National parks have always been the most beautiful places for outdoor activities, eco-tourism and just for spending time in nature. Armenia has a rich biodiversity. More than half of the flora and fauna of the Caucasus can be found in Armenia. There are four national parks on the territory of Armenia – Dilijan, Sevan, Arpi and Arevik. Dilijan National Park deserves special attention. It was founded back in 1958 as a nature reserve. Then, in 2002, it transformed into a national park. The main protected objects are beech, yew, oak forests. Dilijan is famous for its forests, mild, humid climate and mineral springs. Thanks to these conditions, it has always been an attractive place for those who wish to spend their holidays in nature. In Dilijan National Park, you can do almost any type of adventure tourism. The forest trails here are very convenient for hiking, horse riding, enduro on a bike or motorcycle. Several mountain peaks are very convenient for climbing and for organizing paragliding flights. Since 2019, there are special climbing routes on the slopes of Mount Sartsapat. We decided to highlight some hiking trails in Dilijan National Park.
Climbing Mount Apakekar
Mount Apakekar is located between the villages of Teghut and Hovk. The mountain is not high – 1651 m, but this does not make the route less interesting. During the ascent, the Sartsapat mountain range, with its cliffs directed upwards will accompany us. The route passes through meadows where you can meet grazing animals. From the foot of the mountain, the road passes through the forest and goes to the cliffs, where the top of the mountain is located. The length of the route is about 11 kilometres.
Hiking to Mount Apakekar
From lake Parz to Gosh
This route is probably the most popular. During this trip, you will have the opportunity to see the most famous sights of the Dilijan National Park – Lakes Parz and Gosh. The road passes through a dense beech forest and reaches the village of Gosh, where the Goshavank Monastery is located. The length of the route is 7 km, however, if you wish, you can walk another 3 kilometres and reach Lake Gosh. Along the way, do not miss the opportunity to visit the “Red Deer Breeding Center”, where the park, together with the Caucasus Natural Fund (CNF), has created a deer-breeding center in order to restore their population and release them in the future. Red deer used to live in these forests, but poachers exterminated them.
From lake Parz to Gosh
From Jukhtak Monastery to Matosavank
This is probably the shortest route – 3-3.5 km, but it is no less interesting. These two monasteries are located on both sides of the Bldan gorge. First, we will climb to the Jukhtak monastery, and from here, we will continue to descend along the riverbed. Crossing the river, we will go out into a dense forest, where the Matosavank Monastery is lost in greenery. It will take you 1-2 hours to complete this route. This is a great option for those who will be in Dilijan for just a few hours.
Dilijan National Park
From Jukhtak Monastery to Haghartsin
The length of this route is a little more than 20 kilometers. It passes through dense forests, rises to the Ijevan Mountains, crosses rocks and again through the dense forests descends to the Haghartsin Monastery. This route is suitable for those who are in search of a more difficult and long hike.
In this article, we tried to introduce you to some of the hiking trails in the Dilijan National Park. We hope that this article will be useful for all those who love hiking and national parks.
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Hiking in Armenia
