White Arkhyz river. barite waterfall. Arkhyz. Tourist base "Arkhyz"
I realized that autumn was already passing and I finally decided to take a ride, especially since I had been raking the accumulated cases upon arrival for the whole week. The forecast promised rain, but before that it had been sunny for several days, I decided to take a chance. Indeed, the clouds parted, but in the distance, over Arkhyz, it was quite clear. I'm passing In general, it's cool, I couldn't go especially fast.
But more often the gorge along Zelenchuk was in the shade, at Bogoslovsky Lake the company obviously spent the night. Well, our telescope is on top, of course: 
Arkhyz passed. Now it's clear if you look back: 
But ahead is much less comfortable, the clouds are falling lower and lower: 
Turn towards Sofiyskaya Polyana on the new bridge: 
Despite the fact that the tourist season seems to be ending, there are people and a marketplace in the Taulu glade: 
I go straight, leaving on the right hand turn to 
They are building a new resort. But the hills are gloomy in the distance, Psysh (mountain) is lost in the clouds, glaciers are almost invisible. I'm going along the Psysh (river) 
A couple of years ago, the border zone began here (about 4 km from Taulu). Now there is a joyful inscription that "the border zone is 7 km away! Entry (passage) with passes ..." But my plans do not go that far. 
The road sometimes looks like this, but even on my bike it is quite passable: 
More often - a pleasant primer 
When I was in Chamonix three weeks ago, I thought that nature is almost the same, but here on an almost "wild" path, one suddenly bumps into a civilized sign. Now we have these inscriptions: 
It has been raining for a long time, but it is quite tolerable, the jacket (from the sale in the same Chamonix) successfully withstood the test drive. Sometimes the rain stopped, the slides opened up. There is almost no snow on the southern slopes yet:
Rivers cross the road 
Somewhere 8 km from Taulu came to the Belaya River. And at first I even doubted, it seemed that there was not enough water, no deeper than knee-deep, a couple of jeeps easily passed before that. And before that, I was in these places a couple of times exclusively descending from above and it seemed that they only did that they crossed streams along logs. Brook again?
Moreover, there was a log here: 
But I decided to check, dragged the bike along the path along the river, without crossing. I soon realized that I would have to leave it before a big climb. Literally after 300-400 meters, wading along a very narrow path (it was a wide tourist path), I came to the dirt road, where there were ... two "Nivas", not very dirty. It looks like it was possible to turn off earlier and drive through (there was a lapel half a kilometer before the river, but I decided that the puddles were too big). They assured me that I was on the right track.
A little more up. Here is the waterfall. Unfortunately, the photo is not very clear, it seems that it is very gentle. 
But it's not. I remember that in the middle of summer it was impossible to get so close to it at all, but now the water has subsided. But still, the gorge is severe. 
I also tried it on video:
All this time it was raining, constantly wiping the lens. At least something happened on the self-timer 
Turned back, at times the sun peeped through, then rain again.
He made a fire under a pine tree, had dinner. 
And this "delicious" photo turned out to be the swan song of my PowerShot SX130IS. In general, I didn’t like it from the very beginning, two years ago I bought it as a compact replacement for the old S5 IS, but the replacement is so-so. On my penultimate trip, I dropped it in the Barajas-T4, so it worked with a lot of pressure now. And when I decided to remove the crossroads, I stupidly dropped it on the asphalt, the lens cracked. So this is already taken from a mobile phone:
And back, on the wet road: 
I also thought about dropping by the "Romantic", to see how
Wed, 31.08.2016 - 07:16
Mornings in the mountains are beautiful. Even if we spent the night not at 2800m, but only at 1700m, it was still fabulous." src="/sites/all/modules/wysiwyg/plugins/break/images/spacer.gif" title="<--break-->!}">
It took a couple of morning hours, as always, for everyday life. And the proximity to the car (12 km) made us a little lazier than usual.
Only at the beginning of the tenth we finally moved out of the parking lot. It was decided to reach the waterfalls of the Belaya River, and then decide what to do next.
