Lagodekhi Protected Areas

Lagodekhi was protected in 1912, which makes it the oldest reserve in Georgia, and it covers the southern slope of the main Caucasus range in the far east of the country, running from beech and hornbeam forest at around six hundred metres to alpine meadow and rock above three thousand. The gradient gives it a long species list including bear, lynx, chamois and East Caucasian tur. Day walks lead to the Ninoskhevi waterfall and the Machi fortress ruins, and the main objective for longer trips is Black Rock Lake, a two or three day trek to a glacial lake on the ridge at around two thousand eight hundred metres, with a hut on the way.

History

The reserves hold traces of Bronze Age settlement and burials, especially at Ulianovka. They began with the Polish officer and amateur naturalist Ludwik Młokosiewicz, who laid out a regimental park at Lagodekhi while serving in the garrison, left the army in 1861, returned in 1867 and spent the rest of his life on a forest farm as inspector of forests, discovering more than 60 species; from 1889 he urged that the area be protected. This came in 1912, after advocacy by the Imperial Russian Geographical Society and the botanist Nikolai Kuznetsov, as the first strict nature reserve in the Caucasus; it was declared a zapovednik again in 1929, enlarged in 1935, 1945 and 1970, and kept when other reserves were cut back in 1951 and 1962-64. In 2003, under the protected areas laws of 1996, 6,000 hectares were added and the reserve was divided into a large strict reserve and a small managed reserve with trails and an information centre (Wikipedia, Lagodekhi Protected Areas).

The landscape

• The oldest reserve in the country - protected since 1912.
• Black Rock Lake - the glacial lake trek up to the ridge.
• Ninoskhevi waterfall - the standard day walk from the entrance.
• Forest to alpine meadow - the full gradient of the southern slope.

When to go

June to October; snow closes the high routes for the rest of the year. A day for the waterfall, two to three for Black Rock Lake. Register at the visitor centre before longer walks.

Practical notes

The Black Rock Lake trek is long and involves substantial ascent; people underestimate it. Weather on the ridge changes fast and the lake is often in cloud. Ticks are a real problem in the forest in early summer. The reserve borders another country and the boundary must be respected.

Nearby

Lagodekhi town is below; Telavi lies west across Kakheti.

Key facts