steve_t
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As I am catching up on trip reports, might as well carry on.
This is from New Year in Georgia: the one in the Caucasus, not the nice warm one in the States. I wanted to visit an old friend of mine with whom I used to climb and walk. In his previous life he was Irakli, but a few years ago he abandoned this world to lead a quieter life as Father Luke, living in a small hut in the hills, reading the Bible, praying and breeding trout for a local monastery. It was good to see him again, although he had changed, never saw anyone so peaceful before. Not easy to explain what I felt, if you want me to be honest.
We left Tbilisi and headed up the Georgian Military Highway, the main road that cuts right through the Caucasus mountain range, past Stepantsminda (St.Stephen – now isn’t that a coincidence) and the local peak of Kazbegi, which is about 5025m (I guess 16400 feet). We went through the Pass of the Cross, which itself is about 9500 feet above sea level.
Weather was good on the way in, less so on the way back. The snow is late this season, but it caught up with us, which wasn’t good news as we didn’t have the right tyres and went into somebody else on the way back down. Still, nobody was hurt but the insurance company.
So here we go: in my usual style, just a few words for each photo:
..... at the top of the pass (I just hate being photographed, but you need the proof I guess)
.... this was a waterfall at some stage. Maybe you call it a "waterfell" now?
.... cutting through from the pass
.... valley below, first in a series of "steps" to Stepantsminda
.... first valley (or bottom of the first "step")
.... those are cows grazing on the hillside. Mountaineer cows, now that's a thought :54:
.... typical mountain village in Georgia
.... heading on down to step 2, the next valley, which is in fog
.... the next valley down: every spare inch is cultivated, there are some not-so-small villages and small towns down here
.... village watchtower, part of a defence chain against mountain raiders
.... the valley where Father Luke lives, looking back to Mount Kazbegi
.... you all know me - got to find a wooden hut somewhere :4:
.... good climb, done a lot of walking and scrambling in this area, but no longer into such technical stuff (the insurance premiums are the real turn-off)
.... another watch-tower
.... and two views of the ranges in the lower valley we eventually reached.
Sorry there are so many photos, but these are bjust a small selection. I am glad I have friends there, so will be back later this yeat if I can. Got my sights on a nice little spot for some overnights :33:
This is from New Year in Georgia: the one in the Caucasus, not the nice warm one in the States. I wanted to visit an old friend of mine with whom I used to climb and walk. In his previous life he was Irakli, but a few years ago he abandoned this world to lead a quieter life as Father Luke, living in a small hut in the hills, reading the Bible, praying and breeding trout for a local monastery. It was good to see him again, although he had changed, never saw anyone so peaceful before. Not easy to explain what I felt, if you want me to be honest.
We left Tbilisi and headed up the Georgian Military Highway, the main road that cuts right through the Caucasus mountain range, past Stepantsminda (St.Stephen – now isn’t that a coincidence) and the local peak of Kazbegi, which is about 5025m (I guess 16400 feet). We went through the Pass of the Cross, which itself is about 9500 feet above sea level.
Weather was good on the way in, less so on the way back. The snow is late this season, but it caught up with us, which wasn’t good news as we didn’t have the right tyres and went into somebody else on the way back down. Still, nobody was hurt but the insurance company.
So here we go: in my usual style, just a few words for each photo:
..... at the top of the pass (I just hate being photographed, but you need the proof I guess)
.... this was a waterfall at some stage. Maybe you call it a "waterfell" now?
.... cutting through from the pass
.... valley below, first in a series of "steps" to Stepantsminda
.... first valley (or bottom of the first "step")
.... those are cows grazing on the hillside. Mountaineer cows, now that's a thought :54:
.... typical mountain village in Georgia
.... heading on down to step 2, the next valley, which is in fog
.... the next valley down: every spare inch is cultivated, there are some not-so-small villages and small towns down here
.... village watchtower, part of a defence chain against mountain raiders
.... the valley where Father Luke lives, looking back to Mount Kazbegi
.... you all know me - got to find a wooden hut somewhere :4:
.... good climb, done a lot of walking and scrambling in this area, but no longer into such technical stuff (the insurance premiums are the real turn-off)
.... another watch-tower
.... and two views of the ranges in the lower valley we eventually reached.
Sorry there are so many photos, but these are bjust a small selection. I am glad I have friends there, so will be back later this yeat if I can. Got my sights on a nice little spot for some overnights :33:
The first lot are a bit old but from the same area as this winter trip, however the camera was a previous generation. The last 3 are just nice to look at - it is a beautiful country, I was posted there for nearly three years and travelled all over the place, often on foot or even horseback.
