Cherni Vrah
Encyclopedia
Cherni Vrah is the summit of Vitosha Mountain
in Bulgaria
. Rising to 2290 m, the peak is the fourth highest mountain summit in the country after Musala
(2925 m, Rila Mountain
), Vihren
(2914 m, Pirin Mountain
), and Botev Vrah
(2376 m, Balkan Range
).
Cherni Vrah is bounded to the northwest by Torfeno Branishte
(Turf Nature Reserve) which — like the extensive adjacent territory to the south — is a no-go drinking water catchment area
. Several major stone rivers
are situated in the peak's vicinity, occupying the upper courses of Vladayska and Boyanska River
s to the north, and Struma River
to the south.
The peak is part of the water divide
between Black Sea
and Mediterranean Sea
, its northern slopes draining into Iskar River
, and eventually into Danube River
and Black Sea, and the southern slopes draining into Matnitsa River, flowing in turn into Struma River
and Aegean Sea
.
Cherni Vrah hosts a weather station built in 1935, one year after the mountain became the oldest national park
on the Balkans
. The station provides refuge in bad weather (no tourist accommodation though), and has a well supplied cafeteria offering hot meals. A Mountain Rescue Service
team is based on the peak too. The nearest mountain chalet
s are Aleko Chalet
situated 3 km to the north-northeast (1810 m, major ski
and snowboard
centre accessible by gondola lift
from Simeonovo, Sofia
), and Kumata Chalet (1725 m) situated 5.5 km to the northwest. Ski paths link Cherni Vrah to Aleko and Kumata areas in winter, and a ski run on the northern slope of the peak itself is served by a 600-m surface lift
.
With its annual average wind speed of 9.3 m/s Cherni Vrah is the second most windy peak in Bulgaria after Murgash Peak in the Balkan Range
(10.3 m/s).
The legend holds it that Cherni Vrah was climbed as early as 181 B.C. by King Philip V of Macedon
. Nowadays, the easiest access to the peak is by a 1.4-km track from the upper station of Romanski chair lift situated on Malak Rezen
Peak (2191 m).
Cherni Vrah has a special place in Bulgaria
n tourism
. Thanks to its proximity to Sofia
the peak is by far the most visited mountain summit in the country, attracting tens of thousands of visitors annually. The first group of tourists to climb the peak involved 300 people, among them the contemporary doyen of Bulgarian literature
Ivan Vazov
, and was led by another famous Bulgarian writer
, Aleko Konstantinov
. The event took place on August 27, 1895, and annual tourist rallies are held on Cherni Vrah on that date considered the birthday of Bulgarian tourist movement.
The etymology
of the name Cherni Vrah (Black Peak) is uncertain. Popularly, it is attributed to the black colour of the conspicuous rock formations dominating the peak's tip. Another belief holds it that the name derived from the darker appearance the peak presumably had in the past, when the Subalpine
zone of Vitosha
used to be overgrown by mountain pine
(Pinus mugo) that was burnt in the Middle Ages
to expand sheep pasture
s. Nowadays only few isolated mountain pine
communities have survived in the vicinity of Cherni Vrah, and their process of expansion and recovery is very slow.
Vitosha
Vitosha is a mountain massif, on the outskirts of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. Vitosha is one of the tourists symbols of Sofia and the closest site for hiking, alpinism and skiing. Convenient bus lines and rope ways render the mountain easily accessible. Vitosha has the outlines of an enormous...
in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
. Rising to 2290 m, the peak is the fourth highest mountain summit in the country after Musala
Musala
Musala is the highest peak in Bulgaria and the entire Balkan Peninsula, standing at 2,925 m . The summit of the Rila mountain in southwestern Bulgaria, Musala is the highest peak between the Alps and the Caucasus and the highest in Eastern Europe bar the Caucasus.Between 1949–1962 the peak was...
(2925 m, Rila Mountain
Rila
Rila is a mountain range in southwestern Bulgaria and the highest mountain range of Bulgaria and the Balkans, with its highest peak being Musala at 2,925 m...
), Vihren
Vihren
Vihren is the highest peak of Bulgaria's Pirin Mountains. Reaching 2914 m, it is Bulgaria's second and the Balkans' third highest, after Musala and Mount Olympus. The peak is located in Pirin's northern parts. The easiest route is from the Vihren chalet , reaching the summit from the south...
(2914 m, Pirin Mountain
Pirin
The Pirin Mountains are a mountain range in southwestern Bulgaria, with Vihren the highest peak, situated at . The range extends about 40 km northwest-southeast, and about 25 km wide. Most of the range is protected in the Pirin National Park...
), and Botev Vrah
Botev Peak
Botev Peak is, at 2,376 m above sea level, the highest peak of the Balkan Mountains. It is located close to the geographic centre of Bulgaria, and is part of the Central Balkan National Park....
(2376 m, Balkan Range
Balkan Mountains
The Balkan mountain range is a mountain range in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula. The Balkan range runs 560 km from the Vrashka Chuka Peak on the border between Bulgaria and eastern Serbia eastward through central Bulgaria to Cape Emine on the Black Sea...
