Pirin 2 - Bezbog

Unfortunately, we had no luck on Wichren due to fog and snow. But the next morning already promised improvement. Blue skies, motivating phone calls with home, and a sweet Bulgarian breakfast of pita, yogurt, and numerous jams gave us strength and confidence for a second day of hiking. Today, however, in a different area of the mountains: to the Bezbog Lake and Mountain. Both can only be reached by a chairlift, which we found through questionable trail markings. Contrary to the experience of other hikers, we were lucky that the lift was even in operation today and did not seem to be suffering from a power shortage. So up on the seats and half an hour of chairlift riding in single-digit temperatures. At first, the view looked promising, but soon familiar banks of fog rolled in. But the day tried to improve and sent drizzling rain as we gained altitude to attempt to stop the fog. Thank you! Soaked and cold, we reached our desired destination and motivated ourselves not to go back down right away, but to warm up by walking. So off through the pine bushes and up to the summit. But our effort was not rewarded: fog! The higher we went, the more there was. On the summit, we actually needed GPS navigation to find the summit cross and then the way back down the other side of the mountain. On this side, the veils occasionally lifted and we could see a few hundred meters ahead. On our way back from the mountain, we walked around the lake before embarking on the cold, cold, cold descent. Another pity. But still, the hike was somehow beautiful, unique, and amusing! We preferred to spend the rest of the day in the warm bed, planning our onward journey for the next day.

The next day, ironically, offered a bright blue morning that even showed the mountain peaks. We wanted to make use of the weather at least to take a proper look at Bansko, write postcards, and spend our last Bulgarian levs on coffee and tea. After that, we left this ski tourism town, which bid farewell to us exactly as it welcomed us: with residents chopping, sawing, and stacking wood for the winter on bumpy roads.