ABOUT STARA PLANINA
Stara planina is the longest (550 km), the biggest of all mountains. It extends throughout the entire length of the country- from the Bulgarian border of Serbia to the
Black Sea coast.
The highest peak –
Mount Botev (2376 meters).
CLIMATE AND BORDERS:
Stara planina is the most foggy and windy of all Bulgarian Mountains. Average temperature values around the Mount
Botev are January average minus 8.9oC; July average 7.9oC and an annual average of minus 0.7oC. Rainfalls are at their maximum at May and June and minimum (excluding the mount Botev area) in February. The snow cover is rather irregular not only in duration but also in territory.
The western border of the mountain is
Vrashka Chuka pass while on the north , the natural border is the
Danubian plain. From west to east Stara planina touches upon the
Sofia valley,
Sredna Gora and the
Upper Thracian valley. To the east, The Balkan ends with cape
Emine.
Within this borders it covers an area of 25 000 square kilometers.
PARTS
WESTERN STARA PLANINA
It starts from the
Vrashka Chuka pass and it ends at the
Zlatiski pass. This sector has a length of 215 km.
The most popular and the most climbed is mount
Kom (2016 m.).
In general, the relief of the mountain does not have a well-expressed alpine character.
The Vratsa mountain is one exception. The natural phenomenon
Vratsata is the focal point of climbing activities in Bulgaria.
The existence of many caves explains the speleological activities in this region. The biggest cave is
Temnata Dupka. Here too is the caves
Ledenika ,
Elata, the picturesque
Iskar Gorge .It is a natural miracle carved out of the stone breasts of the Stara Planina.
CENTRAL STARA PLANINA
Central Stara Planina starts from the
Zlatishki pass and ends at the pass
Vratnik on the east. This is the highest and the most attractive part. Except the highest
mount Botev, there are 24 other peaks. Some of them are:
Vejen (2198m.);
Golyam Kupen(2169m);
Ambaritsa (2166m.);
Malak Kupen (2141m.)
The valley of the river
Osam and the
Steneto pass must be mentioned as an important natural reservation.
It is here than Nature has created a mountain heaven – the
Northern Djendem and the southern
Djendem, the
Heavenly rocks, the
Heavenly Springer,
Singing rocks.
The
Stara reka river gorge (passing through
Karlovo) has also be declared a natural reservation.
There are the mount Stoletov, the Shipka pass, which sanctified peak hosts a 32 meter tall memorial of granite – the church monument
Shipka.
There are also the National Park
Central Balkan ,the
Troyan Monastery ,the
Kapinovski Monastery, the
Kilifarevo Monastery,
Dryanovski Monastery, the
Merdanski Monastery in the Middle Stara Planina.
EASTERN STARA PLANINA
This part starts from the
Vratnik pass and ends at the waters of the
Black Sea.
There are no alpine formations. The Sliven mountain deserves mentioning because of its height and the alpine character of the area around the
Blue rocks as well the fact, that it is the most visited part of the whole of Stara Planina. The natural park
Sinite kamani is of great interest too.
RIVERS
Over the greater part of the Central Stara Planina ridge runs the chief Balkan water-separator line. The rivers of greater importance, which flow from the mountain to the north and into the
Black Sea via the
Danube river are the rivers:
Lom,
Ogosta,
Yantra,
Russenski Lom,
Kamchia. To the south and into the White sea flow the rivers
Struma,
Stara reka,
Tundja and
Mochuritsa.
Description
