Lesser Caucasus Mountains

The highlands north of Shirak form part of a volcanic landscape of ridges, plateaus and mountain lakes. The Ashotsk plateau lies among the Javakheti, Shirak and neighbouring ranges, its lava beds covered in places by deposits laid down by rivers and lakes. Springs feed streams that join the upper Akhuryan, while high meadows and a severe continental climate mark the exposed slopes of the Lesser Caucasus.