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GEORGIA & TURKEY: Black Sea Whitewater Rafting New for 2008! What do you get when you combine an old favorite with the new kid on the block? In this case, whitewater heaven! It is hard to imagine any days more action-packed than those offered on the thrilling Çoruh, a Sobek classic since the 1970s, and the non-stop action of the Rioni, our newest discovery, which plunges through tight gorges and wide green canyons at a rate of over seven miles an hour—with almost non-stop whitewater! These two Class IV/V rivers are an incomparable package for serious rafters. We’ve taken the best whitewater days of the Çoruh and added to it 75 miles of the Rioni that we run in just two-and-a-half days of high speed high jinks. On both rivers there are villages and towns to visit, monasteries and castles and other places of archaeological interest, beautiful though completely contrasting scenery, rugs and other handicrafts to shop for, good camping beaches, and interesting people. The two cultures, the world of the Muslim Turks and that of the Orthodox Christian Georgians, are so different that it makes the head spin. It seems so unlikely that a few miles and a border can separate such different landscapes and people. Join us as our passion for rivers and rafting unites these disparate places into one fantastic whitewater experience! TRIP HIGHLIGHTS
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| Itinerary: Black Sea Whitewater Rafting
Day 1 - Arrive in Tbilisi, Georgia. Day 2 - Drive through beautiful countryside to the city of Kutaisi. Overnight in local homes. Days 3-4 - Drive to Utseri. After a riverside lunch, launch the rafts and set off on our whitewater odyssey. Continue streaking downriver to a camp at the foot of an Orthodox monastery and an abandoned hilltop fort. The next day brings more of the same, with gorges alternating with high-speed braids. Day 5 - We’ll have a full morning of rafting—including what is probably the largest rapid of the trip—then take out above a reservoir that serves the city of Kutaisi. Return to town for dinner and overnight. Day 6 - Layover day to visit the 12th-century Gelati Monastery, a fantastic and little-touristed example of traditional Orthodox architecture, mosaics, and painting. Day 7 - Drive through the beautiful green hills of Georgia and along the sparkling shores of the Black Sea to the border of Turkey. Continue up the canyon of the Çoruh River to the town of Ispir. Days 8-11 - Drive to the put-in and begin rafting the rapids of the Çoruh, which begin gently, gradually increasing in size and number to swell and boil in a rapid-fire display. Besides exhilarating whitewater, we’ll enjoy beautiful scenery: the walls of the Çoruh gorge rise a near-vertical 5,000 feet to a backdrop of snowcapped peaks, while Seljuk and Byzantine castles perch on rock ramparts high above the river. Along the way we’ll raft the Yusefeli Gorge, one of the most challenging stretches of whitewater in the world at high water. Our camps are set in spectacular locations: below ancient castles, on lush meadows surrounded by poplar trees, in shady groves evoking images of medieval fairy tales, and even on the edge of terraced rice paddies. Day 12 - Take out near the town of Artvin and drive across the Georgia border to Batumi where we will catch a flight to Tbilisi. Day 13 - Fly home.  Detailed Itinerary - GEORGIA & TURKEY: Black Sea Whitewater Rafting 1. Download detailed itinerary in a PDF format 2008 Detailed Itinerary (PDF files require that you have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed. This program can be downloaded for free from the Adobe Website.) 2. Or email us your itinerary request at sales@mtsobek.com 3. Or call us at 1-888-831-7526 (USA and Canada) or (510) 594-6000 We’ll email you a copy (Word or Acrobat document), fax, or mail you the itinerary as you prefer. For more information and reservations, please contact: Mountain Travel Sobek 1266 66th Street, Suite 4 Emeryville, CA 94608 USA Toll Free (USA and Canada): 1-888-831-7526 Phone: +1-510-594-6000 Fax: + 1-510-594-6001 Email: info@mtsobek.com |