Lakatnik 2025

Last Friday we had our 5th in a row  March hike on the Lakatnik rocks. Lakatnik is a village with a train station in the gorge of the Iskar river, popular for its beautiful limestone rocks, carved by the mighty river on its way to the Danube.

The day was amazingly hot for early March, it was a workday and the place was almost empty - ideal for a peaceful and relaxed hike.

Hike info:

Date: 07 March 2025

Destination: Lakatnik Eco Trail

Mountain: the Balkans

Total length: 9.6 km

Elevation gain: 300 m

Total duration (plus rest): 3 h

Average difficulty: 3 / 10

Our visit to Lakatnik was a week or two earlier than usual, so the trees were still not in bloom, but some of the spring flowers were in abundance.

We climbed gradually up the trail to the plateau on top of the rocks, soaking up the view from above towards the picturesque gorge of the river

As usual, the dogwood trees are the first to come to blossom.

"Our" picnic spot - every year we have our lunch on this tiny piece of flat rock, overlooking the river and the mountains across.

The mountaineers' memorial

"Temnata dupka" cave - this time we were in a hurry to catch the train, so we only went near the entrance, without going further into the cave.

The rocks of Lakatnik this year had a big 40 m long martenitza, hanging from above - a temporary adornment, celebrating Baba Marta and the coming of spring, which I found quite nice.

Lakatnik 2024

Our "traditional" hike along the Lakatnik ecotrail in March. This is our fourth March hike in Lakatnik, starting in 2021 and it still managed to meet all of our high expectations. The place is very scenic, the climate mild, the trail - interesting and fairly easy, what's not to love.

As usual, we traveled to Lakatnik by train.

Knowing from previous experience, that the southern slopes of the gorge are usually warm and sunlit, this time we didn't overdress with thick winter jackets and hoodies and we guessed right - the weather was gorgeous, warm and sunny and our light spring jackets stayed in the backpacks.

Spring was way ahead in Lakatnik, with lots of various spring flowers and dogwood and wild plum trees in full bloom.

Hike info:

Destination: Lakatnik Eco Trail

Mountain: the Balkans

Total length: 11 km

Elevation gain: 300 m

Total duration (plus rest): 3 h

Average difficulty: 3 / 10

Me-made items, worn on this hike:

 

Husband: men's boxers, socks, dark grey longsleeve

I: lingerie, Sinclair blouse

We had our picnic on this rock platform, overlooking the gorge and the village of Lakatnik

As usual, we went down the rocks along the alternative trail through the woods

Temnata dupka cave. This time we didn't go in, just around the entrance of the cave.

And back to the train station. I love this type of day trips and I hope we'll organize something similar soon.

Lakatnik 2023

Another "traditional" hike - the March visit of the Lakatnik rocks in the gorge of the Iskar river. This is our third visit in a row and probably not the last, as the place is gorgeous, the trail is very scenic and the access by train makes it an interesting and different day trip. 

Another "tradition" - as the climate in Sofia is colder, we usually come to Lakatnik overdressed and spend the whole trip carrying our winter jackets and hoodies in the backpacks. This year was no exception - it was really cold in Sofia in the morning and we even put on our wool hats, but once we got out of the train in Lakatnik, we were greeted by a bright sun and temperatures quite above 10C, which, in combination with climbing, quickly made us undress down to T-shirts.

:The river Iskar, which runs through the Balkan mountain to inlet into the Danube

:A bat in the Temnata dupka cave. We went some 20 m into the cave with flashlights, just to get a feel of the place. We plan to take a guided tour deep into the cave next time we visit.

:Did you notice the long freight train?

Hike info:

Destination: Lakatnik Eco Trail

Mountain: the Balkans

Total length: 11 km

Elevation gain: 300 m

Total duration (plus rest): 3 h 20 min

Average difficulty: 3 / 10

Me-made items, worn on this hike:

 

Husband: men's boxers, Knip Mode cargo pants, Houndstooth hoodie and Orange hat in the backpack

I: lingerie, Burda striped blouse, Houndstooth hoodie and CC copycat hat in backpack

:The path spirals gradually to the top of the rocks

:A view to the gorge from the top of the rocks

:We had our picnic at a gorgeous spot on the rocks, over viewing the gorge and the village at the foot of the rocks

:And back down to the train station along an alternative path