After three nights in Tbilisi I was happy to be back on the bike again. I had planned a short and relatively easy looking day - only around 33km and 400m of elevation to Mtskheta.
From there I would travel north on mostly gravel roads to the Zhinvali Reservoir, before heading to Roshka into the Upper Caucasus, where I would do some hiking.
Following a cycle route along the river in Tbilisi
I had spent enough time around Tbilisi to know that the roads were not very safe for cycling. There is a lot of traffic and drivers are very aggressive towards everyone, including cyclists! So the route I planned out of the city try to avoid dangerous roads as much as possible.
I began by following a cycle lane alongside the river. This was pretty nice for a few kilometres - at times it was shared with pedestrians, but there were very few people walking here.
By the time the cycle lane disappeared the worst of the traffic was already behind me. I followed quiet roads past the US embassy and crossed a footbridge over the busy S1.
Jvari Monastery
After crossing the bridge over the Kura River the route briefly joined a gravel road before beginning the climb up to Jvari Monastery. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Jvari is perched on a hillside overlooking the confluence of two major rivers and the historic town of Mtskheta. It is one of the oldest monasteries in Georgia, although not
too much is remaining of the original site. The newer church looked impressive from a distance, because of the mountain backdrop, but it was crowded and not so interesting inside.
When I visited in August there were a lot of people hanging around, with most of them seemingly taking hundreds of photos of themselves looking down on the river. I think it must be one of Georgia's Instagram hotspots!
The road up to the monastery was quite an easy climb, but was spoilt by the aggressive drivers. It was quite narrow and cars would squeeze past, leaving just centimetres of space, rather than wait a couple of seconds to overtake. I only really experienced this kind of dangerous driving in and around Tbilisi - elsewhere in Georgia it was not so bad. The road only went to the monastery, so I'm not sure why they were in such a rush!
View of Mtskheta from Jvari
From Jvari I descended on a steep and rocky track back down to the valley. I crossed under the motorway on a gravel trail and then had to follow a slightly awkward route through a quarry and a closed down service station. Eventually I found the footbridge to cross the river, then took a nice gravel road into the centre of Mtskheta.
Mtskheta is my favourite of all the cities I've visited in Georgia. It is the former Roman capital of the Iberia province and so, as you can imagine, is steeped in history.
The main attraction is the fortified cathedral complex at the heart of the city which is a beautiful hive of activity, particularly in the evenings.
Riding along the river into Mtskheta
I ended up staying an extra night in Mtskheta to fully explore the town. This included walking out to Pompey's Bridge - the main surviving Roman monument, situated in the Kura River. Unfortunately the water level was too high so it wasn't visible.
Along the river there are some excellent restaurants and I had some delicious Phkali and Shkmeruli in a very picturesque setting. If I had stayed longer I would have liked to have done a circular ride out to the Fortress of Ksani and Shiomgvime Monastery, but there was enough in Mtskheta itself to keep me occupied.
Mtskheta's impressive cathedral is a hive of activity
Leaving Mtskheta, my route crossed the river and motorway using the same bridge and underpass as I arrived and then took gravel trails north through Tsitsamuri. This was a bit tricky to follow, but I think it
it's a far better option than riding on the S1 and S3 which are extremely fast and busy roads.
From Saguramo the gravel road became much easier to follow and I stayed on it for nearly 30km, including some paved sections through villages. It was mostly a good surface and very enjoyable to ride. The main obstacle came when crossing the Tezami stream where the road had been washed away. I had to haul my bike down a very steep two metre bank, cross the dry river bed and then haul it up the other side. It was a bit of a chore but not too big of a deal and I was soon on my way again.
Into the Mountains
Some nice gravel and dirt roads enabled me to avoid riding on the busy U1 Highway
I left the gravel trail shortly before the town of Zhinvali and joined a beautiful road in perfect condition heading around the Zhinvali Reservoir.
This continued for around 30km until I arrived at the destination for the evening - Khomi Resort. This was a small basic resort situated next to the river, it was pretty empty but was comfortable and had its own restaurant. I had been tempted to book accommodation a little further down the road in Roshka, but I feared that the trails could have been slow going. In the end I could have ridden a bit further, but it was also nice to finish for the day and have a relaxing afternoon by the river.
The trail was a bit of rough for short sections, but all rideable
The next morning my route continued following the paved road north for around 23km, passing through the villages of Khomi and Korsa. The road went uphill, but it was so gentle that it was barely noticeable.
I turned off onto a gravel climb which would take me properly into the Upper Caucasus for the first time and the village of Roshka. It was a very tough ascent, with gradients mostly well above 10% and a rough surface at times, with sections that I had to really power over to maintain traction.
Views of the Zhinvali Reservoir
The first part of the climb was in forest, so I was fully focused on the road itself, but just as the gradients eased off the trees parted and there were fantastic views of the mountains ahead.
The last stretch up to Roshka was pretty straight forward and I ended my ride at the Roshka guesthouse. It's possible to continue further up the climb to Arkhoti pass - and the road surface does improve as you climb higher, but I decided to do a short hike in the afternoon instead.
The turn to start the steep climb to Roshka
I stayed at Guesthouse Roshka for two nights which had simple accommodation and food, but was nice enough. My main interest here was hiking; there is a famous route which crosses Chaukhi pass to Juta, and then ontowards Kazbegi. Some people cycle this, but it involves long and challenging sections walking with the bike which doesn't really appeal to me.
I didn't have enough time to do the full hike to Juta and back in one day, so I would just do the more scenic first half of it, up to the Abudelauri Lakes.
Hike to Abudelauri Lakes
This was a fantastic hike along open trails. It was challenging in places with some steep gradients and a bit of light scrambling at the top, but there was no need for any special equipment or much experience in the mountains.
Roshka Village
I enjoyed the ascending path the most, which followed a narrow track that also seem to be used by cows. It climbed steeply towards the beautiful Blue Lake, with the high peaks of the Kazbegi National Park making for a stunning backdrop.
The picturesque path climbing to the lakes
From the Blue Lake there was a fun up and down stretch to the White Lake. This was less photogenic than the Blue Lake as the water was much less clear, but it was fed by an impressive looking glacier.
The descent was on a wide, very easy trail which seemed to be slightly more busy (although there weren't many people in general even though it was the weekend). In total the hike took just over four hours at a fairly modest pace and so it was reasonably challenging but not super hard.
The Blue Lake
The menacing looking White Lake
I had chat with the owner back at the guesthouse and she told me that it is still a very remote region in terms of tourists. It is mostly foreigners coming for hiking;t she said that they get very few Georgian visitors, because there is still not much of a walking or cycling culture in the region.
From Roshka I would be back on the bike the following day, riding over the stunning Datvisjvari Pass to Shatili.
