I head North from Kars, riding along the Eastern shore of Lake Cildir.
I have to brake for the odd horse on the road.
I only look at Seytan Kalesi (Satan castle) from a distance. I see some rainclouds moving in and the dirt road leading to the castle looks doubtful even when dry.
I make my way over a pass and all of the sudden it looks very different. The houses are different and the landscape is different too. There are a lot of pine trees suddenly.
This chap doesn’t seem to have a care in the world. 
Coming down the pass I spot a nice clearing and stop for a little snack and a quick nap under a tree. Very peaceful until some rifle shots in the distance wake me up.
I’m headed for the Tibet church and after Savsat I turn right just past another castle. The narrow road takes me along the edge of Waragol Sahara National Park. My map isn’t very detailed and I can’t find the old Georgian church. I just keep going though. This is a very nice place to get lost. When the road runs out I turn around and I spot a few people I can ask for directions. They all agree that I have to take a right. That much I know from my map. The question is where. Eventually I see a sign, which I couldn’t have seen coming the other way.
There is not much left of the Tibet church but the Georgian style is distinctively different from the Armenian, which I have been seeing so far.
As I pack my camera away a minibus with Georgian license plates rolls in. I’m very close to the border and they are day trippers. I guess this makes an obvious destination for them. One of the guys comes over and talks to me. He is a biker and offers some help in case I want to go to Georgia. I was playing with the idea but found that there is no unleaded fuel in Georgia and you can’t take the catalytic converter out of the Tenere. The whole exhaust has to be changed for more than EUR 1000. Too expensive for a little side trip. I ask the guy about unleaded fuel but he doesn’t understand the question, neither do any of the other Georgians. I guess this is my answer and I bury my Georgia/Armenia plans for good.
The villages in the area are very picturesque with very interesting wooden houses.
The road near Artvin is along a river in a very narrow canyon. It does remind me of some of the roads in Colorado.
There are a number of self made suspension bridges and cargo is hauled across the river with this kind of contraption.
It is very hot down in the canyon but it’s a dream road. It just won’t be around much longer. The whole canyon will be flooded in a few years time. They are building a new road higher up at the moment. Twice I have to stop for blasts and the cleanup that follows. Not much fun in the heat.
I do make it to Yusufeli before it gets dark and after a few trials I find the Greenpeace camp in a quiet location, next to the river, just outside town. The room is cheap enough that I don’t even have to pitch my tent.