bulgaria 2017

[AndyCook]

Interesting trip, nice trails and no one around and these freaky abandoned villages

Same up here where I am in NE Scotland.
I often go for hike or bike rides, only 25mins drive from where I live on the Moors and there are abandoned farms and shooting lodges
Newspapers and phone books I find in them show dates of 1960-1970, and sometimes 1990s
Old farmer dies and kids have moved to city etc and not interested in taking on the remote farm

 

[Scott]

Looks like a great trip with many interesting trails and places. Good to see the old Disco getting a good work out.

 

[ratrace]

oh don't take me wrong we get lost all the time but still seem to find he's way to the point he whats to be at. Lost count how many dead ends we find but that's down to the trails but for me doing 400 miles off road in 8 days is somethink i will never see in the uk.
I was paying Chris 200 lev a day and that inc breakdown labour (i still pay for parts) he drove his own vehicle and help me a lot. it work out about £95 per day of off roading but was always out from 8-9 am to 5-7pm at night but u can decide if you would like to finish early.
hotel was a about £20 per night per room and my room had 2 singles and a double bed (family room) took food for the day as i am not a breakfest man. dinner at a restaurant, 2 course meal a beer about £8-14
but the best bit the landrover is always avail and look after by Chris and it cost me a £1 per day to put it undercover or 50p per day out in the weather
i now have access to Romania which chris likes a lot, Greece,Turkey and Macedonia as well

 

[ratrace]

Chris will take anyone out who has a 4x4 and can handle offroading, you can do easy stuff right the way up to hard stuff which i like to do. You decide what you and make a deal with him.
but will be seeing chris in May for another week of hard blood work and trying to work out a deal for a 3-4 country trip. My idea is a week greece with a group of jeep guys who are traveling from the uk (if they go), then straight into turkey for a week then back to bulgaria for a few days(i will need a good drink by then) to check the vehicles, then off to Romania for a week of wild camping with only one night in a hotel, i then head back to bulgaria.
But anyone can join the trip at any point (so long as you pay chris his day rate) and leave the trip at any point.
the only bit i dont know about is greece as i have no idea if they have a guide or not and will i have to pay extra for there guide as well, but will know later in 2018. So Greece might not happen we will see

 

[ratrace]

sorry not done day 6 but work got in the way and so did this which i back into

damage to the truck

 

[ratrace]

day 6

the snow in the distance we will visit the next but will it still be there in this 20 deg heat, i dont think so

we do like to make our own trails

chainsaw time and today we will be very busy with it

more air out of wheels we just could not get up this easy slope

not that easy it took over an hour

more mud

well it did look easy

put the wire and rope back on

lost the trail again so we will look around and see if we can pick up another one

another empty village

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154693389366116

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154693418451116

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154693400766116

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2056184754395590

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2056316547715744

little trip down a hillside and again no trail to follow

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2056355647711834

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2057061804307885

might be the last person who pass this way

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2057205264293539

 

[clivehorridge]

Oops!

I saw this today Mike, and thought of you...

Not good pics, but he was leaving the car park and I was fumbling with the phone camera...

They don’t do things by halves here in Montreal, a Peterbuilt waste disposal truck, it sounded beautiful, and there wasn’t so much as a whisp from the stack...

 

[ratrace]

the area where the black arrows are is the load, and the red arrows is the lift bin with the blade to pack in.
not a lot room to pack rubbish into but still a nice looking motor, would hate to climb in and out of that one all day
the ones we have step out straight on to the kerb

 

[ratrace]

day7
this day was a hard day with all the trees we had to sort out, we try for about 3 hours clearing the road but in the end we had to give because there was just too many of them arcoss the road

1st one of many

2nd one and oh they get bigger

3rd and the biggest one

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058009224213143

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058017127545686

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058023157545083

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154695661841116

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154695665131116

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058023157545083

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058029980877734

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058375964176469

this one had no big stuff but there was a lot of it

until we climb around and saw how much there was

don't ask

after all this we find these in the middle of no where

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2057993257548073

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2057999667547432

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154695658916116

hunters lodge

Chris with his new wife, please note if she say whats down that trail don't find out we got in to some real trouble following her ideas

not sure u can see the pig but its there

oh we found 3" of water blood deep

found the white stuff, not a lot left after another warm day

deer next

another 3" of water

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154695656431116

 

[Chas]

day7
this day was a hard day with all the trees we had to sort out, we try for about 3 hours clearing the road but in the end we had to give because there was just too many of them arcoss the road

1st one of many
View attachment 136472

View attachment 136473

2nd one and oh they get bigger

View attachment 136474


View attachment 136475

3rd and the biggest one

View attachment 136476

View attachment 136477

View attachment 136478

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058009224213143

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058017127545686

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058023157545083

View attachment 136479

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154695661841116

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154695665131116

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058023157545083

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058029980877734

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2058375964176469

View attachment 136480

this one had no big stuff but there was a lot of it

View attachment 136481

until we climb around and saw how much there was



View attachment 136482

View attachment 136483

don't ask

View attachment 136484

View attachment 136485

after all this we find these in the middle of no where

View attachment 136486

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2057993257548073

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2057999667547432

View attachment 136487


View attachment 136488


View attachment 136489

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154695658916116

hunters lodge

View attachment 136490

View attachment 136491

Chris with his new wife, please note if she say whats down that trail don't find out we got in to some following her ideas

View attachment 136492

View attachment 136493

not sure u can see the pig but its there

View attachment 136494

View attachment 136495


oh we found 3" of water blood deep

View attachment 136496

View attachment 136497

found the white stuff, not a lot left after another warm day

View attachment 136498

deer next

View attachment 136499

View attachment 136500

another 3" of water

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154695656431116

View attachment 136501

Some nice pics there Mike, unfortunately some are not showing also most of the videos won't play.

 

[ratrace]

Unavailable
This video can't be embedded.
Watch on Facebook · Learn More

click Watch on Facebook then it will work

its the video file it came of a phone facebook accepts it but this site does not accept 3pg files i think

i have change them to a url link and still the same must be the file ext this site does not like

 

[ratrace]

day 8
a bit less hard work today

i am walking on water

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154697867861116

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154697870131116

What a wonderful play ground we have here in Bulgaria

 

[clivehorridge]

What a wonderful play ground we have here in Bulgaria

Very similar to my area as you know Mike, but somehow, you seem to have more opportunity to explore ...

I must be getting lazy

Great thread, thanks for all the posts and pictures

 

[ratrace]

Look's a great trip Mike and its good to see you back in the game

I would love to drag you out into something like this Clive , i know you feel we have covered enough distance by the time we get to you but when we get offroad its a whole different ballgame . Maybe one day eh

Have just finish a deal with Chris (guide) about a mega trip that inc Romania in 2019