Lago-Naki, Guam Gorge, Mezmai and surroundings!

22 December 2015 • Travel time: with 15 January 2013 on 18 January 2013

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Chapter 1. First acquaintance. Guam Gorge and Mezmai village.

One spring, on the Easter holiday, my relatives and I spent time in the city of Apsheronsk. And so, the owner of the house told everyone that tomorrow we would go to some gorge. In the morning, all our friendly company loaded into the car and soon we were in place. This gorge was called "Guam". To be honest, we walked there quite a bit and I really didn’t have time to understand anything, but I became interested! Therefore, when I returned home, I called my small company, with which we were traveling around the Krasnodar Territory at that time, and said - “Pack up, we are going somewhere in a week! ”.

And now, my then “nine”, flies along the track towards adventures with two pairs inside! Ahead is a view of the mountains, on the tops of which there is still snow!

The road to the gorge was not difficult, but there were several dangerous turns and forks. Having safely overcome them, we drove into the village of Guamka. I will not hide the fact that last time I noticed a hotel here, which, in principle, was impossible not to notice, and I really wanted to stay in it! The price, of course, was considerable there, but what if you want to? : )

Hotel Guamka

The hotel was called the same as the village, and was located at the very entrance to the gorge. Having settled in two rooms with one common corridor, we began to gather for lunch, and then I looked out the window! Class! A raging mountain river flowed right next to it!

Immediately behind the hotel was a suspension bridge that led into the forest. But the territory did not end there! There were tables in the forest. As far as I understood, they could be rented even without living in a hotel, and for guests it was generally free.

Hotel Guamka

Bridge to the forest

After a meal at the hotel restaurant, we finally went to the gorge! Entrance to it, as I said, was practically on the territory and was free for everyone.

The gorge itself was a mountain path, in the middle of which, a narrow-gauge railway passed. I didn’t know exactly what was driving along it, and therefore I urged everyone to be careful - what if a train sneaks up behind? : )

The road here, of course, was not straight and was constantly winding, and each new turn opened up new views! To the left of us all the time there was a cliff, in the bottom of which a river flowed! There were fences here, but not everywhere. However, if a person is neat, then in my opinion, this was not a problem. But more serious dangers lay in wait from above. On the right side, there was always a sheer wall, from which small stones periodically fell. But judging by the large stones lying around in the middle of the railway, these also sometimes fell. Apparently, therefore, here in some places the mountain was covered with a net.

Soon we reached a place where a train car that had fallen into the gorge was clearly visible from the cliff. It was half sticking out of a mountain river. As we later found out, it seems that everyone who went there survived and there were only a few people there. Although, I heard another story that there is far from one locomotive in the gorge. And it is not surprising that they lie there - just in this place there was a very sharp turn. Of course, I am not a train driver, but I assume that if you forget to slow down on this section, then the platform may roll over. And if it rolls over, it will immediately fall into the abyss.

And this place was immediately defined by us as "To reach the wagons", well, or "Not to reach" : ) It was located approximately on the third part of the gorge's length.

Fallen trailer

After a short time, we reached the platform, which, in comparison with the gorge in general, was quite wide. It was somewhere in the middle of the road. There was a cafe on this clearing, where we rested, drank coffee and moved on! By the way, there was also a descent to the river along a special ladder and a transition to the other side. If you go there, and then in the right direction, you could find the “Monk's Cave”. But, to be honest, to this day I have not visited it, because it is small - it is essentially a grotto where, according to legend, a monk lived. But the cave has not been fully explored, because it has an underground lake, the ends of which the speleodivers have not yet been able to find!

We stomped further along the gorge. Fifteen minutes later, the road dropped and places began to appear where it was possible to go down to the river without any problems. Having done this, we turned around and went back towards the hotel, as the girls from our company were rather tired out of habit. Although, I naturally insisted on going through the entire gorge : )

But maybe it's good that we went back, because we were lucky to see the engine! The composition was a small tractor and one wagon in which people were sitting, but not tourists, but workers. They set up fences in dangerous places. But, looking ahead a little, I will say that once I saw here a small passenger car with tourists, but until a certain time (I will talk about this later).

Old locomotive

The locomotive did not particularly interfere with the walking of tourists, but in some places it was necessary to cling to the rock. But in general, in my opinion, it was more interesting to walk on foot than to drive! The only thing is that you had to go there in a helmet. By the way, a warning was even written about this at the entrance. And emphasizing this information for the future, we continued our vacation.

After eating shish kebabs fried behind the bridge in the forest, we ordered a sauna for the evening. It consisted of two rooms with billiards, but without a pool. Instead, here it was necessary to approach a certain place and pull the rope. After these actions, a tub of water poured on you : )

The next day we went home (I was still not against going for one night) and asked the administrator the question I was interested in - “What is at the end of the Guam Gorge? ”. It turned out that the gorge ends with some clearings, and then there is a village called “Mezmay”. And you can also drive into it by car (not through the gorge, of course), but you had to overcome the pass without asphalt.

- Hmm, this might be interesting! Let's go there and have a look! I suggested, and soon we were on our way!

