Botev via Raiskoto Praskalo
- Range
- Stara Planina
- High point
- 2376 m
- Time
- 2 days
- Season
- Jun–Sep
Profile is a rough sketch from hut and summit heights, not survey data.
Botev is the highest peak of the Balkan range itself, and the route from the south is the best approach to it. Day one climbs from above Kalofer through beech forest to Rai hut at about 1,430 m, which sits in a meadow directly under Raiskoto Praskalo, the highest waterfall in Bulgaria at roughly 125 m.
Day two takes the Tarzan trail up the rock band beside the falls, steep and cabled in places, and then opens onto the rolling summit grassland. The peak carries a weather station and a large radio tower, so you can see exactly where you are going for the final hour.
Botev has a reputation for fog, and it has earned it: the summit is in cloud for a large part of the year. If the forecast is poor, the waterfall and the hut are a worthwhile trip on their own.