What's on in Elbrus, Russia through the year

Busy — Russian New Year holidays, school holidays in 6 of the markets that fill it

• Rule

  Border-zone permit and registration

  1 Jan – 31 DecBook early

  The mountain sits in a controlled border zone, so foreign climbers need a permit applied for weeks ahead and are expected to register a route with the rescue service before going high. Source ↗

Still on: Ski season (15 Nov – 15 May (usually)), Avalanche season (1 Dec – 30 Apr (usually)), Russian New Year holidays (30 Dec – 9 Jan)

Busy — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Border-zone permit and registration (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Ski season (15 Nov – 15 May (usually)), Avalanche season (1 Dec – 30 Apr (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

• Season

  Spring corn snow

  15 Mar – 15 May · usuallySki season

  March to May is when the weather settles enough to ski the long descents off the shoulder, and the same window is why ski mountaineers come rather than resort skiers. Source ↗

Still on: Border-zone permit and registration (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Ski season (15 Nov – 15 May (usually)), Avalanche season (1 Dec – 30 Apr (usually))

Busy — The Russian May holidays, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  The Russian May holidays

  29 Apr – 11 MayNational holidayCrowdedBook early

  Two long weekends back to back put the whole Baksan valley on the spring snow at once; the Azau cable car queues and the huts on the mountain fill with domestic groups. Source ↗

Still on: Border-zone permit and registration (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Spring corn snow (15 Mar – 15 May (usually)), Ski season (15 Nov – 15 May (usually)), Avalanche season (1 Dec – 30 Apr (usually))

Busy — The Russian May holidays, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in May.

Still on: Border-zone permit and registration (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Spring corn snow (15 Mar – 15 May (usually)), The Russian May holidays (29 Apr – 11 May), Ski season (15 Nov – 15 May (usually))

Quiet — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Nature

  Baksan valley in flower

  10 Jun – 25 Jul · usuallyWildflowers & blooms

  The meadows below Cheget and up the Adyl-Su turn over to rhododendron and alpine flowers while the summit route is still deep in snow — the acclimatisation walks are the pretty part of the trip. Source ↗

• Season

  Summit season

  15 Jun – 15 Sep · usuallyTrail seasonBook early

  The standard summit window runs from mid-June to mid-September, and even inside it groups wait days at the huts for a weather slot. Outside it the mountain is a winter expedition.

Still on: Border-zone permit and registration (1 Jan – 31 Dec)

Quiet — school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Border-zone permit and registration (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Baksan valley in flower (10 Jun – 25 Jul (usually)), Summit season (15 Jun – 15 Sep (usually))

Quiet — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Border-zone permit and registration (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Summit season (15 Jun – 15 Sep (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Closure

  Autumn lift shutdown

  1–25 Sep · usually

  The gondola up to Krugozor, Mir and Garabashi stops for about three weeks of maintenance every September, which cuts the quick ride towards the climbing routes. Terskol's car parks sit empty and the Azau meadow turns into a work site until the winter season. Source ↗

Still on: Border-zone permit and registration (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Summit season (15 Jun – 15 Sep (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: Border-zone permit and registration (1 Jan – 31 Dec)

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

• Season

  Ski season

  15 Nov – 15 May · usually

  The cable cars run from Azau up to Garabashi at well over three thousand metres, so the season here is one of the longest in Europe and holds through spring when the valleys have gone. Source ↗

Still on: Border-zone permit and registration (1 Jan – 31 Dec)

Busy — Russian New Year holidays, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

• Hazard

  Avalanche season

  1 Dec – 30 Apr · usuallyClosures

  After heavy snowfall the upper Baksan around Azau and Cheget is shut while avalanche teams bring slopes down with explosives: the Terskol to Azau road, the lifts and the runs can all close for days. Off-piste here is guided terrain, not a choice. Source ↗

• Holiday

  Russian New Year holidays

  30 Dec – 9 JanChristmas & New YearCrowdedBook early

  Russia takes the first ten days of January off and a good share of it comes to ski here. Beds in Terskol and Cheget go months ahead and the lift queues are the year's longest. Source ↗

Still on: Border-zone permit and registration (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Ski season (15 Nov – 15 May (usually))