Hiking in Northwestern Georgia

Also called 🌍 The Swinging Rock, near the village of 🌍 Chkvaleri, is a massive limestone boulder, weighting 10-12 tonnes, perched atop a bed of rock, at an altitude of 1,800 m in an almost treeless alpine area. The slightest pressure from a hand on the rock starts it shaking and making a knocking sound. Similar stones be found in other countries, but most of them are volcanic rock. A guide will be useful, but this can also be found by using GPS. Free to enter near the town of Jvari with 14 km of hiking through the forest and valleys. It is a 2-day hike.

The local legend about Kuakantsalia is that many centuries ago there was an enormous cannibal giant in the mountains of Egrisi, where the pure rivers Tsiskvilara, Chanistskhali, Intsira, Morozha and others flow. The giant visited the villages of Samegrelo and once a month kidnapped boys and girls to be eaten. The people were always afraid and suffered. There also lived a brave young man whose name was Aramkhut and the people believed that he could defeat the giant. The people asked Aramkhut to help them. Aramkhut said that he would begin and got ready for his battle with the giant. He went to the mountain Okhachkue and after a long time waiting the giant appeared. The distance between Aramkhut and the giant was 10 km. Realizing the fact that it was impossible to negotiate with the giant, he took a huge stone and threw it at the giant but with no effect. The giant was disturbed and started throwing stones at Aramkhut. After a long rock-throwing battle, Aramkhut took a huge rectangular stone, took aim and threw it. To his amazement the stone killed the giant. The size and the weight of the giant formed a massive hole where he fell among the bright green grass. The villagers celebrated the victory. Aramkhut was taken to Kvira mountain in triumph. He recovered the enormous stone that killed the giant and took it and put it on the place where it could shake by merely touching it with a finger. This story is told from generation to generation to celebrate the victory of kindness and the defeat of evil. Believe this or not, the stone really shakes.

You can download the GPS track to reach Kuakantsalia from OpenStreetMap through Waymarked Trails (GPX, KML), or consult OpenStreetMap for alternative routes (zoom in to see all trails).

• 🌍 Silver Lakes (Tobavarchkhili). Free to enter. (updated Oct 2017)

Tobavarchkhili means "Silver Lakes" in the Megrulian language. These lakes are on the southern slopes of the Egrisi Mountains. There are several small lakes surrounding the main one and all of them are beautiful in their own right. The main lake sits at an altitude of 2,650 m and is surrounded by snow-capped peaks even in the summer. The fresh water is fed by snow, rain and ground water and is a beautiful clear blue.

The best period for traveling starts from mid-June and lasts until mid-September. The water level is highest in the month of July. The only way to see the Silver Lakes is by hiking, for at least 3 days and 75 km (return)—on average it will take 4-5 days. You may pass river gorges, forests, beautiful alpine valleys, snowy passes at altitudes up to 3,000 m, two big alpine lakes surrounded by stunning peaks, two-four smaller alpine lakes, waterfalls, canyons, glaciers, caves, stunning panoramas, and unreal landscapes enshrouded with fog. You will need to sleep in tents or shepherds huts where you can try Georgian cheese and Georgian vodka.

This is a difficult trek and inclement weather can make everything worse. Visitors need to be physically fit and equipped with appropriate clothing and boots. A guide for this trek is recommended and should be organised in advance. You will have to carry all the food and camping equipment with you, although donkeys can be hired to do the "donkey" work. Most treks will start from the village of Mukhuri, or you can hire a jeep to take you as far as possible to cut your hiking time down. The local legend about Tobavarchkhili is that this neat lake can't stand the dirt. If somebody washes his hands and body in the lake it becomes angry and causes rain to start within an hour. The rain will stop only when the lake becomes pure again.

You can download the GPS track to reach the lake directly , from OpenStreetMap through Waymarked Trails (GPX, KML), or consult OpenStreetMap for alternative routes (zoom in to see all trails).

