Cyprus mountaineers climb Mount Aragats peaks in Armenia

Yerevan, Armenia. Two groups of mountaineers representing Cyprus climbed Mount Aragats, Armenia’s highest mountain, during an expedition dedicated to ties between Cyprus and Armenia.

Thirteen-year-old Peresvet Larin became the youngest Cyprus resident to reach the southern summit of Mount Aragats, at 3,879 metres, accompanied by Andrey Kogun.

Southern and northern routes

A second team attempted the northern summit and reached an altitude of 4,075 metres, 15 metres below the mountain’s 4,090-metre peak.

A participant said unusually heavy snowfall on Mount Aragats prevented the group from reaching the summit cross because of deep snowdrifts, while dense fog covered the peak.

Symbol of friendship

Despite the conditions, expedition members Alexander Larin and Mikhail Omelchuk raised the Cyprus flag at their highest point, took photographs and left engraved stones brought from Cyprus as symbols of friendship between the two countries.

The participants said the expedition aimed to strengthen relations between Cypriots and Armenians, promote active tourism between the two countries and encourage mountaineering as part of a healthy lifestyle.

President Nikos Christodoulides has repeatedly described the Armenian community as an integral part of Cypriot society and noted its contribution to the island’s cultural, social and economic life.