There is a road leading to the waterfalls, it is impossible to get lost. UAZ vehicles with mattress covers began to come across. They are brought here from the Taulu glade.
We got to the waterfalls, I took a couple of shots, and the Go Pro stopped turning on, not a single battery could start it.
He took out the phone, there was only 20% of the charge left. I ran and took some pictures. The waterfalls are beautiful, but so-so compared to the Sofia ones, but there are much fewer people here.
During this morning, two people asked us if we were going to the Seven-Colored Lake. We were intrigued, but we did not find it in the navigator. Okay, let's go to Ayulya and ask tourists along the way.
A little away from the waterfalls, the path goes to the left and up. The ascent is steep, long and challenging.
I came across a couple of tourist groups at the meeting, I asked some of them if we would reach Ayulu in an hour, to which I heard 4 hours, guys. It wrecked my morale.
After walking a little more, the rise straightened out, and it became easier to walk. The beauty of Arkhyz is in the mountains, - a local resident once told us. It's hard to disagree with him.
We walked and walked and walked. The forest gave way to open countryside, and the shade from the trees gave way to the hot rays of the sun.
It’s good that water flows everywhere in Arkhyz, and you don’t have to fight thirst.
About three hours, probably, we reached the Belorechenskoye Lake and immediately climbed to swim.
Cold water brings to life well and gives strength for further movement.
Another jerk, about an hour's rise, and we are on Ayul. Not to say that it was breathtaking here: everything is somehow gray, and there are a lot of stones. Some kind of valley of death.
Below, we saw a lake and moved towards it in order to pitch a tent on the shore.
Then it turned out that there is not one, but three lakes. The water in the lakes was not blue, unlike previously encountered. These bodies of water did not look as beautiful.
This day was perhaps the most difficult of the whole trip. We walked from morning to evening almost non-stop.
While Maxim was preparing dinner, I decided to explore the surroundings and roughly figure out where to go next. The views were dull, apart from a few lakes.
Solid stone mess and the sky frowns.
After supper I lay down in the tent and fell asleep before dark. True, then I had to wake up for tea.
On the fifth day of the hike along Arkhyz, 11 km were covered. It didn't seem like much, but it was hard. The climb was more than 1 km. Tomorrow we plan to return to the car, which is waiting in the Taulu clearing.
A trip to the waterfall on the Belaya River is a good option for those who do not want or cannot walk much. Almost to the waterfall itself, you can drive up on an off-road vehicle, and only 250-300 meters will remain on foot.
Map
Map of the main attractions of Arkhyz. To see the details, you can open and enlarge the image in a new tab.Route
The main part of the path to the waterfall on the Belaya River coincides with the route to the Sofia waterfalls. The roads diverge in the Taulu glade: to the left through the wooden bridge - to Sofiyskiye, straight ahead - in the Psysh gorge to the waterfall on the Belaya River. Travel is only possible by off-road vehicle or horse, or on foot.
After the clearing, the road to the waterfall goes along the left bank of the river. Psysh (the river is constantly on the left hand) and after 8 km leads to the confluence of the river. White and Psysh. From here the hiking part of the route starts.
To get to the waterfall, you need to climb along the river. White, keeping as close to her (to the left) as possible. The length of the walking part of the route is only 250-300 meters. Go down the same way back.
When to go?
The snow at the waterfall melts early, so you can go here as early as mid-April. The end of the walking season is in December, although since mid-October it has been gray and sad here. It is better to arrive early in the morning, while the waterfall is not too crowded.
On your own or with a guide?
The route to the waterfall on the Belaya River is not difficult, you can go here on your own. But if you want to optimize the cost of renting a UAZ (drivers name the price per car, not per passenger; the tariff is the same - at least 10 people ride, at least two), it is better to team up with other tourists, or join a group.
