Vihren ( Bulgarian : Вихрен [ˈvixrɛn] ) is the highest peak of Bulgaria 's Pirin Mountains . Reaching 2,914 metres (9,560 ft), it is Bulgaria's second and the Balkans ' third highest, after Musala and Mount Olympus . Although Vihren is deprived of lakes and streams due to the karst topography, a number of Pirin's lakes are located around the peak, as is Europe's southernmost glacial mass, the Snezhnika glacieret. Until 1942 Vihren was known as Eltepe (peak of storms); it was also called Buren (stormy) and Malnienosets (lightning-bringer). The UNESCO World Heritage Site Pirin National Park was originally known as the Vihren National Park . Vihren is included in the 100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria under No. 2.
15-410: Vihren is situated in the northern subdivision of Pirin on the mountain's main ridge between the summits of Kutelo (2,908 m) to the north-west and Hvoynati Vrah (2,635 m) to the south-east. It is connected with these two peaks via the saddles of Premkata (2,610 m) to the north and Kabata (2,535 m) to the south. The summit is located between the valleys of the rivers Vlahina reka of
30-517: Is a name given to a knife-edge ridge in the Pirin Mountains in Bulgaria , at an elevation of approximately 2,810 metres, between the peaks Banski Suhodol (2,884 meters) and Kutelo (2,908 metres). There are steep slopes on either side: the northwestern side is almost vertical and 300–400 metres deep, while the southwestern side is less steep (approximately 30 degrees) but deeper (800 metres). There
45-432: Is a steel cable stretched along the top of the ridge to help hikers across. It is said that some less experienced hikers go through Koncheto by saddling the ridge edge like a horse and slowly advancing, hence its name. It is not recommended for hikers with acrophobia . 41°46′56″N 23°23′35″E / 41.782152°N 23.393113°E / 41.782152; 23.393113 This Bulgaria location article
60-594: Is named after Vihren. Kutelo Kutelo ( Bulgarian : Кутело [ˈkutɛɫo] ) is a summit in the Pirin mountain range, southwestern Bulgaria . With a height of 2,908 m it is the second highest peak in Pirin after Vihren (2,914 m), and the third one in Bulgaria, behind Musala (2,925 m) in Rila and Vihren. Kutelo is a double peak with a small saddle between
75-452: Is situated to the south and leads to Vihren while to the north is the narrow karst edge Koncheto which links Kutelo to the summit of Banski Suhodol . There are no marked tracks to the summit of Kutelo, but on the slanting western slope among the rocks is nestled the track between the Vihren refuge and Yavorov refuge . This track also leads along Koncheto. In the homonymous waterless cirque to
90-517: The Struma drainage to the west and Banderitsa of the Mesta drainage to the east. Seen from the town of Bansko , situated at the foothills of Pirin to the north-east of Vihren, the peak looks like a truncated pyramid, and from the south — like а tetrahedral pyramid. The summit is built up marbles and has a karst topography which determines the lack of streams and lakes around Vihren. The closest lakes are
105-545: The Vlahini Lakes to the south-west. To the north are situated the deep and waterless cirques Golemiya Kazan and Malkiya Kazan, known as the Kazanite (the cauldrons). Below the 450 m-high walls of Vihren facing Golemiya Kazan there is a small glacier called Snezhnika , which is Europe's southernmost glacial mass. Its size in summer is 80x90 m. The average annual minimal temperature varies between –25° and –21°С, while
120-506: The Kabata saddle; this route takes three to four hours in summer and is steep, reaching denivelation of almost 1,000 m in а short time. Other routes include those from the Banderitsa refuge (1,810 m) or across the knife-edge crest Koncheto from the north. From the Kazanite cirques in the north there is a 400 m-high steep wall which has several tracks from alpine climbing. This wall
135-632: The Museum of Nikola Vaptsarov in Bansko and in Vihren refuge. The summit is part of the initiative of the Bulgarian Tourist Union "Conqueror of the Top Ten Mountain Peaks" to promote mountaineering. Vihren was first climbed in winter on 9 January 1925 by T.Atanasov, D.Stoykov, V.Baynov and N.Bozhinov. The classical route to climb the peak is from the Vihren refuge (1,950 m) to the south via
150-579: The marble bedrock forms phytocenosis dominated by Sesleria korabensis , and alpine and sub-alpine closed calcareous grasslands on very rocky bedrock. With less abundance is the relict plant Carex rupestris ; some plant communities have an abundance of Carex kitaibeliana and Sesleria coerulans . There are also Alyssum cuneifolium , Bellardiochloa variegata , Bromus lacmonicus , Cerastium lanatum , Koeleria eriostachya , Onobrychis pindicola , Scutellaria alpina , Sesleria coerulans , etc. Rare or endemic herbaceous plants that grow on
165-450: The maximal temperatures are between 15° and 23°С. The mean annual precipitation is 1150 mm; the snow cover reaches depth of 3 m. There is a meteorological station at 1,950 m. The wildlife is alpine. The flora of Vihren's slopes consists of herbaceous plants and lichens. Vihren is home to a number of habitats, including alpine and sub-alpine open calcareous grasslands that at inclination of 30–45° at altitude over 2,500 m on
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#1732875808887180-500: The north-east there are snow-drifts all the year. To the south-east is the cirque Golemiya Kazan with Europe's southernmost glacier , Snezhnika . Pirin's second glacierlet, Banski Suhodol Glacier , is situated below the northern face of Kutelo. Kutelo is home to chamois and on its slopes grow edelweiss ( Leontopodium nivale ) and a number of other rare herbaceous plants. Koncheto Koncheto ( Bulgarian : Кончето [ˈkɔnt͡ʃɛto] , lit. ' foal ' )
195-402: The slopes of Vihren are edelweiss ( Leontopodium alpinum ), Pirin poppy ( Papaver degenii ), Oxytropis urumovii , Alyssum pirinicum , Timmia norvegica , Thymus perinicus , etc. The fauna includes various bird species, small mammals and abundant populations of chamois . Vihren is among the 100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria under No. 2 and stamps to verify the visit can be found in
210-412: The two parts, the lower being only one meter shorter than the higher one, at 2,907 m. Seen from the town of Bansko , it appears higher than Vihren. Like Vihren, which towers to the south, Kutelo is built up of marble but its slopes though sheer are not so rocky and it is not very difficult to climb. On the north-eastern slopes there are alpine climbing tracks of category II "b". The Premkata saddle
225-518: Was first climbed in 1934 by the German alpinists W.Mosel and F.Auer; in winter it was first ascended in 1949 by Al.Belkovski and Vl.Lobodin. From the top there is a view to almost the whole of northern Pirin, as well as to the mountain ranges of Rila , Rhodope , Maleshevo , Ograzhden , Belasica and Slavyanka . Vihren Peak on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands , Antarctica
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