Cycling Georgia: Shatili & Tbilisi

This is the seventh and final part detailing my cycle tour around Georgia & Armenia in August and September 2024. Here are links to Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, Part Five and Part Six.

In this final section of the tour, I climbed the stunning Datvisjvari Pass into the Pshav-Khevsureti's National Park. Here I visited the beautiful villages of Shatili and Mutso, before returning towards Tbilisi via Ananuri and the Didgori Pass.





I descended from Roshka back down to the valley road and almost immediately began the long and challenging climb to Datvisjvari Pass. The road was a gravel surface all the way to Shatili, but was in very good condition, the only slightly rough section was the steep final 500m where cars had created some awkward ridges in the surface.



It's a truly stunning climb, with open scenery most of the way. The gradient is pretty consistent and is challenging, but doesn't get very steep so you can easily focus on admiring the beautiful surroundings.

In the distance there are several peaks in excess of 4,000m altitude, including Mount Shani, which forms part of the border between Russia and Georgia.



The pass itself peaks at nearly 2,700m and is a long climb, but I found that it flew by because I was enjoying it so much! On the way there are a few shepherd dogs which come with a fearsome reputation, but they were friendly and seemed more interesting in trying to get some food than they were in protected their sheep and cows.

I cycled the pass on a Sunday and there were a few cars and minibuses on their way to Shatili, but it was mostly quiet, it would generally be 15 or 20 minutes between vehicles passing. My favourite section was the last 8km where the hairpin bends started to climb the steep mountainside.



At the top I met a fellow cycle tourist who had climbed up the other side. He had come from the Tusheti National Park and had hiked over the Atsunta Pass with his bike. He said that even though it was only a short distance it took a few days, camping in between, because it was slow going. Some Russian cyclists who he saw apparently loaded their bikes onto horses and rode them over the pass, which sounds like a better idea to me!



The descent into the Khevsusreti National Park was perhaps even more spectacular than the climb. The first half was relatively steep and very fast, while the second half was much more shallow and I had to peddle most of the way into Shatili.

Shatili & Mutso

Shatili was the first significant village I had reached in over 100km of riding and was a beautiful town split into two sections. The lower part had a couple of guesthouses next to the river and a new tourist information centre for the national park.

The old town was a maze of around 60 different tower houses. These were formerly connected by wooden platforms which could be pulled up in case of need for defence and turned into fortifications.




I stayed for two nights at Mziani Guesthouse, which was situated on a small plateau above the old town. If you have a bike, I don't recommend staying in the old town itself, because you will have to navigate some steep stairs and narrow trails to get inside!

The accommodation was very nice and provided a huge dinner and breakfast full of local products including homemade butter, honey, jam, khachapuri and loads of different salads and savoury items.



In the evening a large group of tourists arrived in three minibuses. They looked around for about half an hour, taking loads of photos, and then left, seemingly heading back to Tbilisi. I guess they were doing a whistlestop tour of the main attractions in the region, but rushing through like that really seemed to miss out on the beauty and tranquility of the mountains.





The town had originally been built during Georgia's feudal period in the 12th century. It needed to be fortified to defend itself from raids because it would take too long for the local lord's army to arrive. In the 1950s the Soviet authorities resettled the residents into the valley and the town was all but abandoned.

Shatili itself mostly exists nowdays to serve tourists. In the winter, when the road is cut off by snow, the residents relocate to somewhere more hospitable (unlike the neighoburing Tusheti for example, where villagers remain in Omalo throughout the winter).



The following day I wanted to cycle further into the National Park and continued along the gravel road to Mutso. This was another fantastic route along a great gravel trail, and was nice to ride without panniers for a change.

Mutso is a village that is quite similar to Shatili, except that it is uninhabited and is being restored. Oh, and also, it's perched a lot higher up on the mountainside.



It was quite a long hike up from the bottom and some of the rocks were a bit slippery for my SPD cycling shoes. It was well worth the climb though, because the town itself was completely empty and I was to free explore all of the different buildings.

It felt bigger and more remote than Shatili, and also in better condition following the recent restauration. At the highest point there is a chapel and a small tower which offer incredible views looking back down into the valley.

Mutso probably dates from the 12th or 13th century (similar to Shatili) and had a defensive purpose. There are rumours of attacks by Chechyans, Tatars and Mongols amongst other groups, but I'm not sure how active they really would have been in such a remote valley!



At the start of the hike up to Mutso there was a small shop. I enjoyed a tarragon lemonade here, but it seemed to mostly sell chocolate, cigarettes, coffee and alcohol. I think it was the first supply point for hikers descending the Atsunta Pass.