).
Cherni Vrah is bounded to the northwest by Torfeno Branishte
Torfeno Branishte
Torfeno Branishte is a nature reserve on Vitosha Mountain in Bulgaria, along with the Bistrishko Branishte reserve. The reserve has a surface area of 728.8 ha comprising the parts of Big Plateau and the Kapaklivets Plateau between the peaks of Cherni Vrah , Ushite , and Chernata Skala ,...
(Turf Nature Reserve) which — like the extensive adjacent territory to the south — is a no-go drinking water catchment area
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
. Several major stone rivers
Stone run
A stone run is a conspicuous rock landform, result of the erosion of particular rock varieties caused by myriad freezing-thawing cycles taking place in periglacial conditions during the last Ice Age.The actual formation of stone runs involved no less than five processes: weathering, solifluction,...
are situated in the peak's vicinity, occupying the upper courses of Vladayska and Boyanska River
Boyanska River
The Boyanska reka is a river in western Bulgaria, a tributary to Vladayska River.The river flows from the northern slopes of Cherni Vrah on Vitosha Mountain, crossing Torfeno Branishte Nature Reserve; at the northern foothills of Vitosha the river drops forming the Boyana waterfall and then...
s to the north, and Struma River
Struma
The Struma was a ship chartered to carry Jewish refugees from Axis-allied Romania to British-controlled Palestine during World War II. On February 23, 1942, with its engine inoperable and its refugee passengers aboard, Turkish authorities towed the ship from Istanbul harbor through the Bosphorus...
to the south.
The peak is part of the water divide
Water divide
A drainage divide, water divide, divide or watershed is the line separating neighbouring drainage basins...
between Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
and Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
, its northern slopes draining into Iskar River
Iskar
The Iskar is, with a length of 368 km, the longest river that runs solely in Bulgaria, and a tributary of the Danube.The Iskar is formed by three rivers, the Cherni Iskar, Beli Iskar and Levi Iskar , with the source being accepted to be the Prav Iskar, a tributary of the Cherni Iskar...
, and eventually into Danube River
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
and Black Sea, and the southern slopes draining into Matnitsa River, flowing in turn into Struma River
Struma
The Struma was a ship chartered to carry Jewish refugees from Axis-allied Romania to British-controlled Palestine during World War II. On February 23, 1942, with its engine inoperable and its refugee passengers aboard, Turkish authorities towed the ship from Istanbul harbor through the Bosphorus...
and Aegean Sea
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
.
Cherni Vrah hosts a weather station built in 1935, one year after the mountain became the oldest national park
National park
A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...
on the Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
. The station provides refuge in bad weather (no tourist accommodation though), and has a well supplied cafeteria offering hot meals. A Mountain Rescue Service
Mountain rescue
Mountain rescue refers to search and rescue activities that occur in a mountainous environment, although the term is sometimes also used to apply to search and rescue in other wilderness environments. The difficult and remote nature of the terrain in which mountain rescue often occurs has resulted...
team is based on the peak too. The nearest mountain chalet
Chalet
A chalet , also called Swiss chalet, is a type of building or house, native to the Alpine region, made of wood, with a heavy, gently sloping roof with wide, well-supported eaves set at right angles to the front of the house.-Definition and origin:...
s are Aleko Chalet
Aleko, Vitosha
Aleko is a site on Vitosha Mountain in Bulgaria situated at the northern foothills of Malak Rezen Peak , in the watershed of Yanchevska River draining eastwards towards the village of Bistritsa, Sofia....
situated 3 km to the north-northeast (1810 m, major ski
Ski
A ski is a long, flat device worn on the foot, usually attached through a boot, designed to help the wearer slide smoothly over snow. Originally intended as an aid to travel in snowy regions, they are now mainly used for recreational and sporting purposes...
and snowboard
Snowboard
Snowboards are boards, usually with a width the length of one's foot, with the ability to glide on snow. Snowboards are differentiated from monoskis by the stance of the user...
centre accessible by gondola lift
Gondola lift
A gondola lift is a type of aerial lift, normally called a cable car, which is supported and propelled by cables from above. It consists of a loop of steel cable that is strung between two stations, sometimes over intermediate supporting towers. The cable is driven by a bullwheel in a terminal,...
from Simeonovo, Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
), and Kumata Chalet (1725 m) situated 5.5 km to the northwest. Ski paths link Cherni Vrah to Aleko and Kumata areas in winter, and a ski run on the northern slope of the peak itself is served by a 600-m surface lift
Surface lift
A surface lift is a type of cable transportation system used to transport skiers and snowboarders where riders remain on the ground as they are pulled uphill.Types of surface lifts include the Poma lift, J-bar, T-bar, rope tow, and magic carpet....
.
Balkan Mountains
The Balkan mountain range is a mountain range in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula. The Balkan range runs 560 km from the Vrashka Chuka Peak on the border between Bulgaria and eastern Serbia eastward through central Bulgaria to Cape Emine on the Black Sea...