We found the way to the village quickly, since she was alone here. It was only necessary to turn left from the center of the village of Nizhegorodskaya. Immediately after the turn, the asphalt ended and the road began without pavement, in some places with good potholes. But for the "nine" it was not scary. Then the pass began, quite steep, but on a dry surface it was passed without problems. I wonder how it is here in winter?

After admiring the views of green forests from the peak, we began our descent. Here I already noticed that the road became dangerous. The descent itself was steeper than the ascent, plus in some places the road was very narrow and there was a cliff on the left without guardrails. According to my estimates, driving a truck in this place will be extremely difficult, and if you yourself are in a big car, then it is impossible.

Having passed this dangerous area, we soon saw the village below, which was surrounded on all sides by mountains and covered with a foggy haze! The view was, of course, amazing : ) It was Mezmay!

Having overcome a long winding descent, we ended up in a lowland! Having passed along the only, as it seemed to me then, road, we drove into the village itself and ended up right at the shop. It was the center. By the way, along the way we came across a small bridge. To be honest, I would not have thought that it was not only for pedestrians, but also for cars, since it was very narrow! But after the Niva drove over it, we did it too : )

Having bought I don’t remember what in the store, we asked the saleswoman about this area in general, and I found out three interesting things for myself: there are bases and hotels, from here there is a road to Lago-Naki (it seems to be a ski resort), and not far from here there is a certain village with the interesting name “Temnolesskaya”, from which the road leads to Lago-Naki.

Quickly finding a hotel, which was located very close to the store, and taking a phone number, we went to look for Temnolesskaya.

To get into it, we had to turn off the main village road and drive deep into the forest. The road was tolerable, considering that we were in a VAZ, and not in a low foreign car. We were not driving fast, considering the spring nature. There was a forest around. Often along the way there were clearings filled with forest flowers. The road itself was earthen, and red clay was visible along the sides. After some time, a sharp descent began and a bridge appeared, and immediately after it a steep ascent. Then the road began to look a bit like an easy off-road track and the car began to get stuck in the clay, as the climb began. Turn back? Well, I do not! I have everything provided! And I got the wheel chains out of the trunk! Of course, they are designed for snow, but according to the laws of physics, they will also help out in the mud! : ) And I was not mistaken! Having quickly put them on, we easily drove further up the hill!

At first, the village looked like a place abandoned by people. There were very old houses where no one seemed to live. A little further from the houses there was a rusty trailer with a mailbox hanging on it, and an old, almost invisible inscription that reported the postal code of this place. Having once again come to the general opinion that the place was abandoned, although we had other information, we drove on.

Temnolesskaya

- You never know, maybe those who said that people live here were mistaken? But you need to check! I said.

But after a few minutes of driving, we realized that our informant was not mistaken - people still lived here! And not only simple ones, but also... fathers! Yes, yes, they were priests! All around us towered one-two-story houses made of red brick (and not only), on each of which a small cross was laid out at the top. The territories were well-groomed, there were Niva-Chevrolets near the yards, and in the yards we saw the priests themselves in appropriate attire, with a beard and large crosses around their necks over this attire.

We didn't know why the priests live here, but later I heard a legend that according to some legend, there would supposedly be a war and it would only affect the village of Temnolesskaya. Of course, I hope that there will be no war and this assumption is wrong! : )

Also, it seems, the priests themselves extract clay, which is abundant in this place. Therefore, the road on the way here, along the roadsides, was red in places. From this clay, they make bricks and build houses! But I think that this is the “number two” legend invented by someone and nothing more : )

Having approached one of the houses, after getting out of a hole with a splash of mud, we got out of the car and headed to the gate. The fence here was a net, and the two priests who lived here looked up from their work and began to look at us without looking away. I was a little embarrassed, but I immediately found myself and decided to ask a question:

Hello! Please tell me how we can get from here to Lago-Naki?

Their eyes became twice as large in size after they heard my question : ) And this is not surprising! Four travelers in a terribly dirty passenger car want to drive directly through the mountains without knowing the way at all!

Soon one of our interlocutors recovered from a slight shock and answered - “There is such a road... it starts from Mezmai... but there is no way there... ”.

To be honest, I thought that he would begin his answer with the words - “My son! ”, But for some reason he did not say this phrase! Apparently, I reviewed the films : )

Having received an answer to the question, for some reason I asked the second one - “Who can I talk to about buying a plot in this village? ”.

The interlocutor's face changed dramatically. I noticed that he tensed, but continued to look at him, waiting for an answer. After about five seconds, he said – “You can’t buy land here…”

Why? I asked a perfectly logical question.

- Well, here is such a place... ”- said the priest and began to look for a suitable word about what kind of place it is. Soon he added - "Reserved... And now all the best! ".

After saying goodbye, we got into the car and drove back, deciding not to disturb people anymore.

As I found out later, Rodnovers also seem to live in these places. And, by the way, it was still possible to buy land there. Later, I came across several ads on the Internet, but the prices for bare plots were “cosmic”, as, in other matters, in Mezmay and Guamka itself, due to the gorgeous nature!

So, having looked at everything planned, we returned to Krasnodar without finding the way to Lago-Naki from Temnolesskaya (after all, we were misinformed about this), but I was sure that this would not be my last trip to those parts!

