Georgia
Georgia is a transcontinental country intersecting Eastern Europe and West Asia. It is part of the Caucasus region with borders including Russia, Turkey, the Black Sea, Azerbaijan, and Armenia. Its largest city, Tbilisi is home to about 1/3 of the entire 3.7 million people (which is the population of the CITY we were just in, Athens).
Our journey started in Tbilisi. As is our formula, we spent our first day on a walking tour and a self-directed gastronomy tour of all the cheap delicious eats.
On one particular day, we were incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to cook traditional foods with a Tbilisi local. We learned how to make khinkali (meat dumplings), khachapuri (cheese-filled bread), mchadi (fried cornbread), badrijani (eggplant with walnuts…INCREDIBLE). We also drank homemade Georgian wine (Georgia is known for wine made with natural fermentation), Sulguni (local cheese), and Chacha (a wicked intense local spirit).
An unfriendly neighbor to the north
Georgia has an interesting history with Russia. In 1922, Georgia was invaded and annexed by the soviet union as a constituent republic. Georgia then succeeded from the Soviet Union in 1991. However, Russian-backed separatists in the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia brought years of conflict to the region. In 2008, tension erupted and armed conflict broke out in the South Ossetian region when Georgia tried to take back the region by force. Russia responded by sending troops into Georgia and claiming independence of both South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Of course, Georgia does not recognize the independence and refers to these regions as an illegal occupation of Russia. In 2017, Russia has moved the border further south by 1.5km…
The Caucasus Mountains, our next stop, are just a few km away from these Russian-occupied regions.
Caucasus mountains
Getting to the Caucasus wasn’t the easiest task. The journey started with a 6-hour train ride from Tbilisi to the west coast of Georgia. And not on high-speed trains like in Spain…
After arriving at the train station in Zugdidi, it was time to jump on a 4-hour marshrutka ride into the mountains. A marshrutka is a bone shaker of a passenger van that makes trips into the mountains. It’s not on any schedule, doesn’t belong to a specific company, costs whatever the guy says it costs (not communicated in English), does not have seatbelts, and is held together with a patchwork of repairs (our van had a headrest bolted into the door by the driver's seat).
The driver of the van will stop to: chat with a buddy in another marshrutka, grab a coffee and snack at a sit-down roadside restaurant (where you are also expected to sit down for a coffee), pick up energy drinks to enjoy after your coffee and cigarette, honk at the hundreds of cows who stand in every section of the road, drop off a passenger on a remote section of a road, and maybe even stop once to enjoy the views of a snowy mountain peak (and have another cigarette). Our driver knew this windy road like the back of his hand so we arrived into the town of Mestia in one piece.
Mestia to Ushguli Trek
Having arrived in Mestia, it was time to prepare for the Mestia to Ushguli trek. This trek runs along the southern Caucasus mountain range and takes about 4 days to complete. It runs a distance of 60km with 3400 meters of climbing. While you can camp, there are small guest houses along the way which cost about $14 USD for a room in a family’s home. The hosts also cook massive meals for you while you stay.
Svanti, the historic providence of Georgia in which the trail begins, has a fascinating history. Svans, the ethnic subgroup that inhabits this region, have lived here since the antiquity.
Preparation Day
We spent our first day in Mestia securing supplies for our trek. The town is small and trekking snacks are limited…but fortunately, enormous loaves of “shotis” are available for 1.5 Georgian lari ($0.58 USD). The bread is prepared fresh on the spot and cooked in a large clay stove. We stocked up on a few loaves.
Knowing that the rains were coming, we tried for a quick hike in the valley.
In the evening, we enjoyed chatting with a few other folks staying at our homestay. Two Dutch sisters (who were also starting the same trek as us) and a German couple who were backpacking the entire Transcaucasian trail (a trail across Georgia and Armenia that hasn’t actually been finished yet).
Sidebar: Svan towers
These towers, called koshki, are defensive buildings. Koshki were utilized during both invasion and local strife. The entrances to these towers are usually on a second floor (thus allowing the family to pull up a ladder once safely inside). There are over 175 remaining in this region today.
Day 1 — Mestia to Chvabiani
Rain rain rain. We debated staying one more night in Mestia to wait out the storm but the weather in the mountains is incredibly unpredictable so we decided to make a go of it. And we are glad we did.
Hiking out of Mestia was beautiful. The rain was light and intermittent which allowed us to see little glimpses of the mountains.
We also ran into a fellow American, Patrick, who has been living/teaching in South Korea and China for the last 11 years. We ended up forming a hiking trio for the remainder of the trek. Other than Pat, we didn’t see more than a couple of other hikers the entire day.
Foggy views along day 1.
Marlene surveyed the river crossing. There was supposed to be a bridge around here..
Lots of “wildlife.”
