Marishki Chal () is a summit in the eastern part of the Rila mountain range in southwestern

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

reaching height of 2,765 m. It is located in

Rila National Park Rila National Park () is the largest national park in Bulgaria spanning an area of in the Rila mountain range in the south-west of the country. History It was established on 24 February 1992 to protect several ecosystems of national importanc ...

. The summit is built up of granite.

Geography

Marishki Chal connects the two main ridges of this part of the mountain range — Musalensko and Ibarsko, and is an important hydrographic node. It rises south of the summit of Golyam Bliznak (2,779 m), north of

Ovcharets Ovcharets () is a summit in eastern Rila, Rila mountain range in southwestern Bulgaria reaching height of 2,768 m. It is located in Rila National Park. Ovcharets is built up of granite. The peak lies on the Musala ridge, in the vicinity of ...

(2,768 m) and southwest of Mancho (2,771 m). The summit lies on the main watershed ridge of the

Balkan Peninsula The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

, separating the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

drainage basin to the north and the

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans and Anatolia, and covers an area of some . In the north, the Aegean is connected to the Marmara Sea, which in turn con ...

one to the south. The drainage basins of the three major rivers in Rila converge at Marishki Chal — the

Iskar Iskar may refer to: ;Bulgaria * Iskar (river), a river in western Bulgaria * Iskar Reservoir, situated on the Iskar River * Iskar (town), a town in the Iskar Municipality of the Pleven Province * Iskar Municipality * Iskar, Sofia, one of 24 munici ...

of the Black Sean basin, the longest river entirely in Bulgarian territory, the

Maritsa Maritsa or Maritza ( ), also known as Evros ( ) and Meriç ( ), is a river that runs through the Balkans in Southeast Europe. With a length of ,

, the longest river flowing entirely in the Balkans, and the

Mesta The ''Mesta'' () was a powerful association protecting livestock owners and their animals in the Crown of Castile that was incorporated in the 13th century and was dissolved in 1836. Although best known for its organisation of the annual migrat ...

, the latter two of the Aegean Sean basin. Marishki Chal is dome-shaped. Its ridge and most of its slopes are grassy and stony, only the northern slope descending steeply to Marichinia cirque of the

Marichini Lakes Marichini Lakes () are a group of four glacial lakes situated in the eastern part of Rila mountain range of southwestern Bulgaria at an altitude between 2,301 m and 2,508 m. They are situated in the Marichin cirque between the summits o ...

is rocky. The eastern slopes descend to the cirque of the Ropalishki Lakes, and the western slopes — to the very deep valley of the Beli Iskar River.

History

In the past the summit was also called the Triple Border Peak (Триграничния връх), as in the aftermath of the

Congress of Berlin At the Congress of Berlin (13 June – 13 July 1878), the major European powers revised the territorial and political terms imposed by the Russian Empire on the Ottoman Empire by the Treaty of San Stefano (March 1878), which had ended the Rus ...

of 1878 the borders of the

Principality of Bulgaria The Principality of Bulgaria () was a vassal state under the suzerainty of the Ottoman Empire. It was established by the Treaty of Berlin in 1878. After the Russo-Turkish War ended with a Russian victory, the Treaty of San Stefano was signed ...

Eastern Rumelia Eastern Rumelia (; ; ) was an autonomous province (''oblast'' in Bulgarian, ''vilayet'' in Turkish) of the Ottoman Empire with a total area of , which was created in 1878 by virtue of the Treaty of Berlin (1878), Treaty of Berlin and ''de facto'' ...

and the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

converged on it. In 1885 Eastern Rumelia joined the Principality during the

Unification of Bulgaria The Unification of Bulgaria () was the act of unification of the Principality of Bulgaria and the province of Eastern Rumelia in the autumn of 1885. It was co-ordinated by the Bulgarian Secret Central Revolutionary Committee (BSCRC). Both had ...

and in 1912 the Bulgarian victory in the

First Balkan War The First Balkan War lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and involved actions of the Balkan League (the Kingdoms of Kingdom of Bulgaria, Bulgaria, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, Kingdom of Greece, Greece and Kingdom of Montenegro, Montenegro) agai ...

led to the liberation of the whole mountain range.

Tourist routes

The summer and winter trails between the highest summit in the Balkans

Musala Musala ( ); from Arabic through Ottoman Turkish: from '' Musalla'', "near God" or "place for prayer" is the highest peak in the Rila Mountains, as well as in Bulgaria and the entire Balkan Peninsula, standing at . With a topographic prominence ...

(2,925 m) and the Zavracitsa refuge pass through Marishki Char. The summer trail cuts almost horizontally along its southwestern slope, and the winter trail passes through its highest point. In winter, there is an increased avalanche danger on its slopes and following the azimuth marking is mandatory. The summer trail between Musala and Granchar refuge crosses the western slope of the summit, and the winter trail passes almost over its highest point and heads southwest. Marishki Chal is approximately 40 minutes from the neighbouring summit of Golyam Bliznak peak and 30 minutes from the peaks of Ovcharets and Mancho.

Citations

References

* * * {{cite book , ref={{harvid, Grancharov, 2000 , title = Върховете на Рила. Пътеводител към високата планина , trans-title = The Summits of Rila. Guide to the High Mountain , last1 = Грънчаров (Grancharov) , first1 = Румен (Rumen) , year = 2000 , language = Bulgarian , publisher = , location = София (Sofia) , isbn = Mountains of Rila Landforms of Blagoevgrad Province Landforms of Sofia Province Two-thousanders of Bulgaria