Rhodope Mountains

The western Rhodopes form a broad highland between the Mesta valley and the plains of Thrace. Forested ridges are separated by deep valleys, and rivers arising here include the Vacha and the Chepinska. Limestone country has been shaped into caves and gorges, among them the Yagodina Cave and the narrow Trigrad Gorge. The western mountains are higher than the eastern Rhodopes, with a colder mountain climate on their upper slopes and forests spreading across much of the range.