The snow which hit Svaneti about two weeks ago was a most unpleasant surprise for most people in the region, who had been looking forward to getting their herds of cows out of the barn and into grazing fields soon. Alas, that would have to wait. For those running low on hay, it meant buying some from trucks passing through from the lowlands of Georgia and taking advantage of the dearth. Two Brazilian families who had been spending a week in our Svaneti house with me were delighted, though, as they had never seen that much snow in their lives. Their boys had a field day making snowmen, fortresses and more. Our flowering daffodils, to my surprise, all survived the 20 cm or snow burial and -7 temperature, bouncing back just fine.
Talking of fortresses… After this white layer mostly disappeared, I had more guests to show around Svaneti, this time a father and his adult son from the USA. They wanted to see it all, or as much as possible, so were happy to pay me to drive them around despite quite a rainy week’s forecast. Aside from Mestia’s main museum and its Mikheil Khergiani house/tower museum, we spent a night at my old haunt of 19 years ago in Ushguli.
There, I decided to try to take them up to Queen Tamar’s summer fortress, having seen on the way in that at least parts of the way up to it were snow-free. Not the steep usual front way up: that was still under fairly deep white. But the back way, which I usually reserve for the descent. That looked doable, given our clothing, footwear and trekking experience (of which theirs includes Nepal). Up we went.
The snowy patches were actually quite soft, as daytime temperatures were above freezing. But we were all OK with the idea that getting snow into one’s hiking boots is not deadly, just a bit uncomfortable. Most of this is in the mind.
The grass on the relatively steep hillside, long but mostly still flattened by the winter’s snow, was quite dry, and thus not slippery. The trickiest parts, we soon learned, were where the snow was thinnest on the grass, here being the slipperiest. We zig-zagged our way upwards due to the steepness, resting as necessary to catch our breath as we ascended above 2200 m.
At the top… the fortress was still mostly full of up to a meter of snow, but we could still get onto its walls and see Ushguli spread out far below us. True, Mt. Shkhara, Georgia’s highest, had its long wall’s top part hidden under cloud. But the view was still breathtaking.
I had made this trip up the first time in snow in about 2009, solo, and that had been much harder, earlier in winter, struggling through crotch-deep white. Down, though, had consisted of 3-m steps the steep way, cushioned by snow the whole descent, which was glorious and very fast. This time, we had to be careful going down in much less snow, but managed it. My guests were getting the whole deal.
This fortress is called the summer one simply because that’s when people usually attempt it… but another group had been up before us on our day, so we weren’t the only unseasonable ones. I am told that there are firm plans to remake the fortress in all its glory, which will be quite an undertaking, given its altitude and steep setting.
On the way home, above Becho, we even had a half-hour or so look at Mt. Ushba, which I had not expected at all, given the cloudy weather and forecast. But there he appeared, and we stopped for the off-chance, ready to take photos and marvel in his severe beauty. I took my guests right through Becho, and he stayed visible for all of that before vanishing behind clouds once more. He appeared again today, from the roughly 4000-year-old fortress ruin in Etseri, so, a double dose of surprise. I know people who have spent a couple of weeks in Svaneti and not seen Ushba once, so we do not take this for granted.
Soon, the passes will clear of snow and our summer hiking tours will resume, a few already booked. We, and Ushba, will be ready.
Blog by Tony Hanmer
Tony Hanmer has lived in Georgia since 1999, in Svaneti since 2007, and been a weekly writer and photographer for GT since early 2011. He runs the “Svaneti Renaissance” Facebook group, now with over 2000 members, at www.facebook.com/groups/SvanetiRenaissance/
He and his wife also run their own guest house in Etseri: www.facebook.com/hanmer.house.svaneti
