Guamka Gorge

The Kurdzhips cut a slot about three kilometres long through limestone at Guamka, with walls up to four hundred metres rising almost vertically and narrowing to a few dozen metres apart at points, so that the sky is a strip overhead and the light barely reaches the water. In the 1930s a narrow-gauge railway was blasted along the wall to bring timber out of the mountains, running on a ledge cut into the rock above the river, and that alignment is the way through: a small tourist train runs part of the way and the rest is walked on the trackbed, past waterfalls coming off the walls and pools below. A landslide in 2011 destroyed a section of the line several hundred metres long, and the railway could not get through to Mezmay until 2017. Vegetation is subtropical - box, yew, moss on every wet surface - and the gorge stays cool in summer heat.

Highlights

• The slot - three kilometres of gorge with walls up to four hundred metres.
• The railway ledge - a 1930s narrow-gauge timber line blasted into the cliff.
• The tourist train - running part of the route, with the rest walked on the trackbed.
• The wet vegetation - box, yew and moss in a gorge the sun barely reaches.

When to go

April to October. Three to four hours for the train and walk. Weekends are busy and the train queues.

Before you go

Rockfall is a genuine hazard - a slide in 2011 cut the line for years. The trackbed is uneven and wet. The train runs only part of the route and queues at weekends. Cold and damp even in summer.

Nearby

Mezmay is at the far end of the gorge; Lago-Naki and Rufabgo are south.