Chapter 2. Lago-Naki and all around!

Some time after my acquaintance with the Guam Gorge and Mezmay, we decided to get to Lago-Naki, but on the usual road, that is, on asphalt.

It was the middle of December. Having gathered for 4 days, we all went on a trip on the same nine with the same train, having previously booked a hotel in Maykop, since it was already winter and there could already be snow on the road in that area. Plus, I didn’t know anything about Lago-Naki at all (how to get there, how difficult it was, etc. ) So we decided not to rush.

Having passed Apsheronsk, we turned left at the fork in the direction of Maikop. From here, by the way, now the view was even more beautiful - the mountains in the distance were all covered in snow!

After a short time we were in the vicinity of the city. Having learned in several roadside hotels the availability of places, or rather, having learned about the absence of such, we decided to go to the city itself. Of course, it was possible to go directly to Lago-Naki, but we were supposed to visit one more place along the route.

In Maykop, we soon stumbled upon the Adygeya hotel, apparently central, like our Intourist, and found out the availability of places there. Of course, there were places, since the hotel was large. The hall here at that time did not change, I think, since the times of the USSR and was all finished with wood, which was covered with a layer of thick varnish. I think you understand what I mean : )

Adygea Hotel

Our rooms were simple - two beds, bedside tables, a TV and a shower with a toilet. But in the hall we saw lockers for things that had a warning: “The administration is not responsible for cookies, beer and vodka that have not been deposited! ” : )

Adygea Hotel : )

The night went well. After breakfast, we moved towards the mountains. So. First, we were supposed to visit the village of Kamennomostsky (Khadzhokh). We were interested in the monastery in this place (St. Michael's Athos Trans-Kuban Hermitage). Climbing up the mountain and overtaking the “poor” monk on a bicycle, we saw white buildings with green roofs ahead. This was the place we needed! Just at that time, another monk rode out of the gate on a horse and galloped down. Misha (that was the name of the second guy from the company) for some reason said that he rode to the aid of his brother Semyon, who was riding a bicycle uphill, so we entered the territory of the monastery “foolishly” giggling : )

The Monastery in Kamennomostsky

The monastery was for men, but since it was winter now, our ladies did not need additional attire. Having examined the grotto and climbed to the observation deck, we went to look for a dining room. According to rumors, the monks baked pancakes here. And they really baked! And really pancakes! Very tasty and with condensed milk!

Dining room

After the meal, we finally set off for our final destination! There was only one road here and it led to Guzeripl, if you drive all the way, but we soon turned right onto a secondary road. This was the road to Lago-Naki, namely, a climb about 30-40 kilometers long, I don’t know for sure, to be honest. By the way, on the way we saw the sign “Krasnodar Territory”, although, as far as I know, almost the entire territory of Lago-Naki belongs to the Maykop region, that is, it is also the Republic of Adygea.

The road itself was normal and without snow, but after the market it began to deteriorate - pits appeared. Soon we saw a bridge, after which a steep ascent began. And as if by order, after the bridge, the asphalt was wrapped in a snow cover, just like that, abruptly! And of course, this created certain problems, namely, a traffic jam. And it appeared due to the fact that many cars just got up, because they could not drive up a steep mountain. In general, such a performance began: those who could not drive in, realizing that the rise would continue to be the same, began to turn around, but they did not succeed either. After that, all the drivers manually began to deploy their cars. And so several times. Mostly all-wheel drive vehicles, and on studded tires, were able to climb. I didn’t have winter tires then, but I still had something! Opening the trunk, I took out the chains on the wheels, which I had already used in Mezmay in the mud! Having quickly put them on, and on all four wheels, so that I had brakes when descending, we drove forward, of course, as if on asphalt, since no better snow and ice chains have yet been invented!

The same chains

We drove in without any problems. Some cars were dragged to the top by caterpillar vehicles, of course, not for free. This was mainly used by minibuses that delivered people to hotels. And those who did not drive in their cars decided to look for lower bases, as far as I understood.

Road to Lago-Naki

This is how cars are dragged in

Having passed the Azish Tau hotel, we drove forward and, not without difficulty, found ourselves at a dead end. There was no further road. Approximately from this place the Caucasian Biosphere Reserve began. It was impossible to go there by car, and in general it was also impossible to walk there, since it was necessary to issue a pass there and so on. Yes, and now it’s winter, it’s like they don’t clean the snow there : ) So, I haven’t been there, and I’m not going there due to some of my own convictions, but as I understand it, “If it’s a long, long time, then you can come to Krasnaya Polyana”, probably: )

End of the road

Lago-Naki Plateau

And to our right was the snowy Plateau! Yes, by the way, why “Lago-Naki”? Namely “Lago-Naki”, not “Lagonaki” and not “Laganaki”!

Legend! Here everything is as usual in general. Once upon a time there was a poor shepherd boy in the mountains, and one day he saw a beautiful girl by the stream. They fell in love with each other, but her parents were rich and wanted to marry her to the same. And then the lovers ran away and threw themselves off the cliff together in this very place, just where the Plateau is! So, the boy's name was Lago, the girl's name was Naki (according to another version - Nake)!

