Bistritza - Zeleznitza 2025

The low altitude circuit trail on Vitosha is at its prime at the end of May and June, when it is in full green mode, with lots of flowers and blooming trees. We love to frequent various parts of it at this time of the year, today we chose the most popular of them all, only some 30 min by car from home - the section between the villages of Bistritza and Zeleznitza and back.

Unlike previous rainy years, June is warm and sunny this year, with just a touch of chill in the air in the low parts of the mountain.

Today we seem to have happened upon the very time of blooming of the elder trees, so the air along the trail was amazingly fragrant. We gathered a bunch of elder flowers and I'm making an elder lemonade right now.

Hike info:

Date:  13 June 2025

Destination: low altitude circuit trail Bistritza - Zeleznitza and back

Mountain: Vitosha

Total length: 12.5 km

Elevation gain: 80 m

Total duration (plus picnic and rests): 3 hours

Average difficulty: 2 / 10

The picnic area around the Selska river above Zeleznitza was packed with children on a school trip, enjoying the simple delights of playing in its shallow waters :)

We found a quieter place up along the river, where we had our delicious picnic.

Me-made items, worn on this hike:

Husband: boxers, Burda t-shirt

I: lingerie, Sabrina Slims I, Burda blouse

And back along the same track - one of the disadvantages of the low altitude circuit is, that the hikes are usually to and fro, unless they are combined with some climbing and descending, or involve the use of  public transportation. But the trail is so lovely and easy, that walking it in both directions was a delight, not a chore.

An interesting beetle on the path - Morimus funereus, long-horn beetle, буков сечко.

To the Blue Arrow 2025

After two days of rain and cold, the sun came out on Sunday and we packed  our backpacks with herbal tea and home-made tortillas and rushed to the outskirts of the village of Zeleznitza, to climb to the Blue Arrow shelter.

Although the trail is quite steep, it is scenic and short and there's a bus from Sofia, which stops right at the beginning of the trail, so it is fairly well frequented. As we live in a part of the city with easy access to Zeleznitza, we like the trail and climb it at least once a year.

Although the sun was quite strong, the air was still cold and there were clouds in the sky, so we kept our hoodies and winter hats on. But what a difference May makes, even when the temperatures are low - everything is luscious green, the meadows are covered with flowers in all the colors of the spectrum. One can simply not complain, even when the wind is strong and cold.

Hike info:

Date: 18 May 2025

Destination: Blue Arrow Shelter

Mountain: Vitosha

Total length: 10 km

Elevation gain: 550 m

Total duration (plus rest): 3 h

Average difficulty: 4 / 10

Me-made items, worn on this hike:

I:  lingerie, Lotte Sinclair blouse, Houndstooth Burda hoodie, knitted legwarmers

Husband: men's boxershorts, Burda cargo pants, Burda T-shirt

 

Today we chose to climb a little further to a smallish peak above the shelter and to have our picnic here, with a glorious view in all directions. Finding the perfect picnic place is one of the critical moments of a hike, for me, and I am happy, that today we accomplished the mission with flying colors.

On the way back we took an alternative, even steeper trail, which brought us back to Zeleznitza and the parked car.

Zeleznitza - Kupena Hut 2024

It has been 9 years, since we last climbed the trail from the village of Zeleznitza to Kupena hut and back. This is probably one of the steepest trails on Vitosha, with over 800 m elevation gain over less than 6 km. Because of the significant slope, the trail is exhausting in both directions - much more, obviously, up, but the downhill traverse is a killer for the knees and leg muscles. Quite frankly, after yesterday's hike I don't feel an urge to repeat this climb any time soon. No wonder it took us 9 years since the last time :)

Despite the difficulty of the track, it is a fairly popular one, mostly because of its accessibility - the village of Zeleznitza is close to Sofia, with excellent public transport. A lot of the climbers rest at Kupena hut and then continue up ro Cherni vruh - Zeleznitza is one of the starting points of the tracks to the summit. We've done this extreme climb too, but yesterday our aspirations were modest - Kupena hut and back.

Hike info:

Date: 15 June 2024

Destination: Academic hut (1782 m)

Mountain: Vitosha

Total length: 12 km

Elevation gain: 830 m

Total duration: 4 hours

Average difficulty: 6 / 10

Me-made items, worn on this hike:

Husband: boxer shorts, cargo pants, hoodie

I: lingerie, Sabrina Slims, raglan Burda, hoodie

The trail was very green and the meadows were covered with wild flowers. June is probably one of the most beautiful months on Vitosha.

We had our picnic on the grounds of Kupena hut, recovered our strength and took the same trail back to the village and the car.

 

 

The Blue Arrow Shelter 2024

On the last Sunday on April we chose to hike close to home, along a familiar fairly short, but very steep trail from the village of Zeleznitza to the Blue Arrow shelter and back along an even shorter and steeper alternative track.

The day was sunny and warm after a series of rainy days and the trail was packed with tourists - some aspiring to the shelter and even higher, others picnicking on the lower meadows.

 :A local orchid

 The highest part of Vitosha is still covered in snow

Hike info:

Date: 28 April 2024

Destination: Blue Arrow Shelter

Mountain: Vitosha

Total length: 10 km

Elevation gain: 530 m

Total duration (plus rest): 3 h

Average difficulty: 4 / 10

Me-made items, worn on this hike:

 

I: lingerie, Sabrina Slims III, Burda striped blouse

Husband: men's boxers, Knipmode cargo pants, colorblock Burda blouse 

We had out picnic at the shelter (1650 m) and then turned back down. Next time, however, we plan to have only a small snack around the shelter and continue to the nearest peak Belchova skala (1877 m)

On the way back we decided to take a detour and "climb" peak Bukite (1250 m)