The purpose of research is the study of permissible recreational loadings in the Colchis relict forests, which provide the absence of soil erosion processes on the slopes. The research methods are the recreational loadings modeling; the study of soil erosion at artificial rain; data processing by computer programs. An average air-dry weight of the forest floor and the live ground cover on the slopes of gorges in the Colchis forests is about 4 t/ha, and the content of organic matter in topsoil is 6.2 %. With recreational loads ≥ 4.5 pers./ha, the soil surface is completely mineralized, and the organic matter content decreases. This happens as air-dry weight of the forest floor and the live ground cover, as well as the surface soil layer move down the hill under the tourist’s steps. The topsoil density increases with the increasing of recreational loadings and porosity and phi/porosity fractions decrease. With the soil density above 1.4 g/cm³ precipitation uptake rate is close to zero. If the soil density is less 1.1 g/cm³, precipitation uptake rate reaches the intensity of precipitation events (intensity of rainfall) (3 mm/min) and the runoff is absent. The recreation density on the gorges slopes ≥ 0.5 persons/ha leads to the strengthening of runoff coefficients up to ≥ 0.4. The increase of surface runoff causes soil erosion activation. The equation of multiple links of erosion, recreational density and the slope steepness have been derived. This equation was used to calculate the permissible recreational densities, excluding storm erosion. On the slopes of the first group of steepness (up to 10°) recreational loadings must not exceed 1.7 pers./ha. On the slopes of steepness from 11 to 17°, they vary from 1.5 to 0.1 pers./ha. On slopes steeper 17°, any recreational loadings cause soil erosion with showers
Keywords: relict forest, tourism, recreational loading, slope ratio (steepness of slope), soil erosion.
