The taste of a childhood bun

Report on a hike in the Carpathians, route "Highest Peaks" July 17, 2011.

Our experiences and sensations are the only thing that remains natural in our increasingly artificial modern world, and it was for them that I went with the OutdoorUkraine group on a hike along the highest peaks of Ukraine - the Montenegrin Carpathian range. My background with the decision to go hiking is similar to hundreds of stories of people who described their meeting with OutdoorUkraine before me. The only difference, compared to others, is that I chose the hiking route in places that I had visited more than once before.

Living 2 hours away from the Carpathians, having the opportunity to spend a lot of time there in childhood and youth, plus often visiting relatives in the Carpathians for the last 20 years, I cannot compare my feelings with those who are in these places for the first time. If the mountains still don’t leave me indifferent, everything must be going through the roof emotionally for them.

And I was not spared the standard situation. When active and cheerful youth, with the ability to make a decision and take off at the first suggestion of friends, moved into the measured rhythm of adult life, and trips to nature increasingly became a comfortable holiday in the home of local people or a campsite at best.

From time to time, crossing paths with groups of tourists in the mountains, pleasant memories of past hikes visited my head like memories of the unique taste of a bun from childhood, the taste of which I so want to taste again.

But in reality I was faced with the problem of who to go with? Not all relatives perceive the hike as a vacation, those who do it had no desire to go on a hike with a beginner...then the chain of events is the same as for many - offers on the Internet - packing - departure.

Now I could move on to a detailed description of our hike, route, etc. but after looking at the interesting reviews of other hikers about the route "Highest Peaks", I can’t do better, but I don’t want to repeat myself. Everything you read there is mostly the truth and nothing but the truth. In addition, the “how it happens” section will give a complete picture of the upcoming event, for which special thanks to OutdoorUkraine.com.

In our time, it has become “not prestigious” to promise and fulfill what was promised. It’s good that in the case of the OutdoorUkraine company, I was able to verify the opposite. I think the success of companies providing such services consists of following their own established rules and the professional guides with whom they cooperate.

In our group, this guide was Alexander Kushnarev, a man about whom quite a lot has been written here, a professional in his field, deep and interesting. But there is very little time on the trip to get to know him more; for me he is like an iceberg - the visible part is a young, reserved guy, the underwater part is a lot of experience and knowledge for his age. Having visited his blog alexkushnaryov.com after the hike, I was convinced that everything he does is not just making money, he lives it and his thoughts do not diverge from his words.

I think the goal of going on a hike for the first time is different for everyone - for some the process itself is important, for others the sights or communication, but everyone equally wants positive results and emotions from this event.

For this reason, I want to share some thoughts that may interfere with enjoying what is happening. So, with the choice of organizers and conductors, the issue has been resolved (if you are already reading this report)

Take the time to read the “how it happens” sections; "list of necessary things"; reviews from participants of this route. The result of this will be an understanding of the whole process and a terry bathrobe will be removed from the list of things and a lifting and properly packed backpack will be prepared. The phrase there is no bad weather - only inappropriate clothing is true, but the assurances of clothing manufacturers regarding protection from moisture are not always accurate, this is influenced by many factors. My example in boots with “waterproofing” in which I forded water, did not withstand the wet grass and the protection gave up in 1-1.5 hours. The same goes for the jacket. The solution could be a good poncho or a cheap polyethylene cape of 2-3 pieces, depending on its quality. Protection from moisture is, I think, an important issue, a cape for the backpack, garbage bags for packing things inside the backpack and bags for reserve, all this was very useful. Do not forget about various types of impregnations to protect against moisture; all methods are good in this matter.

Leg protection - good socks, plasters, elastic bandages on the knees (who needs it) and trekking poles. I took ski boots, no problems, but even with the “correct length” they create inconvenience when traveling (train, bus). By the way, our group of 12 people. 4 of them had poles, but after 30 minutes of the start of the hike, everyone had acquired wooden ones and did not throw them away until the last day.

