UNDER CONSTRUCTION

   In Vardanavank, turn right, continue straight and then take the left fork to Bjni. Entering Bjni, the 9-10th c. fortress of the Pahlavuni family will appear on a mesa overlooking the river at the far end of the village, with the Astvatsatsin church, 1031, looming below on the left. A  hundred

   Solak      is      the      next     village, continuing straight from T, with Mayravank Astvatsatsin church of the 7th c. perched on the hill, with fort and cemetery. There are several Late Bronze Age/Iron Age forts in the vicinity.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

metres below the large church, with a collection of excellent khachkars, is the small rectangular S. Gevorg church of the 13th c., with older stones built in. A narrow dirt road rises straight to a water tank near the NW end of the berd, thence a 50-meter scramble to the summit. Castle walls are poorly preserved. There are remains of two cisterns, one with vaulting partly intact, and low foundations of a 5th? C church near the far end, past the one standing medieval  structure. A covered passage leads to the river. Nestled between the berd and the village is a small ruined shrine employing masive  stones. Two tenths of a mile beyond, across the river, is an impressive natural bridge.