The backpack arrived with Irakli last night!!!
We’re ready to set out.
We took the metro to Didube station and hopped on a somewhat touristy marshrutka, together with two girls from Belarus and four Chinese guys, that took us to Kazbegi, north of Tbilisi close to the Russian border.
I slept for most of the ride, but what I saw of the countryside was stunning as almost always in Georgia.
In Kazbegi we stocked up on locally produced bread and cheese and started walking towards Juta, the last village before the mountain ranges that separate the region of Khevi from the region of Khevsureti. We were soon approached by more or less official taxi drivers who asked for our destination and offered a ride. We had to haggle quite a bit and still paid a lot for the 20 km to Juta. Justus liked the idea of travelling in a Lada Niva very much, so it was worth it.
In Juta we met a guy and his kid, and and he recommended the northerly route across the Sadzelisghele Pass (3056 m), which was supposed to be snow-free, and not the route across the Chaukhi Pass (3338 m).
We followed the Juta river for a while. Or was it still the Snostskali? Anyway, we approached a military checkpoint and were stopped. The border with the Russian republic of Ingushetia was less than 3 kilometers to the north. We had to produce our passports and received a document permitting us to travel further.
So we continued along the river, higher up the valley. The path branched and we decided to stop and pitch tents for the night.
Walked 10km.
