Bulgaria Ski discussion board

Just come back. Ski road back to bansko is open and in pretty good shape. The last 1km is a bit tricky for beginner boarders because it is quite flat and the snow cannons have been going full pelt building up sticky mounds of artificial snow which slow you down.

Chalin Valog beginner run next to the drag lift - excellent for beginners. Other runs at Chalin Valog were very (and I mean very) icy and best avoided unless you're a good boarder/skier. I've been boarding for over 10 years and been on a couple of dozen boarding holidays and I'd say that the closest I ever came to breaking a wrist was on Friday on the short black section that runs under the gondola from the top of the chair.

Ski road number 2 was closed and very rocky in the last section. The runs down to the chair on the extreme left were closed - not enough snow in places. We did them a couple of times and found lots of powder but unless you are a good boarder/skier and comfortable with going into closed areas then don't bother. We saw one group that we couldn't believe had ventured down there - very obviously new skiers and boarders side-slipping towards a bit where you actually have to cross a river on quite narrow bridges of snow.

Going higher up all runs had some scraped icy areas - the runs at the very top were the best. On most runs the best snow is the soft stuff at the side.

Generally you should have a very good time. We did. It was our first time in bansko and thought it was great for boarders (apart from the icy bits). Loads of natural hits - the place is like a big playground really.