The route starts at the last turn-off from the asphalt road from Topolovgrad to the military unit at Mount Vishegrad – the highest point in the Sakar Mountains.
Seven dolmens are visited, most of them well preserved:
- Mangara 1,
- Mangara 2 /Staryte Lozya/
- Slavova Koriya,
- Byalata Treva /the largest and best preserved/,
- Zhelyov Gyol,
- Kapakliyka 1,
- Kapakliyka 2.
The dolmens in points 5 and 6 are reached on foot along trails (short in length), with the bicycles left on the dirt road itself. All the dolmens are marked on the map visitsakar.com/sites
. I would note as an interesting fact that the first 5 kilometres of the bicycle route follow the ridge of the Sakar Mountains, with the total elevation gain for this section remaining under a negligible 50 metres. In three words – very flat.
The only section that should be traversed with increased attention – both in terms of navigation and terrain – is the descent after the dolmen in the Slavova Koriya area until reaching the clearly visible dirt road to the next dolmen, in the Byalata Treva area. In this section, a dirt road is practically missing and it can be said that you are riding directly across meadows. At the end of spring and in summer, they are probably covered in tall grass. But at least there is a little attraction and variety.
The finish of the cycling trip is in the small village of Sakartsi.
The author of the route and photographs is Georgi Pantaleev. The original source is the MTB-BG Guide.
Accents
As the start and finish of the route are at different points, transport between them must be arranged in advance. In other words, the ride is predominantly downhill, although in a cross-country format, i.e. with quite a few intermediate climbs. If you decide to do so, you can climb to the beginning of the GPS track under your own power, but then the length and total ascent of the route will be quite different – plus 17 km/470 m.
Water: 1–2 l, more in summer. There are no drinking fountains along the route.
Food: for half a day
