Pirin is the most beautiful and most Alpine type of mountain in Bulgaria. It is the second highest (Vihren peak 2914m.)after the Rila mountain (in Bulgaria) and third in the Balkan peninsula. Because of the unique nature of the Pirin Mountain, in 1976 the Pirin National Park was found to cover - at present - nearly the whole of Northern Pirin to an area of some 40 000 hectares. Pirin has the typical climate of a mountain but with a well-expressed Mediterranean influence, mainly through the valleys of the Struma and Mesta rivers. This is why Pirin is the mountain with the greatest number of sunny days throughout the year in comparison to Rila, Stara Planina, Vitosha and Osogovo. The average annual temperature in the area of the Vihren Chalet (at an altitude of about 2000 metres above sea level) is 3.7°C, the average temperature in January is 4.2°C below zero while in August it reaches 12.8°C. Precipitation (predominantly snowfalls) is higher in November and December and least in August. The average rain and snowfall at Mt. Vihren is within 1500 to 1600 millimetres per square meter annually. It is cloudy mostly in May and December. The dominating winds in winter are those from the north-west and during the summer - from the south-western direction.