Lake Sofia Arkhyz. Trekking to the Sofia Lakes: an overview of the route. Road to Sofia waterfalls

Sofia Lakes is one of the most difficult and most beautiful of our walks in Arkhyz. The most difficult tourist route that is available without special training and equipment. The lakes are located at 2830 meters above sea level. The height difference that we overcame during the ascent is more than 1 kilometer. The lakes are a group of three large and a number of small lakes in the circus of the Kel-Bashi massif. All three lakes have slightly different shades: for example, the largest lake is azure, the second has a sky-blue hue, and the water surface of the third lake is similar to the polished surface of black marble. Such a difference in shades is very interestingly perceived from the outside, when the panorama covers all three lakes.

I almost died on the ascent and especially on the descent from the lakes, but what I saw was worth it ... If at least someone had at least roughly described the difficulties of the route to me in advance, I probably would not have climbed. But all the way I sincerely believed that we would go back by another easier path around and that the lakes were "already close." But it turned out not to be...

The path to the Sofia Lakes also starts from the valley of the Sofia River. Again, an hour of shaking in the "tablet" from our boarding house and then, first, along sheep paths, and then steeper and higher than 4 hours, we crawled up. way. The road goes steadily up all the time with a fairly strong slope and a couple of slightly more gentle slopes, but there are other "charms" in the form of thickets of thorns and piles of stones. The three most difficult places - the ascent to the waterfall, to the waterfall and the last 200 meters - an almost vertical path to the saddle, from which you can see the lakes further - this is a tin ... Somewhere in the middle of the mountain range, two pointed peaks rise, located in a narrow saddle. Between these peaks lies the path to the lakes. Feet constantly slipped on the sand, even sticks did not help. They crawled, clinging to grass, thorns, stones, and desperately envied the tourists in special boots, who moved almost vertically on their feet along the same path. It was even harder to climb down, I was completely panicked, but... as you can see, I got down and was alive...

But every time I turned around, my head was spinning not only from the height, but also from the beauty of the panoramas opening ... By the way, despite the fact that the lakes are of glacial origin and the water temperature in them is about zero, several members of our group did swim in including and my husband are daredevils!! And I just took a bottle of the purest drinking water and enjoyed the views from the shore. go down.

In general, the entire route took about 12 hours with transportation. The funny thing is that I’m looking through the photos now - they don’t show either the steepness or the height of the rise - it seems that there is a slightly sloping fluffy carpet under my feet .. And who will believe it?)))

Well, actually photos, for which it was worth suffering)))

The start of the climb doesn't even seem difficult.

View of the Ullu-Chuchkhur waterfall, but we did not go to it - in fact it is very far

A stunningly beautiful butterfly sat on her husband and even agreed to pose)

The long-awaited lakes are fabulously beautiful

Sofia lakes are located two dozen kilometers from the village of Arkhyz and the resort "Romantic" Zelenchuksky district of Karachay-Cherkessia. You can drive up to the Sofia River in an SUV, and then you will have to climb to the lakes on foot, with a climb of up to 1300 meters, it will take from 3 to 6 hours. We do not recommend a day trip to the lakes, because this region is rich in sights that cannot be seen in a day in a busy schedule. The best option would be a multi-day hike, in which the Sofia Lakes will be one of the points of the expedition.

Several trails lead to the Sofia Lakes. The first option is from the parking lot under Mount Sofia to the Irkiz pass, along the Ak-Ayra stream and two cascades of waterfalls.

The second option for climbing to the Sofiysky lakes is through the Aymatly-Jagaly lake, along the Kashkha-Echki stream, which flows from the Sofiysky lakes.


The third option for climbing to the Sofia Lakes is to Mount Peshtera and through the Upper Comma Lake, which is located a 30-minute walk from the Sofia Lakes.

Other options are possible, for example, through the Lower Comma Lake.

The best time to visit the lakes is the second half of July. But even at this time there is snow in the mountains, so if you spend the night, take warm clothes with you, based on zero temperature.

Sofia Lakes in Arkhyz is a difficult, but very beautiful and visited route. You can get here as part of a one-day excursion, but it is better to take a tent and go for at least two, and preferably three days. It's simple: the ascent takes at least 4 hours, the descent takes at least 2.5 hours, so it's better to come here with an overnight stay to really enjoy the lakes and the surrounding nature.

Sofia Lakes: photo

Season

The lakes are located at an altitude of 2,830 m above sea level, and snow lies on the approaches until the beginning, or even the middle of July. Winter also comes early: already in early October, snowfalls can occur, and the approaches to the lakes will become impassable for unprepared tourists. Thus, the season for visiting Sofia Lakes is from mid-July to the end of September.

At the beginning of the season, you can catch the flowering of rhododendrons and other meadow flowers, the end is a very beautiful Golden Autumn. Until the second half of July, ice floes still float on the surface of the lakes, and in August the first tender grass finally breaks on the banks.

