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AbkhaziaHigh mountain lake Mzy (Mzym) - one of the wonderful natural sights of Abkhazia located far in the mountains, but at the same time available for visiting not only travelers with a long experience of hiking and equipment, but also ordinary tourists in the form of a one-day hike. Of course, not only the lake itself is interesting, but also the route to it and its surroundings. It is believed that this is one of the most picturesque lakes of Abkhazia, and indeed around the lake there are stunning views of the mountains (it is located as if in a pit, surrounded by mountains), the route passes through the forest and green alpine meadows.
The lake is located at an altitude of 2000 meters above sea level. Its size is small, only 100 by 45 meters, but the depth is as much as 40 meters (according to other sources, 16 meters). It is formed from the waters of melting glaciers, so its size and temperature depends on the time of year, but usually the water here is rarely above 4 degrees Celsius, so only the most desperate tourists can swim in it. Also, depending on the time of year, snow Glades remain around the lake, they can be seen even in June. Even in summer it is cool here, so you should take warm clothes and raincoats with you.
🕐 Working hours: around the clock.
💵 Entrance fee / tickets price: the lake is located in Ritsa National Park, access to which is paid (environmental fee): adults – 350 rubles; children 8-12 years old – 150 rubles; children under 8 years old – free of charge. The fee is paid at the entrance to the park at the checkpoint. Lake day tour from Gagra it costs from 2000 rubles.
🚶 How to get there: the lake is one of the most easily accessible mountain lakes, located at an altitude of 2000 meters in 80 kilometers from Gagra (Lake Mzy on the map), and very close to the border with Russia. The road and trail to it leads through the Ritsa National Park. You can get here by your own transport or with an excursion (from 2000 rubles from Gagra), but this route is not very popular, so you will have to look for such a group tour, or take advantage of the offers of local private guides who will be happy to take you and take you to the lake.
You can not get directly to the lake, but on foot you will have to walk only about 7 kilometers (usually no more than 2 hours in one direction) along a simple route that does not require special training. To do this, go by car in the direction of Ritsa LAKE, and continue on to the village of Auadhara. The road after Lake Ritsa becomes worse, but you can drive any car. You should go all the way to the broken bridge over the river, then you can not drive a simple car, and you will have to leave the transport. You can ford the river in an SUV, but you still won't get far. Here you can meet local residents who will offer horse rental for a trip to the lake (1000 USD) and assure that you can not get there on foot, but this is not entirely true, it will not be difficult to walk, the road is well trodden by tourists.
💥 We remind you that it is much more interesting to get acquainted with the sights with the help of excursions, and therefore we advise you to look at options with online booking on these proven search and comparison sites price: