Tourism rescues Omalo, Georgia, from oblivion – photo essay

Adventure tourists have thrown the remotest mountain region of the country an economic lifeline – but at what cost to ancient traditions and customs?

Through the Greater Caucasus mountain range that forms the northern belt of Georgia, the slim road of the Abano pass cuts a treacherous path. In fact the term “road” is a little generous; for 45 miles, this dirt track cut out of the edge of the mountainside swells and contracts as it snakes upwards to a height of 2,000 metres. The sheer drop along the road edge claims several lives every year, and its reputation was cemented when it featured in the BBC World’s Most Dangerous Road documentary in 2013. But this is the only route to reach the villages of Tusheti, a region tucked deep within these mountains. At the end of the pass, the mountains give way to a grassy plateau as Omalo, Tusheti’s largest village and administrative centre, comes into view.

Late afternoon on the road leading into Omalo, classed as one of the most dangerous roads in the world with precipitous drops and where wild horses frequently roam.