Gara Bov village is located about 16 km north of Svoge and 57 km from Sofia. Gara Bov village is 10 km from Svoge and 51 km from Sofia. The village of Gara Bov can be reached from the capital by train or car, along the national road ІІ-16 along the Iskar Gorge, for about 1 hour. The distance from Gara Bov village to Bov village is 6 km. The total territory of the two villages is 33.2 sq. km and it borders the villages of Svoge Municipality – Tserovo, Zhelen, Leskovdol, Osenovlag, Elenov Dol, Levishte, the village of Lakatnik and Gara Lakatnik, Zanoge and Zasele. The average altitude of the village of Bov is about 820 m and the village of Gara Bov – about 340 m. The population of the village of Bov, according to data from 2013, is 101 people and of the village of Gara Bov – 1052 people. The celebration of the village of Bov is held each year on the church feast of Spasovden, and the one of the village of Gara Bov – on Pentecost. Since 2006, the days between Spasovden and Pentecost are already celebrated as the traditional Holidays of Bov, and in each of these days there are festive events with a rich cultural and historical program that include joint initiatives with the Municipality of Svoge, Gara Bov Town Hall, Gara Bov Primary School, Velizar Peev Vocational School in Svoge, as well as sports and tourist companies, local chess and football sports clubs and others. Thus, the two settlements symbolically link their past and present. The name of the two villages comes from the legend that in 1206, after the death of Baldwin Flanders, the captive French knight Saint-Boeuf was settled by Tsar Kaloyan within the Iskar Gorge. There he built a fortress and forever left his name in today’s village of Bov. Thanks to Bov’s Festivals, which have been held over the years, the local symbols – logo, flag and coat of arms – are born after specially announced competitions.
Geography
At the Gara Bov in the Iskra River gorge, the climate is moderate continental, accompanied by misty, wet and cold winters, early spring and cool summer. In the territory of the village of Bov, the climate is temperate and the annual temperatures are in a wide range from + 28 ° C to -25 ° C. In the high ridge of the land, which exceeds the 1200-meter border, the climate is mountainous and there the winds are the strongest.