The Stara Planina ("Old Mountains") or Balkan mountain range is an extension of the Carpathian mountain range, separated from it by the Danube River. This range runs 560km from eastern Serbia westward through central Bulgaria to Cape Emine on the Black Sea. Sometimes included in term Balkan, but not Stara Planina, are the Rila and Pirin ranges in South_Western Bulgaria.
The highest peak of the region is Musala (2,925 m) in the Vitosha mountains near Sofija (Rila range), closely followed by Vikren (Rila range) and Greek Olympus.
The highest peaks of the Stara Planina itself are in central Bulgaria. The highest peak is Botev (2,376m), located in the Central Balkan National Park (established 1991). Dairy products, such as Kashkaval are produced here, as well as wine, plum and grape brandy known as Rakia.
Close to mount Botev is Kalofer, the birth place of Christo Botev, the national hero who died in the mountains near Vratsa in 1876 in the struggle against the Ottoman Empire. Also close to mount Botev is the Shipka ("rosehip") Pass, the scene of the battle in 1878 which eventually ended Turkish rule in the Balkans.
Stara Planina is remarkable for its flora and fauna. The most beautiful Bulgarian mountain flower Edelweiss grows there on peak Koziata stena.
In earlier times the mountains were known as the Haemus Mons, a name that is believed to derive from the ThracianIme (or Imeon, Aemon), rendered as Aimon and Saimon in Greek. Emine and Emona are derived from this name.
Balkan Peninsula, peninsula in south-eastern Europe, bounded on the east by the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea, on the south by the Mediterranean Sea, and on the west by the Adriatic and Ionian seas.
The Balkan Peninsula generally encompasses the countries that are commonly known as the Balkan states: Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, Albania, continental Greece, and Bulgaria.
The Balkan Peninsula is a region of great geographical diversity—from the flat plains of the Danube to the forest-covered RilaMountains and the barren regions of karst.
Balkan Peninsula, peninsula in southeastern Europe, bounded on the east by the Black and Aegean seas, on the south by the Mediterranean Sea, and on the west by the Adriatic and Ionian seas.
The Balkan Peninsula generally encompasses the countries that are commonly known as the Balkan states: Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, Albania, Greece, and Bulgaria.
The BalkanMountains form the largest continuous range; other mountainous sections are the so-called Dinaric Alps along the Adriatic coast, the Rhodope chain between the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and the Maritsa Valley, the Pindus range in northwestern Greece, and isolated summits of historical importance, including Mounts Olympus, Pelion, and Óssa in Greece.
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