Ukraine. The Seven Peaks of the Carpathians

At the beginning of October 2021, I returned to my native mountains for the first time in the last three years. The route I chose, 95 km long, ran past the Maramureș Massif and the Chornohora Ridge, including all the Ukrainian two-thousanders and the most beautiful mountain of the Ukrainian Carpathians - Pip Ivan Maramureș.

Map of the route...

Reaching the village of Dilove and obtaining a permit at the border post to pass along the border between Ukraine and Romania, I started my planned route at half-past two in the afternoon. Climbing to the top of Shcherban, beautiful views of the Maramureș opened up before me, which I could enjoy while walking along the very crest of the ridge...

Since I started the ascent quite late, I reached the summit of Pip Ivan Maramureșky (1938 m) at sunset, which fell at seven in the evening. Just in time to see the play of golden autumn colors...

Descending from the summit, I set up my tent...

It got dark very quickly, so after having dinner, I went to sleep. Interestingly, since this part of the route is patrolled by the border service, I heard the border guards early in the morning as they inspected the area with flashlights and communicated via radio...

Waking up and packing my backpack, I continued along the route in the border zone. During the entire time, my documents and permit were checked twice...

The border between Ukraine and Romania is marked by border posts along the trail.

Walking along the border zone, amidst a not too interesting and rather long section that runs along a dirt road, beautiful views of the peaks of the Romanian Carpathians also open up...

Descending from the border zone behind Mount Stig, I continued my way through the meadows towards Mount Vykhid. From here, the entire Chornohora was clearly visible, and Hoverla could be seen in the distance...

Along the meadow paths to Mount Pip Ivan Chornohorsky...

Through the mountains of Vykhid and Vaskul, I reached the first two-thousander on my way...

Pip Ivan Chornohorsky (2028 m)...

At the summit, amidst the beautiful landscapes around, one could see the large-scale construction of the once small and neglected observatory...

From the observatory, I followed the trail along the ridge...

The next two-thousander was Mount Brebeneskul (2035 m)...

Departing a bit from the main trail, I headed to the next two-thousander, in the couloir of which is located Lake Brebeneskul...

The summit of Hutyn Tomnatyk (2016 m)...

From the summit of Hutyn Tomnatyk...

The fourth and last two-thousander of the day was the summit of Rebra (2001 m), located above a couloir with rib-like slopes...

Under the hot rays of the setting sun...

For the night, I stopped by Lake Nesamovyte...

This was an ideal place to spend the night, as the other part of the ridge, especially where Lake Brebeneskul is located, was very windy. But by Lake Nesamovyte it was quite warm and cozy. Besides me, there were three other tents here, while in the season, a whole fair gathers...

In the morning, accompanied by the sunrise, I climbed the ridge and headed towards Hoverla...

The soft colors of dawn on the deserted ridge...

Approaching almost close to the fifth two-thousander on my way and the highest peak of the Ukrainian Carpathians, the sun had fully illuminated it. The most beautiful view of Hoverla...

Reaching the summit of Hoverla (2061 m), I found myself alone here for the first time... There wasn't a soul... This was the seventh time I had climbed this mountain...