A Hike To Remember

I thought the hikes back home were beautiful, but the one we went on the other day was indescribable. The area we hiked in was in the Deel mountains of Artsakh, in a place called Hunod, more commonly known as Zontik. The hike started off with our van, “the Gazelle,” trailing off the main road onto a narrow dirt path. We could no longer continue our journey with the van, so the rest of the way was taken on foot. We grabbed our cooking supplies, tomatoes, pork, peppers, etc. Unger Razmig carried our watermelon during the entire 2 kilometer hike. Needless to say, he almost dropped it a few times along the way, while he himself also almost fell. During the scenic hike, we walked through a waterfall, crossed a very narrow bridge, and climbed over steep hills. In particular, the narrow bridge above the river scared Ungerouhi Areni and she was on the verge of tears as she crossed, while the rest of us all laughed. Areni warned us to NEVER LOOK DOWN. We agreed not to remind her about this same route we would have to take on the way back. After a seemingly endless and perilous journey, we arrived at the perfect location. This little paradise was close to a small waterfall where Ungerouhi Vana and I took a plunge into the cold water while the rest chickened out. The guys collected dry branches and built a fire, while the girls helped with food preparation. Even though our skewered meat was placed directly upon the dirty rocks, something which is normally unacceptable in America, we devoured our meal. Armenia and Artsakh will be the only places where I will eat food in unsanitary conditions. After lunch, we sat atop the waterfall watching the clouds pass, and told funny stories about our campers. A few hours later, we hiked back through our now familiar path and enjoyed the all too familiar bumpy Gazelle ride back to Babo’s.

– Dvin