Bulgarian Landscape
Bulgarian Mountains 
With over 70% of the country lower than 600m, and an average altitude of just 470m, it appears from the statistics that Bulgaria is not particularly mountainous. However, because of their form and distribution, the Bulgarian mountains actually impose their presence over much of the country. Their complex geological history means that the Bulgarian mountains are extremely varied, and to talk about the Bulgarian mountains as a unified whole would be wrong. As you get to know the Bulgarian mountains better, you will discover each of the Bulgarian mountains has its own individual identity, with its own unique flora and fauna. |
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Bulgarian Plains & Plateaus 
Large swathes of Bulgaria are made up of plains and plateaus. Stretching right across northern Bulgarian from the Serbian border to the Black Sea is the Danubian Plain, an extensive agricultural region, often referred to as the bread-basket of Bulgaria. It is bordered to the north by the river Danube and state frontier with Romania, and to the south by the Balkan Mountains (Stara Planina). To the south of the Balkan Mountains (Stara Planina) and Sredna Gora range begins the Thracian Plain, stretching away south-east towards the Black Sea and Turkish border. This is another rolling agricultural region. Despite the strong anthropogenic influences exerted on both the Danubian Plain and Thracian Plain, and the intensity of cultivation, these regions are still important in terms of biodiversity, in particular for their rich birdlife. Although typically referred to as plains, these two regions are by no means entirely flat and featureless. The Danubian Plain in particular is studded by a succession of rocky plateaus and elevations such as those near Provadiya, Shumen and Veliko Turnovo. |
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Bulgarian Caves 
With almost a quarter of Bulgarian territory occupied by karst terrain, Bulgaria is blessed with an amazing network of caves. At present the number of caves and potholes in Bulgaria which have been explored total about 5500. Of these Bulgarian caves, more than 60 caves have a total length over 1000 metres, and there are more than 50 potholes in Bulgaria deeper than 100 metres. As well as being of aesthetic interest, the Bulgarian caves and potholes are also of great scientific, cultural and historic importance. Cave fauna has been recorded in more than 700 Bulgarian caves, and includes numerous endemic species. Furthermore, many Bulgarian caves have proved a rich repository of archaeological remains and materials, with numerous interesting cave finds dating right back to the Palaeolithic period. |
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Bulgarian Rivers 
All Bulgarian rivers drain into two main water basins, the Black Sea basin and the basin of the Aegean Sea. However, the Black Sea basin can be further subdivided by considering rivers that feed directly into the Black Sea itself, and rivers that feed into the Danube. There are 19 major rivers which carry their water directly towards the Black Sea, the longest being the river Kamchiya at 245 kilometres, and there are 13 major rivers which feed into the river Danube from Bulgaria. The longest river is the river Iskar at 368 kilometres. This is the only one of the Danube’s Bulgarian tributaries which doesn’t rise in the Balkan Mountains (Stara Planina). Instead the river Iskar has its source in the Rila Mountains, and cuts through the Balkan Mountains (Stara Planina) as the spectacular Iskar Gorge. Most of southern Bulgaria is drained by rivers running towards the Aegean Sea. The largest rivers of the Aegean watershed flowing from Bulgaria are the river Maritsa, river Struma and river Mesta. |
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Bulgarian Lakes 
Along the Bulgarian Black Sea coast there are 19 lakes and marshes of differing sizes. These include Durankulashko Ezero (Lake Durankulak), Ezeretsko Ezero (Lake Ezerets), Shablensko Ezero (Lake Shabla), Beloslavsko Ezero (Lake Beloslav), Varnensko Ezero (Lake Varna), Pomoriisko Ezero (Lake Pomorie), Atanasovsko Ezero (Lake Atanasov), Burgasko Ezero (Lake Bourgas) and Mandrensko Ezero (Lake Mandra). Along the river Danube, there are also several lakes and marshes, the most important being Ezero Sreburna (Lake Srebarna), a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Inland, the Bulgarian mountains boast more than 250 glacial lakes, which have been formed in the high alpine parts of the Rila Mountains and Pirin Mountains. The Bulgarian mountains also hold 10 sets of tectonic lakes and wetlands, and 3 groups of landslide lakes. The best known of the Bulgarian landslide lakes are the Smolyanski Ezera (Smolyan Lakes) below Pamporovo in the Rhodope (Rodopi) Mountains.
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Black Sea Coast 
Situated between Europe and Asia, and covering an area of 413,488 square kilometres, the Black Sea forms the eastern border of Bulgaria. Bulgaria's section of the Black Sea coast, stretching between Cape Kartal on the Romanian border in the north to the river Rezovska at the Turkish border in the south, has a total length of 378km. Along this shore, one finds an ever alternating succession of beautiful sandy bays, dramatic rocky capes, lush green river mouths, and a string of sparkling lakes and marshes rich in birdlife. |