UKC

I'm moving with my family to Baku, Azerbaijan. A fairly extensive internet search (including this venerable forum) has turned up virtually nothing, just some vague comments about Qobustan and Karadagh regions.

Since the last posts on the topic were many years ago I thought I'd ask again to see if there has been any development of the Azerbaijani climbing scene.

There are lots of UK ExPats in Baku so I'm hoping one (past or present) sees this post and has some thoughts.

We were there a few years ago for a meeting. The only climbing we did was on a bolted crag maybe a couple of hours from Baku - can't say for sure as we stopped there on the way back from somewhere else. Climbing was good but the equipping was pretty rudimentary. We were with local climbers though so there definitely is a small scene there to tap into. I'd contact the federation and ask about getting to know any English-speaking climbers. I get the impression they would be very welcoming.

I spend 2 months in Baku a few years ago. There wasn't anywhere to climb indoors in Baku at the time. I actually knocked up a 45 board just so I had something to climb on. We did a few day trips to some of the surrounding places of interest, including Qobustan, which had some amazing looking boulderfields, but after a small scramble up some boulders to get a better look I was strongly advised to get down (by guards with guns) and told that it is forbidden to climb. I imagine if you are off the beaten track you would probably get away with it. Seems like a huge area with potential. 

Please keep us posted how you get on as I'm quite interested to see if climbing will catch on there. 

P.s. Why are you moving over there? 

Hi, I have a postgraduate student from Azerbaijan who is involved in the local outdoor scene and he has provided the details below for a local expert who should be able to point you in the right direction. 

Cheers

Stephen  

"Here are the contact details of the guy in Azerbaijan who can be helpful with regards to rock climbing. 

email: rufatgojayev@gmail.com

mob: +99455 8440113 (Rufat Gojayev)

He is one of the bests in the country."