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RussiaWhat to Expect and Is It Worth Visiting
This is the most popular tourist route from Dombay, so if you do not know what to see with a lack of time, go right here, especially since on the route you can see not only wonderful views of the mountains, but also visit four other attractions at once:
- Alibek waterfall - the most beautiful waterfall in Dombay, formed in the middle of the last century from the waters of the glacier.
- Turye Lake - a beautiful mountain lake with turquoise water, appeared on the site where there used to be a glacier.
- Alibek glacier - the most accessible for tourists in the vicinity.
- Cemetery climbers - here are buried climbers or monuments to the dead climbers who stormed the peaks of the mountains in the vicinity of Dombay.
The route follows Teberdinsky nature reserve, starts from the outskirts of Dombay from the checkpoint (checkpoint at the entrance to the route (). Part of the way (5 kilometers to the camp of climbers "Alibek") can be overcome by jeep with a tour or by private car. If it is completely passed on foot, you will have to overcome about 20 kilometers back and forth, and the height difference is more than 600 meters. But a reduced route is also possible only to the waterfall (13 kilometers). Whichever option you choose, it will take 6-12 hours on foot in both directions, or 4-6 hours if you travel part of the way by car. All the attractions (waterfall, Lake and Glacier) are at the very end of the way, and the cemetery of climbers is almost at the very beginning. You will also pass through the camp of climbers "Alibek", where the campsite and cafe are now located.
Officially, in 2019 and 2020, the passage to Turi Lake was closed due to the destruction of bridges across the river. No one restores these bridges, although the money for the passage to the route is collected in full. In practice, you can go to Turi Lake along the standard route, no one prevents this, but you will have to overcome the raging river by Ford or by installed temporary bridges-boards at your own risk. Another option is to take the unofficial route to the left of the waterfall across the glacier (see how to get there for details below).
Also, from the Route "Alibek gorge" you can go on more complex multi-day hikes with an overnight stay in tents. One of the most popular is the climb to Semenov – Bashi peak 3602 meters. Also from here go through the mountains to Arkhyz, but this is a very difficult hike, in which it is best to go with an experienced travel companion or guide.
To overcome this tourist route, you will not need equipment and climbing experience, but you need a lot of strength. You need to take drinking drinking water, a raincoat, good hiking shoes, sunglasses, sunscreen. It will be easier to overcome the path with trekking poles. You can not take a lot of water, since along the way you will meet drinking Mountain Springs.
Important! At the checkpoint you need to present a Russian passport, birth certificates for children. Citizens without documents are not allowed.
Since the gorge and its attractions are in the border area with Abkhazia, there is a special visiting regime. With you, you must have documents of the Russian Federation (passport, birth certificates for children). When entering the route at the checkpoint, you will need to fill out the contract on a special number form, where the passport data of the entire group or individual tourist fit in, and put down the term of the contract (you can set it for the entire period of your holiday in Dombay). Only with this Agreement and the original documents will it be possible to go on the route and pass the border guards checkpoint, which is located behind the Alibek Alpine camp. Without a contract and documents, you will be considered a violator. This contract can later be used for passage to other routes.
🕐 Working hours
Entrance to the trail through the checkpoint of the Reserve from 08:00 to 18:00, It is better to visit from May to September.
💵 Entrance fee / ticket price
Entrance to the tourist route is 200 rubles, children under 7 years old are free of charge. Entry to the route by car - 200 rubles.
🚶 How to get there
The route starts from the outskirts of Dombay, and stretches along the Alibek river for 8 kilometers from the city center (Checkpoint at the entrance on the route map. At the end of the path are a waterfall, a lake and a glacier, but not in the same place, but next to each other. You can walk or drive to the checkpoint from the center of Dombay, pay the entrance there, and then follow the dirt road to the Alibek Alpine Camp (5 kilometers), along the way looking at the cemetery of climbers. After the camp, after 1 kilometer there will be a border point where your documents will be checked due to the proximity of the border with Abkhazia. After passing the border guards point there will be two options:
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Official route
Immediately after the border point there will be a sign and a fork to the left to the waterfall, and straight to Turi Lake. You can visit the waterfall first, and therefore return to the fork and go further to Turi Lake. But before the lake will have to cross the bubbling mountain river Ford or through a temporary bridge in the form of a wooden board. Both methods are dangerous, so be very careful.
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Unofficial route
An unofficial trail to the lake leads through a waterfall and a glacier along the river, but theoretically it is impossible to walk along it, since the glacier is not included in the tourist route. If you are caught on this path near the glacier, border guards can issue an administrative fine of 500R. or confine themselves to a warning. To get to this path, from the waterfall you need to go a hundred meters downstream to the bridge, cross it, and then return to the waterfall and go up the steep slope to the left of it holding on to ropes and ropes. After following the river, you can walk to the border of the glacier, and then climb a steep slope up to the lake. But be careful: it is extremely dangerous to climb up immediately from the border of the glacier, it is better to go back about 500 meters, and then go up to the lake.
You can go any of the routes without problems yourself, it is difficult to get lost. In addition, in the season there are always enough people who will tell you the direction. For navigation, you can use a smartphone with the Yandex Map Editor app installed, such as Organic Maps, OSM, and others with marked trails. If you are not sure of your abilities, then in the city you can buy an excursion from distributors or drivers, which includes accompanying a guide and delivering by jeep to the Alibek Alpine camp, from where you will have only a couple of kilometers to go. You can also hire a jeep at the entrance to the Reserve, or take a passing Jeep already on the route. So you will save almost half the time, but the cost of the trip will be about 1000 rubles per person, or 4000 for the whole car for 4-6 people.
Theoretically, you can get to the alplager "Alibek" by car. Personal transport is easily passed at the checkpoint, you just need to enter it into the contract drawn up at the time of payment and pay for the trip itself. From the checkpoint will have to go on a very bad rocky road, which not every driver and car will master. But during our visit, local residents passed here even on modern "Lada" and foreign "puzoterki". If you can not get your car directly to the Alpine camp, you can leave the car earlier, but be sure to remove it from the road, because there are large all-terrain trucks. Directly at the alplager, the car can be easily left for free.