After admiring the views, we drove back and began to think about where to stay for the night. The territory of this village was as follows: several hotels, including the large "Azish Tau", several not very high skiing and sledging trails, a mobile tower, and a base of the Ministry of Emergency Situations.

First, we decided to try our luck at the above-mentioned hotel, since it was the largest and all the winter “entertainments” were on its territory. Rooms here cost, by today's standards, from 6200r. per day. We needed two rooms, which was expensive for us. In general, hotels in the mountains are always expensive, if it is not an empty house with two beds. However, the administrator made us happy! It turns out that there was also a second building - economy! The price there was 4400r. for all, that is, 1100 rubles. from a person. Will do! The building was located to the left of the main. The room had four beds and a bathroom. There was no fridge, but that wasn't a problem - it was outside the window! There was so much snow here that you could open the window and put food in! : )

Azish-Tau Hotel

Azish-Tau Economy Hotel

Sledging track

Refrigerator outside the window

Having settled in, we rented a sled and rode until the evening. Arriving tired in the room, we changed clothes and went to look for a store. But it turned out that there are none here, as it were... No store? And we did not take food with us... only champagne for the girls. Fine! Yeah. Well, let's go down and look!

Since I did not remove the chains from the wheels, we went down the already snowy track, which was already icy in the evening, down to the bridge without any problems, but there were no shops here either! Then we went somewhere to the right up the mountain, as there was a road visible there (seemingly), and after overcoming a very steep climb, we ended up at some kind of base. But there was no shop here! The watchman only asked how we got here on the “nine” : )

Having returned upset to the village, we finally found something like a canteen, but there was no food here anymore - only one plate of borscht and four cans of stew. We bought canned food and the last five pieces of bread : ) We had to share it all for dinner and breakfast! On my next trips to similar places, I took into account our bitter experience!

The next day we packed up and went back, but not home! On the way, we stopped at the bazaar, where we bought food, and then decided to visit the Big Azish Cave. True, there was such a huge queue that we decided to leave this business for the next time, and went on! We wanted to spend the second night at a different base, lower than Lago-Naki, but higher than the track. Putting the chains on the wheels again, we drove up the forest and soon found ourselves on the territory of the camp site called “Mountain Mood”. There were wooden houses and a building. We settled in the building for 2500r. per day per room, 1250 rub. from a person. The room had two beds, a bathroom, a TV, a refrigerator and a balcony, from the window of which you could immediately go out into the snow, like in Azish-Tau : )

Road to Mountain Mood

Mountain mood base

Everything was fine, but at one in the morning, when we ate and talked, the light was turned off. We thought that something was broken, but as it turned out, the lights were always turned off here all night long.

After spending half the next day in the snow (and in the snow too), we headed home, but we had another event along the way. The “Gentle” cave was not far from here and we went to look for it. Having driven a little up from the road to some base, we told the watchman that we wanted to see the cave. He told me to go to a house nearby and find a female guide there.

Going inside and said hello and asked where I can find a guide to the cave. One of the women who was there, who was cutting potatoes (and, of course, did not say hello), said that now she will cook dinner and bring us together!

- And how soon will it be? I asked.

- No idea how to cook! she replied.

I returned to the car and told everyone that we were leaving, but the people protested with their hands, feet and other parts of the body, saying “Do you care what she said? ” and “Nuuuuuu, please, let's see, since we have arrived! ”. I gave up and we waited for dinner to be ready! After twenty-five minutes it was ready and we went to the cave : )

It was located in the forest not far from the base and from the highway. There was an iron door here. It was opened upon payment of 200r. from a person. Inside the cave was, of course, beautiful, but to be honest, I didn’t care anymore, I wanted to finish it as soon as possible. Especially after we were told that you can only take pictures on command, after we listened to all the legends : )

In general, according to the stories of one knowledgeable person, these caves are not officially registered as a business, that is, in fact, a person pays for the services of a guide, and not for entrance! But you won’t be able to go down yourself, just no one will open the door : ) The door was put here, as it were, in order to protect the cave from vandals.

In these parts, by the way, there are several undeveloped caves discovered relatively recently, but the location is carefully hidden by a group of enthusiasts! In short, only the elite can visit them : ) On the other hand, this is right, otherwise the caves will be plundered.

When we got to the track, it was still light, and I suggested that everyone look for a way to Mezmai from here. The company, in general, did not care, and we began the search! Seeing a branch to the right and tables there, we went down. There was a car with some locals, judging by their non-tourist appearance. I asked them if this road leads to Mezmay. They, looking at me very strangely and at the car, answered yes. In vain they said it : )

Putting on the chains again, we drove down, as the road led exactly down! The ride was easy. All around us were snow-covered meadows and forests! Maybe we’ll get to Mezmay?

"Nine", although passable, albeit on chains, but this is not an SUV!! ! In general, what happened was what was to be expected - the snow became so deep that at one fine moment we just sat down tightly with protection in it! And the snow was solid! Everyone, have arrived!

A little ceiling in the car, which did not bring results, we became thoughtful. By the way, a good reason to check people! Do you know the saying? : )

One girl soon gave up and began to panic that we would freeze and die here!

