Stavropol'
3,251 m
Russia
Also known as Ставрополь, Пик СтавропольAlso known as
Ставрополь · Пик Ставрополь
- Elevation
- 3,251 m
- Prominence
- 792 m
- Difficulty
- 4/10
- Alpine hike
- Best Season
- Aug–Sep
- Routes
- 1
Summit not accessible
The Caucasus Reserve's official route ends at Lake Bezmolviya, below the summit.
pohod-v-gory.ru
Path closedReported 6 Oct 2026
The Caucasus Reserve stopped admitting visitors to route No. 12 'Urochishche Imeretinka' from 7 October 2026 because of night frosts to −5 °C and snowfall; the route reopens on a date announced the following summer.
kavkazzapoved.ru
Routes
1Sources differ: 1A–1B (Russian pass grade) for the Panoramny pass, 3,100 m (pohod-v-gory.ru)
A three-day trek in the Caucasus Reserve: up the Imeretinka valley from the Zakan cordon (about 1,300 m) past the Imereti waterfalls to Lake Bezmolviya, the reserve's largest lake, then a day out over the Panoramny pass (3,100 m, Russian 1A–1B) and along a gentle ridge to the summit. Reserve pass needed; the route is open only from about late June to early October.
This route ends at Большое Имеретинское озеро, about 1.4 km from the summit, which is not accessible. Distance, ascent and times are to that point.
Elevation Profile
approximate line- Distance
- 12.7 km
- one way
- Ascent
- +1,374 m
- −131 m lost on the way up
- High Point
- 2,559 m
- Time Up
- 6h 26m
- DIN 33466
- Time Down
- 4h 46m
- DIN 33466 · same way back
Start at the Zakan cordon of the Caucasus Reserve, at the end of a long dirt road up the Bolshaya Laba from Psemen or Kurdzhinovo. Reserve passes are checked here or at the Karapyr cordon near Damkhurts. Reserve route No. 12 follows the right bank of the Imeretinka through beech and fir forest: about 7 km of easy, almost level path (2–3 hours) to the Imeretinsky domik forest cabin, then 3 km more to the official camp, Priyut No. 1 (about 2,000 m), below the Great Imereti waterfall. Day one is 8.5 km and about 650–700 m of ascent, 4–6 hours. Above the waterfall the path climbs steeply past the upper fall into a wide meadow valley. Tour groups camp at an upper site at about 2,500 m, and the official route continues 3.5 km from Priyut No. 1 to Lake Bezmolviya (Great Imereti Lake), which sits in a cirque ringed by Pik Stavropol, Imeretinsky Shpil, Inpsi (Granitnaya) and Busha. On the third day climb from the lake to the Panoramny pass (3,100 m, graded 1A–1B as a trekking pass: scree and, in early summer, snow). From the pass turn right and walk up a gentle slope to the ridge of the former 'Tumannaya' summit, marked by a cairn; the highest point is another 300 m along the ridge. Descend the same way to the lake and, on the following day, about 12 km back to Zakan. Tour operators run the whole trip in 4–5 days, including a spare day for weather.
Start
кордон Закан1,297 m
- No public transport to the cordon. Tour groups meet in Mineralnye Vody, Cherkessk or Mostovskoy and transfer by chartered vehicle to Psemen or Kurdzhinovo, then by 4x4 up the Bolshaya Laba to Zakan.
Waypoints
- Trailhead: кордон Закан1,297 m
Caucasus Reserve cordon at the start of route No. 12; elevation approximate (about 650–700 m below the first camp at about 2,000 m)
- Feature: Имеретинский домик1,776 m
Reserve forest cabin about 7 km from the cordon
- Feature: Нижний Имеретинский2,074 m
- Bivouac: Верхняя стоянка (вторая стоянка) Имеретинской тропы2,397 m
Upper camp used by tour groups; check with the reserve whether it is currently permitted
- Feature: Большое Имеретинское озеро2,537 m
Lake Bezmolviya; published elevations vary from 2,350 to 2,530 m (not on route line)
- Waypoint: Большое Имеретинское озеро2,537 m
Summit not accessible beyond this point
Key Passages
- Steep climb past the Great and Upper Imereti waterfalls
- Scree and early-season snow below the Panoramny pass
- Ridge from the cairn on the former 'Tumannaya' top to the summit
Equipment
0/9 packedDownloads
Route confidence 55%Overview
Pik Stavropol (3,251 m) is the highest summit around the Imereti lakes, a glacial cirque of a dozen tarns deep in the Caucasus Biosphere Reserve. It is reached on a three-day trek up the Imeretinka valley and an easy pass-and-ridge walk above Lake Bezmolviya.
Pik Stavropol rises above the head of the Imeretinka valley, a tributary of the Zakan and the Bolshaya Laba, on the Karachay-Cherkessia side of the western Greater Caucasus, close to the boundary with Krasnodar Krai. With Imeretinsky Shpil (3,189 m), Inpsi or Granitnaya (3,211 m), Busha (3,119 m) and Geografov Kubani (3,212 m) it encloses the Imereti cirque, which holds about a dozen lakes. The largest, Lake Bezmolviya ('Lake of Silence', also called Great Imereti Lake, about 19 ha), is the biggest lake in the Caucasus Reserve; below it the Imeretinka drops over two large waterfalls.
