Hiking as a Way to Feel Connected to your Country 

The scenes that appear from the peak of Mount Ishkhanasar may take your breath away and make you appreciate the trails you passed. The hikers led by Armenian Geographic set up tents and spent the night on the shore of Sev (Black) lake. The next day they climbed Mount Ishkhanasar.

Mount Ishkhanasar

A member of the group Luiza Vardanyan tells that this hiking trip helped her to get closer to her homeland. “As all the hiking trips this one was also interesting and memorable. This trip is especially impressive for me as it helped me to see Armenia from the other perspective and discover my homeland in a new way. I feel even more connected to my country after each hiking trip”

It was Luiza’s first time to climb Mount Ishkhanasar . “This mountain was a challenge for me and it made my hiking even more impressive. It seemed like the steep slope of the mountain was limitless. During the whole trip I was burning under the Sun and complaining to myself in silence. I was asking to myself why I came here if I’m out of energy now and I’m about to surrender. So, I was so much caught up in my thoughts that I didn’t even notice how those 2 hours passed and I reached to the peak. After a difficult hiking you greedily enjoy the views from the top and appreciate it even more. As my eyes were drawing the trails we passed my heartbeat was giving a rhythm to the silence and I was looking at Sev Lake which was shining from afar”.

The hiker points out why people should hike to Ishkhanasar: “There is an incredible view from the top of the mountain which you should really enjoy yourself. It’s like a canvas: the lowlands are like rectangles with bright yellow or green colors. Mountains are stretching from afar and their colors gradually become brighter and they are merged with the sky”.

Luiza remembered which was the most impressive part for her from that trip. “I remember that there were few meters left to walk till the peak of the mountains․ I was reaching to the top with turtle’s speed having breaks from time to time. Every time I stopped to have a break my friends made jokes and shout: “Do you want to go down”. Having motivating and comforting hiking team makes the climbing even more interesting”.

I always keep my head up

Luiza says that she met with the team of ArmGeo by chance. “I was bored and I was scrolling the Facebook when I came across the advertisement of hiking to the top of the Mount Ararat. From that day my life has changed by 5165 degrees”.

The hiker was sure that the hiking to Ararat mountain will summarize a year of her hiking life but the pause of hiking didn’t last for long: “I noticed that hiking trips had only a positive impact on my life. The road to the ordinary life had disappeared. I started to miss challenging myself”.

Luiza says mountaineering does not come cheap. “Sometimes I fall back from them or I walk slowly for saving my energy. However, I never pity myself: my eyes are always up to the peak. Every hiking is a challenge to strengthen your willpower. I become more ambitious during the climbing and when I reach to the top I become more self-confident. It will sound poetic, but I started to know myself due to hiking”.

Hiking trips are books of memories that give a new color to Luiza’s life. “During hiking trips I met interesting friends. I share with them happy moments and memorable stories.  As I started participating in hiking trips I obtained new hobbies if taking photos and videos. I also improved my geographical knowledge, and the most important thing is that I started to love the nature and my country even more”.

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Hiking trips in Armenia