The night was calm and peaceful. Early in the morning we catch one of the first departures with the cable car down to Azau. This was also the first time we where alone in the cable car. Normaly it is very crowdy and we have experienced, to many times, that the cable car operator don't allways bother to close the doors! We had to do it our selves after it had started.

This was a reunion day. Maria had been in Terskol since yesterday. Yolanda, Altin and Marco arrived just before lunchtime. When Mattias got the information about bad weather and the price for the expensive snow cat he also decided to get down to Terskol. We all meet up at the MBS hotel and went down to Cheget to have lunch (barbeque!). It’s a shame that we aren’t celebrating a successful summit attempt but we are all happy to be back down in one piece and well.

The group decided to relax, except for Marco who wanted to get some final trekking done before it was time to fly home. He decided to start the trek up to Syltran Lake, a relative big lake at 3000 m according to the maps. Transportation was arranged with a jeep to Vierkhni Baksan (1300 m). The driver, the well-known and respected guide Andrey, proposed to drive as far uphill as he could! We reached 1700 m before a ravine stopped us. At the picture we see Andrey and the lovely Tatiana. She is responsible for all bookings at Pilgrim Tours such as transportations, equipment, guides and dinners and she is the main contact for Pilgrim Tours in Elbrus. We were very well looked after by Pilgrim and must say they really offer a perfect service during our stay.

This is the last view of civilisation. In the picture we can see the jeep in the right lower corner. Then the route takes a turn away from the bigger path. Be aware of this since the turn is not that easy to see. Both the guide and Tatiana accompanied Marco for 45 minutes. It seemed to be a good place for collecting mushrooms and they were bring back some of this delicacy. Also we passed areas with clear signs of presence of wild pigs. The guide said "Marco, be aware of the big and furious Russian wild pigs". "No problem, they will be on MY menu and not the opposite" Marco replied.

Talking about animals. A nice snake crossed the path, a lot of animal activities in this area. During a closer inspection it revealed a whole group of snakes that was...uh..."doing it"...

According to the map the route shall pass the Shepard's hut. This is not a big hut and it is in use only a few times each year. In the picture we can see the path at the intersection with river Syltransu. It's possible to cross here. Also, Marco met some Russian people taking a break. They were on their way up. To reach Syltran Lake, just follow the river Syltransu that are clearly seen in the picture. A good tips is to stay on the west side of the river, then you don't have to walk on big blocks of stones but instead on a small and nice route. The weather started to get worse, the mist was now close.

The last part is steep but not difficult to walk on. It's started to rain and then suddenly Marco was in the middle of a hailstorm...as seen on the picture. Just a few minutes after that, the thunder started. This was like a bad Deja Vu of what had happened just a few days ago on Elbrus. Marco decided to stop just below Syltran Lake to take cover because of the bad weather.

After dinner it was time for exploring the surroundings and to check the map. One thing was a little bit confusing. The map didn't seem to be accurate since this campsite is located at 3000 m according to GPS, the same altitude as Syltran lake on the map. But there was no lake in this place of course. The evening was calm and nice, the weather was getting better. The barometric pressure indicates a beautiful day tomorrow.

Marco inhales the thin air; meanwhile the twilight is approaching. He is alone and has to face the darkness and the silence. This is really nice, to get away from crowded places and the civilisation. Before Marco goes to sleep, he wonders what the others are doing...

Well, they had a relaxing day and round up the evening at a restaurant. Good food (not freeze dried), beer, wine and some of the nice Russian Vodka!

Yolanda downed a shot of traditional Russian Vodka and she received approving nods from a group of Russians that was sitting at the table next to theirs, they obviously thought she had the right technique.