Old postcards Kabardino-Balkaria

Every Soviet postcard in the Kabardino-Balkaria section comes from one 1973 set that spans the republic from Nalchik to the upper Baksan valley below Elbrus. That dormant volcano, 5,642 metres high, is the highest peak of the Caucasus, and meltwater from its glaciers feeds the Baksan, Malka and Kuban rivers.

The gorges follow one after another: the Chegem gorge with the Chegem waterfalls on tributaries of the Chegem river, the Cherek-Balkar gorge, the head of the Adyl-Su gorge and the Baksan valley. Close by is the Blue Lake; a group of five karst Blue Lakes lies in the Cherek-Balkarsky valley about 30 kilometres south of Nalchik.

The Elbrus area in 1973 also meant tourist facilities: the Cheget chairlift on a mountain known for its ski runs, and the Azau, Dolina Narzanov (“Valley of Narzans”) and Nalchik turbazas, as Soviet tourist bases were called. Nalchik itself is represented by a Lenin monument and the drinking gallery of the spa, and one card is devoted to the folk dance ensemble Kabardinka.

For collectors of mountain subjects, the draw is that Cheget, Azau and Adyl-Su all appear in the same year’s set.