Elbrus and Cheget, Russia

Freeriding

The place is perfect if you're after some off-piste terrain with clear views and powder snow. At the top of the both mountains there's almost no trees, but you should be careful to know where you're going. A good, but tough place to start is Garabashi (aka "Bochka" - the highest lift point on Elbrus - 3780 m) from where you can go down towards Stary Krugozor. Also, some very good freeriding is at the top of Cheget, after the last 300-m drag lift, but keep close to the Ai Cafe. There's also heli-boarding tours available all over the mountain, ask the Terskol travel agency about this. If you are on a tight budget, you can get a near heli-boarding experience by renting a ratrack, which can bring you to Priyut 11 (4800 m). The price is $150 for 15 people, so if it's full, you'll need to pay only $10. While riding off-piste, watch out, as there's a lot of risky avalanche areas. If you ride on-piste and it didn't snow for the last few days, beware: the pistes are not well maintained and if you might catch a few stones on your way.

Freestylers

You might run (ride) into some hand-made playgrounds built by the local boarders, and there's lots of good places at the top of the both mountains as well.

Pistes

Most of the runs are 1.5 - 2 km long, so they can be real fun. However, as the pistes are not very well maintained, you should look out for stones and ice.

Beginners

This is not a beginners' resort, as most piste runs are for intermediates and are not looked too well after. Besides, you're risking spending 4 hours a day in queues.

Resort Statistics

Summary

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Piste Map