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We had wanted to take photographs of snow-covered villages in Turkey for a long time. In fact, it would have been enough to head straight for the East on any winter day.
But our aspirations were slightly different. The villages we were going to photograph had to be surrounded by forest; and they had to offer slices of local life as well as snow-covered wooden houses in a pristine natural environment. It wasn’t difficult to determine that Şavşat and its villages were just what we were looking for. So we collected our cameras, walking shoes and backpacks and made our preparations for travelling to this region at Turkey’s northeastern tip.
NATURE’S BOUNTY
Travelling in our own car gave us a chance to experience and photograph Turkey once again from one end to the other.
The Anatolian plateau with its photogenic landscapes, each one more beautiful than the last, generously multiplied its bounty when we hit the Erzurum-Artvin highway. Twisting and turning through the narrow valleys, the Çoruh River accompanied us on our journey, enhancing the view in a special way. Following an overnight in Artvin, our destination was Şavşat.
The easternmost of Artvin’s seven townships, Şavşat lies 72 km from the city center. The road offers the usual Black Sea scenery. Our spirits were virtually washed clean by the lush vegetation and the water flowing on every Side! At 1100 m above sea level, Şavşat consists of 65 villages, some of which are home to Turks of Georgian descent. The altitudes of the neighboring villages vary between 950 and 1800 m. The main part of the region, which is mostly mountain and valley slopes, consists of rocky mountain plateaux and forests, while a remaining smaller portion is made up of plains and hillsides suitable for farming. Şavşat is bordered by Georgia on one side and high mountain ranges on the other. The Karçal Mountains (3539 m), the Sahara (2600 m), Cin Mountain (3000 m) and Arsiyan Mountains (2220 m) follow one another. SLEDGES DRAWN BY BULLS
After completing our final shopping in Şavşat, we set out with our photographer Zafer Güngüt, who was also our guide to the area.
First we turned off on the road to İmerhev (Meydancık). Then, from a confluence of two rivers, we took the road to the village of Çağlayan. As the dirt road wound upwards along the stream, we got bogged down in water from time to time. The village we were headed for was in sight, but it started snowing as we drove higher. When snow finally covered the road completely, we could go no further. We were quite astonished to see a vehicle coming out to get us. A sled drawn by bulls! Loading our stuff on, we continued on foot, like humble Santas with their presents piled high on a reindeer-drawn sleigh!
The first place we reached was the village of Maden, known as Bazgiret in Georgian.
All the houses in this village, whose traditional texture has survived unspoiled to our day, are of wood and exhibit common architectural features. In the yards of the houses, whose walls are hung with wooden tools like pitchforks and rakes, sledges of every size immediately catch the eye. Transportation here is provided largely by these sledges. The headman who came out to greet us welcomed us as unexpected guests in his own home, a lovely house inside and out with wooden floors that creaked as we walked. The massive knotted wooden timbers that form the walls were like a natural decor. BREATHTAKING PEAKS
Leaving the cosy houses behind, we continued on our way. Climbing higher
up the slopes, we arrived at the highest village in the region: Gamaşet. Walking on the snow is not easy. But a ridge we reached upon climbing a little higher rewarded us with a magnificent view of the Üçkardeşler summit, the highest peak of the Karçal Mountains. From here we got a bird’s eye view of the snow-white mountain slopes and the villages scattered among their foothills. The villages were humming with life: firewood being cut, animals being fed, rosehip jam and molasses being boiled up in enormous cauldrons, thread being spun on a spinning wheel, delicious local dishes being cooked on wood-burning stoves, and cheese, cream and butter being made.
A transitional climate, intermediate between typical Black Sea and inland conditions, prevails in the region. At the higher altitudes the winter snows persist almost to mid-April. Snow in this landscape covered with spruce forest creates picture postcard scenes for more than half the year. We could not get our fill of taking photographs in the villages. Portraits of the elderly, people working in front of their houses, children gazing out windows and playing outdoors, young girls grinding corn at the water mill, and women making noodles kept our lenses forever occupied. DANCING TO THE ACCORDION
Almost every house in these villages boasts an accordion. Entertainment for the evening was organized for us too on the village square, where we danced the horon for hours to the gay strains of the accordion. There was also a surprise in store. For the first time we encountered here a form of folk theater known as ‘berobana’. In the play, young men with their faces painted black attempt to kidnap a young girl from a nasty old man with a white beard. All the village women and children joined in the festivities on the square. The children, frightened at first by the black-faced players, doubled up with laughter once they got used to it. That night, exhausted from our earlier revels, we perched on the divan next to the window and gazed out at the landscape. Clusters of light were visible in the distance. When we woke up early the next morning it was to a completely differently view. The silhouette of the Yalnızçam Mountains was tinged with the purple, blue and pink tints of the sky in the first light of dawn.
Şavşat drew us to it, not only for its villages but for its myriad different delights. Foremost among them is the Sahara National Park. The pristine natural environment here is uniquely beautiful. Touring the Şavşat Fortress and Lake Karagöl left us insatiable for more. Nor can we neglect to mention the village of Çermik with its therapeutic mineral water.
With its plunging valleys, soaring mountains, natural forests untouched by axe, its glacier lakes and plateaux, its rich flora and fauna, its fortresses and arched bridges, and its wooden architecture and local festivals, Şavşat and its environs possess an immense variety of touristic assets. Here lies a region waiting quietly in a remote corner of Turkey to be discovered by promoters of nature and culture tourism. |