In mid-October, we managed to go to Arkhyz for the weekend. We had been planning this trip for a very long time, we postponed it several times for various reasons, and finally we told ourselves that if not this time, then in the near future it would not work. We were not even embarrassed by the fact that the weather forecast was not very happy - rain was promised, but we relied on the error of the forecast and did not lose, although the weather was cloudy, but there was no rain, only occasionally drizzling.
Trip to Arkhyz
Arkhyz is a mountainous region in Karachay-Cherkessia. Actually, this is the name of a small village in the Zelenchuksky district, but in a broad sense, this is the name of a fairly large tourist area, starting from the very village of Zelenchukskaya (named after the mountain river flowing here) and up to the Caucasus Range itself. That is, it begins in the foothills, and ends already high in the mountains. It is immediately noticeable that they want to attract tourists here - the roads are new all the way from the village of Zelenchukskaya to Arkhyz itself, in some places there are still sections under repair, but there were no traffic jams, the roads were not loaded.
I will not be original if I say that I love mountains madly. If I see mountains in front of me, then neither any inconveniences, nor weather vagaries, nor distances overcome are of particular importance to me. But the mountains of Arkhyz are something amazing. Terrible, powerful, majestic - it is difficult to find epithets to describe them.
Trip to Arkhyz
You can go to Arkhyz at any time of the year: in spring, the green mountains are decorated with flowers, the aroma of herbs, and young vegetation; in summer it is very beautiful here and much cooler than in the Black Sea resorts; in winter, the ski season opens here - Arkhyz, by the way, is recognized as the best young ski resort in the country. But I love the mountains in autumn - it's such an amazing riot of colors! Therefore, this year I fulfilled my old dream - a weekend in Arkhyz.
Trip to Arkhyz
Trip to Arkhyz
We planned the weekend program in such a way as to see both sights and natural beauties.
Travel plan to Arkhyz
On the first day, even before settling into the camp site, we stopped at Nizhne-Arkhyz settlement looking at what is left of the ancient capital of Alanya; then we went up to the famous Face of Christ, which is located on the other side of the road and the Zelenchuk River. These two attractions deserve to be told about them in a separate review, which I promise to do in the near future.
Beforehand, of course, I consulted with those who visited Arkhyz, read on the Internet what you can see there, so the Lower Arkhyz settlement and the Face of Christ were in my first place in the mandatory program. In second place, fortunately that all this is nearby, was the famous observatory, which is called the "Eye of the Planet".
Trip to Arkhyz
Trip to Arkhyz
Sightseeing tour of the astrophysical observatory
Founded back in the 60s, this astrophysical observatory is still the largest ground-based space observation object in our country. Even at school, being a very inquisitive child, I attended an astronomy circle, so I heard about it more than once, but seeing it with my own eyes is fantastic.
Trip to Arkhyz
The observatory itself is located high in the mountains - the height is more than 2 km. above sea level. To go up to it, you need to turn left at the sign, this will be a check-in to the Lower Arkhyz settlement (it is immediately behind the barrier), and to the road to the observatory.
Trip to Arkhyz
The road takes about 20 minutes along the mountain serpentine. Of course, there will be sharp turns, and terrible cliffs, and stuffy ears, and most importantly, stunning views. Behind one of the turns there is an observation deck with gorgeous views: you can see not only the mountains, including the snowy ones, but also the road that repeats the bends of the Zelenchuk River. On the other side you can see snow-capped peaks.
Trip to Arkhyz
We will then have to return to this road in order to drive to the village of Arkhyz, but this is later, and now the observatory is waiting for us. After driving a little more, we went up to the observatory. There were several more tourist buses, including those brought schoolchildren on an excursion. It also offers stunning views of the surrounding mountains.
Trip to Arkhyz
But the main thing, of course, is the astrophysical observatory, which is considered the largest in Europe. Here is the tower of a large telescope (its diameter is six meters), which has a fixed shape, next to it is a large crane, which is mounted on rails leading to a large tower. All this creates some fantastically unrealistic picture. Plus, just a terrible wind that knocks you down, and a strange silence - only the wind is buzzing and metal structures “groan” and creak from the wind. A little creepy, the impression that you are at least on the set of a science fiction film.
