Primož Jakopin, photo diary

Abkhazia, the Reclusive Sleeping Beauty
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August 25 - 27, 2019, 27 pictures

Most images are approximately 768 x 1024 pixels in size, numbers in front of the picture descriptions are serial numbers of the original photo files. Most visible event participants who contributed to the making of these pictures and related persons (in no particular order, š is pronounced as sh, ž as zh, č as ch, j as y): Julija Timoševskaja, Darja (Daša), Nastja and Marija (Maša) Fedotova, Jurij, Zinaida (Zina), Evgenij (Ženja) and Anatolij (Tolik) Kasjan, Katerina Medvedeva - Katja, Vitalij (Vitalik) Leonidovič Kosjakin and Elena (Lena) Sergeevna Kosjakina, Ruben and Zoven Varvaštjan, Igor Magnowski, Leonid Feigin - Lënja (pron. Lonya), Pavel Demidov and Ilija Kuznecov. The cave Krubera-Voronja is in further text referred to only with the second half of the name, as it was called here.

This page, text and pictures copyright (c) Primož Jakopin - Klok 2019 except picture 45376 and 45377 where photo and copyright (c) Igor Magnowski 2019, as well as 45379 where photo and copyright (c) Darja Fedotova - Daša 2019.

Voronja Cave Camp, August 25

45371. The wall above the cave Ž 13, where Jurij checks the SRT prowess of people who would like to descend into Voronja

45372. Inscription Ж 13 (Ž 13) at the entrance

45373. Immediately after the entrance there is a vertical drop of a few meters which can be climbed.

45374. View of the Ž 13 entrance inside out

To Voronja Cave Entrance

45375. The camp is no more, just a few backpacks and people

45376. The author at the entrance, by Igor ...

45377. ... and here from a slightly closer distance, also by Igor (both photos published with permission)

Descent to the Shepherd's Hut

45378. Daša with a backpack and two transport bags

45379. The author with two backpacks and a bucket, as seen by Daša (published with permission)

45380. View of Berčilj ridge from the trail

45381. Painted lady butterfly, Vanessa cardui, in the yard of Ovanes and his spouse shepherd hut

To Candripš by an All-Terrain Truck

45382. Cows drinking from a pond at the saddle, about 2,200 m above sea level

45383. It was a rough ride: Vitalik, Katja, Nastja, Jurij, Tolik, Zina and Ženja ...

45384. ... but not without lighter moments

45385. A selfie in the mess where the problem was where to put your legs. Backpacks and other bags threatened to make a porridge out of them if they were kept below, if kept up the behind soon landed on painfully hard truck cargo hold.

45386. After two hours of tough ride with mixed blessings from the sky: clouds, sun, two rain splashes, Ruben granted everybody a well deserved break: Ruben, Igor, Jurij, Lënja, Maša, Daša and Lena

45387. Brief refreshment and relax (girls did have some problems finding solitude in the steep sides above and below the road, boys certainly less so) helped revive a more merry spirit: Julija, Lënja, Maša, Vitalik, Katja, Nastja, Jurij, Daša, Tolik, Zina, Ženja and Igor.

Belye skaly / White Rocks

45394. Pavel

Candripš, August 26

45400. Ilija and Pavel

45401. The trail from Zoven's home to the beach crosses the coastal railway, once part of Transcaucasus Railway. This section was reconstructed in 2004 and now serves one destination, the Moscow - Sukhumi line, daily in the summer, 3 or 4 times a week in the winter.

45402. View east, towards the end of town, with a line of rocks on the beach horizon

45403. Nastja, Igor, Daša and Maša on the beach

45405. A very fine picture indeed. Is there any room for improvement? Fast, split-second decisions are not one of the author's strong points. As soon as it was too late these remarks started to surface: Nastja and Igor, this time her eyes are open, are OK, Daša would answer his figure better without shorts (cleaner outline, 10 cm longer legs), Maša would be even more handsome barefoot, with her suit turned around (it had a pure white back side). And, last but not least, what if they were holding hands?

45388. Sunset above the beach

To the Ljubljana Airport, August 27

45406. The end of plane's wing and a lifting cloud with aircraft's shadow, above northeastern part of central Slovenia, south of the Radomlja river valley

Home Again

45407. Lunch on a tablecloth, acquired on the market in Gagra during a visit in 2017: baked gilt-head bream on onions, cooked beans, garlic, green salad, beetroot salad, figs, watermelon, peach compote

Conclusion

45399. It is certainly true that all is well that ends well. Yet in this case it would be a gross understatement. The voyage was a most exquisite experience, seeing a beautiful country, making friends with extraordinary, heartwarming people, each a rich universe of his own, not to mention the close encounter with all six entrances to one of the deepest underground realms in the world. What more could a caver, who started in the first half of the past century, ask for?