Kazbeg

Well! Kazbeg was the mountain which I was supposed to climb with Liza, my Ex, 3 years ago. We had a huge fight a few days before the flight, and I ended up flying to Georgia without her.

Three years ago I decided to climb it alone with a guide, fate dictated that it’s too early for me, I’m not ready for that, and a storm snowing a meter of new snow at the top, prevented my dream.

So anyway, my time finally arrived. I came to Georgia with the person with whom I can go through every obstacle  that I will face , I count on Ira with my eyes closed – and for the people who were in our wedding - if I won’t I’ll be in deep shit J - (remember the movie with my but ???)

I was fit, I’ve done the alpin course in Chamonix. I had much more experience in the mountains and it felt right.

I asked Guga to recommend a Guide. He hooked us with his friend Ilya – but the price was to high 800$. Ilya said that he has friend who works for 600$ and this is how we got to Lasha. We explained him that we needed boots and he told us about Shota who is an old alpinist that rents gear.

We went to Shota to measure the gear and then went to climb in Chiatura. Lasha had another group of tourists and couldn’t go with us on the dates that we planned to accend the mountain, and this is how we end up asking Shota if he knows some guides who can go with us to the mountains.

Shota connected us with Paata – a guide that he told us he trusts and he will charge only 500$ and another 50 to Shota for the additional gear rent crampons and axes … (at that point we should have suspected that something was smelly – but we didn’t).

We went to meet Paata  - a strong looking (Italian type) man who told us that he already done the Kazbeg 5 times that same season. He looked confident and we forgot that we also know a thing or two about hiking up the mountains …

We did a list of food that we need to take with us. It included 20 apples, 16 packets of instant soup , 5 breads, 2 kg of rice and so on and so on. We ended up with bags of about 18kg when we need to gain a 2km in attitude on the first day of hike – which was quite stupid …

Paata offered us some schemes of how he usually goes but we explained to him that we want 2 opportunities to ascend. He agreed to our option and started to try and make his life easier by convincing us to spend more money on getting horses or a jeep that will take us up (200 lari) .

We asked our friends and they said that usually people go with their gear up without any horses etc…

The bag is Ira's size

We met at Didube bus station and took the first Marshrutka to Kazbegi (10 Lari), Paata convinced us to take a jeep to Gergeti church , and it saved us an hour climb , we started our way to the Meteo at around 12 , it started drizzling almost immediately so we put our rain coats on and continued.

Gargeti Church

The start , should have been worried about
Paata's pink pants

                                                                                                      

small bags

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

We were very slow. The weight on our back was quite heavy, so we reached the glacier only at around 4 pm. The rain started and when it got heavier we put our crampons and shoes. Then the weather became cold. Ira changed to her Gore-Tex and I stupidly stayed with my hiking pants …

first steps on a Glacier

When we reached the end of the glacier I took my gloves off to take off the crampons and the gear. That was an almost fatal mistake. The cold went into the wet gloves. I hoped that my hand would make them warm but I was too cold myself and my hands started to freeze.  Paata took us to some really bad and dangerous path to the Meteo (later he said it was the short one). Ira struggled all the time and almost fell a few times. I started to lose feeling in my fingers but tried to support her, we reached the Meteo at about 18:30 soaking wet, I ran to the warm room to try and warm up my hands.

My luck was that there was an amazing girl who was a nurse. She had some ointments to heat up my hands and return the blood flow to them. It was quite painful. We spent most of the next day drying our clothes.

In the afternoon we made a short acclimatization ascent to 3900m, reaching the Cable Car Church which is at the highest altitude of any orthodox church in the world. This gave us a bit of confidence and plenty of amazing views.

we are going there

going up to the church

a view from the Meteo

the Church

high church

4000m view

near the meteo

not a good day for the summit

That night was our first ascent window. We woke up at 1am. The weather looked bad so we decided to try at 2am. We went out once more with Paata and there were a lot of clouds on the plateau. This lazy bastard said that there is no chance to ascend and we need to go back to bed.

When I woke up in the morning I got fever. It was a brilliant day. 95% of people who attempted the ascent made it. I got really pissed off and I could not hide it too much. Paata read my mood and offered us to make another acclimatization walk to the Plateau. In the end, I figured out that he wanted to check the trail because he didn’t know it. We reached the Hmaura (the rolling stones area) – and it was too hot so we turned back.