Trip to Arkhyz
Everyone was particularly delighted with the optical illusion created by moving clouds. Someone from the group noticed that because of the clouds quickly escaping from us, if you stand under a huge crane, it seems that it is falling. Wow, just breathtaking.
A little further there are two more telescopes - smaller, and several other objects of unknown purpose.
Trip to Arkhyz
While we were walking around the observatory, a group left the building after the tour. An excursion to the tower of a large telescope costs 150 rubles, lasts about an hour, including watching an educational film. But the guide who accompanied the group said that they did not really like the tour, since the young man who led it was not particularly interested in attracting the attention of the audience, he spoke dry scientific language, in general, not that.
We, in fact, were not going on an excursion inside, since we did not have much time - they were already waiting for us at the tourist base, but if someone gathers, maybe they will be more lucky with a guide. I think, if you wish, in such a place you can make an amazingly interesting excursion that will appeal not only to schoolchildren, but also to adults.
Tourist base "Arkhyz"
After a sightseeing tour to the observatory, our path lay in the village of Arkhyz. We stopped at a tourist base with an original and unexpected name - Arkhyz. It is located on the very edge of the village, by the way, very close to the territory of the reserve. We were not particularly picky when choosing a base, we listened to the advice of friends who had already rested here.
This is a fairly inexpensive option, well worth the price. I was pleased with the large territory of the camp site with a large number of gazebos, nearby - barbecues, there are playgrounds, a lot of swings. Several hulls. We were placed in the first two-story wooden building. There are many rooms, mostly triples and quadruples. Facilities - along the corridor. On the floor there are two toilets with several cabins, there are refrigerators, a hall, showers on the first floor. There is also a dining room and a single TV on the ground floor. The rooms are quite modest. But, in principle, we did not come here to sit in the room or watch TV. Therefore, when we returned here late in the evening, terribly tired after a trip to the White Falls (I'm getting ahead of myself a little), we were quite pleased with hot water in the shower, clean bedding and warm rooms.
When we arrived, lunch was already waiting for us. They fed us, really, very tasty: there was a delicious rich thick lagman (real), each - a large plate of hot, only from the fire, khachapuri (or maybe they are called differently) with potatoes, as well as fragrant herbal tea. The kitchen can be used at any time, there is a stove, microwave, refrigerator, several electric kettles, dishes. At any time you can ask for their wonderful herbal tea - the owners are very pleasant, hospitable. The next morning we were fed more traditionally - mashed potatoes, goulash and fresh vegetable salad. But everything is very tasty, home-style. For dessert - fried donuts with honey. Honey real, mountain. By the way, tea, honey, mushrooms picked in the mountains, even jam from cones can be bought here, from the owners, and cheaper than in retail outlets. In general, if you are not too demanding, and you do not need to provide an alpine chalet for a holiday in the mountains, then it is quite acceptable to spend the night. Tourist base - it is a tourist base, and far from bad.
But back to my story. Having settled in (or rather, leaving things in the rooms), having a delicious lunch, barely warming ourselves with tea and dressing warmly, we went on a new excursion. For our group, a large military off-road vehicle GAZ-66 was ordered, which already with its serious look suggested that the road was waiting for us to be extreme.
Trip to Arkhyz
Trip to the White Falls
From the camp site we drove for about an hour. For about 10 minutes it was a normal road, then a mountain road began with potholes, ascents, descents, fords and other delights. The driver honestly warned us that it would be great to “sausage” us. But no one was indignant, on the contrary, it was fun in the car, every bump was accompanied by friendly screams and laughter, after all, everyone understood where we were going, and were mentally ready for such a shake-up.
After an hour of such a ride, shaken up and happy, although we beat off some places a little, we stopped in the forest, in a small clearing, then we had to climb on foot. The ascent is quite steep, among the trees, in some places we had to hold on to the trees and roots.
