Singletrack/MTB
Gravel/All-road
Dirt-road Touring
Fat-bike
Crossing Tusheti – A Bikepacking Adventure in Northern Georgia (Film)
With the Caucasus Mountains in the Republic of Georgia free of snow, four friends set off on a 180-kilometer bikepacking trip linking stunning singletrack, green meadows, and rugged mountain passes together through Tusheti National Park. Watch the film from their trip here…
Photos by Moritz Ablinger
Tusheti National Park in the Republic of Georgia is made up over 200,000 acres of protected wilderness and boasts an incredibly diverse landscape with elevations ranging from 3,000 to nearly 16,000 feet. The park is known for its remoteness and raw beauty, and it’s popular among hikers. But bikepackers? Not so much. That didn’t stop Sabine Schipflinger, Henna Palosaari, Fabian Spindler, and Moritz Ablinger from planning a 180-kilometer route linking hiking trails and faint paths, starting from Stepantsminda and finishing in Omalo. Crossing Tusheti documents their trip, and you can watch the entire film below. Once you’re done, scroll down for a short recap from Henna and photos from Moritz.
Words by Henna Palosaari
Hidden in the Caucasus Mountains is the treasure of Georgia’s Tusheti National Park. This land of extremes is entirely cut off from the rest of the world for six months of the year. Under the snow is hidden some spectacular singletracks, gravel roads, and green meadows. However, these tracks are better know among the hikers but we (Sabine Schipflinger and Henna Palosaari accompanied by the filmer Fabian Spindler and photographer Moritz Ablinger) decided to link them together into a 180-kilometre mountain bike adventure that took us over the 3,000-metre passes of the Caucasus Mountains.
Crossing Tusheti National Park required endless hours of pushing and carrying our bikes, making the pace slow and daily distances short. However, it allowed us to immerse ourselves into the surroundings while getting deeper into the remote mountains. We were rewarded by vast views over the mountains, fast descents, and welcoming Georgian guesthouses.
Crossing Tusheti Route
Further Reading
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