Predel ( bg, Предел ) is a mountain saddle (pass) in western

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Mac ...

between the mountain ranges of

Rila Rila ( bg, Рила, ) is the highest mountain range of Bulgaria, the Balkan Peninsula and Southeast Europe. It is situated in southwestern Bulgaria and forms part of the Rila– Rhodope Massif. The highest summit is Musala at an elevation of 2, ...

to the north and

Pirin , photo=Pirin-mountains-Bansko.jpg , photo_caption=Pirin scenery in winter , country= Bulgaria, , parent= , geology= granite, gneiss, marble, limestone , area_km2=2585 , range_coordinates = , length_km=80 , length_orientation= north-s ...

to the south. It is situated on the territory of the

Simitli Simitli ( bg, Симитли ) also known as Simitliya ( bg, Симитлия), is a town in Blagoevgrad Province in southwestern Bulgaria. It has a population of 7,454 and is located 17 km south of Blagoevgrad. It is the seat of Simitli Muni ...

and Razlog municipalities in

Blagoevgrad Province Blagoevgrad Province ( bg, област Благоевград, ''oblast Blagoevgrad'' or Благоевградска област, ''Blagoevgradska oblast''), also known as Pirin Macedonia or Bulgarian Macedonia ( bg, Пиринска Маке� ...

. The pass is 20 km long with a maximum altitude of 1140 m. It connects of the valley of the river Struma in the west with the

Razlog Valley The Razlog Valley ( bg, Разложка котловина, Razlozhka kotlovina) is a valley in southwestern Bulgaria, Blagoevgrad Province, the municipalities of Razlog, Bansko and Belitsa. It is located between the mountains of Rila to the no ...

in the east. It begins to the north-east from the village of

Gradevo Gradevo is a village in Simitli Municipality, in Blagoevgrad Province, in southwestern Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on t ...

at 531 m altitude and runs in eastern and south-eastern direction upstream of the Elovitsa valley of the Struma basin. It reaches its highest point in 12.9 km and then descends along the valley of the river Iztok of 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 migra ...

drainage. After 7.1 km it enters the westernmost area of the Razlog Valley at an altitude of 890 m. A 20 km long section of the II-19 second-class road

–

Bansko Bansko ( bg, Банско ) is a town in southwestern Bulgaria, located at the foot of the Pirin Mountains at an elevation of 1200m above sea level. It is a ski resort. Legends There are several legends about who founded Bansko. According to on ...

–

Gotse Delchev Georgi Nikolov Delchev ( Bulgarian/Macedonian: Георги/Ѓорѓи Николов Делчев; 4 February 1872 – 4 May 1903), known as Gotse Delchev or Goce Delčev (''Гоце Делчев'', originally spelled in older Bulgari ...

– Ilinden traverses the pass. Due to the increased tourist traffic to the ski resort of Bansko the road was thoroughly rehabilitated and expanded in 2005. In the vicinity of the Predel Saddle there are about ten holiday homes with more than 1000 beds. There is a 1300 m long ski track named Kulinoto. Since 1965 there is a folklore festival "Pirin Sings" that gathers folk groups from around the nation. Predel has an important place in Bulgarian history, because the

Kresna–Razlog uprising The Kresna–Razlog Uprising ( bg, Кресненско-Разложко въстание, ''Kresnensko-Razlozhko vastanie''; mk, Кресненско востание, ''Kresnensko vоstanie'', Kresna Uprising) named by the insurgents the Maced ...

of 1878 broke out there. The rebellion was a spontaneous action of the local population in opposition to the decisions of the

Congress of Berlin The Congress of Berlin (13 June – 13 July 1878) was a diplomatic conference to reorganise the states in the Balkan Peninsula after the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78, which had been won by Russia against the Ottoman Empire. Represented at ...

that left the region outside the borders of newly liberated Bulgaria.

Citations

References

* * {{cite book , ref={{harvid, Dushkov, 1972 , title = Пирин. Туристически речник , trans-title = Pirin. Tourist Dictionary , last1 = Душков (Dushkov) , first1 = Добри (Dobri) , year = 1972 , language = Bulgarian , publisher = Наука и култура (Nauka i kultura) , location = София (Sofia) , isbn = Mountain passes of Bulgaria Pirin Rila Landforms of Blagoevgrad Province