In the end, everything ended as usual, namely, with the Ural for 5.000 rubles by today's standards! In fact, it all ended with the GAZ 66, but usually such adventures end with the Ural, and less often with a tractor : )

The same nine

Everything ended as usual

But there is something to remember! But not removing the protection before the trip and climbing into very deep wet snow on the “nine” is my mistake!

Evacuation from such places, in general, is always very expensive, because a person in trouble will pay any money. Five thousand is still cheap. In more complex cases, the price tag is 10, and 20, and 30, and beyond. And it happens that a nearby tractor will not help at all even for money - the owner does not allow it!

- Why did you “flood” there? It's your own fault!

The Ministry of Emergency Situations will not help here either. If a person went on a hike, having registered his route, and did not return, then they would start looking for him. Or someone was injured in the mountains, or froze. And so, you think, the car got stuck! Walk a kilometer to the highway (or village), look for the UAZ.

I encountered similar evacuations more than once later, but under different circumstances (of course, I didn’t pull anyone out for a fee).

Chapter 3. Guamka and Mezmay, return in winter!

A year after the adventure in Lago-Naki, I finally decided to rest in Mezmay, and in winter! But now something has changed. Firstly, there was a new company, and secondly, an SUV appeared together with nine. Until the end, he was not yet ready, but he could ride on simple off-road, and his tires were winter non-studded.

Passing the village of Nizhny Novgorod, I told my fellow travelers that if you go straight, there will be the Guam Gorge, but we will see it later.

- And why then? Do you have to go there? Let's take a little walk now! asked the company.

It was 4 pm when we parked the car. Which, by the way, was located on the territory of the recreation center, but not the Guamka hotel, but another. The rooms here were also okay (we stopped by), but simpler, of course, than in that hotel. After drinking coffee, we went to the gorge, taking sausages with us : ) Suddenly we get hungry! Moreover, suddenly we can walk to a cafe with coffee? We'll eat there!

There was already some snow around, but it was possible to walk along the gorge - there were no snowdrifts yet. By the way, since all our camping things were still packed in the car, since we did not reach the final destination, our ladies went in stiletto boots. And to my remark about the shoes they said - “So what? We are just a little bit” : ) Usually, everything starts with such words : )

Looking a little ahead, I’ll say that all this appeared for a reason - instead of an old train, a real locomotive with large wagons appeared here! We saw him on the way back after Mezmay. And now it is undesirable to go there. However, he travels only on weekends, and on weekdays and in the evening people still walk through the gorge from Guamka to Mezmai, since the pass is much longer!

New locomotive in the gorge

Old locomotive

Therefore, there was a ban, but if you really needed it, you could come in!

Of course we went.

After walking three hundred meters, I noticed that above us, instead of the streams that I saw here last time, three or four meter icicles hung from the rocks directly above our heads. I have never seen such people in my life, especially over my head! : ) Judging by the broken massive pieces of ice on the railway, icicles sometimes fell down... It was dangerous to go, but we did not retreat! Quickly skipping places with ice hanging overhead, our friendly company moved forward! Passing a trailer lying alone and sometimes covered with snow at the bottom of the gorge, we soon reached the middle of the path. Cafe! Let's warm up now! Or not?

Of course, the cafe did not work, since we were the only tourists (at first I wanted to write - idiots) who, sorry, flooded at such a time of year and at such a time of day along the gorge with the aim of taking a walk! : ) Near the cafe there was a forester's house, but it was not possible to get through to him. What should I do? Back?

- What's next? the company asked.

- "I don't know for sure, it seems to be some kind of bridge first, and then glades, " I answered.

- Let's get to the bridge?

- Are you sure? Well let's go!

And we went on, just in case, taking with us a couple of firewood lying near the house. Yes, I didn't say. I took a small bottle of gasoline with me. You never know!

We reached the bridge rather quickly, as it was cold and our step was very vigorous!

The railway ran right in the middle, and the footpaths on the sides, but in many places the bridge beams were simply missing, that is, there were holes. But, despite this, we crossed the bridge without incident, and after about ten minutes we noticed that it had become completely dark. We stopped. Everyone was cold, I wanted to eat and rest. But then, ahead, we saw a place that, as it seemed to us, was very bright, as if it were day, and we headed there. It was the end of the gorge and the beginning of those glades!

Hooray! We have passed all the gorge!

When we went out to the glades, it immediately became clear why it was so bright here - they were all covered in snow! And thanks to the full moon - were illuminated! There were several glades, all small in size. They began at the end of the gorge, and ended in a dense forest. The railroad, however, went further through the forest. But judging by the thickets, the train did not go there. And as I found out later, he didn’t even go to these glades - he only had a route to a cafe.

We found a large log, placed ourselves on it and tried to light a fire from the firewood captured from the forester's house. But it was not there! Even the splinters did not seize - the tree was damp through and through. Then I made an attempt to kindle firewood by dousing them with gasoline. But even here we failed - they still did not flare up. Having spit on this matter, we ate raw sausages that we had. However, sausages are sold already boiled - they were just cold : ) But we needed strength to hike back through the gorge! And, after sitting on a log for about fifteen minutes, we moved back.

