Hiking to Ukhtasar with my Son

“That was my first overnight hiking trip with my son”,- tells hiker Ruben Zaqoyan talking about two-day hiking trip to Ukhtasar.

Armenian Geogaphic organized two-day hiking trip in Ukhtasar which is in Syunik Highland. First day we climbed Mount Ughtasar, the next day we climbed Mount Tsghuk.

One of our hikers Ruben Zaqoyan came to this trip with his son. He says that the trip was well-organized and it was very interesting: “I met my old and new friends, I got new impressions and new experience. I was waiting for this hiking trip impatiently. Finally”.

Hiking to Ukhtasar

Ruben tells that he had been in Ukhtasar several years ago but he just walked near the lake and watched petroglyphs: “However, the most impressive was Ughtasar. It attracted my attention at once, and it seemed like it was calling me. I had a big desire to climb it… At that moment I knew that I was going to be back again. I think Mount Ughtasar and Mount Tsghuk are distinguished by their unique views and atmosphere. Of course, there are many incredible mountains and rocks in Armenia, but Ughtasar and Tsghuk are exclusively different. There are not so many mountains that I will go back for the second time, but I’m going to be back to Ukhtasar again”.

This was a special trip for Ruben as for the first time he had an overnight hiking trip with his son. He says that when he was in Ukhtasar for the first time he was with his family and his son was also impressed by the views: “When he learnt that I was going to hike to Ukhtasar he joined me. That was my first overnight hiking trip with my son. I had different feelings: on the one hand I knew that my son Rafael was already a mature man, and there is no need to worry about him, but on the other hand as a father I couldn’t get rid of anxiety. Sometimes I was worrying too much and my son was getting angry of that. As I already mentioned it was a very awaited trip but the reality was even brighter. I discovered also Tsghuk for myself. The views, the combination of colors, everything was impressive”.

The hiker said that his hiking experience let him plan his hiking trips properly: “This trip was not an exception, too. I knew the territory, I imagined the conditions and accordingly I packed my and Rafael’s bags. Mountains one more time proved that they can be unpredictable and you should respect them. It was cold, very cold. I have never spent that kind of cold night in my life. I wore whatever I had, I think I didn’t took of my shoes off nither, but still it was cold. The worst thing was that I couldn’t understand why I was freezing, as I had warm cloths and I was in a sleeping bag in a tent. In early morning I started to ask others if they were also freezing. It turned out that even more professional hikers were freezing and I relaxed a little bit”.

These are my people

Ruben says that after each hiking trip he reaffirms that we have incredibly beautiful, attractive and fantastic nature. “Very often I don’t believe my eyes when I see those views. I always try to take pictures of those scenes but no photo can be compared with real images People who love the nature, Armenia, like adventures and new impressions just do hiking”.

He also tells that he started to do hiking with ArmGeo due to his old friend whose name is Lusine Arshakyan: “We were trying to organize hiking trips with my friends, but not everyone was always available. I was getting very upset whenever we couldn’t organize a hiking trip. That was when Lusine told me about ArmGeo and that was how I appeared in my ArmGeo. Dear Lusine, thank you so much. So, I started my active hiking lifestyle. It was interesting that from the second or third hiking trip I already realized that these are my people. Now I have mixed feelings, I don’t know I go with them to do hiking, or to see my friends”.

Ruben is doing hiking since he was a kid. He tells that his parents took him to nature during weekend: “Then, I grew up and I wanted to become a geographer for wearing a backpack and wandering in mountains. My dream came true: I wear my backpack and wander in mountains.”

The roads are making stronger

Ruben thinks that as a result of hiking trips his character has become milder, he is more tolerant now: “I started to know people better. During hiking difficulties and other circumstances you realize who is who. Hike does not tolerate egoism and indifference. During hiking trips we all are like one organism and our safety depends on each of us. And I realized that the important thing is not climbing the mountain but coming back to home safe and sound”.

Ruben says he had several severe hiking trips when he just wanted to lie down and cry: “But the feeling, that I was not alone and my friends were inspiring me, helped me not to stop and go forward”.

The copyright of this article is owned by armgeo.am. The content of the article may be cited or used on other websites only with an active link to the source.

Hiking trips in Armenia