Come with me to the “Lost World” of Ushguli in the Caucasus mountains of Northern Georgia. Ushguli is a Unesco World Heritage site and the highest permanently occupied settlement in Europe at 2200m. It is nestled beneath the dramatic Bezingi Wall of 5000m peaks at the head of the valley, including Shkhara, the highest mountain in Georgia at 5193m. Here we can stay at a family run guesthouse, surrounded by farm animals in an utterly unique “ski in ski out” location! The three small villages, which make up Ushguli, boast the highest concentration of 1000 year old Svan Towers in the country. The hospitality of the Georgian people is also some of the warmest, with an excess of food and alcohol being a certainty.

The touring options from here are varied, plentiful and amazing. There are numerous summits of 3000-3500m directly above Ushguli with North facing powder bowls and skiable terrain of all aspects. It is normal for us to be the only ones on a given peak trail blazing our way in incredible surroundings, with acres of skiing to choose from. The local dogs have always provided friendly and keen company to summit mountains and lap up the powder with us.

Getting to Ushguli is a mini expedition in itself. The final 2-3 hour drive from Mestia requires 4x4s and involves a steep sided gorge, for which a safe passage requires a certain degree of stability in the snowpack. For this reason it’s important to stay flexible with exactly when we choose to travel to and from this magical place.

Mestia is a more modernised little ski town. Here we will stay in a very comfortable family run hotel. There’s a cashpoint, shops, restaurants and even wine bars here, showcasing many of the great local wines on offer.

There are two small ski areas within a short drive from Mestia, with tree skiing, fantastic open off piste, couloirs and lift accessed touring. These are great options with fresh powder or if we’re keen to give our legs a rest (from skinning at least!) Tetnuldi has 4 lifts taking us to an altitude of 3160m. Hatsvali has more skiing below the tree-line served by it’s one recently updated lift. The back country touring options around Mestia are incredible. Ushba (4710m), known as “the Matterhorn of the Caucus” keeps watch over us, with the possibility to ski the glaciers on her flanks. The Chaaladi Glacier skied via the Koruldi lakes, provides one of the most iconic ski tours in Georgia, so if we have the opportunity to ski this then we will. Motorized help or hut accommodation is available to reduce the climbing, which this route requires.

Itinerary

Day 1 – Fly to Kutaisi. Flights here from the UK and the Alps can be straightforward. Direct flights from Milan are available on the current dates taking just over 4 hours. From the UK total journey times start at 8 hours. Whizz Air fly to Kutaisi from a number of European cities. Transfer a short way to our hotel for the night. Here we can all convene for a meal of the wholesome and very tasty local cuisine, washed down by a tasty local wine if you’d like. We’ll chat about conditions and the exciting week ahead of us, as well as checking we have all of our kit in order, before getting some rest.

Day 2 – Drive 5 hours to Mestia in the Svaneti region. The final three hours of this journey rises over mountain roads, with more than a few potholes, as well as the odd rock. This all helps to build the excitement. If there’s time then we may choose to warm the legs up with a quick ski in the afternoon at one of the local ski areas. There’s also museums and traditional Svan towers for us to climb. Then we’ll spend a very comfortable night at our family run hotel and enjoy a local Svan meal together in town.

Day 3 – Enjoy some of the fantastic skiing local to Mestia. This could be making use of some of the lifts to enjoy some extra descent. For example enjoying the great off piste skiing at Tetnuldi before a short skin to access a long descent in to the tiny village of Adishi, allowing 1200m of descent to be enjoyed. Here we can enjoy some food in a traditional Svan house, before taking a lift back round to the resort. We’ll also make sure that we refresh and practice our avalanche rescue skills.

Day 4 – On this day we plan to make the 2-3 hour drive to Ushguli. We can plan to make a tour on the way or when we arrive depending on the weather and conditions. The gorge we pass through on the drive to Ushguli relies on snow stability, so flexibility is required with when we choose to travel. In winter time Ushguli is the end of the “road” and we’ll make our way to our quaint family run guesthouse. A short walk may be required through the village itself with our things!

Day 5-8 – Explore the surrounding mountains’, ridges, bowls and faces by ski, hopefully exploring some lines towards the Bezingi wall as well. The terrain here is absolutely vast We will find the best skiing available to us in this magical place. On the 7th day we can stay in Ushguli or we can stay local to Mestia.

Day 9 – Enjoy a mornings skiing before hitting the road and making the journey back to Kutaisi. Enjoy a fancy final meal together and reminisce about the amazing week we’ve shared.

Day 10 – Fly back home… Unless you decide to stay in Georgia a little longer!