Transcaucasian Trail: volunteers invited for summer trail-building in Svaneti

A summertime trail-building effort has been announced by the team of The Transcaucasian Trail, a cross-country project of connecting less-travelled regions and picturesque locations across the region, with volunteers invited to help make pathways through highland spots in Svaneti, Georgia.

The call comes ahead of planned work in Zeskho, a village perched 1,800m above sea level on the country's northern border. Expected to run in five sessions between July-September, it will produce walkways for hiking travellers looking to enjoy the scenery and unexplored locations in the mountainous province.

Organisers have posted the call with the idea of revisiting "one of the most spectacular - and little-visited - parts of the Caucasus" while teaching newcomers the trade of transforming often impassable terrain into sustainable trail paths and experiencing the social bonding that comes with the work.

Volunteers will be taught how to use tools to clear vegetation, set up drainage and do other work on the trail. Photo via The Transcaucasian Trail.

Join us this summer in spectacular Svaneti, Georgia to help build a crucial section of the TCT, learn how to swing a Pulaski, laugh around campfires, and explore conservation in the Caucasus while making friends from around the world" - TCT

To be based out of Mestia, the local hub of the northern province known for its iconic Medieval towers overlooking houses and farmlands from hills, a TCT team selected for the building project will lead volunteers to a "vast wilderness area" around Zeskho connecting Svaneti to the adjacent province of Racha.

The TCT team has worked on connecting trails across three countries of the South Caucasus over the recent years. Photo via The Transcaucasian Trail.

We’re rerouting an overgrown, unsafe trail to create a new, sustainable trail that will allow hikers to safely and enjoyably traverse these mountains" - TCT

The TCT team has called the new trail a "critical section" of the trans-Caucasian network they have been building over the recent years as a diverse group. Beside forming social bonds between each other, their teams have struck up acquaintances with their Georgian hosts and made memories with locals.

Those interested in taking up the tools and joining like-minded individuals in a quest to bring the Svaneti hiking experience to more travellers can apply for the work here.