Dionysus, god of wine, sensual pleasures and fertility, symbol of immortality - Spartacus, the courageous leader of a slave revolt - Thracian figures from Greek mythology and from the Asterix books of my childhood haunt my dreams...."Nastráwe" - "Cheers" Did we have too much of the excellent wine from Melnik last night, or did the young freeride lady Maya enchant us with her red and white lucky ribbons for the March holiday?
Drunk and tired, we fell into bed yesterday after the farewell dinner... Images of the past few days in the glistening snow of Bulgaria under the southern sun, of the journey through a hospitable country, of racy firn slopes and wild descents through forests and couloirs in the Balkans...
From Zurich to the Rila Mountains to Govedartsi
Ivo and Vasko greet us at the airport in Sofia with a warm "Dobár den - Good afternoon". Sofia - even the name sounds friendly, Mediterranean and promises a pleasant ski vacation in the Balkans. As we land, we fly over the first snowy peaks of the Vitosha Mountains, which begin just behind Sofia. Despite the dry winter, it already looks like snow... but we want to go further south, to the Rila mountains, which are deserted in winter, to Maliovitsa and Bankso. The roads here in the industrial town of Samokov are muddy from the onset of the thaw. We are about 100 km south of Sofia as we roll towards the ski slopes of the Borovets ski resort. At the end of the long street village of Govedartsi, a cozy, warm hotel awaits us in the midst of snow-covered mountains and forests.
A crested cheese salad with feta cheese, plenty of tomatoes and cucumbers, washed down with the ubiquitous rakhia, which Bulgarians drink straight from glasses of water, helps us get our first night's sleep with the great-grandchildren of the Thracians.
Govedartsi - Maliovitsa peak (2729 m)
The ski slopes of the small family ski resort of Maliovitsa still lie peacefully still in the shade of the morning as we glide through the entrance gate of Rila National Park on our skis. Sergeij and Phillip, both friends of Ivo's who arrived from Sofia last night, are happy to introduce us to their favorite ski tours. Phillip, on ancient skis with cable bindings, will show us later how he copes with slab powder. At the Maliovitsa hut, there is already an atmosphere of departure - daring hikers are setting off on foot without any snow tires or skis on their way to any summits. The rocky north face of Maliovitsa is still hidden in the last clouds from yesterday. After a few steep steps with impressive views, we reach a saddle with a view of the Rila Monastery and marvel at the endless coniferous forests of the national park. The comfortably flat summit ridge is not difficult with the crampons on our boots and shortly after midday we are on our first Bulgarian ski summit, looking out over a sea of ideally inclined slopes and mountain peaks as far as Greece and Macedonia.
A racer in a skintight suit?
No, just a pair of striped underpants because of his figure, all other accessories in a sports bag and simple hiking boots with black socks are enough for the sun worshipper to get around at 2500 meters. The man is real, not a ghost from a Rhakia bottle - Martina can touch his tanned, leathery skin. He kindly congratulates us on reaching the summit in his light dress, we take a photo, then he continues on towards the sun. Sunshine makes you happy and gets the hormones flowing - we also want to find happiness on our first hard turns in the Balkan snow. It happens quickly, happiness and joy set in as we turn and float over windswept snow and the last powder snow. Powder snow? Ivo knows a gully that we absolutely have to ski, full of snow well into June. We quickly reach the top of the saddle, the slopes to the south glisten like silver in the sun. It looks racy, but far too warm now to head south. We like the north side with its powder much better and we only stop again at the Malovitsa hut to make up for lost minerals with the local Zagorska beer.
In the ice channel to the mountain rescue
Like Willi Bogner and James Bond in the ice channel back then, we carve out the hiking trail to the ski station. Such capers are clearly unknown to the numerous Sunday walkers and we have to be careful not to touch one of the little dogs enjoying the fresh winter air here with their masters from Sofia. There is a very well-equipped mountain rescue center for emergencies. The Bulgarians love their mountains and appreciate relaxing in the great outdoors just a few hours' drive from Sofia.
