Updated 12/05/2019 Views 418 Comments 11

The Crimean theme never leaves my thoughts. Sitting here reviewing photos from a hike in 2010, when we walked through grand canyon Crimea, and I realized that not all of them were laid out, the report on the campaign was large, it was necessary to write about many places and show them in photographs. But in fact, this attraction is worthy of a separate article. Moreover, to see it, it is not necessary to be a hiker and go to camping trip. It is enough to take public transport and take the usual asphalt road from Simferopol (from Yalta is more difficult) to get to the canyon. Of course, you will not go through it all, but this is not necessary :)

I remember when we walked with backpacks along the top of the canyon and somewhere in the middle of it went down to wander along the bizarre stone recesses formed by water, we met a group ordinary tourists in flip flops and bathing suits that came from the bottom. True, they were already decently tired and obviously it was time for them to go back. I'm sure they were just as impressed as we are. So this is the natural attraction in the Crimea, which must be seen in the first place.

Photo of the Grand Canyon of Crimea

Of course, in order to see all its beauty, you need to go along the riverbed to the end, that is, beyond the Blue Lake and the Youth Bath. But even on this popular route there is something to see. Only it is best to go not after the rain and towards the end of summer, when the water is blue and clear and there is not much of it.

We walked along the entire length of the canyon only from above, and someday I would very much like to go through it along the channel. There, it’s true that you’ll have to “go” partly by swimming, because there are deep baths that you can’t get around, and in some places you will need to climb, but it’s even more interesting. You just need to figure out how to fuse a hiking backpack.

How to get to the Grand Canyon in Crimea

First you need to, so let's assume that you are already here and it remains only to find the canyon. The easiest way, of course, is to go to him by car (). But if you are not a driver at all, then it does not matter, I will tell you how to get to the Grand Canyon of Crimea in other ways. If you don’t want to think about the problems of transporting yourself to the place at all, then in any resort town you will be offered an excursion to the Grand Canyon, but this option is not for independent travelers.

From Simferopol along the Sevastopol highway through Bakhchisaray and to the village of Sokolinoe, you can take a regular bus. There are also buses from Bakhchisarai itself to Sokolinoye. The entrance to the canyon is located three kilometers from the village of Sokolinoye (further along the highway), they will need to be walked. There are many cafes and shops, you can't miss it. But you can take a taxi in Sokolinoye (this is not a problem) if you don’t feel like going.

From Yalta public transport No. But you can climb the Ai-Petrinsky pass by minibus that goes to the ski lift. You need to get off on the highway near the turn to Ai-Petri to the ski lift. And then catch the car in the direction of the Grand Canyon. For the money you can leave quickly enough, hitchhiking is reluctant to take.

Or initially take an excursion from the hotel, in fact a round-trip transfer. The most convenient option. The cost is about 1200 rubles per person.

Among the natural attractions of Crimea, the Grand Canyon occupies a very special place. This large canyon was formed about 1.5 - 2 million years ago, in place of a huge tectonic fault.

At its deepest point, the depth of the canyon exceeds 320 m, and it itself stretches for 3.5 km. Great place for trekking and hiking. But you should not go to the canyon alone and on your own, it is better to go as part of a tourist group or take a tour at a specialized agency.

The Grand Canyon of Crimea is one of many such places in the world. There are stunning mountains, gorges and canyons, for example, in Iceland. Norway is incredibly rich in such natural attractions. And if you want to get closer, there are many mountain routes of different difficulty levels in Georgia. You can see interesting routes to the mountains on the page of the tourist club www.marshrut-club.com.

The Grand Canyon of Crimea has been forming for millions of years. Today it is a deep channel, somewhere wider, somewhere narrower. Along the channel there are about 150 erosive cauldrons with waterfalls, the so-called baths. Some are very tiny, and some reach a depth of about 2.5 m and a length of up to 10 m. The Blue Lake is the largest cauldron, the bath of youth is also a similar formation.

The canyon is fed by a huge number of streams, springs, mountain rivers that come out of the gorge and flow into the Azun-Uzen River. This is a clean, cold river. Throughout its length, even in the baths, the water temperature does not exceed 11 degrees.

When to go to the Grand Canyon

It is safe enough to be in the canyon only from the second half of summer to the beginning of autumn. During this period, when rains are rare, the canyon is drained. And routes for trekking and hiking become available.

During the rainy season, the canyon is dangerous. Not only that, a mountain stream with mud and stones rushes along the channel. Due to the rains, the slopes of the canyon become less stable and rockfalls are increasingly occurring. By the way, in the dry season, because of the danger of falling stones, you should not come close to the slopes.

Keep in mind that the canyon has its own microclimate. It is always a few degrees cooler here than outside. And yet, quite humid.

How to get to the Grand Canyon of Crimea

The Grand Canyon starts at 5 km. from the village of Sokolinoe. If you are going to hike on your own, you will have to take a taxi from Sokolinoye or go on foot, there is no public transport to the canyon. You can get to the village of Sokolinoye by bus from Simferopol, Sevastopol and Bakhchisaray.

If you are going on a hike with a tourist group, such a tour usually includes a transfer to the canyon.

If you are traveling by car, you need to go through Ai-Petri. On the way to the plateau, approximately in the middle of the way, there will be a sign "Grand Canyon".

What to take on a hike

The minimum duration of a walk through the Grand Canyon is 2.5-3 hours. Therefore, be sure to bring enough water with you and, if necessary, a light snack.

Definitely comfortable shoes. The route itself is not too difficult, but you will need to jump over somewhere, cross streams, puddles, stones somewhere.

The entrance to the Grand Canyon is paid, because it is a nature reserve. So, you need to take money with you. In the 2017 season, the entrance ticket costs 100 rubles.

It is called the heart of the Crimean mountains. The Grand Canyon of Crimea is a lost world of pristine beauty. A grandiose three-kilometer hollow filled with stone blocks, replete with picturesque waterfalls and baths, strikes the imagination of the most sophisticated travelers. The unique landscape reserve is strictly protected by the state. On protected lands, it is forbidden to pick flowers, cut down trees, kindle fires, spend the night and set up tents ... A visit to the canyon is paid and regulated, which does not prevent thousands of tourists from traveling to an outlandish place. The resulting vivid impressions pay off all the difficulties and costs!

And the rocks parted...

"The Heart of the Crimean Mountains" is located 3 kilometers from the village of Sokolinoe, Bakhchisarai district. A lot of paved paths and paths lead to the northern part of the Ai-Petri massif, so anyone who wants to get into the inner sanctum can do it. True, it is best to choose a dry season, because during the flood period the Canyon can absorb uninvited guests. After all, his heart is stone, and it does not know pity.

The Grand Canyon is relatively young - only about 2 million years old! