This makes for a cracking day, because you get to visit three waterfalls, two in the charming town of Teteven and one in Glozhene. It is then possible to visit the remarkable Glozhene Monastery and even to walk to Morovitsa Cave. For this reason, we got up early and left Sofia at 7.30 in the morning. We were back at 6.30 in the evening. But a word of caution: both Teteven and Glozhene waterfalls are a little famous for not always working at full capacity. We made sure to visit them in May, the ‘waterfall month’, once the snow had started melting and after a few days of rain. This made for a real spectacle.

As for Yamna, which is not far from Teteven as the crow flies, you want to take the A2 motorway from Sofia in the direction of Varna. You go past the exit for Pravets/Etropole and continue to the exit for Dzhurovo and Etropole. Shortly after leaving the motorway, you turn right to Dzhurovo and continue on this road for two kilometres until you reach a T-junction. Turn left here, which is signposted for Golyam Izvor (4 km). After another two kilometres, take a turning on the right (signposted for Golyam Izvor, still 4 km, and Teteven, 15 km). Drive through the pretty village of Golyam Izvor, staying on this road. After leaving the village, you will pass a dirt track on your left, which goes to Glozhene Monastery, our final destination. Keep straight, and in another five kilometres you will enter Teteven.

300 metres after you enter Teteven, the road veers left over a bridge, and immediately there is a T-junction. Turn right here (left will take you to Glozhene, where we will be going later). You now have the River Vit, which flows through Teteven, on your right. Drive into the centre of Teteven. In six kilometres, there is a bridge over the Vit on your right which is signposted for the waterfall, Skoka Waterfall, but do not take this turning. Keep going with the river on your right. You will pass a second bridge over the river, and then a third. Take this third one (500 metres after the first). You will cross the river and pass the town’s market on your left. Keep going straight for 300 metres. There is a little bridge, and immediately a turning on the right signposted for Skoka Waterfall. Turn right here.

Keep going on this road (avoid the temptation to go straight back over the river you have just crossed), and after 2.8 kilometres you will reach a little car park on your right. Park here. The ecopath to the two waterfalls begins here.

You are in for a treat. The distance to the waterfalls is short – 650 metres – and takes only a quarter of an hour, but the path is very pretty, you pass a smaller waterfall, which is still fairly impressive, and at the end of the path there is a hut with the two waterfalls behind it. Skoka is on your left and attracts most of the attention, but don’t miss the much taller Praskalo on your right. If you have chosen to go in spring after the snow melt and some rain, you will not be disappointed. It is very unusual to find two such pretty waterfalls at such a short distance from each other. I kept going from one to the other. I liked Praskalo more, it was less noisy and very spiritual. We spent about 1¼ hour walking to and from the waterfalls.

Once you are back at the car, turn around and return the way you have come. Glozhene Waterfall, called Vara because of the limestone, is 13.5 kilometres away. You retrace your route, but having left the centre of Teteven behind, you continue on the 358, ignoring the turning to Golyam Izvor, and 2.4 kilometres after officially leaving Teteven, you will come to a lay-by on the right, next to a mehana or restaurant called Vidrite (‘The Otters’). Park here. In front of the restaurant, next to the road, there is a little sign that says ‘Glozhene Waterfall’. Yes, but the little fall you see in front of you is not Glozhene Waterfall proper, and I dread to think how many people have arrived, taken a photograph and driven off without actually seeing the waterfall itself. To reach the waterfall, you must continue along the road on foot for 120 metres. Next to a STOP sign, there is a partially tarmacked track that doubles back on your right. Follow this track, and in 150 metres you will reach the course of the river. The waterfall is above you, on your left. To reach it, you must now follow a barely visible path on the lefthand side of the river. Just plunge into the trees, you will find it, and this path will take you in 90 metres to the base of the waterfall, one of the most spectacular waterfalls in Bulgaria. I include a map below, showing the lay-by, the restaurant Vidrite (which was closed) and the route from the road 358 to the waterfall. It’s not that difficult, but it does seem to create a lot of confusion!

As you are returning on the track, you will catch a glimpse of Glozhene Monastery on the mountain opposite, our next destination. There is a path from Glozhene Village to the monastery, but most people approach by car from Malak Izvor (the smaller version of Golyam Izvor). To do this, continue on the 358 into Glozhene and after 2.3 kilometres turn left over the River Vit (signposted for the monastery, Yablanitsa, 9 km, and Sofia, 92 km). Continue for 8 kilometres until you reach a turning on your left (signposted for the monastery and Malak Izvor, 2 km). Drive through the village and, after 2.5 kilometres, there is a turning on the left for the monastery.

The distance from here to the monastery is 5.5 kilometres. The road gets steadily worse, and it is difficult for two vehicles to pass each other going in opposite directions. On the way up, we got stuck behind a bus (!) and, on the way down, we got stuck in a hailstorm. But never mind. As you approach the monastery, there is a car park on the left (for which we had to pay 3 leva). There is then a second car park a little further on, and the road stops.

Glozhene Monastery is said to have been founded by a prince from Kiev called George Glozh (who gave his name to the village below) in the thirteenth century. Originally, the monastery, which is dedicated to St George, was down in the village, but the icon of St George kept disappearing and reappearing on top of the hill (a wonderful site with stunning views), so in the end the monks got the message and moved the monastery uphill. You are unlikely to come across a more dramatically located monastery, which helped keep it protected during Ottoman rule. There even used to be a secret tunnel connecting the monastery with the village below, but it was destroyed during an earthquake. You can enter the church and light a candle. There is also a restaurant serving food.

You may find that the day’s excursion has been long enough, but if you still have energy, there is a cave called Morovitsa, one of the longest in Bulgaria, the path to which begins at the gate of the monastery. It is a six-kilometre round trip, which took us 2¼ hours. The path heads right from the monastery and soon becomes a muddy track. In little under one kilometre, this track brought us out into the open, next to a picnic hut. Be careful. You need to join a track that is higher up, on your right. After one kilometre, a path leaves this track on the left, clearly signposted for the cave. The path crosses a stream and then descends rather steeply to the cave. Be careful, because it is slippery. I wouldn’t say this part of the visit is essential – it really depends on your priorities.

To return to Sofia, drive back through Malak Izvor. On reaching the road from Glozhene, go left (signposted for Yablanitsa, 1 km). You will pass under the motorway. Drive into Yablanitsa until you reach a T-junction. Turn left here (signposted for Sofia, 80 km). At the next T-junction, again turn left (signposted for Sofia, 76 km). You will leave Yablanitsa and almost immediately reach the slip road for the motorway. Drive safely!

I had already visited the waterfalls in Teteven and wasn’t planning to include them because we went too early, in winter, before the snow melt. It makes such a difference going in May. Together with Vara Waterfall in Glozhene, they were magical, majestic and mystical.