Yesterday I summited Aramazd Mtn. It was a grueling trek, which was pretty much all uphill. Starting from the campsite, it was straight up to reach the first, lowest, of the many peaks within the mountain range, and although a difficult start, if we reached that peak the rest of the journey would have been easier. But one of the new members of our camera crew, 50+ yr old Khachik, was not up to task, so we started climbing sideways along the face of the mtn, doubling our distance and our effort, and even then, he couldn’t keep up, so we sent him back down the mountain to wait for us at tonight’s camp site. With one man down, he also took water with him and we ran out of water hoping every peak we saw was the highest, but it wasn’t; we carried on for 6+ hours until finally catching sight of the erected cross marking the highest point in the range, and it was worth it. All the suffering led to an amazing view; from the peak, I could see everything: the peaks I had already conquered, Khustup, Baghats sar, Gogi lake; the villages I was warmly welcomed in; and forward to my next destination, Tatev, the monastery, canyon, and beyond. Now, I just had to get down, but with no water and no clear trail, it was an arduous stumble till I reached the foothills, which led me to the neighboring village, setting up camp by torchlight.