Other potential customers were the numerous border guards in the area. I was stopped a couple of times and asked where I was heading. When I told them Mutso and Ardoti they smiled and waved me through. If you want to climb the Atsunta Pass and other areas close to the border with Chechnya it is necessary to apply for a permit in advance.




At the fork to the Atsunta Pass, I instead headed right and continued along the valley to Ardoti on a great trail, crossing a couple of streams on the way. After a while I turned around and descended most of the way back to Shatili. It was a great few hours out on the bike surrounded by absolutely breathtaking natural scenery.

Ananuri

The next day I left Shatili and rode back over the Datvisjvari Pass. I found this north-eastern side to be slightly easier than the western side and the scenery was just as specatcular.



The road was quieter than on the Sunday, but there were still a couple of cars and one truck driving extremely aggressively which almost veered off the road as it overtook me.



Back at the Zhinvali Reservoir I turned right and joined a good gravel road running along the entire northern side of the lake. There weren't as great views of the reservoir as I had hoped, but it was enjoyable riding on rolling terrain. In fact, this whole ride into Mtskheta was one of my favourite of the entire tour.

After crossing a small and rickety bridge I arrived at the village of Ananuri.



Ananuri is quite a touristic site with a large beach area the on reservoir and several stands selling refreshments. The main cultural attraction is Ananuri Fortress which is worth going inside.

The walls and tower are in very good condition and you can climb along them and enjoy picturesque views over the reservoir. The castle is apparently named after a certain Ana from Nuri, who defied a siege during a battle between warring princes by refusing to give away location of secret tunnel.



From the fortress it is a short but steep climb up to the junction with the S3 highway. This is the main road and old military highway into Russia. I have seen that some cycletourists ride it to get to the beautiful town of Kazbegi, but I'd strongly advise against this. It's a busy road with lots and lots of trucks and fast cars. Unfortunately there is no other paved road to get to the region, you would have to hike-a-bike over the Chaukhi Pass. But you could also catch a minivan with your bike to Kazbegi and do some circular rides around - just avoid the S3 road!

I crossed straight over the S3 and began a long and mostly gradual climb up to Dudaurebi. There was only one steepish section towards the top, otherwise it was all straight forward. There were some slightly aggressive dogs guarding cattle, but they seemed to quickly lose interest. Nice views emerged at the top in a kind of plateau.



From Dudaurebi you can choose between the easy route down to Dusheti or the long, but scenic route around the Tsikhisubani reservoir. I chose the latter because I wanted to explore the mountains more and avoid the larger town.

There was beautiful scenery as the road continued to climb and passed through very rural villages (watch out for pigs and chickens on the road). A longish descent followed on double track at first, then single track, but it was all rideable and in reasonable condition. This was followed by a steep but rideable section to Tkhilovani.



I crossed the river here and took a sharp left following a beautiful shaded trail, carefully edging past some quite aggressive large pigs. I then finished the descent with a short steep bit down to road at Tsikhisubani reservoir. There are some nice views into the monutains of South Ossetia on this part of route.

I followed a quiet paved road from the reservoir to Tsitsamuri, where I took a nice short cut across a river to Mchadijvari.



The main square in Mchadijvari is dominated by a church-fortress complex, like a smaller version of the one in Mtskheta. There were also a few cafes and shops here so I was able to get some refreshments for the first time since Ananuri.

From Mchadijvari the road was fairly quiet to Dzalisi. I quickly visited the Roman ruins here, which were extensive by Georgian standards, but quite low level. The most impressive were the remains of the swimming pool and baths. The site was empty so I just wandered in, but apparently you should call the number displayed first for access (entry was free in any case).



q3 The road became busier after Dzalisi and I turned off before I reached the main highway. This took me on a quiet road through the Tsegerovi Refugee Camp. This is a village that was constructed in 2008 for refugees from South Ossetia (mostly Georgians who wanted to leave Ossetia when it fell under de-facto Russian control).

The houses were all single storey and were uniform in shape and size, but the village very nice looking. It isn't what I would imagine a refugee camp to look like. Everywhere had beautiful gardens with vineyards and was very well kept with good infrastructure (including paved roads, shops, businesses etc.) It was a nice example of how refugee villages should be, but perhaps it was that way because it was fellow Georgian citizens who were the refugees rather than outsiders.



After a short section on a track I followed the road downhill into Mtskheta. There was a nice view of Dasajdomi castle on the way, and once again I was in awe of Mtskheta's majestic cathedral compound.

It was a long and tough ride, but a beautiful one through Ananuri and the surrounding mountainous countryside. I refuelled with some delicious phkali and khachapuri and spent the evening admiring the Mtskheta skyline.

