Cycling Georgia: Kutaisi to Akhaltsikhe

This is the first of seven parts detailing my cycle tour around Georgia & Armenia in August and September 2024. Here are links to Part Two Part Three, Part Four, Part Five, Part Six and Part Seven. It was already dark when I arrived at Kutaisi Airprot, having flown from Vilnius where I had finished a short tour around Eastern Poland & Lithuania.

I stayed at Hotel Tsiskari near to the airport, and the owner picked me up and kindly transferred me with the bike box to the hotel. I had originally planned to stay in Kutaisi center and ride a circular route around the Upper Svaneti region, visiting the towns of Ushguli and Mestia, but heavy rain was forecast there for the next week, so it made sense to change plans.

I decided to go south into the Lesser Caucasus, from where I would continue into Armenia. I had intended to do this after the Upper Svaneti circle anyway, so already knew a bit about the route I wanted to take. At this stage I was planning to return to Kutaisi from Armenia and do the Upper Svaneti route at the end of my tour, but in the end I went to the mountains further east instead. I never actually went into Kutaisi centre or the surrounding region much - that will have to wait until my next trip.





The modified route began by roughly following the Rioni River towards the town of Baghdati. This was a short, but nice ride and a good introduction to cycling in Georgia. Most of the route was on quiet paved roads in good condition. I did take one gravel road alongside the river, but it was quite a rough surface as it led to a quarry and was used mostly by trucks.

The ride passed through several little villages where friendly dogs and pigs roamed the streets. I was immediately struck by how fertile the region was (even in August with 35°C temperatures). At times the road was shaded by walnut trees, and there were plenty of pommegranate, citrus and plum orchards, which made me salivate at the prospect of Georgian cuisine!



The destination was the town of Baghdati which is a wine region. I cycled past a few wineries on the gently uphill road into town, and the guesthouse where I stayed also produced their own artesanal wine.

Baghdati was a peaceful town, situated around one main central square and road. There weren't many restaurants, but I did manage to enjoy a veritable feast of khachapuri, salad and grilled meat. This would be far from my last excellent meal in Georgia!

Sairme & Zekari Pass

I needed all the calories that I could get my hands on, because there was a tough ride in store the following day. Baghdati is the entrance to the Lesser Caucasus and, continuing south, my ride began by ascending over 2,000m in elevation to the Zekari Pass.

Given the heat, it seemed prudent to make an earlyish start, covering the first 15km of false flat and getting to the start of the climb while it was still relatively cool. A picturesque chapel marked the beginning of the ascent which is around 35km in length with an average gradient of around 6%.

The first 13km of the climb, to the village of Sairme was all on paved roads. There was little traffic here and much of the road was in shade, making for very pleasant riding conditions. Gradients were inconsistent, with several sections well above 10%, but there was nothing super steep.



On a long climb like this you become psychologically prepared for several hours of climbing, and so the first 13km really flew by (in a way that they wouldn't have done on a shorter climb!). I had planned to stop in Sairme at a nice looking bakery. It was open, allowing refuelling with cake and croissant. Other bread based snacks filled my panniers. I then headed to Sairme's main attraction - its mineral water.

In Sairme there are several stations, where you can press a button and a jet of sparkling mineral water comes shooting out. The different stations have a different mineral compositions, but all of them are relatively high in sodium, magnesium and potassium. As far as my limited understanding of chemistry goes, this makes Sairme water an excellent source of electrolytes and I filled up both of my bottles, glad for the assistance on another hot day.

Shortly after leaving Sairme, the paved road turned into gravel, which it remained for the 20km left of the pass.



This was a tough climb. The gradients were inconsistent, although there were only a couple of really steep sections, and the surface generally was pretty good. But it was very long and very hot to ride fully loaded. The elevation gain was 50% more than on Col du Tourmalet and even more than that of the legendary Stelvio.

Having said that, I absolutely loved it. The climb was challenging, but it was also beautiful and extremely peaceful. Most of it from Sairme was in forest, but there were beautiful wild flowers, towering pine trees and very clean air. Towards the top there were sheep and cows grazing on increasingly open pastures, as well as a few friendly Caucasian sheepdogs.