When the clearings were left behind, we realized that we had problems - it was almost night, and there was almost no snow in the gorge, like the moon. And all around us was just pitch darkness. There was absolutely nothing to be seen! We didn’t have a flashlight with us (it was my mistake), and you can’t really shine with a mobile phone, and there was another problem - there were only two phones with us. The girls left theirs in the car, as there was no connection in the gorge. After conferring, we decided to go back like this - my friend goes first, illuminating the road with the first phone, two girls go in the middle, and I close with the second phone, I light a candle under their feet and under my feet. And we set off on our way back…

Of course, after all these thoughts, it began to seem to me that someone was following me all the time. A couple of times I even seemed to hear someone's steps behind me, but I didn't turn around anymore! I knew that there was no one there, and the steps are my imagination (I hope) : ) However, I decided to tell my companions about all this - they are more afraid together! After that, the girls forgot that they were walking in heels, and we, at their request, increased the pace three times! They can! They can walk fast if they feel like it : ) Even on stilettos they can walk on sleepers : )

Of the real dangers, in fact, there were only two - these are wild animals in these places at night, and four-meter icicles overhead throughout the gorge, which we decided to forget about - anyway, now they were not visible, why strain in vain: )

And that's how we got to the forester's house. This meant that we were about halfway there! The light was on in the house and we decided to try our luck again and knocked. We opened right away! The forester was at home. He was a good man who lives here in the mountains all alone. But travelers who walk along the Guamka-Mezmai route through the gorge often drop in on it. We sat with the forester for half an hour, warmed up, listened to stories about wild boars in the area, thanked fate that we did not meet them, and the forester for sheltering us, and moved on!

We walked the same way as before - one by one along the sleepers, and soon we saw the lights of the Guamka hotel. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief - this is an adventure!

By the way, here we met people walking into the gorge. Apparently they were going to Mezmay. True, unlike us, they had appropriate shoes, helmets, flashlights and guns on their backs.

We were gladly greeted by a watchman in the parking lot, who said that he was already going to go for the district police officer and sound the alarm about the fact that a group of guys went into the gorge at night and did not return. Apologizing for making us nervous, we went to the hotel I had booked in Mezmay.

Having safely driven onto a slightly snowy pass and also safely descended (although winter tires without studs are still disgusting), we finally drove into the village! By the way, we noticed that there were lights on in almost every house and, oddly enough, almost all street lamps worked. If one of the readers has ever been at night in the mountainous countryside or lives there, then he probably noticed that usually in such places at night it is completely dark.

The general view of the night village, illuminated by the beam, was beautiful! Around Mezmay, mountains rose like a wall, on top of which there was already snow, and just below them a foggy haze enveloped them.

After crossing the bridge, we turned left at the store and a minute later a two-story house appeared to our right. We are here!

The hotel called "Mezmay" was quite decent for the village. There was a well-groomed territory, decent rooms (though without a toilet), satellite TV, a fireplace in the common living-dining room, and a large kitchen.

Mezmay Hotel

After dinner, we fell asleep, and the next day we started exploring the village! Firstly, I was still interested in the road from here to Lago-Naki, since I had not yet found it, and secondly, there was the Isichenko cave somewhere here.

On the first day of our vacation, we decided to find the aforementioned cave. The road to it started from the outskirts and led into the forest for several kilometers along a mountain river. But, since it was impossible to walk along the river itself for obvious reasons, we managed to find a path to the left. The mountains here were already covered in snow, so the path was not easy. Having passed the iron bridge made here (earlier it was necessary to crawl through a cut in the rock), we reached a rather dangerous place. Here, one by one, along the edge, we crossed to the other side of the cliff, holding on to a rope with a handle carefully nailed by someone. Of course, if it were not for the snow, it would be easier to pass, as it would not be slippery. After about fifteen minutes, we began to notice the tracks of wild animals in the snow, and then we saw a cave! But this time we were not lucky enough to get into it. Since the air temperature was slightly above zero, violent streams of water erupted from the cave. After a short rest, we went back to the hotel.

After frying kebabs and going to the bathhouse on the territory, we went to bed.

The next day, we nevertheless managed to find out from the woman administrator of the hotel where the road to Lago-Naki is located, and at the same time we learned that a healer grandmother lives right there. Hearing this, the female half of our company, of course, wanted to tell fortunes from her. Having gathered, we hit the road!

Having turned left behind the shop, we immediately began a steep ascent along Bolnichnaya Street. It was called so because it was a hospital - a small building made of wood. Here, by the way, I saw for the first time how cows stand in line, one by one, and wait until they open the gate to a private house : )

After going up the street, we turned right.

We found Pasha's grandmother's house (that was her name) without difficulty. There was no bell here, so we knocked several times on the gate, where the dog was barking. About five minutes later, my grandmother came out of the house and told me - "Do not be afraid of her, come in! " I was not afraid of the dog, but I didn’t go in because no one opened it! I didn’t know that I had to go into the yard without asking and knock on the house : )

Grandma Pasha looked like an ordinary old woman. Although, I imagined that a woman in a gypsy outfit would come out to me with a crystal ball in one hand and Tarro cards in the other! She lived alone, but sometimes, as she said, her niece visited her, which, I think, is very good! Her house was wooden, of a very old construction. There were chickens and ducks in the yard, and the back of the yard went into the forest up a steep mountain. Having told her that the girls needed to tell fortunes, I followed them and escorted them to the house.

