The drive from Erzurum to Trabzon is perhaps the most visually spectacular drive in all of Turkey. It is a long and winding one that leaves desolate plains of Erzurum, passes through the towering Kackar Mountains, and then descends into the lush and semi-tropical climate of Trabzon on the Black Sea coast. It is a drive that passes some of Turkey's most remote and isolated communities. Along the way you will find the crumbling ruins of ancient Georgian churches, as well waterfalls and a few communities of Turkey's Caucasian minority the Laz, recognizable by their elaborate red headscarves. This is prime territory for trekkers (which sadly I didn’t have time to do), but completely impassible during winter. However, in addition to being Turkey's most beautiful drive, it is also its most frustrating.
For the whole trip, the road is only two lanes as it crawls up and down through valleys, along the sides of mountains, across ravines, and through tunnels. Oddly enough this is also the main road to Trabzon, so it is also full of lorries, meaning it is likely that you will get stuck behind a lot of lorries for extended periods and your chances to pass will be few and most likely result in a blind corner or two. This is all about to change, though, as Turkey is in the middle of constructing a large highway that will pass right through the mountains to Trabzon, making the drive less scenic, but much easier.
What also didn't help us is that we arrived just after the spring thaw and the road was almost completely wiped out by mudslides in parts. We were told that just a few weeks ago it was impassible, and was just recently opened up. Thus, there will still numerous crews removing mud and car-sized boulders from the road. The thaw had also flooded many of the lower parts of the road, and there were parts where the water was still up to the edge of the highway. The drive ended up taking almost a full day, including stops, but was well worth it.
In terms of sights along the way, they are mostly the large Georgian Cathedrals that dot the valleys, the remnants of the old Georgian kingdoms that ruled this area in the 11th century. Most of the churches date from that time and although you will see some architectural connections with the Armenian churches, you will notice some differences. The valleys are littered with churches, so it is basically pick and choose. We ended up stopping at three, but two are of particular note. One is the Church in Ishan and another is Osh Vank, getting to many of the churches involves driving up narrow dirt roads deep into the mountains where you will find some isolated towns. Most of the churches are in some state of ruins (i.e. collapsed roofs), but many still have nice frescoes and carvings. Almost none are locked and none have admission fees. Likely all you will find is a group of small men hanging outside the church chatting. Up here finding an English speaker will be hard, so brush up on that Turkish.
Once you have had your fill of churches, you can continue on towards the Black Sea. As you drive on you will climb high into the mountains. They barren brown air will start to become green and the sweet smell of the sea will linger in the air. Eventually you will crest a final hill. The landscape will come alive with lush trees and the vast the Black Sea will be become visible. The first town you come upon is Hopa, the last stop before Georgia and an unimpressive border town. As you turn west towards Trabzon, though, you will start to notice the tea fields of Rize appearing on the hills, most likely dotted with a few Laz women. Rize is Turkey's tea capital and produces a robust black tea. The town itself isn’t terribly impressive, but a good place to stop for the night after a long drive, or you could continue on the infinitely more impressive Trabzon if you wish.