Adventure in the Carpathians

This story is not a typical travel post. But I am convinced that it is suitable for this community.

In the summer of 2020, when everyone was still very afraid of the coronavirus and it was almost impossible to go abroad, my friends and I decided to go on a hike to the Carpathian Mountains. We planned the route in advance, our hike was to last 3 days.

Our hike started from the mountain town of Yaremche, where we arrived by public transport. Why public transport? Because the end point of our route was in another town, from where we planned to go home by public transport.

We pre-booked a rooms in a private house for one night.

A rock could be seen from the window of my room.

As it turned out, there was nothing good in it. Rocks periodically rolled down this cliff all night, making it impossible for me to sleep. So I went on a hike quite tired.

The weather for the hike was surprisingly good, so we easily covered 25 km on the first day. So far, everything went according to plan and we admired the mountain scenery.

And when the sun began to set

we set up camp on the hillside:

After a lot of physical activity, I managed to rest better in the tent than the night before in a private house. But the next day our plans went awry.

Another group of tourists passed us during breakfast. They were in a hurry. As they passed by, they told us that they had seen a bear near this place. The prospect of meeting a wild bear in the mountains is not very pleasant. But our route ran exactly in the direction where the wild animal was recorded.

We all decided that most likely the bear had already left, and if it did not, then seeing a group of people will quickly go away. However, one member of our group was not impressed by these arguments. We clearly saw that he was very scared.

In spite of everything, we set off on the planned route. We had to go down the mountain and go through a wooded area. And then the unexpected happened.

Our frightened friend wanted to go to the bushes (to the toilet). He took a few steps back and wanted to go into the thicket so he couldn't be seen. Unfolding the bushes, he saw a rather huge pile of shit, fresh, still steaming. Frightened by the stories about the bear, he immediately decided that it was a fresh bear trail. Unfortunately, another member of our group passed by the bushes, who fell a little behind due to fatigue. he stood on a dry branch that broke loudly.

That was the last straw for our frightened friend. He decided that he was being attacked by a bear. With a terrible cry, he ran away from the bushes in panic, not choosing a direction. Other members of our team thought something had happened to him and ran after him. Two more, who went the furthest, through the echoes thought that this cry is the cry of a wild animal and quickly headed to the meadow to leave the forest as soon as possible.

As a result, our group ran in different directions. Our friend, who was frightened by an imaginary bear, ran so fast out of fear that no one could catch up. In addition, there was no mobile connection in that place.

In an instant I was left alone. Nobody responded to my cries. It was getting dark. I did not like the prospect of spending the night in a tent, I decided to go down to the nearest signs of civilization.

By nightfall, I managed to get on the asphalt road, which from time to time cars drove. But the main thing in this place was mobile communication. I was able to call four of the six members of our group. It turned out that we were scattered over a fairly long distance.

By nightfall, I managed to get on the asphalt road, which from time to time cars drove. But most importantly, there was a mobile connection in this place. I was able to call four of the six members of our group. It turned out that we were scattered over a fairly long distance. We identified one village as a collection point.

As a result, five of us gathered at the assembly point by morning. It turned out that a friend who was scared of a bear managed to stop a car and convince the driver that a bear was chasing him. The driver took him to the village of Tatariv. There he finally informed us that he was all right, and despite our opinion, got on the train and went home.

In the morning we also decided to take a bus home.

This is how our hike to the mountains ended unexpectedly. Thanks for reading. I hope you found it interesting.

Note: The photos were taken with my camera, as well as the cameras of my friends.