Melnik- Tewonto Ezero

Approach

The route starts in Melnik- the smallest town in Bulgaria (pop. ca 300), famous for its wines which Winston Churchill is said to be very keen of.

To reach Melnik take:
* direct coach from Sofia
* local bus from Sandanski
* train to General Todorov and later by a local bus or taxi
* Sofia-Thessaloniki road and turn east in Novo Dolcevo and go via Sklave and Hotovo

Route Description

The route is marked all way long
From Melnik to Pirin challet there are green marks and from Pirin challet to Tewonto Ezero red ones.

The route starts in the center of Melnik and takes the valley of the dried out stream and makes for NE. The trail leads trough Melnik Pyramides- marvelous sandstone formations with sharp edges and breath-taking views. Later it descends to the Rozhen Monastery- a remote and quiet place of solitare. On the way to Rozhen village there is the grave of Jane Sandanski- Bulgarian national hero.

Rozhen village is the last place to supply with water during hot and dry summers. From the village the trail goes uphills through beech forests. The higher one goes, the wider scene they see: Pirin Mts, Melnik Pyramides, Greece. On the way there are only two springs used by horse-keepers so it is very essential to have enough water. The trail keeps going up and reaches the pass (ca 1600 m asl)- here Pirin National Park begins.
From the junction with red trail to Kamienitza challet on the pass the route descends to Pirin challet.

Later the route (from now on red marks) takes Zhelezhnica stream valley and climbs uphills in the northern direction together with green from Melnik. In the neighbourhood of Mitrovo Ezero (Lake Mitrovo) red trail turns north-west. The slopes begin to be steeper and steeper and the rote curves right and left. Finnaly it reaches Kraljedvorska Porta Pass (ca 2600 m asl). A scenic view appears- one can admire picturesque surroundings of Tewonto Ezero. On the horizon one can see the highest peaks of Pirin Mts (Wichren and Kutelo- 2914 and 2909 m asl rescectively). From the pass the route goes downhill and reaches Tewonto Ezero challet- the highest challet in Bulgaria (2512 m asl)

Essential Gear

No sophisticated gear needed. Just have a comfortable trekking shoes, camping equipment (tent, small campingaz heater/oven) and additional bottle of water

Miscellaneous Info

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