Atashkooh

Overview

Atashkooh (3730m) is one of the mountains in the southern part of central Alborz. The village of Afjeh is the most popular starting point to climb Atashkooh.  Afjeh is one of the villages in Lavasanat region . The elevation at the starting point is about 2150m (based on my GPS), so your vertical climb is about 1580m. It took me about four and a half hours to get to the top, but I stopped many times to take pictures. If you don’t stop I think this can be done in 3.5 hours. On the way back you can go much faster, and you can get to Afjeh from the top in less than 2 hours. Based on my GPS the length of the route from Afjeh to the summit of Atashkooh is about 6.6 miles  (10.6 Km).

Getting There

To get to the village of Afjeh, you can take Lashgarak road in north eastern Tehran, then go toward the town of Galandooak (the main town in Lavasanat region), and continue to get to the village of Afjeh.

Route

The first part of the route is a gravel road going toward “Carrot plain (Dasht-e havij)”.  After about half an hour of hiking, and before getting to Dasht-e havij there is a road to the left.  Take that road and continue onto the trail and cross the small river, then you will get to a vast area called Sooak plain. 

At the end of Sooak plain there is a small building, and from there you have a good view of Sooestoon waterfall which is the most scenic waterfall in the region.

After Sooak plain the trail gets steep. Just follow the trail to get to Saka pass.

In the middle of the way to Saka pass, and at the elevation of 2950m there is a small plain mainly used by shepherds for sheep grazing.

As you go to the higher elevations, you will see some snowfields. 

When you get to Saka pass, you can continue to the left to get to Saka peak, or you can go to the right to get to Atashkooh.

Here are the views from Saka pass:

Here are the pictures on the way to the summit of Atashkooh:

Getting close to the ridge:

On the ridge:

The elevation at the summit of Atashkooh based on my GPS is 3730m. Here are the views from the summit:

There is a small ridge at the summit. The elevation at the other side of the ridge is 3726m (4m shorter than the main summit). Here are the views from there:

Red Tape

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When to Climb

Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. 

My personal preference is May and June.

Camping

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External Links

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