A short bike route in the outskirts of Varna between Aladzha Monastery and Vinitsa, including two nice trails and a little panoramic ride on the plateau above the coast. The route also passes through open areas, so during summer heat it is advisable to choose the cooler hours of the day. Otherwise, riding is possible in all seasons, but in winter or after a little more rain, the country road on the plateau can be muddy and more difficult to cross.
The difference between the two routes with similar names is that the first ascent is along a nice, shady forest path, which is quite pleasant to ride except for a short but quite steep section where we have to push. It is true that using this trail, the descents are one less, but the panoramic views are more, because we ride for a while on the plateau above Varna, where we enjoy nice views of the sea capital and the coast.
Starting point: The fountain at the parking lot below Aladzha Monastery in Golden Sands National Park; https://goo.gl/maps/WuKeeFoaJdjY6ZJo7
Length: 9.9 km
Ascent: 230 m
Level of technical difficulty: medium (R1, R2, T1, T2, T3)
Physical activity factor: low (PAF=3)
Duration: 1-2 hours (depending on the speed, breaks, etc.)
Water: 1 l
Food: not required
Terrain:
- asphalt road –2.4 km
- country roads –4.1 km
- paths – 3.4 km
Description:
From the fountain (point 01) we go up along the asphalt road in the direction of Varna (southwest) and ride about 200-300 m to point 02, where we deviate to the right on a wide path with blue and yellow tourist markings. Mostly, the trail is smooth and with a slight to moderate slope, we are skipping forks in point 03 and point 04, but before coming out on the plateau, the slope becomes steep and you have to push a little. At point 05 (0.9 km) we go out on the plateau and join a country road to the south, which continues along the tourist markings. We follow only this main road straight, and in some places panoramic views of the sea and parts of the city are revealed. At several points the road forks or has intersections: in point 06 we take to the left, along a panoramic path; in point 07 we go on straight, in point 08 we keep to the right; in points 09 and 10 we follow the main road, which is the left one; in point 11 we also continue on the left road, which is actually better. In point 12 (3.5 km) we exit on an asphalt road and following it to the right we enter villa zone "The vines".
In point 13 (3.9 km) there is a very important fork! We turn left on a country road to the left upwards past several houses. After 200 m the road ends and turns into a path (point 14). Local children even use this path for making bicycle jumps on it. In about hundred meters (point 15) we turn sharply on the path to the left. At the beginning it is steeper, but after a while the slope decreases. There are a lot of forks – we continue to keep to the left. The largest fork is in point 16 (4.6 km). In general, the trail is not very difficult, but includes some technical stony sections. After halfway, the trail turns into a speed furrow, but not very wide, so be careful - in some places there may be stones.
At the end of the trail (p.17, 5.1 km) we go out on the road from Vinitsa to Aladzha Monastery and Golden Sands. We take it to the left and start another climb. In point 18 the road makes a sharp turn of 180 degrees - this place is called the "rubber turn" because of the frequent whistling / sliding of car tires. If you look to the left in the forest, you will see an interesting monument, which is like a small copy of the Monument of Freedom (Shipka). We pass two forks in point 09 and point 20 and we reach point 21 (6.7 km), where a narrow path in the forest deviates to the right - we take it. The path leads us to the periphery of the next villa zone (point 22), where another trail to the left takes us to country road (point 23) and we descend slightly on it in the clearing for the electric power line.
After a while we reach another important crossroads - in point 24 (8.1 km). Here the main path through Golden Sands National Park with red markings comes from the right and continues slightly to the left through the forest. Further we drive only on this path, as in p.25 and p.26 we pass deviations to the left or right, and in p.27 we pass Kovshak drinking fountain, which is a popular place for picnics. After passing the fountain we continue only straight on a country road (we miss more deviating paths in points 28 and 29) and reach the road below Aladzha Monastery (point 30) – moving to the left and up the asphalt road after 300 m we reach the parking lot under the monastery.