We ended our day at a guest house in the town of Chvabiani. We were the only guests staying at this location. Our host made us a delicious traditional dinner.
We enjoyed a quick walk after dinner and then it was time for bed!
Day 2- Chvabiani to Adishi
Day 2 brought less rain but we were still very much in the clouds for much of the day. Once again, we saw very few other hikers.
Marlene strolling through the wildflowers! With a little blue sky in the background!
Arriving in the village of Adishi.
Dogs are everywhere in Georgia and for the most part, they are friendly. However, you can get into trouble when a stray dog follows you on on a trail through a farm with a working Shepards dog… You don’t want to find yourself in the middle of a fight. Additionally, rabies is prevalent in the Georgian dog population (one of the primary reasons we got the vaccines…it’s a LONG way to the hospital out here). All that said, we met some nice pooches on the trek.
Before heading to our guest house, we stopped by a small outdoor shop to see if we could buy some more shotis. There were no shotis but there was beer… The owner cut us a deal on the beverages and we sat by a fire going to keep warm in the rain.
We also met a hiking group of ladies from Germany/Switzerland/Austria with their local guide (who was very happy to be taking a break to enjoy beer and chacha). They invited us over for a bit of a party.
Our stay in Adishi was pretty rugged. This high mountain village has a population of 44 and is one of the oldest in the region. Our small room was on the second floor of the home and was very cold so piles of heavy blankets were necessary.
However, the kitchen (the central meeting place for the family) was warm and cozy thanks to a wood stove used for cooking! We ate dinner with the entire family and a mother/father/daughter from Mexico who were also doing the trek! We went well into the evening drinking homemade wine and having the chats.
Georgia is known for its exceptional natural wines. Many families in this country make their own wine for both consumption and sale (it’s not uncommon to see disposable water bottles filled with wine for sale on the streets). Historically, a Qvevri (large earthenware vessel) is used to make the wine. The vessel is hurried below ground during fermentation.
Day 3 — Adishi to Iprari
At last, sunshine! We knew that today had the best views on the trek so we were excited to get going.
Saying goodbye to Adishi and walking towards the glacier (Pat on the right).
Our first big task of the day was the river crossing. It was glacier-fed and COLD! We (Chris and Marlene) made it across without incident but our new friend Pat unfortunately went for a bit of a swim…
Having survived the river, it was time for the big climb out of the valley.
An epic viewpoint of the Kalde wall and the glaciers.
A few videos:
The local guide from last night looking a bit hungover… Nothing a nap, a cigarette, and a view can’t fix.
Marlene looking fresh, however!
Heading back down the other side of the ridge.
All the rains made for a soggy trail…
But also lots of flowers to smell
Looking back up the valley.
After a long walk in the valley, we made it to our next guest house. Time for food and a nap. We ate dinner with a lovely group of Australians that evening.
Day 4- Iprari to Ushguli
Day 4 started with more beautiful sunshine! Looking out the bedroom window we could see the small village of Iprari and a local chopping wood for the fire. Before leaving on the next leg of our hike, we enjoyed a hearty breakfast.
Hiking out of the valley. Much of today's trek was in a lush forest.
After about 4 hours of hiking down the valley, we arrived in the village of Ushguli.
Exploring the old city, we found this set of old Soviet-era trucks.
After settling into our guest house, we took another quick walk around the village. We explored the Lamaria Church of Ushguli (a medieval Georgian Orthodox Church). This church had very strict rules for visiting (including a dress code for women).
In the photo below, we see a typical Ushguli home (complete with a downstairs room for the cows).
We finished the day with another amazing home-cooked meal with some fellow hikers. Eggplant and walnuts (my new favorite)!
Day 5- Ushguli to Chubedishi Viewpoint
We woke early for our final day of trekking up to the viewpoint of Chubedishi. This hike was no joke climbing 1000 meters over just a few kilometers. The views were well worth it.
Before hiking, however, we enjoyed some homemade yogurt with raspberries made by our host with milk from her cows!
Hiking up the hill from Ushguli.
Marlene enjoyed a second breakfast at the viewpoint.
Wildflowers everywhere!
Views from the top
We made it back down to Ushguli by early afternoon and it was time to grab another Marshrutka back to Mestia. We ran into the Dutch sisters again with their hiking group and they offered us a ride. The road back was ROUGH. I flew out of my seat multiple times and hit my head on the van roof…
Celebratory ice cream back in Mestia.
Final day in Mestia
We woke early for a hike before the 12 hours of travel ahead of us (Marshrutka and train). We hiked up above the village of Mestia for one final look at the Svaneti region.
Tbilisi
We headed back to Tbilisi for a few days to recharge and grab a few more snacks.
Georgia was an incredible stop. On to Albania and the Balkans now.
Three Important Words in Georgian
Gamarjoba- hello
Madloba- thanks
Gaumarjos- cheers
