Walk to Bear Park

Route directions

Who it’s for: Medium. Regular walkers comfortable with a long descent; arrange a pickup.

The forest does most of the shading and the mountain supplies most of the descent, but there is still uphill walking along the way. This makes a satisfying change from a lake climb: walk down, visit the bears, then ride back to your apartment. Allow park-visiting time in addition to the walk.

The way: climb through the resort to Semkovo Hut, then follow the eastward forest-road descent towards Bear Park. Stay with the mapped walking line at the branching forestry roads; several tracks peel away from the route. A separate hut-start approach passes through Semkovo and reaches the park in 10.70 km one way. Its distance belongs to that start, not to the Coliving walk.

Carry all your water; there is no dependable supply on the forest section. Near the sanctuary, a restaurant and small refreshments shop can be useful when open. Rila Fun Park is about 15 minutes farther downhill on foot. An afternoon there works well if you move the pickup accordingly. Walking back to Coliving means a long uphill second leg: decide before setting out, not when you reach the bottom.