The whole area is inside the Caucasus State Biosphere Reserve and is visited only on the reserve's eco-tourist route No. 12, 'Urochishche Imeretinka', a marked path from the Zakan cordon to the lake. The cirque is known for its large herd of West Caucasian tur, which come close to camps. Pik Stavropol is not technical: from the lake a scree and snow pass (Panoramny, 3,100 m) leads to a gentle ridge and the summit, with views to Tsakhvoa, the Herzen ridge, Damkhurts and the Kardyvach peaks.
The effort lies in the approach and the logistics: a long 4x4 transfer to the cordon, a reserve pass, camping only at designated sites, and a short season set by the reserve, usually from late June or July to early October.
Climbing Notes
Fitness for 4–6 hour days with a full camping pack is the main requirement; no technical skills are needed in late summer, but the Panoramny pass holds snow on its north side into July or August, when an ice axe and microspikes are useful. Most people join a guided group (4–5 days from Mineralnye Vody, Cherkessk or Mostovskoy), which arranges the transfer and passes. A typical plan is: day 1 Zakan cordon to the lower camp (8.5 km, about +650 m); day 2 to the upper meadows and Lake Bezmolviya; day 3 summit via the Panoramny pass and back to the lake; day 4 or 5 out to the cordon (about 12 km). Keep a spare day for cloud and rain, which are frequent.
The reserve asks visitors to go in groups of at least three, to register with the emergency services (MChS) and to carry satellite communications. Camping is allowed only at designated sites. Do not feed the tur. Confirm with the reserve's tourism department that climbs above the lake are allowed in your season, as operators disagree on this.
History
The summit was long unnamed; climbers and trekkers called it Pik Tumanny ('Misty Peak') or Pik Tumannogo Albiona. It was given its present name during the 'Pik Stavropol' eco-geographical and sports expedition in August 2008, timed for an anniversary of the city of Stavropol, which left a commemorative pennant on the top. The name of Lake Bezmolviya was given in 1964 by the reserve botanist K. Yu. Golgofskaya. No record of a first ascent was found.
Season
Best Aug–Sep- January: Not advisable
- February: Not advisable
- March: Not advisable
- April: Not advisable
- May: Not advisable
- June: Not advisable
- July: Good
- August: Best (best window)
- September: Best (best window)
- October: Not advisable
- November: Not advisable
- December: Not advisable
- Jan
- Route closed; deep snow
- Feb
- Route closed
- Mar
- Route closed
- Apr
- Route closed
- May
- Route closed; lakes still frozen and snow-covered
- Jun
- Usually still closed; in 2026 route No. 12 remained closed after 24 June because of late snow
- Jul
- Route opens; snow on the passes; waterfalls at their fullest
- Aug
- Best month; lakes ice-free and passes largely snow-free
- Sep
- Good; colder nights; route closes before the red deer rut
- Oct
- Closed for the season from early October (7 October in 2026); snow and night frosts to −5 °C
- Nov
- Route closed
- Dec
- Route closed
Access & Permits
- Permits
- Caucasus State Biosphere Reserve pass (route No. 12 'Urochishche Imeretinka')Required
Every visitor needs a paid pass for the dates on the route, bought online from the reserve or at a cordon. Without one, inspectors fine you 3,000–4,000 roubles plus the daily charge and escort you out.
kavkazzapoved.ru - Border-zone pass (FSB border service)Optional
The upper Laba and the Imereti lakes lie near the state border with Abkhazia/Georgia, and part of the Urupsky district is in the border zone. Tour programmes for route No. 12 do not mention a border pass, but some trekkers include the Imereti lakes in their border-zone applications; check with the reserve or the border service before going and carry your passport.
riderhelp.ru
- Hut Booking
- No staffed huts. Camp at the reserve's designated sites (Priyut No. 1 below the Great Imereti waterfall, and the upper camp near the lakes); no booking beyond the reserve pass.
- Fees
- Caucasus Reserve: 500 roubles per adult for the first day and 300 roubles for each further day (from 1 August 2025); children 7–14 pay 150 roubles per day, under-7s are free
- Chartered 4x4 transfer to the Zakan cordon
- Rules
- Caucasus Biosphere Reserve: stay on the approved route; camping only at designated sites; no fires outside them
- Groups of at least three people are recommended by the reserve; up to 500 visitors per month on route No. 12
- The route opens only after the snow clears and closes before the red deer rut, usually June/July to September or early October, on dates set by reserve order
- Climbing above the lakes may be restricted by the reserve; confirm before going
- Many governments (including the UK and US) advise against all travel to Russia since 2022
- Getting There
Psemen and Kurdzhinovo (Karachay-Cherkessia); Mostovskoy (Krasnodar Krai), about 90 km from the cordon
Mineralnye Vody (MRV); Krasnodar (KRR)
- Road to Psemen or Kurdzhinovo, then more than 40 km of rough dirt road up the Bolshaya Laba to the Zakan cordon, usually by UAZ or other 4x4 (2–2.5 hours from Psemen)
- Guided groups usually start from Mineralnye Vody, Cherkessk or Mostovskoy with chartered transport
Hazards
- Weather
- Remoteness
- Rockfall
- Exposure
Huts & Shelters
1- 2,500 m
Верхняя стоянка (вторая стоянка) Имеретинской тропыBivouacUnstaffed