Trip to Arkhyz
Trip to Arkhyz
In several places, we had to cross small streams, so shoes here are needed not only comfortable and warm, but also waterproof. After a few minutes of climbing, we went to the river, then we were already climbing along the noisy mountain river, along the banks of which there were many fallen trees. In spring and summer, the river is more full-flowing and stormy, often uprooting old trees.
Trip to Arkhyz
Trip to Arkhyz
In general, this place, of course, impresses with its originality, even wildness. It is immediately clear that tourists do not come here very often. The views that open up are striking in their severity. A special effect was added by the fact that all this was already in the evening, at dusk.
Trip to Arkhyz
Trip to Arkhyz
We stayed at the waterfall for about half an hour, but since it was already getting really dark and scary, we began to go down. Going down the mountain forest at night is quite an adventure, I tell you. How no one has broken anything yet, this is a question, but they fell several times. But on the other hand, the impressions are indescribable, and we stocked up on extreme sports for a long time to come.
Trip to Arkhyz
We got back late, dark. The next day we were waiting for a new excursion - to the Sofia Gorge. We agreed with the driver for 9 o'clock in the morning, but we still had to get together, have breakfast, as a result, the rise was scheduled for 7 o'clock. So it was necessary to sleep well, relax, dry your shoes and prepare for new experiences.
August 25th, 2011 06:15 am
I spent two weeks in the fresh air - we walked along the passes and lakes of the Western Caucasus. We went along the route: Arkhyz - trans. Barite (rad) - r. Psysh - r. Arkhyz - Moonglade - lane. Fedoseeva (glad) - r. Arkhyz - r. B. Dukka - trans. Dukka (rad) - lake. Semitsvetnoe - per. Ayu-lu - lane. Temir-Kulak (rad) - r. White - r. Psysh - lake. Kraternoye - trans. Kara-Jash - lake. Sofia - trans. Irkiz - r.Sofia - Sofia VDP. - per. Sofia Saddle (rad) - Psysh River - pos. Arkhyz. Some photos and details can be seen under the cut.
The route through the picturesque surroundings of Arkhyz was proposed by my friend Peter, who was going to pass it last year, but then the plan did not materialize. The hallmark of Arkhyz are numerous high-mountain lakes, of which there are more than a hundred in the region. The most beautiful area is to the south of the village, in the area of Mount Sofia (3637 m). Since the border between Russia and Abkhazia passes nearby, we ordered passes to the border zone in advance (2 months in advance). The easiest way to get to the place turned out to be by bus, which runs weekly from Mariupol to the Arkhyz camp site "Alania" (this year the fare was 550 UAH round trip). The use of direct transport to the place minimizes delays and expenses for customs clearance and eliminates the need to look for transport to Arkhyz locally.
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*** Day 1 *** Arriving at the place, we left our backpacks in a cafe and made an acclimatization hike to the Baritovy pass (we reached only half of the waterfalls, everyone got tired of going further). In the evening we hired a minibus, which for 1500 rubles took us to Lunnaya Polyana along a dusty road past five-star hotels under construction. *** Day 2 *** |
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*** Day 3 *** From Moonglade we went along the road along the Arkhyz River, then upstream of its tributary - the Dukka River. Thickets of horse sorrel on a hot day emitted a specific pungent smell. |
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They wanted to reach the Seven-Colored Lake in the upper reaches of the Dukka, but they did not reach it a little, they stopped in front of a shed with a herd of sheep and goats (across the river). At night they heard some kind of noise - heart-rendingly bleating sheep, dogs barking, people screaming. The next morning the shepherd said that a bear came and tried to drag the sheep away. *** Day 4 *** |
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We climbed up a little, and here it is - the Seven-Colored Lake. Indeed, you look from below - purple, from above - blue, but the rest of the colors could not be distinguished. |
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We went further up, passed three or four successively located small lakes, and further to the horizon spread such a relief that was not very convenient for movement: |
The mountain from which the river Dukka begins: |
For three hours we climbed over the boulders, finally we stopped near the lake in front of the Ayu-lu (Bear) pass |
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From the Ayu-lu pass, part of the group decided to run even higher, to the Temir-Kulak pass (3025 m). It had to be climbed along a scree with no visible paths. In the photo on the right you can see the lake on which we recently rested (from the previous photo) |
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Behind the Temir-Kulak pass to the north, a view of the already distant Abishira-Akhuba ridge and the conquered Fedoseev pass opened up: |