Didgori & Tbilisi

The final day in the saddle on this tour wasn't what I had pictured in my mind's eye. It was raining heavily, with quite strong winds. I considered riding the short way along the river into Tbilisi, the same way that I had left ten days earlier. But I managed to motivate myself to do a longer, more interesting ride.

The day began following the old road heading west towards Gori. It wasn't too busy but cars were passing quickly and closely and so I turned off as soon as possible onto gravel side roads.

This turned out to be a mistake. Firstly there were a large number of aggressive dogs on this section, and secondly the trails become muddy and then stopped completely, forcing me to hike with my bike up a slippery singletrack to cross the railway line. In the end I rejoined the same road and wished I had just stayed on it in the first place (I've edited the route map so it stays on the road and doesn't go the way I did!)




Shortly after Dzegvi I turned off and climbed up through the village of Khekordzi. This was a nice little short cut which was paved at first and then became a dirt trail. Unfortunately due to the heavy rain, the trail had become muddy and was a horrible thick mud that stuck to the tyres and drivetrain. I had to stop several times and clean the bike with a stick, but it would have been a nice route in dry conditions.
Fortunately, it didn't last long and I soon joined the paved road to Didgori, which would be the main climb of the day.



This was a very pleasant climb with little traffic. It was mostly in trees for the first part, but opened up beautiful as I ascended higher. The gradients were challenging, with long sections around 11% or 12% followed by some false flat. Even fully loaded it was quite easy though as the surface was smooth asphalt.

A rare car stopped after it overtook me with the driver very concerned for my welfare, climbing in such wet conditions. He offered me a lift, and when I told him I was OK he offered me some of the marijuana he was smoking, which I also politely declined!



Towards the top of the climb there is a large memorial celebrating the Battle of Didgori. In the 12th century, against the odds, the Selcuk Turks were defeated allowing the unification of Georgia under King David IV. From the monument the road ascended a little more but it was all gentle and easy.

It was very beautiful open scenery here. So open that I was a little concerned about lightning, but instead the storm relented and the rain eased off, with the sun even appearing for a short time.

After a short but fast downhill I joined the Manglisi - Tbilisi road which I followed most of the way to the capital. It was pretty quiet in terms of traffic, although was more hilly than it looks on the profile, with a considerable amount of climbing until the village of Kiketi.



The final descent into Tbilisi was fast but dangerous. I followed the road through Tskneti and down towards the Saburtalo district where I was staying. I was descending at the speed limit, but cars kept roaring passed, while others would pull out forcing me to slam on the brakes. It's no exaggeration to say that Tbilisi is probably the worst city I've ever cycled in with regards to the drivers.

There were some cycle lanes as I entered Saburtalo but some of them were closed due to nearby construction, so at times I had to weave in and out of the traffic which wasn't ideal, given that Georgian drivers never seemed to slow down or give way. In any case, since I was going downhill it didn't take long before I arrived safely at my aparment.



I managed to get hold of a bike box from Georiders (I paid for it but can't remember how much). The box was small and not the best quality, and I had to take off both wheels and the fork to fit it inside, but using my clothes for padding it all felt fairly secure.

I found a great local restaurant near where I was staying - Brauhaus Tiflis, which, despite its name and German decor, had delicious Georgian and Russian food (Stroganoff, Khachapuri and Herring), as well as good beer.

In my last couple of days in Georgia I did a pretty average hike around the Mtatsminda Park and travelled around the city a bit by bus and metro to see what it was like outside the touristy parts (actually very pleasant!)

I enjoyed a final meal of phkali, ostri and khachapuri before having an early night ahead of catching my 5am flight.

Annoyingly a lot of flights leave Tbilisi in the middle of the night so I didn't get much sleep, waking up around 2am. Due to the awkward timing I pre-booked a large taxi to the airport and, although it arrived late, the bike box fitted in comfortably.

I was a bit sad to leave Georgia because I had a fantastic time cycling both there and in Armenia. I would love to go back, particularly to spend more time in the mountains and to visit the eastern Kakheti region. Check out my overview and summary of the whole trip here.



Part 1 - Kutaisi & Akhaltsikhe

Part 2 - Vardzia & Ninotsminda

Part 3 - Gyumri & Yerevan

Part 4 - Lake Sevan & Haghpat

Part 5 - Cycling Stepanavan and Tbilisi

Part 6 - Mtskheta & Roshka


Georgia & Armenia Tour Overview


Cycling in Georgia


Cycling in Armenia


Cycle Touring Guides