'The Hike' - Chapter Sixteen - Under the Million Stars

Still Day 10:

I got to the fountain, where I recharged my water supplies and rolled myself a cigarette. I didn’t see anyone around, so I powdered my nose for additional energy, and after sitting for a while, smoking a couple of cigarettes, I took my bag from the stone bench and went on my way. The road continued to be perfect—slight elevation, beautiful scenery, and me alone to enjoy it.

Soon after, I saw the hut parallel to my position and started making a left turn. To get there, I had to make this turn, which turned out to be the scariest thing I did that day. I still had an hour, maybe more, to reach safety, and although I saw the building, the day was slipping away. During this hour, there were places where the path became so dangerous that my head started spinning. Given how heavy my bag was, one unfortunate step could mean I’d experience flying for a couple of seconds before it ended in my unfortunate death. Man, you just wake up and feel alive when your life is in that kind of danger. You have to be on, or you’re going down.

No matter the ongoing challenges to get to the hut, the mesmerizing beauty of this place didn’t escape me. I saw why Echo is so popular, and soon I’d be cursing it for it. As I was walking, I saw on the right what seemed like the Arch of Freedom, a familiar place I was going to visit tomorrow, and on the left, a crowd in front of the hut. Here I had two choices: smush into the forest and continue walking toward safety or climb The Fist peak and die. I was not ready for fisting or dying, so I got past the scary part, slowly but steadily, and reached the forest. Just knowing there were trees I could grab if I went flying made me exhale and relax for a second. My ass was clenching so hard I almost created a star. No fists of any kind today, ma’am.

I didn’t see any snakes here—it was just me. Soon, I emerged from the second enchanted forest of the day and saw the Chapel of the Holy Trinity. A small building, one room for praying, I guess. These Christians are everywhere—you can’t escape them. I went through a lot of religions when I was young, looking to find myself in any of them, and I got so lost I became a non-believer. I only pray when I’m on a plane—there, slight turbulence transforms me into an acolyte. God, I hate flying. That’s why, in the last hour, I was wide awake, trying to walk in a straight line.

Where did this fear of heights come from? I watched a documentary that suggested this and the fear of loud sounds might be the first fears we ever experience. Can you imagine the trauma we endure from the moment we’re born until we’re able to cope with it long enough to die? Maybe that’s why babies don’t remember much—because of the trauma inflicted on them. Meanwhile, my strongest memories are precisely those moments when my life was in danger—oh, the traumas. Or were they just emotionally charged because of the focus they demanded? 

After the chapel, the hut appeared, and it turned out there were too many people—inside and out. I mean, full. I hadn’t seen so many people throughout this entire journey, so it was a bit shocking to see them here. This building is not easily accessible, and I don’t think you can even take a shower here due to water shortages. In fact, almost every hut I visited had a manager who insisted on water conservation.

I found the hut manager, who promised me my booked bed and told me to find one. I love this coordination—if you find a bed, sit on it until morning. I found one on the second floor, left my bag there, and went to drink a beer and watch the sunset. I took my blanket, my phone, my music, my cigarettes, and the ever-shrinking ball of fun with me. I found an incredible place among the crowd—it felt like we were waiting for a concert to start at any moment. I hate crowds. But the hut is so beautifully placed that the sunset here actually resembled a concert. I plugged in my headphones and disappeared from the crowd’s sight.

Night 10:

After a walk like this, sitting outside the hut and watching the stars and the moon appear as the sunlight faded and the darkness surrounded them felt like a privilege. Yeah, there were a couple of moments when I almost lost my life. But although I didn’t like the crowd of people, there was safety in numbers, and because of that, I believe this was my first truly enjoyable night, where nothing really bothered my existence as a living organism. My nerves, of course, were bothered, but underneath it all, I felt safe.

The moon and stars grew brighter as the last orange light shrank into oblivion. The darkness expanded, and more and more stars appeared in the sky. There is the sky in the city, and then there is the sky in the mountains, where darkness plays unbothered, and more stars become visible to our eyes.

Some years ago, a friend of mine introduced me to a Facebook group of people around Bulgaria who were into legends, myths, and the occult. We quickly became interested in visiting one of the villages in Bulgaria famous for having Samodivi. A Samodiva is a supernatural creature of ethereal beauty from Slavic folklore, dancing and singing under the moonlight with others of its kind. They are represented as beautiful women with long, L’Oréal-ad hair, but to be honest, the whole myth sounds very gay, so I was hoping to find a Samodiv somewhere.

We gathered in Montana. With two cars, eight people went camping in Shishentsi, a village famous for its wood nymphs. We had a great time. After the whole journey, I realized that maybe the myth of Samodivi is actually a hoax—and the joke was that we became Samodivi. With music, fire, and dancing, we transformed into what we were searching for.

After we got tired of waiting for the Samodivi, we stepped away from the fire. Once our eyes adjusted to the dark, as we lay under the million stars, the sky just turned blue. That was when I realized the limitation of the city sky and how blind we are. I had never seen so many stars—enough to brighten up the sky in light blue. The vision mesmerized us, and we lay in the long green grass for hours, watching this spell being cast over and over until we snapped out of it. Even though I have seen the sky many times after, around the world and in the wild, I have never seen such beauty again. 

Here, the sunset was over, along with my two beers and my willingness to stay in the cold. I was ready for the bed I had booked, and when I got up, I realized the crowd of people was gone. They were all in their beds—some sleeping, others ready to. Just like me. This day had been easy and full of enjoyment, and there was no more perfect ending than falling asleep in a soft bed under warm sheets.

As I stepped into the hut and got to the second floor, I entered my room—and there was someone in my bed. The people acted like I didn’t exist, and I even felt guilty for making any noise. So I took my gigantic bag as quietly as I could and went to the kitchen, where I slept horribly on a wooden bench under my sleeping bag, which kept sliding off enough to wake me up every time it did. I cursed this hut, the owner, and the people on the second floor—and fell asleep again, until dawn.

Iliya Badev

Access all chapters of 'The Hike' by clicking here!

#TheHikeBook