“Bulgaria 🇧🇬 ~The Devil’s Bridge in Dyadoctsi”
The day started our fresh and beautiful. There is Fall in the air, as the colors of the leaves are starting to change. It is still hot, but not as hot, during the day. Did you know we have not seen Fall colors in two years? Its one of my favorite times of years, and being born and raised in Oregon: (West Coast) I was used to seeing the colors change all the time. When I was young, I lived in Massachusetts, (East Coast) and I remember the beautiful Fall colors there, too! The Sierra mountains in California (my current home state) also is splendid during the Fall.
Last year we were in Mongolia for a month, and we did not see any color changes there, as the trees are limited, and when we saw trees on our pack trip by horseback to find the Reindeer Tribe, they were more of a pine nut or evergreen variety. The year before that, we were in Asia. Palm trees offer up a lot, but changing colors is not one of their gifts. This year, I am in awe, and soaking up the beauty, as we drive along and/or hike through the forests of colors. It also makes for some fun photography!
We only planned one more stop in Bulgaria, this morning, before we headed further south to cross the border into Turkey. We drove off-the-beaten-path, big time, to reach The Devil’s Bridge. What we did not plan on was a hike to get to it, but hike we did. As I mentioned, we had bursting Fall colors, so that with the clean water in the stream, and the Ancient Roman Bridge, well, it was absolutely stunning!
The Dyavolski Most aka Devil’s Bridge, as well as Sheytan Kyupriya, is a medieval bridge over the Arda river. It is situated in a picturesque valley, about six mile northwest of the town of Ardino.
The bridge was built in 1515–1518, by the builder Dimitar from the village of Nedelino (which is a town, still) upon the remains of an ancient Roman bridge on the road, linking the Aegean region with Northern Thracian Valley (Gornotrakiyski Nizina) through the Makaza pass.
The bridge is situated almost 1,378 feet above sea level and is surrounded on both sides by steep slopes. Its length is 183 feet long, and its width is almost 12 feet.
The bridge has three vaults; it has holes with small arches in its side vaults, made for drainage, during flooding.
In 1984, the bridge was declared a cultural monument. The bridge can be reached by vehicle on a partially rough road.
Beautiful hike to the Bridge and the water.
We would discover, we could have driven the whole way to the Bridge, instead of hiked, but it was after the fact, and oh well, the exercise did us good, and though we were pressed for time, as we had that long drive to the border. In the end, it mattered little, because we didn’t make our destination, anyway.
We did enjoy the forest, but it was kind of silly at the same time. We parked where the other vehicles were parked, and people were getting out and hiking. “Monkey see, Monkey do,” in this case, because the signs posted were in Bulgarian. We had no clue.
After we were done with our adventure at the bridge, we made our way back out to civilization, and the route that would take us to Turkey. We would be several hours on the road to make this happen.
We stopped and purchased our road tax, to show at the border so we would not get a penalty, and we thought we had it in the bag. Unfortunately, we were denied access to Turkey, because our rental car company said we did not have the right insurance for travel in Turkey. I talked to a lady on the phone, and I said, okay, let’s add the insurance to our rental. She told me we had to do that in person. It is a called a “green card,” and it would cost 200 Euros, which is almost $240! I told her we were over 300 miles from Sofia, so if decided to add the insurance, could we do so, remotely? Again, she said no, and if we wanted the insurance, I would need to request it in advance, so the paperwork could be prepared. I told her I would call her back. So, we turned around at the Bulgarian Customs, and started driving back to Sofia.
During the drive, the big guy and I discussed our options. $240 is a lot of money, and we could probably fly from Sofia to Istanbul for a lot less, but a last minute ticket might be more expensive. Either way, we had to get back to Sofia to either return the truck or keep it, so that’s what we did.
So Close, but no go!
I also called our friend, Taskin in Istanbul. He had our room all ready, with our suitcase in it, he’s been caring for for six months! I felt terrible to tell him we would not be seeing him tonight. He is the best, and wished us well, saying no worries, and to be safe. He is just too kind. Our room will still be available, and we will get there, as soon as possible!
After driving three hours, we made it to the Sofia Airport, and Daryl went inside to the rental car company counter to ask more questions, and get clarity. He returned a half hour later, and the insurance issue became even more ridiculous. For $240 the insurance coverage would allow us to cross in to Turkey, but we would be limited to only Istanbul, and we would not even be allowed to cross the Bosphorus river! (One side of the river is Asia, and the other side is Europe) So, Daryl did the right thing and said, forget that, and we would return the car tomorrow in the afternoon, and he paid up the extra two days we owed on the vehicle.
Now, we are in an overpriced hotel in Sofia, and completely wiped out and looking forward to a good nights sleep. I drove eight hours, plus our hike, so I know I will sleep well! In the morning, I will begin researching plane fare, and perhaps get to the bus station and check on our options there.
The bus tickets for a night trip is about $10 pp, according to the “Rome to Rio” app; the bus option will be a ten hour trip, and doesn’t leave till 8PM, whereas, we have to check out at 1PM from our hotel, or pay extra and drop the vehicle off after that. So, hanging out at a bus station for six hours is not very appealing. In addition, during COVID travel, the buses may not be able to run us into Istanbul, and instead we will be dropped at the Bulgarian Customs border, which is a royal pain, with luggage and the possibility of not being able to get a taxi, easily, because as soon as we cross the border, we no longer have local currency till we find an ATM and we have no working SIM card; no phone or map, till we can find a phone store or kiosk. This part is never easy, and made even more difficult, during COVID times. We may also look into getting a hired driver, if the price is not too steep; this way, that driver would know another driver on the Turkey side (they always know people) and we can do the shuffle a lot easier.
Tomorrow will be interesting, but we will figure it out, as we always do!
Turkey or Bust!
We were close to Ardino, when at the bridge. After we left that area, we would come within four miles of Greece, on our way to Turkey.
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About Us
Hello and Welcome to our Travel Blog Website, We enjoy writing about our experiences and taking photos of our adventuring along the way. Our names are: Daryl and Pen, but Daryl calls me “Bunny.” We met, quite randomly, whilst both… Read More