The toughest part of the climb came just I emerged from the trees around 5km from the top. For about a kilometre the gradient hovered around 12% on a very rough surface. It looked like it was leading to the pass itself, but it was a false summit. Fortunately the last few kilometres were easy and gentle, allowing me to recover and appreciate the spectacular views.



The pass is marked by a sign and offers great views in all directions. After admiring the scenery for a while I began the long descent.

The first couple of kilometres were on a nice smooth dirt road, leading to an area with a lot of parked 4x4 vehicles. The next 10km was quite cut up and muddy from where the vehicles had climbed up, and there was also a lot of rockfall on the road, making it bumpy and hard on the hards without any suspension.

Gradually this improved though, and by the time the hairpin bends started in earnest 10km into the descent, it was pretty smooth and a lot of fun to ride.



The final part of the descent took me though the town of Abastumani, a long touristy town that seemed to have a huge of amount of benches. I think it's a popular holiday spot with Georgians who visit the mountains and can do day trips to nearby attractions like Zarzma Monastery and Akhaltsikhe.

I was too tired to do much exploring and instead followed the main road from Batumi into Akhaltsikhe. This was a bit busier than roads I typically cycle on, but it was still better than I expected, with one car or truck passing every few minutes, and generally leaving lots of space. I had considered taking a gravel route through Tsakhani and Tskruti - but my body was shaken enough from the previous descent.

Akhaltsikhe

The road was rolling into Akhaltsikhe and the town is hidden by a mountain, so it sprung up on me as a pleasant surprise. The huge castle suddenly loomed large, and five minutes later I was at my hotel in the old town.

I spent two night in Akhaltsikhe and had a great time walking round the old town. The undoubted star is the Rabati Fortress, a vast complex originally dating from the 9th century. Inside the enormous city walls there are palaces, churches, a mosque, many towers and impressive decorative features. It takes hours to fully explore the site, which had very few visitors.

The fortress was built in a key strategic location, protecting valley routes through the Lesser Caucasus into modern Turkey and Armenia. It was famously besieged by the Mongol conqueror Timur (also known as Tamerlane) in the 14th century, but the walls withstood and repelled his army. Rabati was under Persian Safavid rule until the 16th century when the Treaty of Constantinople handed it to the Ottomans.



Inside the fortress there is an excellent archaeological museum which explains not only the rich history of the town, but of southern Georgia in general. Entrance to the museum costs more than for the fortress itself, but its well worth it to learn more and see thousands of years worth of artefacts from the region.

As you can probably tell, I was very impressed by the Rabati fortress. But I should probably note that it is not unverisally popular. The complex underwent an extensive rebuilding in 2011 with the aim of attracting more tourists. Some critics claim that the reconstruction is not authentic and that it's almost like a Disneyland version of the original site.

I kind of understand that perspective, but it's important to remember that fortresses like Rabati are constantly being rebuilt and redesigned ever since their original construction. They don't encapsulate just one point in time, but rather are testament to the needs and requirements of different generations. In a few hundred years time, I wouldn't be surprised if people looked back on Rabati as it is now and are fascinated that it spent time as a tourist attraction. It's part of the history! And, in any case, I don't think the reconstruction is particularly faithless to the original. You can still get a feeling for how the fortress would have life in the town and the region, as well as repelling invasions.



Elsewhere in Akhaltsikhe, there are some beautiful churches in the old town, as well as an old synagogue and Turkish baths. It was certainly one of my favourite towns in Georgia and I'd highly recommend visiting.

I also found the people to be very friendly here - there is a large Armenian population in addition to Georgians. I was greeted at my hotel (New Star) with sweets, cake and tea, and had two fabulous meals at the nearby Minimo restaurant.



Part 2 - Vardzia & Ninotsminda

Part 3 - Gyumri & Yerevan

Part 4 - Lake Sevan & Haghpat

Part 5 - Stepanavan - Tbilisi

Part 6 - Mtskheta & Roshka

Part 7 - Shatili & Mutso

Georgia & Armenia Tour Overview

Cycle Touring Guides