I came for experience

A story about a hike through the “Wild Gorgans” August 1-8, 2010.
Everyone comes to the decision to go on a mountain hike in their own way. Some are looking for romance, some were invited by friends, persuaded by relatives, while others simply prefer an active holiday to a monotonous beach surrounded by animators and tables with food. My motive is much simpler: I came for the experience of hiking in the mountains, as well as to get acquainted with the Gorgany region, which has long attracted me with its semi-wild atmosphere and majestic ridges, from where it takes 5-6 hours to walk to the nearest villages along a not very convenient road. Thus, the choice of the “Wild Gorgans” tour was predetermined.

In the process of preparing for the trip, I had to buy everything from scratch, following the recommendations on the website. As a result, the preparation cost a pretty penny, but it was worth it, since all this will be used for traveling around your region. For shoes, it was decided to buy trekking sneakers, which I regretted about the third day of the hike, when my ankle began to hurt. Fortunately, the sole itself was comfortable and firm and stood up to the test of the rocky Gorgan paths with flying colors.

There were only a few calluses, and they were more likely the result of wet socks (feet in such shoes easily get wet in the Carpathian conditions) than of poor quality shoes. Lesson - I should have spared no expense and bought special boots. The last things were bought just before leaving, but in the end it was possible to put together a complete camping kit, of which only a first aid kit was almost useless (they used a plaster and an elastic bandage) and gloves with a warm hat (and thank God!).

I had to go through Ternopil, since the route to Ivano-Frankivsk through Kharkov and Kyiv was not suitable for me due to time considerations. Transport on the Ternopil-Frankivsk direction runs frequently, so you can always be sure that you will not be left without a bus. On the way, 1 karemat was lost, but that’s a completely different story (the karemat was solemnly reunited with the owner after returning; at the same time, during the hike, it turned out that a small seat under the lower part of the body is enough, but a full-fledged karemat is good to spread out in a tent at night for more warmth and softness).

At half past two on August 1, our entire company gathered, with the exception of another assistant guide, Sasha, who decided to go with him for company. Thanks to this, our diet was somewhat diluted with Oleg’s products, and at the same time we heard a bunch of different stories that are traditionally treated to all newcomers in the Carpathians. Our group consisted of 7 people: 2 guides, 2 from the center of Ukraine, 2 from Donbass and another girl from Moscow who decided to try extreme sports. Everyone, except the guides (naturally), was on a mountain hike for the first time, so we were at the same level of training. At the station it turned out that we would not start from Osmoloda, as it was written on the website, but from Staraya Huta for temporary reasons. In principle, it didn’t matter to us, as long as the hike was interesting!

It took 2 hours to get to Staraya Guta, and all these 2 hours I looked at the rain clouds in the south, which were gradually approaching us. I was not in a good mood, since my sneakers were clearly not designed for rainy weather, and I had already heard enough stories about how the previous group got caught in three days of rain in the mountains, and I did not at all want to share their fate. Looking ahead, I will say that we were lucky with the weather, and only 1 day we were showered with endless rain for several hours, for which special thanks to the Gorgans.

Upon arrival it was still raining, and after some deliberation we decided not to go out on the route today, but to spend the night near the village. For me, this was my first experience of setting up a tent, with which Sasha and Oleg helped me. The first night in an open-air tent was somewhat unusual, and I still could not fall asleep, which did not stop me from waking up at 7 am and wandering around, photographing the surrounding area and the bridge in the morning light (amateur photographers will understand what I mean).

At 10 am we set off and immediately difficulties began. It turned out that roads along mountain rivers tend to cross them several times. It became clear why all the locals wear rubber boots or galoshes))))) Having kept the shoes dry several times, in the end I still got my feet wet, since the water in the Carpathians is very good: it flows from the mountains, and often the path goes along a kind of stream.

Soon the first ascent began, during which the moment came to ask the question “Why did I need it?”, since for a city dweller, out of habit, it is very difficult to walk constantly uphill with a backpack. All the other beginners felt the same, but there was nothing to do, the road had already begun... On the second day we spent the night on the Serednyaya polonyna, in the isthmus between the Vysoka and Srednyaya mountains, from where we had an excellent view of the ridge that we had to climb (I must admit, the sight of it in the fog personally frightened me).

