Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-03-08
THE CAUCASUS MOUNTAINS
ALMOST IMPAsSABLE BARRIER BE-
TWEEN EUROPE AND ASIA.
The Famous and Dihicult Darrell Pass
Work of the GIaciers-An
Exciting Ascent.


For a distance of 700 miles, extending
| from the Sea of Azov to the Caspian sea.
| the Caucasus mountains present an almost
| impossible barrier between Europe and
Asia. In the range there are as many as
| six peaks which are higher than Mt. Blanc.
Elbruz being 1885 feet while for 100 miles
| in the central part there is no pass less
| than 10000 feet high. Indeed. so continu-
| GUS and rugged is the chain that until re-
Gently it has been well-nigh impossible to
| cross it anywhere except along the shore
of the Caspian sea. Yet the entire width
of the chain averages less than 100 miles.
From the earliest times, however, what is
now known as the Darrell Pass, but which
was called by Pliny the Caucasian Gates.
has been occasionally used This crosses
| the range near it's central portion, between
| 1ffis on the south and Vladikaykas on the
north. Upon the final conquest OF the coun-
| try by the Russians. forty years ago, they
! built splendid military road over this
pass, so that now one Is able to enjoy the
unrivaled scenery with no hazard and with
| the least possible amount of fatigue. A
brief account of our trip across the pass
will furnish the best idea one can give of
the condition of the country and OF the
eA PLANTATION 1t affords OF the history OF the
people.
We were in Tifiis on the morning of the
5th of November. 1t was later In the sea-
son than we had hoped to make the pass
weather, which, though cloudy, was not
particularly threatening. In order to con-
troll our movements to better advantage.
we did not take the ordinary diligence, but
| engaged a phaeton, which would easily ac-
| commodate two persons and small amount
Of baggage. This was to be drawn by tour
horses which. with their drivers, were
changed about every twelve miles An I'M
posing well-armed Circassian, however,
| was to accompany. us the entire distance
| G12 miles, as conductor. For this outht
| We paid $24. -
| The toll and tips along the way, however,
| brought the entire expense up to Soo.
| For the first twelve miles we followed up
| the Kura river, parallel to the railway.
| where are still some ruins of the ancient
| capital of Georgia, to Mshit. Here we
left the main valley and turned up tne
| Aragwa, having attained Level OF Low
| feet above the sea, but only 2oo Feet ABOVE
Ttfiis The ten miles to the next small
station carried US up to 1000 feet Inc
| third ten miles, however, brought us to an
| elevation of nearly 5000 feet, and to Dus-
| het f1ourishing town OF 5000 inhabitants
| Here too, was ruined, castle Of an an
cient Georgian prince. So far the scenery
| had not been remarkable, but we had en-
countered, near Dushet, our first evidence
| of glacial action. This was a beaut1fuI
| circular lake, about a mile In diameter,
surrounded by q wide gravel plain of glacial
| origin. In short, it was what We call In
America kettle hole. A glacier mad evil
| IDENTIFY come down to this point from the
| central elevations of the range, many miles
| to the northwest. But it is evident that
| there was in former times, as now, no
| general extension Of glaciers over the
! region for we saw no more evidences what
ever of glacial action during our entire
| trip.
| In crossing the moraine, we had left the
| immediate valley of the Aragwa, but In the
| next twelve miles returned to 1t at some
what lower level at the interesting little VII
| lage of Ananur where the ruins of two an
| cient forts reminded us of the military as
| Of he wi which
| acteriZed 1t for thousands OF years. Inc
! next two stages took us up gorge OF
| rapidly increasing depth to Metz. whose
| elevation is 800 feet. But on either SIDE
| of us were many snow-clad peaks rising
! from 5000 to 5000 feet higher, and the
| TANKS of these mountains up to COCO feet
above the sea were dotted WIN ma ma,fi feos
| and ruined fortresses, while for loo feet
| higher the fields had been cultivated, and
the stacks Of grain and hay were thick
| upon them, awaiting the process of being
| slid down the steep slopes to the dwellings,
| and thresing floors below. AS there had
| been a slight fall of snow, the inhabitants
! were busy there gathering in their crops.
but so far off We're they that they looked
| like diminutive ants on gigantic ant nils
The sun had already gone down, and we
put up with several other parties at the
/ spacious station house, ready to start early
in the morning. We had now come con-
siderably more than half the entire dis
tance but had by no means completed the
| ascent. The clouds, which had partly COW
| cred the mountain by lenOlIlS my S-eIs,
| had enhanced rather than dulled the beauty
of the scene. The morning dawned beauu-
fully, and at o'clock we set out upon the
most rapid portion of the ascent In the
| next ten miles we assembled 1900 feet, but
by such zigZag line that We were scarcely
two miles in straight line from our start
| ing place. We were now above the clouds,
and saw their upper surface lighted by the
| bright rays of the morning sun. We were
| also on an extensive and comparatively
level area-produced by broad flow of ba-
salt which. in former geological ages, had
| poured out from some neighboring vent and
| leveled up the Irregularities already exist
| ing. There, also, at an absolute elevation
of 1000 feet, were fiourishing villages and
| hamlets of low stone houses, covered with
fiat sod roofs on which were crowded stacks
| of hay and grain. Everything was in slick
trim order, ready for the severe winter
| weather which was soon to burst upon
| them.
The second run this morning carried us
over the summit, 1910 feet above the sea,
turesque village of Kobi. At the summit
the cFaggy peaks of Krestovoya Cora
(mountain Of the Cross tower Immediately
above 1000 feet, while little farther
| along Mt. kasbek appears behind them, a
few miles away, rising up 5000 feet 600
feet higher than Mt. Blanc) still above us.
The descent of the next 1000 feet to the
village Of Kasbek was exciting beyond de-
scription. We did not need to crane our
necks to see the scenery. for we repeatedly
faced every point of the compass in our
| spiral course. Inc village, winch began as
a speck far below our feet, gradually en-
layed with every turn; the mountain
peaks grew higher and higher, and the
hamlets on their sides more and more airy
in their aspects; while occasional glimpses
OF the glaciers near the summit Of Mt
kasbek flashed out upon us as We whirled
around the corners of our zigzag track.
Sixteen hundred feet still further down We
reach, by a road cut most Of the way in the
face of the precipice, the celebrated Pass of
Darrell, where the mountains rise on each
side 5000 feet as nearly perpendicular as
rocks can stand, and the river dashes
through gorge so narrow that in ancient
times it is said to have been closed by a
gate. The ruins of castle which formerly
defended it still frown down upon the throng
Of trains which now pass through it; while
a new castle, marking the Russian era, Is
more useful summer resort than as a
present defense. few more turns and the
gorge opens, that we look out OH the
broad plains of Russia. with nothing but the
rotundity Of the earth and the density Of the
atmosphere to prevent our seeing the north
pole, SO abruptly do the Caucasus noun