Kazbegi Marathon 2025
The Race We All Love Just Turned 15 Years old !
Fifteen years! For a decade and a half, every golden autumn day in Kazbegi has been hijacked by hundreds of people in bright tights and suspiciously tiny shorts, running up, down, and all around like happy mountain goats. This is the legendary Kazbegi Marathon, and for the past six years, our superhero friends at TrailLab have been the masterminds behind it, pulling off a world-class event with a smile (and only a few blisters).
Altihut? Oh, we’re proudly guilty as partners-in-crime. Six years of cheering, hosting, pouring tea (and occasionally chacha), and making sure every runner knows that hospitality is an extreme sport too.
TrailLab: The Mad Scientists of Running
TrailLab isn’t just an organization, it’s a whole tribe of “running evangelists and healthy lifestyle troublemakers.” Founded by Davit, Misha, Goga, Nika, & Beka (yes, they all still have working knees), they tirelessly design sucssesful races that look suspiciously like charity projects.
Do they run in their own marathons? Almost never. They’re too busy running around the marathon, three times the distance, fueled by adrenaline, spreadsheets, snecks, carbs and water for the participants. Every year, they raise the bar higher: smoother organization, tougher courses and friendlier chaos. Basically, they’ve written the recipe for how a true sports event should be done, organized yet joyful, disciplined yet deliriously fun.
And don’t forget: these maniacs host at least six major races in Georgia every year, from Mestia to Tbilisi to Gudauri. Oh, and in winter? They add a “Skimo Festival”, a ski-touring extravaganza co-hosted with us, Altihut team. Because why only run up mountains when you can also ski down them screaming?
August 31st: Playground for Superhumans
This year, Kazbegi once again transformed into a giant playground. The 6th (15th overall) Kazbegi Mountain Marathon united more than 490 fearless runners from all over the globe. People who said: “Yes, please, I’d love to gasp for oxygen at 3,700 meters while my legs forget how to function”. And the mountains said: “Sure, welcome”.
The Four Distances of Madness
Choose your own adventure (or punishment):
- Extreme – 35 km | +2,100 m
For stubborn adventurers and slightly unhinged lunatics. Midway, you’ll seriously question your life choices… only to later brag about them to your grandchildren.
Route: Gergeti → Altihut (3,014 m) → Bethlehem Hut (3,650 m, guarded by our heroic Polish rescuers) → back to Altihut → Pansheti Valley → Gergeti → Finish.
Bonus gift? More than 3,000 m vertical gain, tricky trails, 3,700 m altitude, and a cruel surprise: one extra kilometer-eater climb before the finish. Running gods, is this an overdose? - Sky – 15 km | +1,300 m
Gergeti’s calling card. Shorter than the Extreme, but spicy enough to make your lungs whistle the Georgian anthem. - Trail – 10 km | +900 m
Too short to fully collapse, long enough to earn mountain-runner bragging rights at the office. - Fun Run – 4 km | +300 m
No ego, no medals, just loud proof of how much you love running. Sometimes less really is more.
Bonus for all: jaw-dropping views, professional photo masterpieces, and yes—you as the main character in every frame.
Bigger, Better, Wilder Every Year
Like a fine Georgian wine, this marathon only improves with age. More runners, more challenges, more impact. All thanks to the passion of TrailLab’s team, who somehow mix German precision, Georgian hospitality, and just a hint of madness.
Altihut is beyond proud to be their partner. We provide the mountain hut, the warmth, the tea (and, okay, the occasional alti-chacha). Runners, dreamers, organizers, we welcome you all, and no one leaves without unforgettable memories and at least three new selfies.
This year’s marathon showed off in style especially, so much so that even the mountain looked a little jealous. The number of female participants in every distance climbed significantly, from the Fun Run to the Sky and all the way to the Extreme.
And for anyone still needing proof that age is nothing more than a lonely number buried in Vogon poetry’s dusty statistic file, the Extreme marathon proved it otherwise! Like the brain-mangling shock of a Pan-Galactic Gargle Blaster, it squeezed every skeptic’s neurons into submission.
Still doubtful? Flip through the photo album. You’ll see silver hair overtaking red sports jackets, and hard-earned life experience sprinting neck-to-neck with raw endorphins.
Safety First (Yes, Even Here)
The marathon’s secret ingredient? Not just the runners—it’s the dozens of volunteers, local Gergeti rescuers, and our Polish guardian angels from Bezpieczny Kazbek, stationed at Bethlehem Hut (3,650 m). They ensure that even at extreme alpine heights, safety remains as high as the peaks themselves.
Add in the magic of teamwork, sleepless nights and community spirit, you get a marathon that’s tough, wild, unforgettable, and safe.
To Be Continued…
490 runners. Four distances. One unforgettable day.
The 6th Kazbegi Marathon proved once again: here, trail running isn’t just about crossing finish lines. It’s about pushing your limits—with a smile, or at least a good photo-face.
And don’t think it’s over. Next year we’ll be waiting. Kazbegi Marathon never disappears, it just trains quietly in the mountains until you’re back.
Meanwhile, keep those running shoes out. Because TrailLab’s next mischief is coming this October 12th: the Lisi Trail Festival. Sign up before it’s too late, your legs (and our partners’ prizes) will thank you.
Altihut loves being an accomplice in all this madness. Because endurance, joy, stubbornness, and friendship belong together, just like mountains, runners, and a well-timed shot of Alti Chacha.
Photogallery (c) KAZBEGI MOUNTAIN MARATHON