Map

Route

The first part of the journey, from the villages of Romantik or Arkhyz to the confluence of the river. Sofia and the necessary streams - it is worth driving a car or SUV. So you save time and energy - and this is the most important thing in a trip to the Sofia Lakes.

Get from the river Sofia to the lakes can be several trails. The shortest, but rather difficult path is along the Ak-Ayry stream. A little easier - along the Kashkha-Echkichat stream, past the Aymatly-Jagaly-Kol lake, or along the Gammesh-Chat stream, past the Comma and Upper Comma lakes. Some travelers ascend to the Sofia Lakes along the Orlyonok gully, or from the side of the Psysh gorge, through Kraternoye Lake. Which of these trails is the best, everyone decides for himself. We prefer going up the Kashkha-Echkichat stream and down the Ak-Ayry stream.

The trails are not marked, so it’s better: otherwise, if you don’t get lost, then you can certainly lose a lot of time and effort searching for the right path. The height difference between the starting point and the lakes is at least 1000 meters, the distance is at least 4 km (depending on the path). At a good pace and with a sufficient number of halts, you can climb to the lakes in 4-5 hours, and go down in 2.5-3 hours. Keep in mind that temperatures in the mountains drop rapidly after sunset, so it's best to hit the trail early.

Safety and comfort

Weather and relief are the main dangers on the route to the Sofia Lakes. Required:

• comfortable shoes with thick soles. Well, if these are trekking boots;
• raincoat: the weather in the mountains is changing rapidly, and even if the sun is shining in the morning, it may rain in the afternoon;
• panama hat, sun cream, long sleeves: the sun is very aggressive in the mountains, and you can burn out in a day of hiking;
• Snack: It will take the whole day to walk to the lakes, so be sure to bring nutritious foods. Water can be taken from streams, but it is undesirable to drink from lakes;
• trekking poles are a desirable attribute. With them, you will be easier, more comfortable, and safer. However, many do without them.

parting word

Sofia lakes are a real miracle of nature that has retained its original beauty. Treat the mountains as a temple of purity and peace. Do not shout, do not swear, try to catch and feel the peace and quiet that reign high in the mountains. Be sure to take your rubbish with you: in the mountains there is no one to clean up after you, and an abandoned can or bag serves as an excuse for other tourists to leave their garbage. Please take care and appreciate this and other corners of untouched nature. We don't have many of them left on Earth.

Excursions, weekend tours and trips to Sofia Lakes

We, Travel Club "Start", organize regular, one-day excursions and

We ended up in Arkhyz by chance. Initially, a trip to the Imereti Lakes was planned, but then the plans had to be urgently changed. We ended up in Karachay-Circassian Arkhyz only at one in the morning without the slightest idea of ​​​​local attractions and without a plan.

The first day

We were able to quickly orient ourselves, bought a map at the local market (by some miracle they had it) and decided to go to the Sofia Lakes.

The territory on which the lakes are located is located in the Arkhyz reserve: hunting and fishing are not allowed here, but no documents or passes are needed.

To reach the goal, you first need to get from Arkhyz to the fork, one of the roads will lead to the Sofia Glacier. The asphalt here quickly ends, then there is a forest road, along which in dry weather you can drive a car. We left the car at the Taulu recreation center for 100 rubles per day. From here, tourists are transported to the Sofia glaciers in off-road vehicles. But you can also walk.

You can climb up to the lakes along several paths. We chose this one - which winds along the Ak-Ayry stream:

More precisely, they chose - it's a strong word. We, even having a map, were very poorly oriented here, because we were there for the first time. The abundance of incomprehensible difficult-to-pronounce names only exacerbated the situation. But we were constantly helped by those who met on the way.

The beginning of the ascent up Ak-Ayry looks like this:

It is very beautiful here, eagles fly and waterfalls flow:

It is difficult to climb with backpacks - the ascent is steep and protracted. In total, from Taulu to Sofia Lakes, about 15 km. And you need to climb more than 1000 meters.

On the first day, we did not cope with this task, we reached the final pass, in front of which those who came on horseback leave their horses. The tent was pitched here, on the only level ground. We spent the night in splendid isolation, only a gusty wind broke the silence of the night.

Second day

Mornings in the mountains are beautiful.

It should be noted that there is a lot of water that flows near the trail along the entire route. Therefore, it makes no sense to carry full bottles with you.

As soon as we gathered, a group of horsemen drove up, the old Circassian helped the tourists to drive under the pass. They had to go down already on their own two feet.

The final pass turned out to be not as scary as it seemed last evening, we overcame it in just half an hour.

From the pass, a gorgeous panorama of the main lake opens.

If you climb higher, to the mountain, which stands to the right of the pass, you can see three lakes at once.

Despite the fact that we just woke up and put down the tent, as soon as we went down to the lake, we put it up again and decided not to go anywhere today. We just sat on the shore all day, walked to the second lake, filmed it from different angles.

