Jily-Su Tract

Jily-Su lies at around two and a half thousand metres on the northern flank of Elbrus, and until a paved road was pushed through in 2015 it was reached only by a rough track, which is why it stayed obscure while the southern side was developed for skiing. What is there is a cluster of features in a small area: the Sultan waterfall, where the Malka drops around forty metres over a lava ledge; carbonated mineral springs, warm and iron-rich, that people bathe in; the Kalezhny Tract with columnar basalt; mushroom-shaped weathered rocks; and the Emmanuel meadow, the base used by the 1829 Russian Academy expedition that made the first recorded ascent of Elbrus's eastern summit. Trails run up towards the glaciers and to the Birjaly and Sultan viewpoints. The altitude affects people arriving by car from Kislovodsk in a couple of hours, and the weather is mountain weather.

What you actually see

• The Sultan waterfall - the Malka dropping about forty metres over a lava ledge.
• The mineral springs - warm carbonated iron-rich water people bathe in.
• The columnar basalt - volcanic rock formations in the Kalezhny tract.
• The Emmanuel meadow - base of the 1829 expedition that first climbed Elbrus east.

When to go

June to September; snow closes the road for much of the year. A day from Kislovodsk, better an overnight. Weather turns fast at this altitude.

Honest expectations

Arriving at two and a half thousand metres in two hours from Kislovodsk causes altitude symptoms. The road closes with snow, sometimes into June. Facilities are minimal - a few huts and tent sites. Bathing in the springs is unsupervised and the water is not tested.

Nearby

Elbrus rises directly above; Kislovodsk and the mineral-water spa towns are north.