RIDE TOGETHER
Ski Touring · Splitboarding · Gudauri & Kazbegi
Informal ski touring & splitboarding in Gudauri
Sometimes it is simply about going riding together.
I spend much of the winter in Gudauri and regularly head into the surrounding mountains on my splitboard. Some days I go alone, some with friends, and sometimes with people I have not met before but who share a similar level, experience and way of being in the mountains.
Ride Together is simply a way to connect with those people.
These are informal, non-commercial recreational mountain days — not a guiding program and not something that can be booked.
How It Works
There is no fixed calendar, route or guaranteed departure.
If you are coming to Gudauri, leave your dates and a little information about your mountain experience. If I am planning to go out at the same time, the conditions look interesting and the group seems to fit together, I may get in touch.
The route depends on the snow, weather, avalanche conditions, the people involved and what feels worth doing that day.
Sometimes that may mean a long tour beyond the resort. Sometimes a short morning mission. Sometimes conditions simply do not justify going at all.
The point is simply to have a good day in the mountains.
Not a Guided Tour
Ride Together is not a professional guiding service.
There is:
- no participation fee;
- no guiding fee;
- no booking;
- no fixed itinerary;
- no guaranteed date or place;
- no commission or other payment to me.
If there are actual shared expenses, such as fuel or transportation, we simply divide them at cost.
Submitting the form below only lets me know that you will be around and might be interested in riding together. It does not create a booking or guarantee a mountain day.
Who This May Work For
Ride Together is mainly for people who already have some ski touring or splitboarding experience and are comfortable moving independently in winter mountain terrain.
You should be able to ride confidently off-piste in variable snow and use your touring equipment without instruction.
Everyone needs their own avalanche transceiver, shovel and probe and should know how to use them. Previous avalanche education is strongly preferred.
Fitness matters too. Depending on the day, we may climb for several hours.
Technical ability is only part of it. I also look for people who are comfortable changing plans, do not need to reach a particular summit or line, and understand that good mountain decisions sometimes mean turning around.
Shared Decisions
I have spent many winters exploring the mountains around Gudauri and Kazbegi and naturally bring that experience into any day outside.
I may share observations about terrain, snow, avalanche conditions, route choices or timing, particularly in places I know well.
But Ride Together remains a group of people going into the mountains together rather than a guide-client arrangement.
Everyone participates voluntarily, brings their own experience and judgement, and takes responsibility for their own decisions in mountain terrain.
Conditions always have the final say.
Gudauri & Kazbegi
Gudauri gives access to a surprisingly large amount of terrain.
A short drive takes us away from the resort into very different valleys, ridges and snow conditions. Depending on the season, possibilities may include Gudauri itself, the Cross Pass, Khada Valley, Kazbegi and other parts of Mtskheta-Mtianeti.
I have been exploring and documenting this region for many years.
Some of that work became my guidebook Backcountry Skiing in Gudauri & Kazbegi, with routes, maps, GPX tracks and practical information for people travelling independently in these mountains.
Looking for Professional Guiding?
If you need a specific date, a guide dedicated to your group, instruction, a planned itinerary or several consecutive days of ski touring, Ride Together is not the right format.
I can point you towards independent professional guides working in the Gudauri and Kazbegi area.
Any professional guiding arrangement is made directly between you and the guide. I do not receive a fee or commission for the referral.
Other Mountain Journeys
Ride Together is only one small part of what happens around AMNIMAKEN.
Elsewhere I organise a limited number of longer mountain journeys, camps and expeditions — usually in small groups and often in places where I have a particular interest in the terrain, culture or journey itself.
Interested in Riding Together?
If you will be in Gudauri this winter, tell me a little about yourself.
- When will you be in Gudauri? Your arrival and departure dates.
- Ski or splitboard?
- Backcountry experience — How long you have been touring and the kind of terrain you normally ride.
- Avalanche training — Courses or practical experience you have completed.
- Fitness — A rough idea of the vertical gain you are comfortable doing in a day.
- Equipment — Whether you have your own touring setup and complete avalanche kit.
- A few words about yourself
- Not a CV — just enough to get a sense of who we might spend a day in the mountains with.
If our dates, experience and plans happen to line up, I may get in touch.
Ride Together is an informal recreational activity rather than a scheduled AMNIMAKEN program. If you are looking for guaranteed dates or professional guiding, please use the professional guiding option above.
RIDING IN GUDAURI?
Leave your dates and a little about your experience. If our plans happen to line up, I may get in touch.