East of Gotse the main road to Dospat, Devin and ultimately Smolyan dives across the Mesta valley, while a secondary road heads northeast towards the village of Ognyanovo on the far side of the river. On the way it passes the ruins of Nicopolis ad Nestrum , once a staging point on the Roman road from Constantinople to the Adriactic. There's not a lot left to see save for lines of stones in the grass, but it's an evocative site, framed by the distant mountains which stand guard on either side of the valley. From Ognyanovo an unmarked road (ask for "Kovatchevitsa" if it's not immediately apparent) winds its way eastward into the hills, passing a dirt-poor gypsy village before leaving the Mesta valley behind. It's an impressively scenic route, providing views of distant peaks to the south and west as the road heads up the scrub-covered slopes of a narrow side valley.

After 10km of potholes, however, it's a relief to reach LESHTEN , a pretty, picture-postcard village whose thirty-five inhabitants can be outnumbered by guests in the fifteen apartments here (tel 07527/448 or 0751/29107; US$30-50 for apartments sleeping 1-4 people). Converted from traditional homes by the owner of the restaurant beside the church, all apartments have TV, ensuite bathroom and underfloor heating. Four kilometres beyond Leshten, the road passes through Gorno Dryanovo , a Pomak (Bulgarian Muslim) village which ekes a living from nearby tobacco fields - the more enterprising locals, it is said, augment their earnings by cultivating marijuana.

Another 4km or so uphill, KOVACHEVITSA is twice the size of Leshten and less sanitized, its tumbledown stone houses leaning over narrow cobbled alleyways or mud tracks, with expansive vistas of the Pirin mountains opening up to the southwest. It has long been the favoured end-of-the-world retreat for Sofia media types - indeed numerous historical epics have used Kovatchevitsa's old houses as a backdrop - but much of the local population has moved down the valley to Gotse Delchev, leaving the elderly to tend the fields and graze the goats. There are plenty of places to stay , with several old houses transformed into B&Bs, and the tourist office in Gotse Delchev (if it's open) can help in making reservations. Cosiest is Kapsâzovata Kâshta (tel 07527/443 or 02/9811671; US$36-60.), its smart ensuite rooms decked out in rustic style, although the Milchevata Kâshta (tel 07527/445 or 02/43394; US$18-36) and Zhechevata Kâshta (tel 07527/461 or 02/810305; US$18-36) aren't far behind in the comfort stakes. The B&Bs usually offer full board; there's nowhere else to eat or drink in Kovatchevitsa save for the Mehana Sinya Vir , a basic place near the entrance to the village.