3 November 2023, Gabrovo, 34.21km
Rooms to Rent 50.4lev [R504]

Between Kazanlak and Gabrovo, the Shipka Pass, at a height of 1150m above sea level, winds through the Balkan Mountains that separate south and north Bulgaria. The top of the pass is more or less 25km from Kazanlak and 22km from the centre of Gabrovo; the elevation gain/loss is around 830m in each case. As we spent last night in Shipka north of Kazanlak, we cut 11km and around 200m elevation gain off today's ascent.
At an intersection on the outskirts of Shipka is a board announcing whether or not the pass is open - it is on occasion snowed in. There in anticipation of heating on the climb we stripped off the additional layer of clothing we had donned when awaking to 11° overcast weather, and switched on our flashing back lights as we could see the mountains ahead were shrouded in mist. A man in a car wound down his window to give us a thumb's up and a "Bravo".
The mist made for a damp ride, the chill fogging our breath. Cars were heard in the quiet of the forest long before we saw their headlights, diffused halos ghostly in the white world. When we stopped to rest or take a photo, we could hear leaves falling like rain in the silence.
Dare I say we enjoyed the 14km ascent? The road is beautifully graded, the chilly weather made three hours of climbing tolerable, the traffic was sparse and slow-moving. But perhaps the fact that we hit the 5000km mark today means that we are simply coping better and therefore getting more pleasure out of challenging days.
It was very misty out there, with visibility decreasing to under 5m on occasion. When we reached the pectopaht at the top of the pass, it was all but invisible [see pic of people standing outside the restaurant]. They were doing a brisk trade in meatball soup and banitsa (our lunch choice).
Damp from our multi-hour climb, we were very conscious of the wind-chill factor at the more exposed top of the pass and the effect this would have as we rushed headlong down the other side. We added more layers, but quite frankly do not have the kind of clothing needed for a really cold ride. Luckily, as we descended, we dropped out of the clouds and into sunlight.
A fabulous ride.
We are staying in accommodation considerably more pleasing and comfortable on the inside than its outside appearance suggests.
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Our hands and feet are particularly cold. We must buy better winter gloves and some sort of shoe cover if we plan to do more winter cycling in future.
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Wikipedia: The Battle of Shipka Pass consisted of four battles that were fought between the Russian Empire, aided by Bulgarian volunteers known as opalchentsi, and the Ottoman Empire for control over the vital Shipka Pass during the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878). The deciding moment of the Shipka campaign, and by extent the war, came in August 1877, when a group of 5000 Bulgarian volunteers and 2500 Russian troops repulsed an attack against the peak by a 30,000-strong Ottoman army.
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There are several memorials commemorating the battle heroes. This one is outside Gabrovo.