Visiting The Mtirala Rainforest in Georgia -- Our Frugal Georgia Trip, Day 3

Sorry it's been about a month since my last post about my frugal Georgia trip with my son; life kind of got in the way. On our third day in Georgia, we left Batumi, where we had slept the last two nights, and headed to Kutaisi, where we'd be spending the next two nights. Between Batumi and Kutaisi, about 50 minutes from Batumi, is the Mtirala rainforest. Or as I call it... were we actually there, or are these just postcards? Every single place was just picture perfect. 

I kept stopping along the drive to take pictures. It was breath taking.

It wasn't hard at all to take gorgeous pictures. Literally joint point and shoot. 

I didn't know until I was an adult that there was such a thing as a temperate rainforest, since I only knew about jungles such as the Amazon rainforest. The Mtirala rainforest is part of the UNESCO World Heritage list as part of the Colchic Rainforest and Wetlands, named after the ancient kingdom in western Georgia, called Colchis.

The name Mtirala means "to cry" since it is so wet and rainy, getting over 4 meters of rainfall per year. (For comparison, New York City gets 1.2 meters per year and Miami Beach -- in hurricane region-- gets 1.6 meters per year on average.)

It was a bit hard to find information about things to do in Mtirala. I saw there was a zip line, and their site said it was 20 GEL, which is $7, as well as hiking trails. I figured we'd decide what to do once we get there.

Driving went slowly, with narrow windy roads next to cliffs that tumbled down into the river filled valleys below.  It was hard to know when the actual national park started, because I didn't see an entrance, a gate, signs saying "you are here" or anything like that. 

Eventually I did find a building that seemed like a visitor's center, but it was closed and they were doing construction nearby. The workers there didn't speak any English and weren't able to tell me anything about the place. Fortunately, there was this sign that told some stuff about the park, as well as having a map of some hiking trails. 

We drove on, and it started getting icy on the ground. Not snowy, just ice.

It was a little scary at first, as it was my first time driving on actual icy roads. I made sure to drive slower.

Finally, we got to something. A building with people, signs, a bunch of ATVs, signs regarding their zip line, etc. I parked, and getting out of the car was scary. I had to work really hard to not slip on the ice.

When the workers came over, I told them my son and I wanted to zip line, and before I could ask what type of seat it was on the zip line, they told me that I was too heavy for it, and that it was 60 GEL ($21) for my son, instead of the 20 it said on the website. (Maybe this was a different zip line. But it was the only place we found.) Fine, if it is 3 times the price, I was totally fine with not going on the zip line. In the end, the zip line held you up with a harness (unline seats I've seen in other places) which would have killed my body, so I wouldn't have been able to do it anyhow, even if I weighed less.

They suited up my son with a helmet, and two guides took him to the start, one going in front of him, and one at the rear. I thought I'd have to take my son somewhere to start, or meet him at the end, but it just zigged and zagged across the river in 3 separate parts and ended just a hundred or two meters away from where it started.

It is hard to snap a picture from so far away as Ike zoomed across the river on the zip line, but here's there.

After he finished, they asked us if we wanted to ride on ATVs. They said it cost 150 GEL and I said that that was too expensive, so they lowered the price to 100 GEL. Though I thought we'd hike, with the ice being the way it was, I was worried I'd slip and get injured on a hike. ATVs have wheels that would be safer on the icy path and they provided a guide, so I decided to go with that. It was $35 and my first time ever on an ATV.

My son, Ike, wanted to drive, but they said you needed to be over 18 and have a driver's license. So he went behind me and took pictures over my shoulder as we drove.

In the end, where we drove it wasn't even icy. But it was still scary, as we were driving next to those same cliffs that tumble down into rivers. It was my first time on an ATV and figuring out the controls, pressing a button on the handlebar with my thumb for the gas, another thing on the handlebar brakes, as well as another brake near my foot, all while going up and down hills was intense.

We stopped at a certain place and our guide told us to walk a bit up a hill to see a waterfall, and maybe take a break there. 

After the break, we continued back.