And they also decided to swim, to feel clean during the campaign - a luxury. But in order to achieve this feeling, you first need to force yourself to climb into the icy water. The water is so cold that you can’t get used to it, you just have to suffer, but wash yourself.

We drank water from the same lake where we swam))) The water is very clean, by the way.

Already at sunset, goats came to the lake to drink. While we were filming them, they kept a decent distance. It was only necessary to hide in the tent, as they carefully went down to the water.

Day Three

Which began with a shot right next to our tent. This circumstance reminded us of where we are, in Karachay-Cherkessia, apparently, everything is possible, even hunting in the reserve right in front of a dozen tourists. The shot rang out before dawn, hastening our ascent.

For two nights in the mountains at an altitude of 2800 meters we were very cold. I didn't want to stay any longer. So we had a quick breakfast and headed back.

We decided to go back the other way, past the Kara-Jash pass and the Upper and Lower Comma lakes, which are located along the Gommesh-Chat stream (I memorized these names for a painfully long time, although I usually have no problems with this).

On the way, we noticed that below the three Sofia lakes, from which the Kashkha-Echkichat stream flows, there is another lake:

It is big and it even has its own name - Aymatly-Jagaly (uh...).

From the Kara-Dzhash pass, a beautiful view opens up, and, most importantly, you can see Kraternoye Lake. We were told about this by tourists who also stayed at the Sofia Lakes.

So I had to climb the pass and see this lake with my own eyes:

A bonus to the beautiful Crater Lake is another small one:

From the pass you can clearly see the Upper Comma:

The ascent to the pass is not the most pleasant. Most of the way you have to walk along a large loose road, and at the end - along a steep sandy path.

The descent to the Sofia valley is as long and long as the ascent. A bonus at the end of the path were thickets of raspberries, and very tasty.

And for the first time I saw a fly agaric with my own eyes. He is very beautiful!

Sofia lakes are three beautiful reservoirs, which are located at an altitude of 2830 meters above sea level in the massif of the Kel-Bashi (Arkhyz) mountain. They are called Sofia because they are located in close proximity to Mount Sofia - one of the highest peaks of Arkhyz (3637 m). The depth of the large lake is 17 m.

Three reservoirs are located very close to each other, there are several convenient places for parking nearby. Drinking water can be taken directly from the lakes. The route is located on the territory of the Arkhyz reserve, if you're lucky, you can meet aurochs and other animals here. There are also bears.

Sofia lakes on the map:

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43.449928 , 41.230617 Three beautiful lakes in the circus of the Kel-Bashi peak. The depth of the Great Sofia Lake reaches 17 m. Sofia Lakes

How to get there

From Krasnodar to the Taulu glade, from which the route to the lakes begins - 390 km. The car can be left at the Taulu camp site for a small fee. Then you need to move upstream the Sofia River.

Through the stream Gommesh Chat

Bridge over Sofia

Lake Lower Comma

Lake Upper Comma from the Kara-Jash pass

On the log, which is thrown over Sofia, you will enter the path, first passing through a dense forest, which thins out over time and gives way to alpine meadows. The route leads past a beautiful lake called Lower Comma. Further, the trail climbs the rocks - this is not dangerous, the route is laid as if on steps. To your right will be the Kara-Jash massif, and to your left - the mountain 60 years old KCHAO. After you reach a large stone scree, and only the road up to the Kara-Jash pass will be straight, the path will go to the left. Passing by Lake Upper Comma, it leads to the right. There will be no significant climb here. After half an hour of walking you will reach the first of the three Sofia lakes.

Distance: 10 km (one way)
Climb: 1300 m

Through the stream Kashkha-Echkichat

The path leads along the stream, along the way there is a beautiful reservoir - Aymatly-Jagaly, which can be translated as "a lake with indented shores." The Kashkha-Echki stream just flows out of the Sofia Lakes.

Distance: 10.5 km (one way),
Climb: 1260 m

Through the Irkiz pass

Waterfalls of Ak-Ayra

Waterfalls of Ak-Ayra

Waterfalls of Ak-Ayra

Mount Sofia from the Irkiz pass

It is more convenient to climb this route if you start your journey from the parking lot near Sofia, otherwise there is no point in going so far from the Taulu camp site. The ascent goes along the Ak-Ayry stream. Along the way you will see two cascades of waterfalls. The climb is constant and quite sharp. It reaches its maximum slope at the Irkiz pass. From it you can clearly see three lakes at once.

Distance: 12.4 km (one way),
Climb: 1300 m

You can also go down by any of the three routes.

Peculiarities

• The best time for a hike is July, August. Just by this time, the lakes are freed from ice.
• It is cold on the Sofia Lakes at night, do not forget to take a down jacket, gloves, a hat and a good sleeping bag.
• In August, on the way to the waterfalls, there are many gifts of the forest - raspberries, strawberries, blueberries.
• There is no firewood upstairs, take a burner with you.
• You can swim in the lake, but the water is very cold, it feels like no more than 5 degrees.