Nisaqala canyon: Yardimli's quiet 10-kilometre route

Yardimli is far from Baku, and that is exactly why its routes are quiet. The canyon walk starting from the village of Nisaqala is 10 km, roughly 5 hours, moderate difficulty.

→ Yardimli, Canyon trek (Mystic Nisaqala)

The Jidir plain

The viewpoint of the route. Its name comes from horse racing — such "plains" served as gathering and racing grounds for village communities in Azerbaijan's mountain regions. Today it is simply a broad meadow, but the name preserves the history.

What makes a canyon walk different

In a canyon the view is not above you but around you: walls, water, shade. That has two consequences:

• It stays cool. In summer, canyon routes are far more comfortable than an open slope.
• There is no signal. Between the walls the phone network cuts out. Staying with the group matters especially here.

The logic of going to a distant region

The road to Yardimli is long — you leave early in the morning and return at night. Is it worth it?

It is, if you:

• want to escape the weekend crowds
• consider village cooking part of the route
• can sleep on a bus

It is not, if spending 6 hours a day on the road wears you out. In that case there are closer routes: Khizi, Beybeyim mountain or Aghsu, Dilman waterfall.

About samovar tea

The village table after a walk is the unwritten part of these routes. If lunch is included in the price of the tour, do not rush the hour set aside for it; that is where you get to know the region.