About an hour later, when the sessions were over, we finally went to look for the road I needed! By the way, it started just from the street from which we turned right. That is, now we went in the opposite direction, and soon we saw a forge on the left, after which the road went up steeply. Let's go!

The road surface here was already covered with snow, unlike Mezmay himself, but the car easily drove through pits, bumps and snow. This is no longer a “nine”! Having overcome a long steep climb, we found ourselves on more or less flat terrain (as I later learned, the plain was a temporary phenomenon) and got out of the car to admire nature. It was a real winter all around! Everything was white and it was snowing! There were no traces of other cars on the road. That is, they may have been here, but they were covered with snow. So let's go, as usual, to the touch!

Mezmay-Lago-Naki road

The holes under the snow, of course, were deep here, but in some places there were congresses and detours through the fields, which we sometimes used.

The fact that this is exactly the road we need, no one doubted, but now Lago-Naki was not the only goal, and not even the first! The fact is that I read on the Internet that somewhere in these parts there is some kind of abandoned village (in fact, a village, a village, an aul (RA), etc. , since we don’t have villages). And, of course, I certainly had to find this abandoned settlement in the mountains! It's so interesting! True, no one, of course, knew where it was. Let's search!

After passing many descents and ascents, we suddenly saw a ramp to the left. It seemed to be a road, but at first I doubted it, because there was a lot of snow there. Need to try! We turned into the forest and soon I realized that it was still a road!

Fifteen minutes later we saw houses on the right! Hooray, found it!

After driving through a snowy field close to the barrier (why is it here? ), we jumped out of the car and went to explore the settlement!

There were about ten old houses here that were not closed. There were beds and rubbish inside. But there were one or two larger buildings here, not like houses, so I had doubts that this was an abandoned settlement. This is some kind of base!

Kamyshanova Polyana

After exploring this place, people suddenly wanted to eat, and not only. The snow had just ended and the sun was out! It's about time!

Kamyshanova Polyana

Having made a table on the hood, we started the meal. But since I was driving, I limited myself to drinking coffee, which I made in a small kettle with a 12-220 volt inverter. After the meal, suddenly someone remembered that he had once heard that there were two mounds just in this place. These are allegedly the graves of Lago and Naka. Well, let's go look! After walking for half an hour through the knee-deep snowdrifts and getting wet, we returned to the car, of course, without finding anything (there is nothing for people to do : )! Moreover, as I already wrote, that couple committed suicide in another place (sorry, it's not so romantic! ).

In Lago-Naki, of course, today we did not have time, because we still had to pack our things and dry ourselves, and it was decided to go back. We arrived pretty quickly, listening to the fresh snow rustle under the wheels. True, we practically slipped down to the forge to “ABS”, since winter tires no longer hold the road in such conditions. Although, according to my estimates, in the summer you can drive here on the “nine”, if you are very careful.

After packing up and saying goodbye, we decided to explore the village further while it was light. And we drove inland from the hotel. Having passed another bridge, we soon ran into a dead end. That is, it was the end of the village. Here on the right we saw some kind of base, it seems. Knocking, we found out interesting information. This was actually a base and not rooms were rented here, but entire houses! And each had a toilet and a shower.

Base By the Lake

- Tax, next time I'll try to rest here! - I thought, and we went home, on the way we found a second road to the exit from Mezmay, as if a spare, but with a very steep climb.

P. S. to this chapter.

Six months later, in a casual conversation in one company, I found out that the abandoned village that we visited was actually the spring-summer-autumn base of the Kuban State University called “Kamyshanova Polyana”. In winter, it does not work, but it seems that there should be a watchman there. I wonder how he lives there? : )

Chapter 4. Lots of snow! Connecting Mezmay and Lago-Naki!

About a year later, right after the New Year holidays, we decided to go to Mezmay! We are a new company. Remember my friend Ira, and Lesha and Lily from my story about Egypt?

Having started preparations for the trip, I asked Ira to call our “Sinai” acquaintances in order to continue our joint vacation! A short conversation with them without the words “Well” and “I don’t know” was very pleasing:

- Are you going to Mezmai this weekend?

What to take with you? How to dress? Okay, see you tomorrow at 7pm right after the post.

Having met at the appointed time, we drove towards Apsheronsk. Our company consisted of seven people - I, Ira, her daughter, Lilya, Lesha, their son and another child of their acquaintances. We drove, of course, in two cars - my SUV and not my crossover : )

We arrived at the village of Nezhegorodskaya without incident, although I was a little behind, because now the car had extreme tires instead of winter tires, on which it was uncomfortable to drive above 70 km / h even on asphalt, not to mention how many roads.

We decided to leave the Guam Gorge for later, as it was already completely dark, and we began to climb the pass to Mezmay.

We drove normally for the first quarter of the way, but then problems began. When a sharp steep rise began, the crossover refused to go. He just stopped in the middle of the climb and that's it. Seeing that there were no headlights behind, I returned and we began to decide what to do next. Although, there was only one option - a tug.