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We returned to Ayu-lu, took a group photo and began to descend towards the Belaya River. |
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A little lower you could see the lake, near which we decided to spend the night. Behind him, the valley of the Belaya River was green below, and the entire distant horizon was occupied by a chain of peaks. On the right, Pshish (3790 m) majestically towered, in the middle Kizgych, a part of the Main Caucasian Range, was white with glaciers and snowfields, and Sofia (3637 m) peeped out a little further to the left and further - the pearl of Arkhyz, to the foot of which we had to reach. |
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We went down to the lake, once again looked at the panorama opening on the horizon. |
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All the ground next to the lake, where we set up tents, was pitted with mouse holes. In the evening and the next morning, the tours (wild mountain goats) came, which jumped over the stones with amazing ease and were not afraid of people, coming close enough. Counted 8 rounds at the same time |
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*** Day 5 *** We descended into the valley of the Belaya River. The trail first traversed along a grassy slope, then in birch thickets, then fell steeply into a canyon in a coniferous forest. Having overcome the last meters of a steep descent, we came to a waterfall. |
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We crossed the shallow Belaya River, passed through the frontier post and headed up along the Psysh River, hoping to cross to its right bank. |
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Soon a bridge was discovered, the middle support of which was overturned by the current. But the cables held tight and the crossing was not difficult, although it took quite a long time. |
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But then the mountains decided that they were pampering us with good weather for too long, and the sky quickly became cloudy. Soon a cold rain came from them, then hail and we had to hastily look for a parking place. The water level in the river instantly rose, the dry road disappeared and my sneakers had to choke on water. In the evening we made a "taiga" fire, where we dried all kinds of clothes. *** Day 6 *** |
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*** Day 7 *** At some point, sitting six of us in our four-person tent, which was set up on a small hill, we suddenly heard a murmur. Part of the river found a new channel, on the way of which Sasha's tent turned out to be. I had to urgently organize drainage. |
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After lunch, the rain stopped and we began to climb towards the Kara-Jash pass. We managed to reach only a small but beautiful lake, shaped like a comma. In the middle of it were several grassy islands. |
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There is no firewood above the forest zone and cooking can only be done on gas burners. |
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The sunset sun no longer penetrates into the depths of the gorges. |
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*** Day 8 *** From Lake Comma we begin the ascent to the Kara-Jash pass (2900 m). We pass by the turn to the Orlyonok pass located nearby, under which many names of cities are laid out of stones. Again we slowly crawl along the moraine, sometimes small lakes of firn, snow and water come across among the stones. |
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The relief does not indulge in diversity. |
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And finally, the pass. Looking over the bend, we see the green Sophia Valley below, and very close - the Secret Lake, which we do not need to approach. |
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We slightly return to look at the beautiful Kraternoye Lake, which was not visible during the ascent. |
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We return to Kara-Jash and begin the descent from the pass. In past years, there was much more snow here, but now it is enough to arrange small rides. |
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Sofia is clearly visible ahead. |
We reached the upper Sofia lakes and set up camp. The blueness of the water is amazing - according to rumors, the depth of this lake reaches 100 meters. |
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The place is popular - besides us, there were two more groups of tourists near the lakes - from Perm and St. Petersburg. |
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Bright green grass, blue water, purple and yellow flowers, white snowfields are the real colors of the Alpine summer. |
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All the water in the lakes is flowing, constantly flowing from one lake to another. |
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In the evening I climbed higher on the hillock and took a panorama. If you watch it in full resolution, then between the dark blue and light blue lakes you can see our tent. While I was climbing, two aurochs hunters (or maybe poachers) came to the camp. When I went down to the tents, it was already getting dark. Seeing the tour, one of the hunters took a gun and ran up the scree. Permians yelled "Goat, run!" Two shots were fired, and soon the frustrated hunter came down empty-handed. |
