Pirin

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Vihren from the south

Kamenitsa Peak and the lake Tevno ezero

Pirin range as seen from Kalimantsi village

Edelweis in Pirin

The Pirin Mountains (Bulgarian: Пирин) are a mountain range in southwestern Bulgaria, with Vihren (2,914 m high) the highest peak, situated at 41°45′50″N, 23°25′30″E. The range extends about 40 km northwest-southeast, and about 25 km wide. Most of the range is protected in a national park, the Pirin National Park.

Pirin is noted for its rich flora and fauna. Much of the area is forested, with the best conifer woods in Bulgaria, holding important populations of the Balkan endemic species Macedonian Pine, Bosnian Pine and Bulgarian Fir. Animals include the Wolf and the Brown Bear.

The town of Bansko, an important tourism and winter sports centre, is situated on the northeast slopes of the Pirin Mountains. The town of Razlog lies in a valley between Pirin to the south and the Rila Mountains to the north.

[edit] Geography

Pirin is the second highest mountain in Bulgaria after Rila (2,925 m) and the sixth highest in Europe after the Caucasus, the Alps, Sierra Nevada, the Pyrenees, Mount Etna and the aforementioned Rila when each is represented by its highest peak only. It has an area of 2,585 km² and an average height of 1,033 m. Pirin is set in the southwest of the country between the Struma and Mesta Rivers, bordering Rila to the north at the Predel Saddle (1,142 m) and Slavyanka to the south at the Parilska Saddle (1,170 m). The distance between these two points is 60 km from the northwest to the southeast and the maximum width of Pirin is 40 km from the town of Sandanski to the village of Obidim. Other neighbouring mountains include Vlahina, Maleshevo, Osogovo and Ograzhden to the west, as well as the Rhodopes to the east.

Geologically and geographically Pirin is divided into three parts: a north, central and south one, which are however not equal in size and tourist attractivity.

North Pirin is the largest of the subdivisions and the mountain's downright part. It takes up 74% of the whole range's territory, being about 42 km long and ranging from Predel to the north to the Todorova Polyana Saddle (1,883 m) to the south. North Pirin is the most often visited part of the mountain, the only one to have an Alpine appearance, featuring many lakes, resthouses and shelters, and also the one where the highest peak, Vihren, is located. It is further subdivided into several parts due to its size: Mramor Part, North Central Part, South Central Part, Polezhan Part, Kamenitsa Part, Sinanitsa Part and Debeli Rid Part.
Central Pirin extends between the Todorova Polyana Saddle and the Popovi Livadi Saddle. It constitutes the smallest (7%) and shortest part, being only 7 km long. The highest peak is Orelyak (2,099 m), while the other peaks are under 2,000 m and heavily forested, usually deciduous. There are only two resthouses, Popovi Livadi and Malina.
South Pirin is the lowest and most round part, the highest peak being Svesthnik at 1,975 m. It occupies 17% of Pirin and is about 11 km long and wide. Well forested with coniferous and deciduous trees, it is the most rarely visited part of the mountains and thus lacks any resthouses.