For almost four hours, I walked through the night alone. I had not slept the night before, and the sounds in the forest made me very aware of everything around me. It became the most mentally demanding hike I had done up to that point.
Gradually, the dark gave way to snow and the first light of sunrise. There was mist lower down the mountain, with ridges and clouds opening up above it. Reaching Botev, at 2,376 metres, felt calming after the tension of those early hours.
I also made short detours to Paradjika, 2,209 metres, and Ushite, 2,115 metres. The outing came to around thirty kilometres and roughly 2,100 metres of elevation gain. I was tired, and there were stretches when managing my energy took most of my attention.
For a solo hike, this one had a lot of people behind it. Melani and Qvor spent nearly eight hours driving that day to get me to the start and back. Melani also made the logo for the channel. Svetlio gave me the backpack and trekking poles that helped so much out there.
Then Ivo, my childhood friend, helped finish the video. My old computer could handle the editing but did not have enough memory for the final render, so he rendered it for me.
When I think about this day, I remember the night forest and the snow under the morning sky. I also remember how many friends helped me bring it home. I am very grateful for that.
