The secrets of Strandja Mountain (Strandzha)

Bnr.bg, Roumyana Panayotova, Margarita Dikanarova

Strandja Mountain, lying in the southeastern-most corner of Bulgaria is as yet little known both to Bulgarian and foreign tourists.
The mountain begins to rise literally at the seashore to rise ever so slowly to the west. The international motorway from Burgass runs into the mountain folds at Tsarevo, to proceed to Malko Tarnovo and then head on for Istanbul in Turkey.
Leaving the sea behind the road meanders through sun-dappled woodlands, untouched by human hand. Strandja Mountain is a treasure trove of rare plant species that disappeared in continental Europe millions of years ago. Nowadays a major slice of the mountain has been placed under legal protection as a Nature Park. The unusual climate in the region combines Black Sea and Mediterranean influence with crystal clear mountain air.
A great number of tourist routes, leading to local outstanding local sites, have been set up.
“There are 8 -10 day eco-tourism packages featuring mountain trekking, mountain biking and cultural and rural routes. Visitors to the Southern Black Sea can benefit from day trips, that will take them on a date with the ethnography, history, archeology and traditional architecture in the Strandja Mountain region. In the villages of Brushlian, Brodilovo, Bulgari and Kosti there’s overnight accommodation in very old wooden houses. Local women are always willing to promote local singing, dancing and cooking traditions”, says Maria Patronova, tourism expert with the Strandja National park.
The town of Malko Tarnovo and its environs can be of great interest to people keen on history. The town prides a museum complex of traditional Strandja houses. Two of them house archeological artifacts unearthed in the region and dated to Thracian and Roman times. Another house is a natural history museum. Nearby are the localities of Mishkova Niva and Propada, where archeologists have uncovered Thracian and Roman sanctuaries, necropolises and fortress fragments. Hundreds of ancient and medieval monuments are spread out across the Strandja Mountain. Trekking alongside the Veleka and Resovo Rivers, which cross the mountain to flow into the Black Sea, can access some of them. Numerous Christian chapels lie hidden to the eye in the age-old forests. The villages of Bulgari and Kosti are genuine reserves of the fire-dancing tradition in Bulgaria.
From the Strandja woodlands we head back to the littoral again. A girdle of enchanting coves and creeks border the mouths of the Veleka and Resovska Rivers. The environs are a protected area, home to unique plants, wild animals, sand dunes and picturesque scenery. A most popular tour locally bears the poetic name of "A Lily in the sands". Via Pointica is the overland route whereby thousands of birds, coming from all European corners to converge on the Strandja Mountain, before they head south for the wintering period.
Summer lingers into a mild, Indian- summer autumn and then into a snow-bound winter. For mountain lovers every season in Strandja has its unique beauty and flavour.