And now, we are at the peak of the pass! It is snowing heavily, everything is white around, including us, since we went outside, because there was a worse problem here - there was a steep descent ahead and the crossover began to “carry” on it. The fact is that he did not have a downshift. That is, he had the “L” mode, but this is either the first or the first two (first-second). But not downgraded. As a result, he began to accelerate from the hill, and it was useless to use the brakes here, and “ABS” did not work at low speed, and if it did, it would not help. Having descended and looked what a steep long descent along the ice awaits us further, it became clear that we would break the second car. Somehow going down sideways to the beginning of this steep descent, Lesha put the car in his pocket - he was just doing it right here! In general, it was decided to leave the crossover here, sprinkling it with snow a little, like it will not be visible : )

After that, we reloaded some of the things to me and started the first flight to deliver people to Mezmay! Very carefully, in the first low gear, I began to descend this icy slope. The car often tried to stall, but I managed to lower it almost smoothly and without incident. It was already almost night and nothing could be seen around, but I knew that there was a steep cliff on the left without fences, so I was a little nervous when descending - because I have so many people in the car!

When we got to the hotel, we left the children to warm up and went to make the second flight - to pick up Lesha and the rest of the things. With great difficulty, I managed to overcome this icy descent, and in this case the rise, and descend from it again, and at about half past eleven at night we all finally ended up in Mezmay. By the way, some people settled in another hotel, or rather in a private house where rooms were rented out. It happened because the second house at the base I booked was vacated only in the morning.

Having had dinner together, we said goodbye until morning.

At 10 o'clock I called for the people to transfer them to the base with houses. By this time they were already ready and reported that it had been snowing, it turned out, all night and the pass was closed, or rather, it was simply impassable, and everyone was walking, not even reaching the peak. And they will clean it only tomorrow. But the car is fine. Lesha met the “pioneers”, who said that they saw a car on the pass and everything was fine with it. Excellent!

The base was unanimously approved by all. It was located, as I already wrote, on the outskirts and it was very quiet here. Each cabin had a shower with a heater, a toilet and a mini-kitchen. There was a lake on the territory, although now it is frozen, like the waterfalls flowing into it : ) The place was called “By the lake”

Mezmay in winter

Base By the Lake

Frozen Waterfall

Frozen waterfall

Mezmay in winter

After settling in and having breakfast, we decided to go to Lago-Naki, or rather, try. After such a snowfall, what kind of road is there ?? ? Having warned that we would most likely not reach the place, I invited everyone to the car! It was a little cramped for seven of us to ride, but, in general, tolerable.

Despite the frost, the snow along the way was wet, not dry, which greatly complicated the movement. Plus there was a lot of snow! So many that it was almost impossible to get out of the car without drowning! Snowshoes would come in handy here. Although, in Abkhazia on the lake "Ritsa" in winter there was more snow, and nothing, we drove : )

Mezmai-Lago-Naki road

Mezmay-Lago-Naki road

Using winches several times, we still managed to get to the exit! Here are the tables on the left! Hooray! Finally, I passed this road! Having pulled out the stuck car, which had thoughtlessly moved down to the tables (just like me at nine), we began to climb already along the highway! The road was covered in snow, however, the cars were driving confidently, but before the start of a steep climb behind the bridge. And there it started “as usual” : ) But there were enough assistants on the spot, so we just drove around everyone and stopped only at the Azish-Tau hotel. Here we rented sleds and all rode together until we got bored! By the way, I managed to notice that several new large hotels have appeared in the village.

Ascent to Lago-Naki

And the final stage of our snowy walk here was a photo session on the edge of the abyss, where a winter plateau was hiding behind a snow cloud!

Lago-Naki Plateau

We drove back to the base without any problems, since it is usually easier to go down on such snow. After frying the kebabs, we went with the whole friendly company to eat them in the bathhouse, which was on the territory. I even jumped in the snow : )

The next day, after lunch, we moved home.

But there was a small problem. A car with such an engine (4 liters) and on such wheels, in difficult off-road conditions, “eats” a decent amount of gasoline. Of course, there was a reserve, but what if you have to drag the second car through the pass again? Of course, there were no gas stations in the village, but the locals had everything provided for! The base staff gave us the phone number of the person who had gasoline. Having quickly found the right house, we got +20 liters of fuel, at a price slightly more expensive than at gas stations, but tolerable. He took out the canister and took the money, by the way, a boy of seven or ten years old, since his father was at work!

The little boy in Mezmay

The pass was just about finished clearing, so the second car was able to pass the peak almost without problems. For two days of inactivity, no one touched her, which pleased. By the way, an ambulance “Gazelle” was driving ahead of us, and quite briskly! When we examined her, we saw that she had chains on her wheels! Well, that's right, not only on the "nine" so ride : )

On the way we stopped by Guamka. The gorge, covered with snow, remained with silent silence...

Snowy Guam Gorge

P. S. Dear reader! For the past few years I have not been in those parts due to the lack of good company. Perhaps something has changed in the places I described!

Vitaly Vance, 2015

Translated automatically from Russian. View original