Mount Tesilk and Its Cave

• peaksam March 7, 2021October 4, 2026

Sundays are always eagerly awaited for us, since we have the opportunity to discover our wonderful nature and homeland. On March 7 we headed to the Tavush region, already for the 2nd time this year. Tesilk is located in the Tavush region, east of the village of Gandzakar. It is located on one of the branches of the Miapor mountain range, in the Varagi mountain system. Height: 1,372 m. Looking at the mountain, it seems unlikely you could climb it, but we’re already used to secret paths leading us to the summit. On the summit of Mount Tesilk there was once a fortress. The walls were three-row, built of rough, unworked stones and lime mortar, and we had the opportunity to see some of their preserved parts during the ascent. The walls were up to 3 m wide. During excavations carried out in the fortress, 12 clay pots dating to the 4th–3rd centuries BC, black and blue archaeological vessels, and other archaeological items were found.

Until we reached the path into the forest, we had to walk along muddy paths, collecting heavy clumps of mud on our boots. But that’s fine, it had its positive side too: our legs got good exercise. The forest path led us to the steep slope leading to the summit, which demanded considerable physical effort from us, but brought us to the summit in a short time. The weather was very mild, despite being cloudy. After resting on the summit, we started descending to the cave located on the eastern side of the mountain. To go down here, especially for the last 100 m, you need to concentrate your attention, since the descent goes along a narrow path that looks down into an abyss. And at the time of our hike it was snow-covered, which required even more concentration to avoid slipping. The cave has 2 large windows, thanks to which the cave is lit. It is said that the cave was once a hospital for the fortress, where the wounded were taken.

On the path coming from the eye-catching cave toward the forest, there is a long, straight-stretching cliff. Years ago, they tied up one of the villagers with a rope and lowered him from that cliff, to find out where it leads. That man warned that if he shouted, they should pull him up immediately, since there were animals down there; however, after going down he began to laugh. They pulled him up, called to him and saw that he had gone mad. Since then, the villagers are afraid to walk along that path.

During the hike we walked 8.5 km and covered 780 m of elevation gain.