Our guide recommended that we stop and take a picture of us here with this scenery in the background.

Then lastly, we stopped at a clearing next to a river. He suggested we go down to the river and hang out there, and then afterward we would be going back.

It was much wetter there than at our other stops, so I decided we'd see if we could find some mushrooms. We are limited in what types of mushrooms and quantity, period, where we live because it is so dry. But this is a rainforest- I was sure we would find mushrooms here, maybe even chicken of the woods, a type of mushroom I wish I could forage but apparently doesn't grow in my country (at least not in the years I've looked for it).

We found a lot of mushrooms that I think are turkey tail mushrooms, which are edible and medicinal, but I wasn't sure of their ID. No chicken of the woods, though, or other mushrooms I recognized.

The fact that most of the area was covered in frost probably didn't help.

But it was stunning, more postcard perfect scenes. 

I couldn't stop snapping pictures.

Have I ever mentioned, rivers and actual forests are my two favorite types of scenery, and what I miss about the US where I live, and this park was everything I'd missed. I probably would enjoy it even more when it was even more green, or in the fall with the multicolored leaves, but this was just so wonderful to be in.

Eventually, though, we headed back. I found out that our ATV guide was actually only 17 years old. We couldn't tell at first because of how bundled up he was.

We had a "picnic" late lunch of different canned veggies, crackers, and tuna overlooking the river.

We then walked along a path and saw some abandoned looking farm houses.

Soon, though, I wanted to be heading out. The roads, as I mentioned, were so windy and twisting, and I didn't mention earlier, absolutely no guard rails other than in a few places some wood with ropes, not enough to protect you. Of course, there were no street lights. I didn't want to have to worry about driving down there once it was dark.

The drive down was one of the scariest things in my life.

There were certain patches that were completely icy. I knew to drive very slowly. Very, very slowly. Like 5-10 kilometers an hour. But 3 times on the ride I slid even when pressing the brakes and I needed to pull on the emergency brakes as well to slow us more. After that first time I slipped, I drove even slower and with my hands on the emergency brake ready to pull it at any second. There was one time that even going super slowly, pressing on the regular brakes and emergency brakes, I had one wheel slide off the road. Fortunately, it was on a wider part of the road so we weren't too close to a cliff edge. One more time even with the emergency brakes we were sliding, so I just turned in to the road, away from the edge near the cliff, until I slowed down. I do not recommend that type of drive.

Eventually, we were back down to regular roads and I was able to catch my breath.

As we drove along the road, heading in the direction of Kutaisi, I saw a suspended rope bridge over a river at the side of the road. Me, not wanting to miss out on an adventure, suggested to my son that he walk across that bridge, and then take a picture from there.

After a minute or two parked at the side of the road, I decided to follow my son across the bridge.

The bridge was something else. I don't even know how to describe it.

There were steel cables, and there were boards across the bottom. And between the boards on the bottom and the steel cable, there was supposed to be metal fencing... But it was missing in many parts.

In any other place, these would have been closed down for less. But not Georgia. (Safety? What's safety.)

But the steel cables seemed strong enough, and in the worst case scenario if something happened, the fall wasn't big. And a little danger makes things more fun sometimes.

The bridge led to an island which obviously was in use, and then on the other side of the island there was another bridge...

In even worse condition than the first. But hey, fun, right? We saw someone from that town cross the bridge, too. It seems to be their regular means of traversing from one part of town to the other.

As it started to get closer to sunset, and we still had almost 3 hours driving time to get to our accommodations in Kutaisi for the night, we decided to head on out.

But looking back at pictures, it still is hard to believe that I got to experience such a beautiful place with my own eyes.

Definitely one of the highlights of my trip.

Did you know that there are cold weather rainforests? Have you ever been to any? 
Have you heard of Mtirala rainforest? If you've been to Georgia, have you been there? If so, what did you do there? If you'd go to Georgia, would you go out of your way to go there? Does it seem like a place that you would enjoy going?

What is your favorite type of nature scenery? As I said, mine is water and forest, but yours?