My first week in Ukraine flew by. I arrived last Saturday night in to Odessa after a great flight to Munich which included a hot towel (for what, I still don’t know) and Toblerone. I like how the Germans do things. I got to meet the zurBurg family, my hosts for my time in Odessa, and talk over the plans for the week, which included a backpacking trip in the Carpathians.
On Sunday afternoon, Kurt and two of his daughters and I joined a group of 13 university students (mostly guys) for a week of backpacking in the mountains. We all got on the overnight train to get us to where our trip would start. The next morning, we boarded a marshuka (bus) and rode the 2-hour drive to the base of the mountain. From there, we walked 8 kilometers to the real base camp. What a way to start a week of backpacking. Our first day in the Carpathians, we decided to climb the highest peak in Ukraine, called Gaverla, which is about 6,000 ft. high. We climbed it in 4 hours. Yes, it sounds insane, because it was insane.
Eventually, we reached the top… or so we thought. What we thought was the top of the mountain was really about half-way. It was the worst joke ever. We finally made it to the top, which was completely hidden within a cloud. Once we made it, we all just fell in a heap at the top and rested, proud yet still in shock that we survived the climb.
Climbing down was no small task either, but I managed. We camped at a low spot in the mountains for the night. The second day in the mountains consisted of ridgeline hiking… about 7 kilometers of it. The wind was whipping so hard that it nearly blew us off the side of the mountain, but we survived and made it to a lake where we camped for two days.
It was so cold in the mountains, and very rainy. It was wet and gross during the day and bitter cold at night. On the last day of our trip, we hiked 7 kilometers down through the mountains to catch the bus to get on the train back to Odessa again. This last day was so beautiful- the clouds and rain lifted so that I could really see the mountains, trees, and wildflowers. All the effort we put forth was worth it for that last day of hiking- I really saw how beautiful the Carpathians are.
We made the bus and train and got back into Odessa the next morning (Friday).
So yeah- backpacking in the Carpathians… that’s one way to cure jet lag. I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone, but it definitely was a great time of hiking, hanging out with some great new friends, and enjoying God’s creation around us.
So yeah- backpacking in the Carpathians… that’s one way to cure jet lag. I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone, but it definitely was a great time of hiking, hanging out with some great new friends, and enjoying God’s creation around us.