Vihren from Vihren hut
- Range
- Pirin
- High point
- 2914 m
- Time
- 5–6 h return
- Season
- Jul–Sep
Profile is a rough sketch from hut and summit heights, not survey data.
Vihren is the highest peak in Pirin and the second highest in Bulgaria. It is a marble mountain, pale and dry, and it looks nothing like granite Rila an hour and a half to the north. The road from Bansko ends at Vihren hut at about 1,950 m, which leaves almost a vertical kilometre to climb in a short distance.
The normal route goes up the southern side via the Kabata saddle. It is steep and loose in the upper third but never technical. There is no water after the hut, so carry everything you need; marble does not hold streams.
From the summit the knife edge of Koncheto is visible to the north, running toward Kutelo. That traverse is a separate and much more serious outing. Do not improvise it as an extension.