- 3 - We shall start our excursion with the words of a wellknown Georgian geographer and historian of the 18th century Vakhushti Bagrationi who wrote: "Abkhazia is a forest land with groves, meadows, and mountains, famous for its healthgiving springs. There are enormous and small mountains, terrible and wonderful rocks, green forests with a plenty of fragrant flowers, with various trees, beautiful groves at the foot of the mountains". Indeed, Abkhazia by nature is a typical mountainous forest country, with woods beginning at the very seashore and reaching altitudes of about 2000 meters. Our trip begins at the capital of Abkhazia - Sukhumi, situated as an amphitheatre on the shore of the azure bay of the Black Sea, and proceeds at first nearly eastward along the sea; then from the Datcha village it turns to the north in the direction of the mountains. At present, the woods on the maritime lowland are almost completely destroyed, and their place is taken by the plantations of tea, citrus, bamboo, feyhoa, etc. Some plots in the forests that have avoided destruction have been either declared reserves (Pitsunda, Myusera, Skurcha) or are intended for preservation. The slopes of foothills (up to 600-800 over the sea level) are characterized by forests of Quercus iberica. From the motor-road a majestic panorama is clearly visible of the Main Caucasian range with summits up to 4040 m. The geological age of the range is about 500 million years. At that time Caucasus perhaps yet not so high, rose above the waters of the vast warm nummulitic Tethys Sea. On the south slope of the Great Caucasus, irrespective of the distance, we can distinguish a lighter belt of beech forest of Fagus orientalis (at 600 to 1800 m) and a darker belt of fir forests of Abies nordmanniana (up to 2000 m). Higher, beyond the limits of forest vegetation, a belt of alpine meadows (up to 2500 m) is situated; this formation exists still higher, in the nival belt, i.e. the zone of eternal snow and glaciers (up to 4000 m). This contrast in the climate and vegetation is especially sharply felt on a hot day of July, when one looks from the beach below to the white snow summits of the ancient Caucasus.