Peak 29 | Hoverla, Ukraine | 2061m

Something I'd read before visiting here is that Ukrainians are very proud of their high point, and it's highly celebrated within the country. That became obvious as soon as I arrived. The trails there were among the most worn that I'd ever walked on, trekkers arrived in the hundreds, and the national flag seemed to cover everything in sight.

The highest point in Ukraine — Click here to view the Instagram post

Quick Summary

• Starting point - Zaroslyak chalet

• Route taken - Green up, Blue down

• Total ascent - 900 m

• Total length - 9 km round trip

• Total time for the climb - 3 hours

• Expense category - #Low

• Equipment - #StandardHike

• Difficulty - #Level2 of 5

• Enjoyment - #3stars of 5*

Chisinau to Ukraine

8th July

Our journey here had started in the Moldovan capital of Chisinau the day before. However, our schedule never foresaw us travel to Chisinau in the first place. It's a long-winded story, but we found ourselves in the sketchiest moments of the trip. It involved us having to bail on our bed for the night in fear for our safety and head to the capital late at night.

The following morning we were keen to move on. We had a 500 km drive to do that day on some pretty sorry looking roads and dirt tracks.

We arrived in the Ski resort of Polyanytsya near the mountain in a complete downpour. But thankfully, the forecast for the following was looking much better.

9th July

To get to the Hoverla requires you to enter a national park where a guard will ask for some small change to pass through. From the barrier, it's another long unsurfaced road to the starting point.

It wasn't a particularly nice day. The wind was very cold and it was still so busy. The The paths were so worn in the forest at the lower levels that they went down to the tree roots.

The hike is relatively short but steep. There are two routes. We went for the easier but longer route on the way up and the steeper route on the way back.