National day of nature parks

In Bulgaria the 23rd of May is the national day of nature parks. On this day all nature parks in Bulgaria receive some extra attention. In Strandja Nature Park, Bulgaria’s largest and most important protected area, a big spring-clean of the park took place.

Keeping beautiful areas beautiful

Volunteers and employees of Strandja National Park are cleaning around river Mladezhko

A bus full of volunteers came to help with the cleaning of some of the most popular spots in the park. We joined them and armed with garbage bags and gloves, we were sent on a mission to remove as much rubbish as possible. Together with the staff of the park administration, including the director, we worked for several hours to clean a variety of places. It felt really good to be able to do something to help preserve this beautiful area.

Dancing at healing springs

Afterwards we went to the springs of the river Mladezhko. The water from these springs is thought to have healing properties. The frogs in the two ponds certainly looked very healthy.

We drank water from the springs, ate some banitsas (a Bulgarian speciality almost as popular as home-brew Rakia), and listened to three local musicians play Bulgarian folk music. The band consisted of an accordion, a drum, and a bagpipe; a popular combination here. The local bagpipe player seemed a bit lacking in musical hearing, but he certainly made up for this in enthusiasm. Our Bulgarian companions really liked it anyway and all started dancing in their traditional circle dance of which we still haven’t mastered the steps.

Caves filled with bats

After this cultural interlude everyone went for a beautiful walk through shady woodlands along the Mladezhka river. We ended up in a special place where the river wells up from under a steep cliff face, appearing like out of thin air. The west of Strandja consists of extensive karts terrain, so groundwater is seeping into the ground over vast areas, and here the underground river comes out into the daylight.

There are several caves in this area, and they are home to a number of rare species of bat. A total of twenty-one different species of bats occur in Strandja Nature Park, including Greater and Lesser Horseshoe bats (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum and Rhinolophus hipposideros).. Interestingly, the bats here behave differently than elsewhere; species that would normally never roost in the same place can be found resting together in these caves. Eurobats is funding research to find out more about the peculiar behaviour of the bats here in Strandja.

Singing in the rain

When we walked back one of the park officers told us that the water in this area is very hard. So much so that local grannies have trouble washing their hair with it and only do so when it rains. Apparently their shampoo will only foam in rain! We haven’t witnessed the event yet, but we’ll surely be going out to Mladezhko the next time it rains in Strandja.