The third day was the most difficult for me: we climbed the ridge along the serpentine, walked along the traverse past the peak of Vysokaya, dropped in for a few minutes at the peak of Igrovets (1803 m) to take a photo near a pile of stone, and then descended to the Borevka pass (on the road, Sasha showed us where we still had to go - the peaks of Mount Bolshaya Sivulya were visible on the horizon - and this distance did not inspire me at all). After lunch, the difficult climb up the ridge began again, after which the road became much easier.

It was on the third day that I understood what “Gorgans” meant - rocky placers. There were stones everywhere, of different sizes, underfoot, to the left, to the right and deep below. If it weren’t for good soles, my feet would have been very unwell... After reaching the ridge, we gradually reached Mount Bolshaya Syvulya, took a memorable photo at an altitude of 1836 m (the highest point of Gorgan), and then the most difficult descent for me on the hike began: we walked for about an hour down through the forest along a steep path of stones. Several times only sticks helped me out, as my legs and knees no longer obeyed. It was after this descent that a childhood knee injury reminded me of itself, which did not bother me for 20 years, although I could have simply pulled a ligament during one of the falls. Be that as it may, after that the elastic bandage became my faithful companion for the remaining 3 days, although it didn’t really save me. During the rest, I put up the tent with all my strength, and for the rest of the time I just sat by the fire, since my left knee refused to bend painlessly. That night I slept without my hind legs (and without my knee)…

The fourth day greeted us with fog, which did not allow us to see the Peklo abyss in all its glory. We slowly walked (as far as my knee would allow) along the old Polish-Czechoslovak border, checking our position from time to time using the border posts. Along the way, I saw with my own eyes how the tourist trail was destroyed due to deforestation in the Transcarpathian region (which was mentioned on one of the tourist sites), which only complicated the route, because we had to wind along the road, sometimes avoiding tree debris and mud through dense thickets. Along the way I saw many traces of horses and cows, so I could only wonder how cows move along such narrow mountain paths...

For lunch we got hold of Hutsul cheese (I recommend) and milk, and immediately after lunch it started to rain, which poured on us all the way to the Legion Pass (that day we walked along the Tavpishirka ridge, at the same time conquering Mount Katerina (1464 m). The descent from Mount Katerina passed through dense thickets of alpine pine (zherep in local), the branches of which had to be carefully move away so as not to tear the cape or backpack. The descent to the Legion Pass took several hours, during which we lost half a kilometer of altitude (and the descent was quite steep). On the pass itself there is a memorial cross to the Polish legions, who died here in large numbers during the 1st World War. The shepherds we met advised us to spend the night in a house below, where there was water and firewood, and it was on that day that Sasha decided not to continue the route. to Bratkovskaya, and immediately go down to Bystritsa (our final destination) along the road (2 people in our group constantly complained of fatigue, my knee hurt, and he doubted whether to subject us to unnecessary stress). In the evening, most of the group settled down in the house (I can’t imagine how the five of them slept there), and Sasha and I slept calmly in a tent. Lesson: no matter how much it looks like a house, in a tent. at least it will be warmer...

The penultimate day was very simple: we walked in 5 hours to Bystritsa, jumping on the rocks of the river from time to time, after which we spent the night near the village itself in a convenient place where there was firewood and water. The local store allowed me to touch civilization, although when I entered it, at first I didn’t understand what exactly I needed to buy, since during my short stay in the mountains I had simply become unaccustomed to money)))))

On the last day we walked to the bus stop (it took about an hour to walk), and soon the bus took us to Nadvirna, from where we already got to Ivano-Frankivsk. Before leaving, we exchanged contacts: who knows, maybe we’ll meet again...

Brief conclusions:

1. There is nothing to do in the mountains without good shoes. The best shoes are special boots that prevent your feet from getting tired, and at least the foot itself will be drier. Trekking shoes are also good, but they are useless in rain and water. But sneakers are death to your feet... You will get there, but you will regret 10 times that you came to the mountains.
2. The most difficult for me was the descent from Bolshaya Syvuli to the Rushchina meadow. Walking on the stones among the trees was too much of a challenge for me.
3. I really enjoyed the hike, first of all for its stress, as well as the confident work of the guide Sasha, who constantly monitored the progress of the group, from time to time waiting for those lagging behind.
4. Carpathian water at altitude is tastier than at the bottom.
5. Hiking with a backpack warms up the body very much, so you shouldn’t put on warm clothes right away, even if it’s cold at first.
6. Mountains are not a toy. Here you can get injured, even die, but the photographs that I brought from there are worth the effort that I spent...

Evgeniy Zazdravnykh, Gorlovka.