To the hills...

In the heart of the Caucasus, Stepantsminda is best known for its dramatic mountain ranges and gorges.

Located 10km from the Russian border, Stepantsminda was actually named Kazbegi from 1925 to 2004, when the Russians expanded their empire to control Georgia.  The town Stepantsminda is now named after Georgian orthodox monk, Saint Stephen.

Many people make the trek to Stepantsminda to take advantage of fantastic winter skiing and gorgeous summer hiking.

And we were no different.

After an unexpected sleep-in and lazy morning, we laced up our hiking boots and headed into the hills in search of the Gergeti Trinity Church, noted as the most visited landmark in Georgia.

Packing for rain and cold (as forecasted) and opting to skip the drive and simply hike from the hotel, we were already warm by the time we even started the climb!  An important note to self - stop putting so much trust into weather apps...

The climb to the church was a steep but beautiful one, surrounded by lush rolling hills and flowers...and lots of animals.  And we certainly started to feel our age as young teens ran effortlessly up the hill, sometimes wearing street clothes and sandals!  The only thing that made us feel even a little better was was watching the hordes or tourists arrive by taxi, choosing to skip the hiking part all together.

The Gergeti Trinity Church was built in the 14th century but little else seems to be known about it.   Built alone atop a mountain peak, with gorgeous surrounding views, this Church has nonetheless become symbolic to the country and the people of Georgia.

Upon making it to the Church, we realized the consequences of our lazy morning, encountering a surprisingly large number of tourists who had bussed in from Tbilisi that day and arrived right at the same time we did.  How quickly we forgot that major landmarks should always be visited at either the beginning or end of the day!

Nonetheless, the Church was lovely - with beautiful orthodox murals throughout illuminated by all the candles people had lit in honour of those that they loved.

We decided to follow the other path for  our hike down, which turned out to be much steeper and more direct.

It was clear that most hikers had no idea of the intensity of the climb as they - like clockwork - gasped when they turned an important corner to notice the straight-up haul to get to the church.

As we descended further down the mountain, we worried for all those people starting the hike who were clearly unprepared for the intensity ahead.  But we have no doubt that the older lady who was walking in Ferragamo ballet flats and her Sunday-best handbag would make it to the top - we sensed she had been doing it for years.

After a satisfying half day hike in the sunshine, nothing felt better than arriving back at the hotel to enjoy a celebratory beverage on its enormous patio while soaking in the sites of the trail we had just climbed.