519 day of war

Hello, friends!

This weekend we finally went to the mountains. On Friday evening, we boarded the train and by morning, we were already in Vorokhta. It was quite strange to see the train passing through the clouds early in the morning, and the weather felt more like the beginning of winter rather than mid-summer.

We couldn't check in to the hotel earlier, so from 6 a.m. until 12 a.m., we wandered the empty streets where everything starts to open at 10 a.m. We explored all the viaducts in the city, but unfortunately, there were military posts and signs saying "do not stop, do not take photos, do not enter" near each of them. All I can say about them is that they are beautiful structures and a great sight in the city.

Later, we went to a swing in the forest and enjoyed the views. Once we settled into the hotel, which had a great view of the surrounding area and trains passing by, we set off for the nearby mountain meadows. Overall, on that day, we covered 25 kilometers, but we hardly felt tired. The next day, we planned to hike up Hoverla. The only way to reach the base where the hike starts is by taxi because the road is in bad condition, and walking would take about 20 kilometers. Luckily, our hotel neighbors were also going to Hoverla in the morning, so we managed to save a lot on the taxi and be confident that they would not only take us to the base but also pick us up later.

At the ZaroSlak base, which is at an altitude of 1300 meters above sea level, we already felt like we were on an airplane, experiencing pressure in our ears due to the quick ascent.
There are two paths to hike up Hoverla. They are marked as the green (easier) and blue (steeper but shorter) paths. We chose the blue path because it offers better views, even though it was more challenging. Initially, the two paths run together, but after a few hundred meters, they split, with one going around the mountain, and the other heading almost straight up towards the summit.

The start of the route was like a wall of roots sticking out from the ground. I could see the trail markers far beyond this wall and realized that I had imagined the paths differently. After climbing quite high through the tree roots, we reached a meadow with a view of the mountain, but it was only the Small Hoverla, located before the main Hoverla peak.

On the meadow, we found blueberries and took a break to enjoy the berries. Then, we needed to ascend to the Small Hoverla. The path led through shrubs and then rocky terrain, which required careful footing. It was getting harder as we went, but with periodic rests, we finally reached the summit and saw the main Hoverla peak ahead, with a similar rocky path but steeper.

After some time, we finally made it to the summit!

At the top, there were many people, flags, a cross, memorial plaques, and even a small market! They were selling tea, coffee, and symbolic medals for conquering the summit. It was quite unexpected, and I couldn't fathom how people managed to haul all those goods up the mountain. There were also several stray dogs, which was also surprising. The views from the summit were breathtaking, overlooking the entire Chornohora mountain range. I had never seen anything like it before, and upon reaching the top, I realized that all the effort was definitely worth it.

After resting at the summit, we descended using a different path to see the mountain from another side and diversify the route. The green path is considered longer and easier, but the difference was minimal, and in some places, it was even more difficult than the blue one due to a stream flowing directly on the trail. Nevertheless, the scenery around was stunning, the air was fresh, and we experienced absolute tranquility.

In total, the ascent and descent from the mountain took us 6.5 hours, which wasn't bad for a first mountain hike. We were incredibly tired but made it back to Vorokhta around 8 p.m. We barely made it to a restaurant with vegetarian options before it closed, had dinner, and quickly packed our things because the next day at 5 a.m., we had to leave for Ivano-Frankivsk, where we would catch a train back home to Ternopil.

In the morning, we realized that we had covered a lot in these two days, and our legs could barely hold us up. So, upon arriving in Ivano-Frankivsk, we tried to sit as much as possible and recharge. We visited a vegetarian cafe (we don't have any in our city), and also a cat cafe where I deeply missed our cat, Sonia, waiting for us at home.

In the evening, we caught our train and arrived home late at night, embracing our beloved cat.

Though it was a short journey, for a while, we completely forgot about the ongoing war and found ourselves in a peaceful and serene place. There were no air raid sirens, and the internet barely worked. We simply walked and enjoyed the views, forgetting about everything else. We are exhausted now and can barely walk, but we have many pleasant memories, and we plan to go to the mountains again next year.

I put together an album with photos and videos from the trip, which you can see here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/cZYc64qL41c1c7Eq6

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