The Pankisi Valley (or Gorge as it is often called) is about 10 kilometres long and 3 kilometres wide. It is situated along the south-eastern slopes of the Greater Caucasus mountain range where the headwaters of the Alazani River flow down though the woody mountains and foothills of the gorge. The Alazani flows southeast into Kakheti’s famous wine region and eastwards into Azerbaijan before joining the Caspian Sea.
The Pankisi Valley
The Alazani Valley
Georgia
Kakheti
The province of Kakheti stretches eastwards from Tbilisi. It is composed of Outer Kakheti (Gare Kakheti) located along the Iori river south of the Gombori Mountains, the Iori Plateaux and the Inner Kakheti (Shida Kakheti) embracing the Alazani Valley, 160 kilometres long and 20 -30 kilometres wide. The foot hills of the High Caucasus lie north along the Alazani Valley lies. A number of peaks are over 3000 metres. The highest peak closest to Pankisi Valley is Tebulos-mta (4494 metres), located on the Georgian-Russian border. The mountain slopes are covered with horn beam and oak forests. Higher up there are beech forests, which transform into mountain meadows, alpine and sub-alpine, with submits of bare rock and stone.
