'The Hike' - Chapter Seven - 12.08.2020
Chapter 7:
Day 7:
Exactly four years ago today, I started this adventure with almost nothing. I had the worst cheap shoes, a gigantic backpack that was killing me, a lot of problems that I brought with me, and even more that I was about to collect along the way. Even though if someone took one look at me, they would have said I was not ready for what I was about to experience, I went for it hard. There I was, alone, ready to take off to another hut.
I woke up early, eager to move. Annoyed from the day I took off, I found the strength in my disappointment to push forward. I don’t remember feeling pain, but I’m sure there was a substantial amount of it. I prepared the bag the previous day, which is not a good thing for a person who always forgets stuff and has to go through everything a couple of times to find it. This gigantic pile of crap on my back, containing a fat winter blanket, a tent, some dishes, food, water, sandals, clothes, etc., was not getting lighter for some reason. Either I was adding more to the pile of crap, or there was nothing more that could be done to lighten my burden. This was my cross to bear, and the funny thing is that during the journey, I used everything a lot. "If I take it, I use it" is not a motto you should follow if you don’t want to end up with at least 20kg on your back. Every time I go on an adventure, I am reminded of how much I took, and even though I used it, I could have had a much easier time if I had only followed the guidance of the videos I watched on how much baggage you actually need. Especially the 'speed' that I was carrying from Sofia—that was a big amount of crap right there.To be honest, I didn’t learn my lesson, because the next year my partner and I went from Hut 'Chavdar' to Hut 'Dobrila', dragging our whole lives with us again. This year, we went completely unprepared to Scotland, but I guess there’s no right preparation for that place.
I said goodbye to Ivo, the Hut keeper. He wished me luck on my way and asked me to write to update him on my progress. I pressed play on the new hymn that was giving me the push and went for it. I felt the real struggle in the first forty minutes. From Hut 'Chavdar', there is a very nice elevation that goes up and up until you reach Peak 'Baba'. Since this adventure, I’ve walked this road so many times, but the first was the most memorable and the hardest, which is to be expected after losing my inertia with a day of doing nothing but drinking. I walked a lot, and I found myself afraid too quickly. The minute I lost sight of the hut behind the trees and I was alone, I turned off the headphones and the music, realizing that I was again all ears for the bear nearby. It didn’t help that Ivo showed me a video of a bear and lied that it was from this region. A bear or a storm were the worst fears throughout the whole path that I was terrified of embarking on. Little did I know, I was about to face one of those fears sooner than I thought.
I listened for the bear, but she never came. Pushing through gravity to get to the top of the mountain was hard, but eventually, I came out of the forest. The forest around the hut is different in every direction. The beautiful Bulgarian mountains change their appearance not only with the seasons but with every ten minutes of walking. You can observe a lot of different views everywhere, and none of them are disappointing. During the time I lived in the hut, I was able to go through a lot of the places—hidden gems, not bothered by humans for a long time. Not pressed by time or fear, I was able to enjoy every mesmerizing sight around it. Now, I was feeling uneasiness, like something was about to happen. I came across a monument to soldiers who died here from the harsh conditions of the winter during their path to fight the Ottoman Empire. 841 soldiers, Bulgarians and Russians, found their death in 1877 in this mountain, and I’m sure they were much more equipped and stronger than me. I didn’t spend much time thinking of death. Death is just one moment of our cycle—should we spend so much time thinking about the inevitable? It’s hard to look away when you stare at the abyss. Sometimes I wish I was born in a culture that celebrates the upcoming doom, but the Bulgarians have a fear of it. People from my country actively try to avoid the subject, like you can catch death if you speak about it. I saw from afar Peak 'Baba', which reminded me of my grandmother who passed away two weeks ago. Now it felt like years had passed, but still, the memory of her surfaced and I felt a painful reminder of what happened to her. It’s hard to find beauty in death, but after all, our end is an affirmation of life itself, right?
Finally, I was next to the peak and the road started to level out. I saw some horses and got a sneak peek of what I was about to go through. The views from the top of the mountain were remarkable. Finally, I had some time to relax from the ongoing fear of bears that was consuming my inner peace. To be honest, that fear, no matter the amount, never went away, which is why I appreciated the appearance of people here and there. I was coming closer to Hut 'Kashana', which is about 5 hours from Hut 'Chavdar' if you are slow like me. Although I love animals, throughout the journey, I had numerous problems with many of them—horses, cows, dogs, bulls. I believe they felt my speedy heartbeat and assumed I was a threat, which I was, but only to myself. But after I encountered a herd of cows, drinking water and chilling by their muddy pool, looking at me aggressively, reminding me of the bullies I had to endure in high school, I’d had enough. Since I was attacked by a horse at the beginning of the journey and was about to be attacked by these damn cows, everything was back on the menu. Nothing is worse than a cornered animal, and I was in the corner, not having a clear path to the hut. They were about to feel my wrath, but before I could unleash it, I found a way through them, minding the whole time an attack from all sides. You can’t trust these Bulgarian cows—never turn your back on crazy. I was watching them, and they were watching me. Neither of us turned back until I reached the forest and entered it. I felt safer. These cows were feeding on the fear that the horse attack created, along with the fear of the bear. They ate fear for breakfast, but luckily they decided they weren’t spilling blood today. After this encounter, the path was easy—the hut was close and the cows were getting far. As soon as I approached the hut, another group of animals that I usually love attacked: dogs. There were around seven of them, positioned on the path to the hut. I was on the car road, 50 meters away from safety, and in front of me was this pack of dogs, one of which was huge—really gigantic. I took out my deodorant and lighter and started defending myself. Whenever they were within one or two meters of me, I would light the fire, and the whole region smelled like Dove. They never came close enough to get burned, but if they had the chance, they were going to eat me. Apparently, those dogs belonged to the previous hut keeper, who is a mad drunk, angry that he was fired from his job because one day he burned down half of the hut due to his drinking. Not able to deal with this heartbreak, he moved across the hut and took this pack of dogs to terrorize the people who wanted to take shelter there. To be honest, I was impressed. As a petty person myself, I’d love to congratulate him on his masterful plan, but as a human that needed a rest, I hated his ass. Somehow, Dove worked, and they decided that I could go. You have to stand your ground with these dogs and show them your cosmetics if you want to survive. I came into the hut...
Iliya Bade
#TheHikeBook
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