Caucasus Mountains
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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The Caucasus Mountains is a mountain system in Eurasia between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea in the Caucasus region.
The Caucasus Mountains are made up of two separate mountain systems:
- the Greater Caucasus Mountain Range and
- the Lesser Caucasus Mountains.
The Greater Caucasus Range extends from the Caucasian Natural Reserve in the vicinity of Sochi on the northeastern shore of the Black Sea, generally trending east-southeast and reaching nearly to Baku on the Caspian Sea, while the Lesser Caucasus runs parallel to the greater range, at a distance averaging about 100 km (60 mi) south. Meskheti Range is a part of the Lesser Caucasus system. The Greater and Lesser Caucasus ranges are connected by the Likhi Range, which separates the Kolkhida Lowland from the Kura Depression (Kura Lowland). In the South-East are the Talysh Mountains. The Lesser Caucasus and the Armenian Highland constitute the Transcaucasian Highland. The highest peak in the Caucasus range is Mount Elbrus in the Greater Caucasus, which rises to a height of 18,506 feet (5,642 meters) above sea level. Mountains near Sochi will host part of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