Just before the Hmaura

The rooms at the Meteo are really cold. It’s about 8C at the afternoon, so when we were warming up inside our sleeping bags. During this time, Ira had one of the deepest and most valued conversations we ever had.  I realized that if we were to ascend the mountain, we do it together - and if we go down, we go down together; there is not a single peak in the world that is worth a finger of Ira.

We decided that doesn't matter how the weather looks we would try to ascend that night.

Waking up at 1am and seeing that the weather looked perfect was very encouraging.

We went to the freezing kitchen and made some tea. We had some bread with peanut butter for the energy and some apple for the taste, took our backpacks, and wearing 3 layers started our way to the top of the Kazbeg.

                                                                                             

The first part up to the Hmaura passed quickly. We were there a day before and the route looked nice and clear. When we reached the Hmaura the part with the rolling stones we went slowly. Paata could not find the way and when we saw a fast group going nearby us Paata went to their direction. Those were the rescue team from the Meteo who decided to take their friends to the top.

Their guide screamed to Paata that he takes us the wrong way, then I understood that he is just following the Rugums (the stone route marks on the way) and he didn’t really know the way.

Paata tried to run after the group without even noticing that we are not fast enough to follow. I got pissed and told him that he is our guide and not a part of the other group.

He saw that I will explode and slowed down.

We put the crampons on, tied the rope (I needed to explain to him how to do it correctly) and started our way on the plateau, the weather got bad, the wind started to bring a lot of snow into our face, the pace started to go down.

We reached the turn to the peak and Paata started telling us that the weather was bad and we needed to go back. The visibility was terrible and we didn’t see any people. Then we heard screams from someone – the guys from the Meteo. They heard Paata trying to take us down from the mountain and offered us to follow them. Paata ran like crazy and we could not keep up the pace at 4500m.

After few hundred meters Ira started screaming from pain. Her left hand got frozen and she was suffering from pain. I turned our group around immediately. We got about 50m down and I just opened my jacket and shuffled Ira’s hand under my shirt. I screamed to Paata to bring her a cup of tea, Ira came down and her hand got warm.

We continued going down and many people were passing us on their way up. After another 50 m Ira said that she wanted to go back and try to ascend the peak. Paata made an unhappy face and said that we went a 100m down. I looked at him and he understood that we are going up.

We started on our way up. I got a lot of energy from Ira’s brave decision to go up, I got really determined to ascend the mountain. We continued for about another 250m up and then we met the Meteo group who decided to go down because of the weather. Paata stopped once more and asked us if we want to go down. We said “NO”, we will try to go up, maybe the weather will improve.

Every 50 m we would stop and see other people above us. Paata would ask if we wanted to go on…

frozen Kitz

just before continuing another time Up

One before the Last stop

looking good

For about 5 or 6 times this process happened. Other groups started to descend...

If we had a guide that would not doubt any step that was made toward the peak maybe we could have continued but at that point Ira felt cold once more and she decided that we should go down.

The way down was difficult, I was very angry with Paata and the adrenaline disappeared. I was barely moving my feet. The feeling of a second failure was making my mind run in circles.

weather improved

almost at the Meteo

We reached the Meteo and I just collapsed in bed. I slept for about 5 hours and then woke up for the sunset. I was really angry and the guys from the Meteo offered me a drink. I told them the story and the guide who led the other group told me that we had a terrible guide and that when we saw him in the Hmaura he was yelling at Paata that he was taking you the wrong way.

We had a great dinner with 3 Israeli girls and some group from Ukraine when we tried to use all the food which we brought – almost a mission impossible …

I woke up to see the most beautiful sunrise , we were above the clouds, we had a nice breakfast, and packed our bags.

above the clouds 

wanted to take it at the top , but it will have to wait

the knight and the Lady

sticks or axe ? :)

our pose

When we took all our stuff out, we heard all the Meteo employees laugh at Paata in his face and calling him a thief. Paata just fled away from the Meteo. We met him almost 200m below. He was telling us that he went away so that he wouldn’t hit the guides from the Meteo – yea sure …

We got to Gargeti , on the way I explained to Paata that he is not even close to be named a mountain guide and that he risked our life and his, and 500$ is not worth the loss his 2 children’s father.

Almost down

the waterfalls from the Glacier

Gargeti looks even better on the way down

I paid him the money and we went to our ways. Paata ran to catch the marshrutka and we went to visit the Gargeti church. We met there some Israeli people who celebrated their grandpa’s 80 birthday. They gave us a ride down to Kazbegi. We had great food and desert in a restaurant there.

We caught a ride with people from Baku , it was nice

Yes the people from Baku travel with a bird

So Kazbeg – see you in a few years …