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*** Day 9 *** We got out early in the morning to meet the dawn, but just at that moment the clouds covered the sun. Went back to sleep, ended up leaving late. But today there was a short transition ahead, and there was nowhere to hurry. The last photo was taken in front of the lake. |
| Well, how not to take a picture in such a place? |
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From the lake we rise to the Irkiz pass, which is quite low on this side, about forty meters. However, behind the pass we were expected by an order of magnitude greater drop in height. It began to rain on a steep slope and we hurried down. |
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We reached the Ak-Ayra stream, flowing from under the Sofia glacier, and set up camp among the thickets of rhododendron and fireweed. |
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After lunch, we planned to climb up and reach the foot of the West Sofia Glacier. The sky was overcast again, all the tops of the mountains were in the clouds. |
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They rose in the clouds, constantly drizzling fine cold rain. There was almost no vegetation at the top. Dirty-gray streams flowed from the Nadezhda Pass and the Sofia Glacier. |
| Katya on the background of Mount Nadezhda |
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Having reached the glacier, we took a closer look and saw a group of ten people at about half its height, which was slowly rising in the direction of the Kozhukhov glacial pass. But we didn't have crampons, nor did we have any desire to climb up the firn. After standing for five minutes, everyone froze and decided that it was time to run down. |
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It was much warmer down below, the rain stopped and the perfect alpine picture opened up. Several waterfalls murmured along the green slopes at once, but, unfortunately, only one fit into the frame. |
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*** Day 10 *** We descend along the Ak-Ayra River to the Sofia Valley. |
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On the way we go to see each waterfall. It is risky to approach some of them closer than thirty meters - you can get completely wet. |
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The transition that day was also short, and soon we were in a clearing with a magnificent view of Sofia and the glaciers of its eastern slope. There is already a motor road, there are many tents, beer, khychins (chebureks), ayran are sold in kiosks. |
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In the evening, I decided to run light to the Sofiyskoye Sedlo pass, behind which there is a reserve - the valley of the Kizgych River. Went past the waterfalls, leaving the next day. |
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While climbing the pass, the sun descended to the horizon. Everything around was in warm yellow-green tones. |
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The pass turned out to be a little further than it seemed from below (I had to climb almost 600 m) and I was a little out of breath. A cold wind blew upstairs and memorial plaques hung. The path leading to the reserve was not visible, and I ran back. When he returned to the camp, the comrades had just finished drinking all the ayran. |
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*** Day 11 *** The whole crowd went to look at the Sofia waterfalls and the pass. The waterfalls are certainly impressive. I regretted that I did not take a wide-angle and a tripod with a panoramic head. |
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But it was not possible to get to the pass - the oncoming detachment of border guards turned the whole group back. It turned out that the waterfalls, as well as the entire Sophia Valley this year, are a territory open to free visits, and the Saddle is already a border zone. Since the pass remained in the camp, we had to turn back. However, I did not particularly regret it, since in the evening the lighting on the pass was still better. |
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We gathered and went along the road to the Taulu glade, where the last overnight stay was planned. Before it was eight kilometers on a dirt road, and while we were walking, all the time Sofia was peeking out from behind with her glaciers. There was already a complete civilization in the clearing - a bazaar, a memorial to the defenders of the Caucasus in the Second World War, horseback riding, geocaching, baths and selling souvenirs. |
*** Day 12 ***
We returned to Arkhyz along the Arkhyz-Pkhie road under construction. Dust, transport, camp site, bus, border, smoky Mariupol, and finally, Kharkov.
How long will I miss clean mountain air... But there's nothing to be done, I'll have to get used to it. Until next time.
