The day started badly . I woke up rather miserable and out of sorts,must be all the rich food from dinner last night so not too keen on a 750 m climb planned for that morning.
We changed tack and sat in the sun for awhile and caught up on a few things like topping up my phone card which proved more difficult than expected but got there in the end . Problem solving never has been my strong suit. The hotel is lovely and set in a rustic location so no problem enjoying some down time . We have been busy since the walk started.
Plan b involved us setting out about midday with a driver who would take us into the Chariste Lakes and we would walk back out to the road where he would collect us.
Our driver turned up on time in a rusting jeep obviously many years of service on the clock . Vasco was his name and very personable . He was a student of electricity at Sofia in the term time and lived locally . We met his grandmother as we passed through the village,he stopped for a chat and she had the gait and demeanor of a very elderly person but probably younger than us.
What an exhilarating ride we had,bouncing along gravel roads,hanging onto the bars of the roof cover for safety . It was as good as a gym workout!
At times we coasted down rough slopes with the motor cut, re -running some sections where it was too steep,fording rivers and generally attacking the terrain with intent . Verso was a good driver and enjoyed himself but it would take little to come to grief along the way.
We stopped at a few points of interest such as a stone tunnel and the first of the lakes which turned out to be the most scenic of the seven to take photos.
The rest of the lakes we would not term them as such but they were more like storage dams but the trip was worth it.
Vesco dropped us off at the top lake,pointed us towards a rough track in the grass and waved us goodbye. We were on our own.
We anticipated a long trip back fording rivers etc but he had given us a scenic drive-turbo style on the way there so our walk back was a peaceful one alongside the river and on fairly level surfaces once we scrambled down the mountain pathway . My toe is not happy with this trip. Happily it was not too long before we negotiated the last perpendicular section and found our local road leading out of the lake area.
Lots of lovely wildflowers to interest us and many varieties of butterflies flit about in stony areas . We did get a light shower if rain our first in Bulgaria . Later that night heavy rain prevented our evening walk.
After about two to three hours we emerged at the main road to find Verso waiting for us as arranged . Voila,our communication is improving..
Tuesday, 8 July 2014
From grim to great.
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