For those who take their own equipment - a sleeping bag - you need to check everything in the tent before the hike. The time of use of these things and the hiking area do not always coincide with their capabilities. It is better to take more reliable things from the organizers. In my parking lot in the highlands, the fiberglass poles of a not-new tent could not withstand the strong wind; it would have been disastrous if not for the guys from the group.

Regarding the lighter weight of the backpack, I can say that I was not able to choose the right one the first time, but I don’t regret the time spent on this. The result was a lifting weight (take into account the weight of the products that will be distributed to you before the hike). In our group, the guys didn’t even take a tent cover to reduce the weight; I could replace the supports for the entrance to the tent with trekking poles.

A first aid kit, a flashlight, a warm hat, a sun hat, glasses, sunscreen and mittens for cold weather are all that you carry in your backpack for good reason. A good fleece jacket, thermal underwear, T-shirts and pants - all these things made from modern fabrics have proven their superiority and need not be discussed. If everything is for the first time and things are new, find time to try them out - sleeping bag, shoes, backpack adjustment options, assembling/disassembling the tent and probably the most important thing, don’t forget about yourself.

Trying to wake up your body before a hike is not at all out of place; everyone decides how to do it for themselves. I considered jogging a week before the hike to be the most affordable way to get rid of muscle soreness in the first days.

If you have paid attention to these tips, nothing should stop you from seeing all the beauty of these places and getting the most out of it. impressions, for the sake of which this was all started.

Do not forget also that you are going to the “green lungs of Ukraine” and all of us children of asphalt and noisy cities cannot avoid the “load” of pure oxygen of the Carpathian forests, so in the first hours of the hike, do not be alarmed that it’s hard to breathe, you quickly get used to the good things.

The same situation applies to group communication. Different people gather, bad people don’t come here, as many wrote in reviews. Of the 12 people in the group, during the move to the beginning of the route, most of them had already become acquainted, and with the first joint dinner this process was finally completed. Everyone comes to relax and has the right to “live” on the hike as they want, but without disturbing others, so the organizers have rules for behavior in the group. If you are going on a hike for the first time, read a couple of lines from this section. I think the squabbles between some in our group are more a problem of life views, but they are also unnecessary. By the way, when hiking difficulties arose, they disappeared.

This route intersects with places of organized tourism; there will be an opportunity to see the difference between places trampled by excursion groups and places where cows and sheep graze. People where cows graze are much cleaner. The conclusions suggest themselves, listen to experienced tourists, take with you, if possible, everything that you brought to the mountains.

And regarding the experience of experienced people... there are things that we don’t fully understand... or if you want superstitions and legends... it all lives for centuries... It’s hard for me to understand the logic of people with only 30-40 years of life experience and a desire to check legends or establish their own rules in someone else’s house, where we are only guests. To confirm these thoughts, I would like to share one incident: From our guide Alexander Kushnarev, we learned that one of the legends of these places is that one should not disturb the peace of the high-mountain lake “Nesamovyte”. Swim and throw stones. Alexander has already had 4 cases that confirm this belief.

By the way, we also had the opportunity to check this legend (see photo above). From swimming to the storm, 4 hours passed. Squally wind, rain, hail and thunder - everything was in full swing.

Still, this does not compare with all the positive things we received in return. One lack of mob. For some, connections are already a full-fledged vacation, not to mention the rest. And if the weather prevents you from completing the entire route, take it as a ritual with a coin at sea, there is a reason to return... After all, these are Mountains...

I say hello to our entire group, I had an interesting time with you. I look forward to random and planned meetings with you in the future. Special thanks to the excellent family Volodya and Lena from Kharkov for their hospitality, it’s a pity that I couldn’t repay them in kind in Lviv.

Thanks to OutdoorUkraine.com for a professional guide.

I am happy for those who are going to this route for the first time.

Igor Petrovsky, Lvov.