Caucasus 12-23 August 2021
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Day 4. A day trip on the Dzhikaugenkez glacier.
The rain only stopped in the afternoon. We had planned a long day trip but due to bad weather decided to limit it to checking out the Chatkara (Dzhikaugenkez) pass, which we would have to cross the day after. This proved to be a good decision, as it took us a while to find the path, and without path we would have struggled to climb a steep scree with small children.
The blue and red lines show our first and second outings. Shift-click on the track link will open it in nakarte.me.
The rain temporarily stopped just after breakfast, and we got to the glacier.
The Karakaya-su river flows from under the glacier. There was a lot less water in the morning compared to the afternoon. Our tents are on the flat moraine on the right. They are far away from the scree so we were safe from rockfall, and high enough not to worry about flooding.
The glacier is flat and free from snow. There is no need for crampons. We found only one crevasse blocked with old snow which was easy to walk around. The Chatkara (Dzhikaugenkez) pass is on the left.
Four little figures on the slope is our group. We are at the boundary between the rocks and the area of ice covered with scree. We did not find the path until much higher up, and just climbed straight up.
Once we found the path, our progress got much faster. We are looking at the valley on the other side. We built lots of cairns during descent to help us find the path the following day.
The weather improved in the afternoon, and the sun came out. We suddenly heard falling rocks.
The rain triggered a mini-landslide.
Slow movement of mud and rocks was a fascinating sight.
Our second trip on the glacier, this time with the children.
The sun transformed the views.
Victor is looking for a place to cross the stream.
We followed this stream for a while.
The crossing.
A stripy ice desert.
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A rabbit's tail. |
Falling into a moulin should be avoided at all costs.
The Kalitsky peak with Elbrus in the background.
