Kokalyane 2026

Winter this year has been a bit of a mixed bag. We’ve swung between brutal, snowy cold and milder days when the city slush finally begins to melt. Last weekend was all cold and wet and we stayed hunkered down by the radiator, enjoying the warmth of the central heating and our other hobbies. 

This week there's some warming up, it's peak was yesterday and a new significant drop in temperatures is expected in the coming days. So today was somewhere in-between - mostly cloudy and not very warm, but with almost no wind and still positive temperatures.

For our weekly hike we chose a place near to home - Kokalyane, a perfect choice for our modest city car. Since the trailhead sits right off the main road between Sofia and Samokov, we didn't have to worry about navigating treacherous, snowy mountain passes.

The climb from the Devil's bridge to Kokalyane monastery is steep, but apart from a few meters of ice coating the bridge itself, it was fairly dry and easy to navigate. 

Hike info:

Date: 16 January 2026 

Destination: Kokalyane Monastery and up the ridge  (1060 m) round trail

Mountain: Plana

Total length: 7.5 km

Elevation gain: 430 m

Total duration (plus picnic): 3 h

Average difficulty: 3 / 10 

Choosing to skip the monastery church this time, we pressed upward, following the broad trail toward the mountain ridge.

Me-made items, worn on this hike:

Husband: boxers, orange hat, Burda longsleeve, Burda Cargo pants, socks, scarf

I: lingerie, Plantain brick blouse, Burda "Page" hoodie, socks, hat, gloves, snood

As the elevation increased, the dry leaves and earth on the trail gave way to a messy cocktail of mud, snow and ice, which turned the climbing into a real workout and made us definitely earn our lunch :)

Up on the ridge, the world was covered in a blanket of melting snow. We headed straight for a spot we discovered last year: a brick wall at the edge of a meadow.

The ground was wet, but the mossy wall was dry and comfortable enough and we had a very nice time with our tortillas and warm herbal tea, enjoying the shy sun, which occasionally peeked through the clouds.

For the descent we decided to take a steep track down to the monastery, decreasing abruptly the elevation and with it - the presence of melting snow and ice. It was an adventurous gamble, because of the many fallen trees on the partially overgrown track, but an excellent choice, as it turned out in the end!

Back to the monastery from the side hill.

A glimpse towards Lozen and the excavations on Urvich on the hill across the river Iskar. 

All in all, a deeply satisfying winter trek. Kokalyane remains one of my favorite escapes for these 'indifferent' winter days when you just need to breathe some mountain air.

Family Christmas Hike on Manastirishte

A rare occasion in our hiking life: a family trek with both of our grown-up children.

While Christmas Day was cold and snowy, the following day brought sun and calm weather. We packed our bags and drove to the village of Plana, nestled at the foot of the Plana Mountains.

We weren't sure what state the trails would be in; though the snow in the city had melted quickly, it had held in the mountains. The landscape was a snowy fairy tale.

The tracks had been trodden by ATVs—muddy and disturbed in places—but they remained fairly easy to navigate.

Hike info:

Date: 26 December 2025

Destination: peak Manastirishte (1338 m)

Mountain: Plana

Total length: 8.5 km

Elevation gain: 160 m

Total duration (plus picnic): about 3 hours

Average difficulty: 3 / 10 

 

The sun drifted in and out of the clouds and fog, but temperatures stayed comfortably above freezing. 

It was fascinating to see the fields and trees draped in fresh snow; I couldn't stop taking pictures of the scenery.

Me-made items, worn on this hike:

Husband: boxers, knitted socks, Burda Cargo pants, Burda blouse, knitted hat

I: lingerie, Sinclair Lotte blouse, sweater, CC copycat hat, Zerda knitted gloves, purple snood

Gaby: lingerie, CC copycat hat

Alex: knitted hat 

 

Hiking with our children was such a joy, and three hours of trekking through the snow passed quickly in lively conversation.

Since everything was buried in white, finding a spot for a picnic was a challenge. Eventually, we found a cluster of large rocks along the trail. We cleared one off and enjoyed delicious tortillas and hot herbal tea, sitting there and marveling at the beauty of the mountain.

Manastirishte Again

After a few weeks of big hikes with long drives to the starting point, it was time for something familiar and relaxing, our beloved Manastirishte. We enjoy our hikes here so much, that husband is inclined to come here every second week :)

The forecasts for today were for windy, but sunny day with some clouds and fortunately the weather was in agreement with the forecasters and even exceeded our expectations - it was quite warm and the wind was pretty moderate. 

Hike info:

Date: 22 November 2025

Destination: peak Manastirishte (1338 m)

Mountain: Plana

Total length: 8 km

Elevation gain: 160 m

Total duration (plus picnic): about 3 hours

Average difficulty: 2 / 10 

We started around 10 o'clock from home and at noon we were already on the peak

Me-made items, worn on this hike:

Husband: boxers, knitted socks, Burda Cargo pants, Burda blouse

I: lingerie, Sinclair Lotte Hoodie, Love Notions Sabrina Slims II

 

Lately we have our picnic on the table at the summit, but today we decided to try a new place on the southern slopes of the peak.

The view from our picnic spot, where we had our traditional tortillas and cold beer, sitting on the warm grass. Lately we've been very picky about our picnic places and today, on our way back, we tested a couple of new picnic spots for our next hike. A grassy patch on the southern slope under the peak with a clear view to the village and the mountains across looked most promising and will probably be our  picnic place when we next climb Manastirishte.

And back to the village along a partially alternative trail. Short and easy, but extremely satisfying.