ROUTE: TOWN BERKOVITSA – THE OLD “KOM” HUT

The route described represents a pleasant opportunity for a transition with the starting point – “Ivan Vazov” House -Museum in the town of Berkovitsa. The level of difficulty is high. The length of the route is about 43 km with a maximum displacement of 1596 m.

The old hut Kom is located in the picturesque Berkovski Balkan in the area of Pokoya at 1,620 meters above sea level. There is an asphalt road to the new Kom hut, after which another 850 m asphalt uphill to the old “Kom” hut. It is a massive two-storey building with a capacity of 22 beds. The building is water-supplied, electrified and heated by a steam installation. Aftre a major repairs the hut offers two apartments with own bathroom, two four-bed rooms and one double room, which use the bathroom on the first floor. The restaurant is completely refurbished.

Once you have charged with energy and relaxed in the fresh air, you can leave the bikes in the hut and go to the top of the Berkovski Balkan – peak Kom (2 016 m above sea level). The path is provided with signboards.
During the winter season, tourists can take advantage of the Kom ski slope where they can rent ski equipment and ski instructors. The ski run is about 1.5 km away, long, spacious and well trampled. It descends from Mount Malki Kom, located at 1 959 m above sea level. There are two ski lifts. The new ski lift is 800 meters long. The tow is of “anchor” type for two people. The old ski lift is designed for children.

The starting point of the route is “Ivan Vazov” House – Museum in Berkovitsa, which is located 25 km from the town of Montana. From the exit of the town of Montana, southwest in the direction to Sofia through the Petrohan pass, you take E-81 roud about 19 km, then you turn southwest and turn on the road to the town of Berkovitsa. Berkovitsa can be reached by car, bus, railway transport, by bicycle or on foot. “Ivan Vazov” House Museum is located near the city center.

The route starts from “Ivan Vazov” House Museum in the town of Berkovitsa. In this house the author lived while he was chairman of the district court in Berkovitsa – 7 March 1879 – 18 September 1880. The house is a remarkable cultural object, built in the beginning of the 19th century and has a typical interior and exterior for the Bulgarian Renaissance. The exposition in the museum presents a creative path to Ivan Vazov, with the greatest attention being paid to his Berkovitsa period.
Thanks to his residence in Berkovitsa, Ivan Vazov’s creative work has produced a number of works that are dedicated and written for this region. The more significant are the poems “Na Kom”, “Malini”, the poem “Gramada”, the novel “Mitrofan and Dormidolski“.
Next to the house-museum “Ivan Vazov” is located the Ethnographic museum, which is on the list of the 100 national tourist sites of the Bulgarian Tourist Union. The museum houses thousands of artifacts and folk customs – carpets, woven fabrics, clothing, jewelery, household items, and some ancient customs and traditions. During the Ottoman rule, Berkovitsa was developed as a craft settlement, mainly in the production of pottery.