Things to do in Lori Province

Lori is the green north, cut by the Debed river into a canyon a hundred kilometres long. It is wetter and more wooded than the rest of the country. The monasteries here are UNESCO-listed.

The canyon

• Haghpat and Sanahin. Tenth-century monasteries on opposite rims, ten minutes apart, and rivals when they were built.
• Alaverdi. A copper town in the gorge, with a cable car from the valley floor to the plateau.
• Dsegh. The village where the poet Hovhannes Tumanyan was born, on the canyon edge.
• Dzoraget. The side gorge that gives the riding routes their name.

Riding

What sells here is horseback, and it is the honest way to see the province. Routes run from an afternoon to a week. The long ones cross into the Dzoraget gorge and sleep in villages.

The horses are local and sure-footed on the tracks. Beginners are taken, with the pace set to match. A guide rides with the group throughout.

Beyond the riding

The monasteries are the other reason to come, and they are quiet. Haghpat and Sanahin see a fraction of Geghard’s traffic. Both are working ground rather than exhibits behind glass.

Akhtala sits further north, a fortress church covered in Georgian frescoes. Vanadzor is the provincial town below. Neither takes long.

Practical

• Getting there. Three hours north of Yerevan on the Tbilisi road. Most trips include the transfer.
• Season. May to October. Canyon roads are narrow, and winter shuts the higher tracks.
• Weather. Wetter than the south, and cool at night even in summer. Take a shell.
• Monasteries. Both are working sites. Covered shoulders and knees.
• Riding kit. Long trousers and a closed shoe. Helmets are provided.