Riding a Cat in Georgia
There’s something strange about travelling uphill in a rackety box. We do have windows but they’re a little fogged up and I’m not too sure where we’re headed, but one thing I do know is, wherever it is, it’s going to be good!
This is my third trip to Georgia, and the reason I keep coming back isn’t just the world class terrain, which is a draw on its own, but the amazing food, culture, and warm welcome that makes Georgia my favorite place to ride.
Oh, and did I mention the price? You can stick your Epic Pass where the sun don’t shine, Georgia is possibly the best pow for dollar, value for money destination anywhere on the planet. Think dinner with more freshly produced food than you can eat and a few bottles of shared wine for €20 a head, what’s that gonna get you in Vail or Couchevel?
As this was my third trip, I thought I’d mix it up little, and rather than just touring out of Mestia I’d treat myself to three days in a cat out of Bakhmaro. I say treat myself yet, as with everything else in Georgia, the price when compared to elsewhere is very good, three days in a cat with food, accomodation, and transfers is €1795.
Georgia, sitting with the Black Sea to its west, has two distinct mountain ranges which run west to east, across the top of the country is the Cuacasus Mountains, and to the south, the Lesser Caucasus, which is where we headed from Batumi airport after a night in Istanbul.
It’s a 2 1/2 hr drive through rural Georgia, the journey is flanked by fertile low lying fields, stray dogs, and a bizarre overground yellow gas pipe. The roads are in surprising good condition, and we’re soon pulling up to a waiting cat, and after loading our kit into a huge metal box attached to the cat’s front, we pile into the back as the sun starts to set and the temperature drops. It’s an hour up the the lodge and I’m happy to have my down jacket on as the cab is not heated.
Ok, so nowhere in the world is 100% powder sure, and when you drop into a country for a week you have to deal what what’s on offer, so on our first morning we’re trundling past high alpine with tracks all over it.
“It’s not snowed for 10 days so we’re going to have to go a little further than normal” Ilia, our ever present guide informs us.
After a couple of crusty runs, taken to break up the hour long journey, we’re finally standing above an untouched powder field; the sun’s out but its still near freezing and the snow is as light and fluffy as the day it fell.
Fast frictionless turns are made, and as the plumes of snow settle all that’s left is our tracks to prove that yes that really did just happen. The stoke is instantly high and it didn’t drop all day, and yes it may not have snowed for ten days but Ilia has a nose for powder like stray dogs for a sandwich and we ride a lot of north facing untracked faces, albeit with sometimes a short bootpack in.
The lodge we stay in serves wholesome mountain food, not fantastic for the vegetarians but fine, the communal area has a warming stove and comfortable seating. When we were there they were building a much needed ski rack, after prioritising the construction of a bar, which we propped up each night. The rooms had rustic but very hot showers, and comfortable clean beds, but you’ll need earplugs as you could hear the people in the room nextdoor picking their nose.
This isn’t generic high end north american service, but then again neither is the price.This is traditional mountain lodging with the bonus of an outside wood fired sauna and cold water plunge barrel and your holiday is all the richer for it.
After two days of seeking out high alpine powder, our third and last day was spent much closer to the lodge in the forest. I simply love steaming through the trees and the old growth forest here was well spaced with the mix of deciduous and evergreens making for excellent high speed riding.
The forest is wild and seemingly unmanaged, and while deep in powder with easy turns to be made in the dry snow you still had to have have your wits about you, as fallen trunks, rock drops, and deep holes exposing streams were a plenty, which I think adds to the fun as if it’s a sterile environment you want you’d best stick to the groomed pistes elsewhere.
Riding in twos, trying to look out for your buddy while picking a line was difficult, if your friends are like mine and fail to listen to the guide and shoot off in random directions. I found the best way to keep in touch with my buddy was to holler with joy as I ducked through and under branches at full speed, this wasn’t hard to do as to be honest I was having so much fun I could hardly stop whooping out constantly.
Touring Mestia
After the cat we continued our trip in Mestia where touring and slackcountry was the order of the day.
Article coming soon…
At one pick up spot we met a group of ski tourers, with a compulsory village dog in tow, apparently they were guests of Catskiing Georgia too, as they have a new hut in the area and offer touring trips or a mix of cat and touring too.
I didn’t get to see the hut, and while there is a lot of cats trundling around the area, as there are other cat operators in Bakmaro too, there is a peaceful space for all here, as the cats soon get lost in the vast rideable area even if you do occasionally meet one coming in the other direction, leading to some improvised passing places.
Three days of powder riding done, and of course, just as we leave a big snow storm is brewing which I later see on instagram deposits a very deep and much needed dump of snow, but in all honesty we found and rode great powder we just had to drive a long way for it, and the short drive to the woods on the last day almost made up for it.
The snow in Georgia over the season is as sure as anywhere else on the planet, in fact in 2023 we had so much on our trip that it cut the power to the Mestia valley for 24hrs and the resort roads took 2 days to clear. As with any short trip, sometimes you win and sometimes you lose, and considering it hadn’t snowed in 10 days and we’d picked a random 3 days of the season to visit Catskiing Georgia, I’d defo call our trip a very good score draw.
How do I?
For more information on Catskiing Georgia
6 day package - Price €2350
3 days cat and 3 days touring - Price €2145
3 days in Cat - Price €1795
IG: @catskiing_georgia
Accommodation
Is basic and included in your package, just remember to bring earplugs.
Flights
Turkish via Istanbul, BA and Easyjet have new direct flights London to Tbilisi starting real soon.
Transfers
All trip prices include internal transfers, Catskiing Georgia will arrange internal transfers to Bakhmaro, the last hour of which will be in the snowcat so dress warm if arriving in the dark.
Kutaisi is the closest airport to Bakhmaro, and your best option.- Transfer time: 1.5 hours van + 1 hour snowcat
Batumi is 115 km from the closest village to Bakhmaro.- Transfer time: 2.5 hours van + 1 hour snowcat
Tbilisi is the furthest airport from Bakhmaro.- Transfer time: 6 hours van + 1 hour snowcat
General Georgia Info
Time UK +4hrs
Currency Georgian Lari - £1= 3.5 - credit cards wildly used as are €’s outside of shops and resturants
@GeorgiaTravel
#emotiionsaregeorgia
