Trips to the mountains

In the mountains in Dagestan there are no marked out routes, you can only walk along the paths worn by people or animals. You won’t find accurate mountain maps, either, only general maps of Dagestan that can be bought in Moscow bookshops (unfortunately, not always in Makhachkala). Actually, the only helpful book is Kamil Akhmedkhanov’s Puteshestviye po Dagestanu (Путешествие по Дагестану, Travelling across Dagestan). Akhmedkhanov, an alpinist and Caucasus lover, wrote it back in the 1980s. You can find exact and detailed descriptions of mountain routes in entire Dagestan. The Russian version of the book can also be found on the Internet. Another important source of information is the site of the Mountaineering Federation of Dagestan (in Russian only).

The aforementioned difficulties make the trips in the Dagestan mountains look different to those in Europe. The best solution is to travel with the locals, which is not that difficult. You can ask the host at the place you’re staying, whether his son or neighbour could be your guide and take you to the place you’re heading to (e.g. lead you through the mountains to the next village). You can also stick to the roads that go from one village to another. This is bound to provide you with plenty of impressions anyway, as many roads – despite their name – do not quite resemble a road. While in the mountains, you can ask shepherds for help – they stay in the summer pastures with their flocks from June to September.

The mountains in central Dagestan (e.g. the area around Gunib) are very austere, sterile and often waterless. Before hitting the road you should take some water supply and find out where you will be able to restock. When it comes to food, tourists are almost completely dependent on the locals. Shops in the mountainous villages are badly stocked. There is no need to go there anyway – when you turn up in the village, you will be invited by someone to stay for the night and to share a meal.

People in Dagestan are exceptionally hospitable; there is no way that a stranger who appears in the village will have no roof over his head. There will always be someone who will invite you and offer help. In such cases you’d better not offer money in return, since this may be considered offensive. It’s much better to hand them a gift (and get a supply of small gifts in advance). If tourism in Dagestan develops, these customs might change. However, for the moment you can assume that staying and eating in Dagestan mountains will cost you nothing.


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Tłumaczenie mini-przewodnika i nowe teksty na stronie polskojęzycznej o Dagestanie zostały sfinansowane w ramach progamu Polsko Amerykańskiej Fundacji Wolnosci "Przemiany w Regionie - RITA", realizowanego przez "Fundację Edukacja dla Demokracji".