Narrow Road to the Deep North
Armenia is not such a big place, and the North is full of mountains, forests and ancient lives:
so I decided the best way to see it would be, like Matsuo Basho in “Narrow Road to the Deep North”, to walk:
Started this morning, and the route covers about 500km, two mountain passes and a lake.
The passes are snow-covered at this time of year but I have good gear. Pack weight is about 16kg.
The prevailing Armenian view seems to be “You’re crazy. Nobody does this.” Good enough.
By way of precaution I carry a big stick (for dogs), and a heavy Russian knife (for wolves) strapped to my ankles.
And this time, a map.
(pictures above taken from first 4 days)
Alien Heartbeat 
5 Responses to “Narrow Road to the Deep North”
Wonderful!
I always wanted to go there 🙂
Yes, me also. But in the past it was locked in the Soviet Union. There are always some locked places – like now it is the North East of Pakistan, which is also remarkable.
I went there when it was the Soviet Union and I was in my teens. At that time, and now in memory, I remember the people’s friendliness and hospitality.
Conditions look far worse, and the people look far poorer, than they did all those years ago.
Thank you for this blog. I envy you your journeys.
Catriona, yes, there is no question of their hospitality. I have just been to Estonia, and the difference between the trajectories of these two countries since freedom is remarkable. Armenia has been beggared by war, the Turkish blockade, and a corrupt government. Estonia on the other hand has a government that is far-sighted and innovative, and this has made all the difference.
Very, very sad. I’m not Armenian. Neither am I expert on the subject, so I’m the wrong person to comment on the situation. The poverty does make me terribly sad. There was so much hope….