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One of the highlights of my very short visit to Armenia was climbing Mt Aragats.
We got to the summit of its southern peak, which is at 3,879m/12,726 ft. I was not alone. All credit goes to my guide Artsrun, without which none of this would have been possible.
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Remember (you knew – didn’t you) Yerevan is quite high up – 1,390 m (4,560 ft) in the part I was staying in. The car park is not at the bottom of the mountain. We climbed a lot less than the full height of the peak.
On the other hand, oxygen is starting to get scarce at those heights. It was hard going near the top.
![](https://i0.wp.com/www.breadandtea.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/P1110268.jpg?resize=640%2C480)
It is a hike rather than any kind of mountaineering exploit, but I would not have attempted it without a guide. The mountain is an extinct volcano, and has four main peaks. The others are not for the likes of me – mountaineering stuff. It is a 90 minutes drive from the city centre.
We had a beautiful day for it, and it was much cooler than previous days at 20C. In fact Artsrun reckons we had the best conditions he has ever seen.
![](https://i0.wp.com/www.breadandtea.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/P1110266.jpg?resize=640%2C480)
I made the arrangements through Armenian Geographic, and they were excellent. I was picked up from and dropped off at the front door of my apartment building. The cost was US$120. The price included Artsrun’s services and the transport.
The only bit of the whole thing which was a bit tricky was paying them. They expect payment by bank transfer. By the time I learned they do not take credit cards, I had already left home – without the card reader I need for transfers. In the end I had to take the cash out of an ATM in Yerevan, and get the bank to pay it into their account.
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I have enjoyed some great climbs in the Alps, and Mt Kilimanjaro was one of those once in a lifetime moments. Getting up Mt Aragats was an amazing experience I will always cherish.
ⓒ iain taylor, 2019
🇦🇲🏴🇪🇺