Kresna

Kresna municipality covers parts of the Struma Valley with the impressive Kresna Gorge and also parts of Pirin mountain and Maleshevska mountain. The region is beautiful with its virgin nature and astonishing landscapes. The town of Kresna is located on the two sides of the main road E-79. Before the town, near a beautiful curve of the river, is positioned the monument of the warriors who died in the Kresna-Razlog Uprising in 1878-79. Really impressive are also the church “St. Ivan Rilski”, the beautiful centrum, the sand formations Melo and the large mounts of Pirin.

In Pirin is located the beautiful site Sinanitsa (The Blue Peak), where a road passes and leads to one of the most beautiful lakes in Pirin.  Vlahi and Oshtava are popular villages with their magnificent nature and mineral springs. In Maleshevska mountain there is a very old forest, and near Breznitsa village is located the monestry “St. Ilia”.

The remains of the ancient town of Neyne (near the village of Dolna Gradeshnitsa) and the medieval monastery “St, St Kozma and Damian” near Vlahi, are examples of the interesting medieval history of the region. In every village of the municipality there are interesting churches, from which the oldest is “Hail Mary” – 1750.

The Kresna Gorge – a protected area, near the town of Kresna, Blagoevgrad municipality. It is a hotspot for biodiversity and many plant and animal species can be seen there, some of which are mentioned in The Red Data Book of Bulgaria. The gorge is very popular among the extreme sports lovers, especially in the spring, when the snow is melting and the river is big.

Natural Reserve “Tisata” – located at the foot of Pirin mountain and in 1949 was declared a reserve with the objective to protect the biggest population of Juniperus excelsa not only in Bulgaria, but in the whole of Europe.

Other plant species living on the territory of the reserve are oak, winter oak, black pine and others. There are over 460 species of plants. From the animal world there are representatives of canaries, a rocky masons, a white-fronted shrike and others.

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