Isolation 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) First ascent 1888 | Elevation 5,193 m Prominence 1,357 m | |
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Listing Seven Third Summits
Country high point Location Svaneti region, Georgia -
Kabardino-Balkaria, Russia Parent range Greater Caucasus Mountains Easiest route Northeast Ridge: snow/ice climb (Russian grade 4b) Mountain range Caucasus Mountains, Greater Caucasus Similar Dykh‑Tau, Ushba, Tetnuldi, Koshtan‑Tau, Mount Kazbek | ||
Shkhara from camp 3
Shkhara (Georgian: შხარა), is the highest point in the nation of Georgia. Located in the Svaneti region along the Russian frontier, Shkhara lies 88 kilometres (55 mi) north of the city of Kutaisi, Georgia's second largest city. The summit lies in the central part of the Greater Caucasus Mountain Range, to the south-east of Mount Elbrus, Europe's highest mountain. Shkhara is the third highest peak in the Caucasus, just behind Dykh-Tau.
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Map of Shkhara
Shkhara is the high point and the eastern anchor of a massif known as the Bezingi (or Bezengi) Wall, a 12 kilometres (7 mi) long ridge. It is a large, steep peak in a heavily glaciated region, and presents serious challenges to mountaineers. Its north face (on the Russian side) is 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) high and contains several classic difficult routes. The significant subsummit Shkhara West, 5,068 m (16,627 ft), is a climbing objective in its own right, and a traverse of the entire Bezingi Wall is considered "Europe's longest, most arduous, and most committing expedition."
The peak was first climbed in 1888 via the North East Ridge route, by the British/Swiss team of U. Almer, J. Cockin and C. Roth. This route is still one of the easier and more popular routes on the mountain. The first complete traverse of the Bezingi Wall was in 1931, by the Austrians K. Poppinger, K. Moldan, and S. Schintlmeister.