Mount Elbrus is the highest mountain in Russia and Europe. It is a dormant volcano rising 5,642 m (18,510 ft) above sea level, and is the highest stratovolcano in the supercontinent of Eurasia, as well as the tenth-most prominent peak in the world. It is situated in the southern Russian republic of Kabardino-Balkaria in the western extension of Ciscaucasia, and is the highest peak of the Caucasus Mountains.
The Caucasus Mountains is a mountain range at the intersection of Asia and Europe. Stretching between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, they are surrounded by the Caucasus region and are home to Mount Elbrus, the highest peak in Europe at 5,642 metres (18,510 ft) above sea level.
The Georgian Military Road or Georgian Military Highway also known as Ghalghaï Military Road, is the historic name for a major route through the Caucasus from Georgia to Russia. Alternative routes across the mountains include the Ossetian Military Road and the Transcaucasian Highway.
The Terek is a major river in the Northern Caucasus. It originates in the Mtskheta-Mtianeti region of Georgia and flows through North Caucasus region of Russia into the Caspian Sea. It rises near the juncture of the Greater Caucasus Mountain Range and the Khokh Range, to the southwest of Mount Kazbek, winding north in a white torrent between the town of Stepantsminda and the village of Gergeti toward the Russian region North Ossetia and the city of Vladikavkaz. It turns east to flow through Chechnya and Dagestan before dividing into two branches which empty into the Caspian Sea. Below the city of Kizlyar it forms a swampy river delta around 100 kilometres (62 mi) wide. The river is a key natural asset in the region, providing irrigation and hydroelectric power in its upper reaches.
Tebulosmta is the highest mountain of the Eastern Caucasus and the highest mountain of the Chechen Republic at an elevation of 4,493 meters above sea level. The mountain is located on the border of Georgia and Chechnya to the east of Mount Kazbek. The glaciers of the mountain are not large.
The peoples of the Caucasus, or Caucasians, are a diverse group comprising more than 50 ethnic groups throughout the Caucasus.
Khevi is a small historical-geographic area in northeastern Georgia. It is included in the modern-day Kazbegi district, Mtskheta-Mtianeti region (mkhare). Located on the northern slopes of the Greater Caucasus mountains, it comprises three gorges of the rivers Truso, Tergi (Terek) and Snostsq’ali.
Stepantsminda is a townlet in the Mtskheta-Mtianeti region of north-eastern Georgia. Historically and ethnographically, the town is part of the Khevi province. It is the center of the Kazbegi Municipality.
Kazbegi is a district of Georgia, in the region of Mtskheta-Mtianeti in east-north Georgia.
Mt. Shani also known as Shan and Shanloam is a mountain in the Caucasus. It has an elevation of 4,451 metres (14,603 ft) and is on the international border between Georgia and Ingushetia, Russia.
Abano Glacier is located on the southeastern slope of Mt. Kazbek in the Kazbegi District of Georgia. The length of the glacier is 4.6 km (2.9 mi) and its surface area is 1.6 km2 (0.62 sq mi). The maximum width of the Abano Glacier is 610 metres (2,000 ft). Its meltwater is drained towards the river Terek.
Gergeti is a glacier located on the southeastern slope of Mt. Kazbek in the Kazbegi District of Georgia. The length of the Gergeti glacier is 7.1 km (4.4 mi) and its surface area is 11 km2 (4.2 sq mi). The tongue of Gergeti descends to 2,900 metres (9,500 ft) above sea level. Most of the glacier is located within an old and eroded volcanic caldera, where, at the edge of the caldera's northern rim, rises the cone of Mt. Kazbek. The southern rim of the caldera where the glacier descends, is bounded by Mount Ortsveri. There is a meteorological station located on the left edge of the Gergeti Glacier at an elevation of 3,650 m (11,980 ft) above sea level.
Prielbrusye National Park is in the area around Mount Elbrus, the highest mountain in Europe at 5,642 meters above sea level. The relative isolation of steep gorges has led to high levels of endemism and biodiversity. The park is in the central Caucasus Mountains, one of 22 national parks in the Caucasus of different nationalities, covering 1.8% of the region. The park is situated in Elbrussky District and Zolsky District, in the southwestern corner of the Kabardino-Balkar Republic of Russia.
Kabardino-Balkarski Nature Reserve is a Russian 'zapovednik' on main ridge of the north Caucasus Mountains. It contains all of the mountains in Europe over 5,000 meters besides Mt. Elbrus and Mt. Kazbek, and contains the most glaciers. The ridge at the reserve forms the famous "Bezengi wall" consisting of the peaks Gestola, Katyn-Tau, Janga, Eastern Jangi-Tau and Shkhara. There are 256 glaciers in the reserve's boundaries. The reserve is situated in the Chereksky District of Kabardino-Balkar Republic; it was created in 1976, and covers an area of 82,507 ha (318.56 sq mi).
Mountains of Azerbaijan cover approximately 60 percent of the country's land area. There are three mountain ranges in the territory of Azerbaijan, which are the Greater Caucasus, the Lesser Caucasus, and the Talysh Mountains.
Sakhizari Cliff Natural Monument is a complex geologic structure that was formed due to abundant rainfall causing erosion of the volcanic mountain Khabarjina. Local population call this place "the ruins of the rocks" and in the past centuries at wartime villagers would seek refuge by climbing the cliffs when the enemy approached.
Kistin Gorge or Armkhi Gorge is a gorge of the Armkhi River in the Dzheyrakhsky District of the Republic of Ingushetia. The name of the gorge comes from the historical name of the river Armkhi – Kistinka, which in turn comes from one of the ethnonyms of the Ingush – Kists. Historically, the area where the gorge is located was called "Kistetia". It is mentioned in medieval Georgian sources, in particular, in the work of Vakhushti Bagrationi.
Kistinka is a river in Georgia that flows in the Khevi region. It originates at the foot of the Kibishi Glacier and flows to the northwest into the river Terek near the Russian-Georgian border. The length of the river is 17 km, the basin area is 79 km².
Gveleti, is a village (aul) in the Kazbegi Municipality of Georgia. It is located in the Darial Gorge, on the right bank of the Devdaraki, 4 km from the border with Russia. Gelatĕ was founded by the Ingush clan (teip) Gelatkhoy.
Yosif Buzurtanov — an Ingush mountaineer and hunter, also called Yosif the Mokhevian, the first person to ascend Mount Kazbek in the Caucasus in the second half of the 18th century. Yosif Buzurtanov was a resident of the medieval village (aul) Gveleti, abode of the Ingush clan Gelatkhoy.
