appropriate street art!

Modern downtown mall

The old town area

Church in the old town

Our walk to a park just outside of town. We got caught in a downpour on the way back and were soaked.

Rila monastery

Rila monastery is Bulgaria's largest and most well-known monastery. Much of it was rebuilt after a fire in 1833.

The main gate

The Church of the Nativity within the monastery with extensive murals inside and out

The monastery compound is surrounded on all sides by four floors of living spaces

The14th-century  tower

The second gate into the monastery

Melnik, Bulgaria

Melnik is a small town set below sandstone cliffs with hoodoo like formations. There are a lot of ruins (churches, monasteries, and a fortress) but most are not well marked, so we did a lot of exploring and poking around. The houses are mostly in the traditional Revival style.

Our hotel

Melnik from a ridge above town

Hike to Rozhen Monastery

This morning we hiked from Melnik to the Rozhen Monastery, a 4 km trail up through the hills with many unique sand and rock formations. After the monastery, we continued to the small village of Rozhen for lunch. The hike back gave us wonderful views.

Rozhen Monastery

The village of Rozhen, where we stopped for lunch