(10.3 m/s).
The legend holds it that Cherni Vrah was climbed as early as 181 B.C. by King Philip V of Macedon
Philip V of Macedon
Philip V was King of Macedon from 221 BC to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of Rome. Philip was attractive and charismatic as a young man...
. Nowadays, the easiest access to the peak is by a 1.4-km track from the upper station of Romanski chair lift situated on Malak Rezen
Malak Rezen
Malak Rezen is a peak rising to 2,191 m in northeastern Vitosha Mountain in Bulgaria. The peak is situated 1.5 km northeast of the summit Cherni Vrah, and 1.3 km north by east of Golyam Rezen Peak, surmounting Stenata ski run and Aleko site to the north.Malak Rezen is accessible...
Peak (2191 m).
Cherni Vrah has a special place in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
n tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
. Thanks to its proximity to Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
the peak is by far the most visited mountain summit in the country, attracting tens of thousands of visitors annually. The first group of tourists to climb the peak involved 300 people, among them the contemporary doyen of Bulgarian literature
Bulgarian literature
Bulgarian literature is literature written by Bulgarians or residents of Bulgaria, or written in the Bulgarian language; usually the latter is the defining feature...
Ivan Vazov
Ivan Vazov
Ivan Minchov Vazov was a Bulgarian poet, novelist and playwright, often referred to as "the Patriarch of Bulgarian literature". He was born in Sopot, a town in the Rose Valley of Bulgaria ....
, and was led by another famous Bulgarian writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, Aleko Konstantinov
Aleko Konstantinov
Aleko Konstantinov was a Bulgarian writer, best known for his character Bay Ganyo, one of the most popular characters in Bulgarian fiction....
. The event took place on August 27, 1895, and annual tourist rallies are held on Cherni Vrah on that date considered the birthday of Bulgarian tourist movement.
The etymology
Etymology
Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during...
of the name Cherni Vrah (Black Peak) is uncertain. Popularly, it is attributed to the black colour of the conspicuous rock formations dominating the peak's tip. Another belief holds it that the name derived from the darker appearance the peak presumably had in the past, when the Subalpine
Subalpine
The subalpine zone is the biotic zone immediately below tree line around the world. Species that occur in this zone depend on the location of the zone on the Earth, for example, Snow Gum in Australia, or Subalpine Larch, Mountain Hemlock and Subalpine Fir in western North America.Trees in the...
zone of Vitosha
Vitosha
Vitosha is a mountain massif, on the outskirts of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. Vitosha is one of the tourists symbols of Sofia and the closest site for hiking, alpinism and skiing. Convenient bus lines and rope ways render the mountain easily accessible. Vitosha has the outlines of an enormous...
used to be overgrown by mountain pine
Mountain Pine
Pinus mugo, the Mountain Pine or Mugo Pine, is a high-altitude European pine, found in the Pyrenees, Alps, Erzgebirge, Carpathians, northern Apennines and Balkan Peninsula mountains from 1,000 m to 2,200 m, occasionally as low as 200 m in the north of the range in Germany and Poland, and as high...
(Pinus mugo) that was burnt in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
to expand sheep pasture
Pasture
Pasture is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep or swine. The vegetation of tended pasture, forage, consists mainly of grasses, with an interspersion of legumes and other forbs...
s. Nowadays only few isolated mountain pine
Mountain Pine
Pinus mugo, the Mountain Pine or Mugo Pine, is a high-altitude European pine, found in the Pyrenees, Alps, Erzgebirge, Carpathians, northern Apennines and Balkan Peninsula mountains from 1,000 m to 2,200 m, occasionally as low as 200 m in the north of the range in Germany and Poland, and as high...
communities have survived in the vicinity of Cherni Vrah, and their process of expansion and recovery is very slow.
See also
- Torfeno BranishteTorfeno BranishteTorfeno Branishte is a nature reserve on Vitosha Mountain in Bulgaria, along with the Bistrishko Branishte reserve. The reserve has a surface area of 728.8 ha comprising the parts of Big Plateau and the Kapaklivets Plateau between the peaks of Cherni Vrah , Ushite , and Chernata Skala ,...
- VitoshaVitoshaVitosha is a mountain massif, on the outskirts of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. Vitosha is one of the tourists symbols of Sofia and the closest site for hiking, alpinism and skiing. Convenient bus lines and rope ways render the mountain easily accessible. Vitosha has the outlines of an enormous...
- Stone riversStone runA stone run is a conspicuous rock landform, result of the erosion of particular rock varieties caused by myriad freezing-thawing cycles taking place in periglacial conditions during the last Ice Age.The actual formation of stone runs involved no less than five processes: weathering, solifluction,...
- Aleko KonstantinovAleko KonstantinovAleko Konstantinov was a Bulgarian writer, best known for his character Bay Ganyo, one of the most popular characters in Bulgarian fiction....