- Aug 20

Creativity, Collaboration and Hard Work Produces a New Camping Area and Hiking Trail in Georgia

A collaborative summer effort produced new tourism infrastructure in Adigeni, Georgia.

Tucked away near the village of Mokhe in the Adigeni municipality of Georgia, is a beautiful three-tier, hundred-meter-high waterfall. Thanks to a collaborative effort between organizations and projects in Georgia and Slovenia, this waterfall is now accessible to the public – to both locals and tourists alike – by foot along a newly constructed path and an accompanying camping area with hand-made, traditional infrastructure and amenities.

This effort was part of a project called Sustainable Forest Management in Adigeni Municipality - 2. Two organizations from Slovenian came together with the National Forestry Agency of Georgia and WWF Caucasus to organize the working camp which took place this summer. The project complements the activities of the ECF by encouraging sustainable and low-impact use of natural areas through tourism, as a form of community-based nature conservation in Adigeni and neighbouring municipalities.

Construction of the trail was a major effort and took many hands to complete. Starting in the centre of the village of Mokhe, there is space available for visitors to park, both for day trips and overnight guests. The trail follows the road towards a ravine, where a gate separates the road from the pasture. Here, a beautiful view of the surrounding mountains opens up. This leads visitors along a traditional wooden fence into the forest, where the trail starts its descent, zigzagging down, and providing hikers with multiple views of the waterfall. The thick forest provides shade and protection in the summer heat and visitors are treated to the sounds of the waterfall as they walk. The trail ends at the newly created Mokhe camping area where guests can enjoy a picnic or overnight.

The trail was built by 12 Slovenian volunteers – experts in forestry, outdoor tourism, and sustainable development – in collaboration with a group of Georgian volunteers and villagers from Mokhe as a part of a volunteer summer camp that took place from June 11th to 20th, 2024. The trail is approximately 1.3 km long and descends 160 m. The crew dedicated time and effort to build about 700 m of trail covering 100 m of descent.

The camping area, which the trail leads to, was built by the village of Mokhe with the support of the National Forest Agency who provided the wood material. The camping area is closed by a wooden fence so visitors can be undisturbed by cows in the surrounding pastures. It also features a clean water source, two toilets, a shower, a fireplace with a seating area, and a covered area where visitors can prepare and enjoy meals, socialise and enjoy the peace of the natural surroundings. The camping area is designed to host at least ten small tents and there is some space for 4x4 or overlanding vehicles. As this area is very close to other popular destinations for tourists like Goderdzi Pass, Zekari Pass, Abastumani Resort and Akhalstikhe, the waterfall trail and camping area offer a new attraction and an additional service to jump-start the development of sustainable, nature-conscious tourism in Adigeni.

Project Information - The trail and camping area were built as part of the project “Sustainable Forest Management in Adigeni Municipality—2.” This is an international development cooperation project between Slovenia and Georgia.

- The National Forestry Agency is the project partner on the Georgian side. - Zavita Consulting and Stritih Sustainable Development Consulting from Slovenia, and WWF Caucasus Programme Office are implementing the project.