Otherwise, several companies offer treks (5-8 days) to Tobavarchkhili. Ask around in Zugdidi or Jvari.

The obvious thing to do, in addition to sightseeing, is trekking and mountain climbing in the Greater Caucasus. The Shkhara and Ushba climbs are both technically challenging, and have very dangerous weather. Only experienced mountaineers should attempt the climbs. Mountain inclined dilettantes should instead consider a guided climb of Mount Kazbeg, in Georgia's Kartli region. There are several flagged trails, especially around Mestia, the tourist information in Mestia can give you additional information. The thing to do is basically to just wander out of your guest house, pick a direction that looks promising, and get trekking.

Several most exciting Svaneti trekking routes begin in Mazeri village in Becho community, among them:

• Mount Ushba trekking route
• Mazeri (Becho) - Guli pass - Koruldi lakes - Mestia trek
• Mazeri (Becho) - Baki pass - Etseri trek

Also, see the this great official website founded by Georgians and German speaking organisations. And, of course, checkout the treks around Mestia.

There is a red and white flagged trail from Mestia to Ushguli. The tourist office and several souvenir shops in Mestia offer maps of the route, but these are not always very clear. Better maps may be available in good travel bookshops abroad. Route can also be walked in opposite direction, beginning in Ushguli.

Try to start hiking early, especially in summer, since it gets very hot around 11:00 and some parts of the route offer little shade. Bringing a tent gives you much more flexibility, but guesthouses are available in each of the villages along the route. One night plus dinner and breakfast costs around 40 lari per person; they can also give you some food for lunch.

Day 1: Mestia to Zhabeshi 7½ hr, partially along the road. The route is well marked going out of Mestia. When the airport is on your left, a sign on a rock will tell you to take a path uphill. The marks then lead to a stream, where you will have to cross a fence that is also marked. The route goes uphill and then descends into a valley, following a sledge road. You pass two small villages and will then follow the river to Zhabeshi, where there is a bridge leading into the village.

Day 2: Zhabeshi to Adishi 8 hr, greatest vertical distance along the route. There are spectacular views from ridge down into both valleys. Follow the stream that runs through Zhabeshi uphill, take the path right just before the end of the village. Keep following the path past farms. You need to cross the hill that is on your left, but the path here is very poorly marked. There is a ridge leading uphill which is not too steep and can be followed all the way uphill. When you reach the top, you should see a road that was still being built in August 2014. Go left on this road until it takes several hairpin turns steeply uphill, where there is a path to the right of the road. This leads you straight to Adishi through some beautiful meadows. The hill after Zabeshi is the easiest section to get lost, so you may wish to consider hiring a guide.

Day 3: Adishi to Iprali 8 hr. The first part follows the Adishi river, which you have to cross at some points. The water comes straight from the glacier so is ice-cold, but the water level differs along the river and also changes from day to day. You may want to rent a horse in Adishi to cross (50 lari), or if you have good hiking sandals and are in a group you could cross on foot. Otherwise, the path on this day is easy to follow: after the river you zigzag up for a while, through rhododendron bushes. Amazing views of the Adishi and Khalde glaciers at the top. The path then descends down into the valley, and will lead you to Iprali where there are several guesthouses.

Day 4: Iprali to Ushguli 4 hr along the jeep track that all transport from Mestia to Ushguli follows, along a river. It is possible to arrange a jeep or mashrutka back to Mestia from Ushguli. Costs vary between 150-200 lari, so if you can find a large group of people to fit into a minibus, the cost per person may be affordable. There are no regular mashrutkas from Ushguli to Mestia, although you may be able to get a ride from one that is taking people on a day tour from Mestia (these cost 30 lari round-trip).

It is possible to continue trekking into Lower Svaneti from Ushguli to Chvelpi, but it becomes a lot harder as the paths are unmarked and in poor condition, and it is inadvisable to attempt this in poor weather conditions.