Svaneti
I sit half-asleep in a half-empty minibus, passengers are talking to the driver in the background, the bumpy road is gently swaying me and I half-close my eyes looking out the window at the peaks of the mountains, small roofs of houses. So, why are the roofs of the houses small? I wake up, see the minibus, but there's a pilot at the wheel and it's not a window at all, but a porthole. I lean closer, and the height is 2 km — just level with the snowy peaks of the mountains. The field is like a chessboard of all colors. You can even see a herd of cows, the sight is simply amazing.
I'm flying by small aircraft, a plane for 19 people from Tbilisi to Svaneti, 50 minutes in flight. My backpack is lying in the damn nose of the plane, I was afraid that my 20 kg instead of the allotted 15 would be overweight or the лямку would get caught in the propeller.
When landing, the most amazing and authentic view that I have ever seen opens up. Mount Ushba, gorge, mountain river, ancient settlement with stone roofs and defensive towers. It's like a teleport to the Middle Ages.
Airlines Vanilla Sky, website: vanilla-sky.ge, ticket 2 500 rubles, free transfer from the center of Tbilisi to Natakhtari airport. Flies 2 times a week. Allowed weight is 15 kg, I had about 20 kg, but the backpack was weighed without a glance. You cannot carry a gas cylinder.
Mestia is the largest and quite developed tourist settlement in Svaneti. In turn, Svaneti is the most beautiful region in Georgia. I highly recommend coming here and allocating maximum time for Svaneti. There are many options for one-day and multi-day hiking routes of easy and medium difficulty. The abundance of glaciers and lush nature has left a deep impression on my soul.
On the central square of Mestia there is a Tourist Information center, employees speak Russian and English, you can find out all the information you are interested in about the hike, weather, water and get a free route map with elevation changes and timing.
The nature is very friendly, probably the most welcoming place I've been to. Lots of drinking streams, some with the taste of Borjomi, even seem to be carbonated. The trails are well trodden and pass through gorges past ancient villages, meadows, forest areas sometimes rising to passes. There is a lot of dead wood, it's not a problem to make a fire, but I prefer to go with gas and make a fire only for aesthetics, where there is already a fireplace.
One of the most powerful impressions of the animals. In Georgia there are no usual enclosures, everything is compact and the animals walk freely, so it's easy to meet cows, calves, horses, pigs and dogs in the most unexpected places. They boldly come to pet, it creates a feeling of unity with nature and fullness, as if you got to a contact zoo.
There are few people on the route. At the end of August, beginning of September, no more than 5 people were met during the day, but what people... I became very friendly with some of them. Mostly from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Israel. The locals are very friendly and hospitable. They often invited me to visit, once I agreed and they fed me with young calf, gave me wine, drunk I could barely carry my backpack))). I traveled around Georgia alone for about 6 weeks, hitchhiking and spending the night in tents near settlements, roads, gas stations, the coast, including the center of Batumi, only in Tbilisi I didn't put up a tent. I got the impression of complete safety, at the end of the trip I calmly put up a tent in the park and knew that no one would break in at night, show aggression. Even worried less than usual about things. Let's thank the police reform, now they are everywhere, even in the smallest villages. Looks provided with everything necessary and very responsive. More than once people approached me to ask if everything was all right, gave me a lift or helped with hitchhiking.
There are many guest houses and campsites for tents in the backyard, usually with a shower, Wi-Fi, there are hostels, price from 600 rubles per night for 1 person. You can pitch a tent for the night right in the central park, but it's noisy and crowded there. You can go down to the river or go out of the village.
By chance I met a very sincere person, he showed me the tower, we even climbed to the roof. Later I stayed at his economic house built in the 5th century on prepared hay. Address — Teo Guesthouse and Camping in Mestia
Svaneti is the perfect place to get to know the mountains for the first time! Easy hike, very friendly nature, friendly people, несложные 1–3 day routes, you can just hang out with a tent enjoying beautiful views while being close to civilization.
