During a long stop in North Ossetia, I went on four trips with the club “Your Height”. I wrote about the first two trips earlier – Climbing Mount Kai-hoh in North Ossetia and A trip to the Tsmiakom gorge for the flowering of rhododendrons.
In this article I will tell you about my third trip – a visit to Kabardino-Balkaria, namely the Chegem waterfalls, the Aktoprak pass and Lake Gizhgit (Former).
Parking near Adai-Su
We left Vladikavkaz at 7:30 a.m., and after 3 hours we reached our first point of the route – the Small Chegem Waterfall. Its second name is Adai-Su Waterfall. I was lucky, at some point I was left alone at the waterfall, no one interfered. It turned out to take a photo without people and stand under it very close. In total, we spent 40 minutes here and went to other waterfalls.
Adai-Su Waterfall, June 2022
The second Main group of Chegem waterfalls is located about 8.5 kilometers from Adai-Su. In terms of entertainment, they are inferior to the Small Ones, but in terms of location they benefit – since they are located in a narrow, long gorge. If it weren’t for the merchants who cluttered the entire gorge with their cafes, counters and goods, this place could be very photogenic.
Chegem Gorge, June 2022
Chegem Waterfalls, June 2022
Chegem gorge and waterfalls, June 2022
We spent two hours here – during this time we saw all the waterfalls and had lunch. I wrote a separate post about visiting the Chegem waterfalls – you can read it here.
The Chegem waterfalls are on the way to the pass, so they are actually included in this trip. This is a good starting point for a trip through the pass – here you can have lunch, go to the toilet and buy something to eat on the road.
At 12:30 we drove on to the most interesting part of this route – the 22-kilometer Aktoprak pass. After leaving the gorge, gorgeous Alpine landscapes opened up in front of us. I was just blown away by the beauty of the surrounding scenery on both sides of the road. On one side there were high rocky mountains, on the other – mountains and hills overgrown with all kinds of plants, flowers and coniferous trees. Wild horses grazed on the slopes.
We only had two stops. The first one is 45 minutes after departure, the second one is an hour later. Each stop is about 20-30 minutes
Our first stop:
dirt road of the Aktoprak pass
Aktoprak Pass, nature
Aktoprak Pass, landscapes
Aktoprak Pass,June
Aktoprak Pass,June 2022
trip through the Aktoprak Pass,June 2022
Aktoprak Pass,Kabardino-Balkaria
Aktoprak Pass,wild horses
Actoprak Pass, plants
Our second stop:
Aktoprak pass,alpine meadows
Aktoprak Pass, second stop
alpine meadows of the Aktoprak pass
alpine meadows of the Aktoprak pass, June
alpine meadows of the Aktoprak pass, June 2022
alpine meadows of the Aktoprak pass, June 22
landscapes of the Aktoprak pass
landscapes of the Aktoprak pass
the flower world of the Aktoprak pass
Of course, if I were driving, my stops would be every 5-10 minutes. To be honest, I have never seen such unforgettable landscapes before. Before that, I thought that the nature of North Ossetia occupies the first place in beauty in my heart, but after a trip here, I still admit that the mountains of Kabardino-Balkaria are still more beautiful for me..
The most ideal option for visiting the Aktoprak pass is to go here by car on your own or taking an individual tour. Then you will not depend on the group, and you will be able to stay wherever you want and spend time at your discretion. I will definitely come here next year, and I will do just that.
In total, we spent a little more than three hours on the pass, and drove on to the last point of our route – the turquoise mountain lake Gizhgit (Bylym Lake or Former).
We arrived at the lake shore at 15:50. There are two main platforms here – there is a stable with horses, a cafe and a free toilet downstairs, and a natural observation deck upstairs, offering magnificent views of the lake and the surrounding area.
horseback riding on Lake Gizhgit lake
the shore of Lake Gizhgit
the shore of Lake Bylym
the lake was
There’s not much to do downstairs, because you can’t swim in the lake. It is believed that the water in it is poisonous, due to the fact that toxic and toxic waste from the Tyrnyauz production (extraction of tungsten and molybdenum) was drained into this artificial reservoir. It is said that toxic dust still settles on the shores of this reservoir, the water of which has a turquoise-acid tint. Nevertheless, reed beds and frogs are found here. Probably, only a chemical examination, which has not yet been reported, will be able to make a final verdict on its environmental friendliness.
View of Lake Gizhgit from the observation deck
The view of the lake was from the observation deck
Dangerous road along the edge of Lake Gizhgit
Panorama of the Bylymsky lake
A dangerous narrow unpaved single-lane road leads to the observation deck, along which it is best to carefully climb in an SUV. It was scary to ride a gazelle, it seemed like it was about to fall down. In 2017, a Chevrolet Niva with five people in it fell into Lake Gizhgit on this road. Three of them died. That is, the danger here is quite real.
There is a gazebo and parking spaces upstairs. For most tourists, this is the end point here. I climbed a little higher at 300 meters, from where I had a wonderful view of the observation deck, the lake and the high rocky mountains surrounding it.
The observation deck of Lake Gizhgit
The observation deck of Lake Gizhgit, top view
We spent about an hour here and drove back to Vladikavkaz. We returned to Ossetia not through the pass, but by another faster road. The return trip took about three hours.
Also read:
A trip to the Tsmiakom gorge for the flowering of rhododendrons
Climbing Mount Kai-khokh in North Ossetia
Chegem waterfalls — what to see, and is it worth going here at all?
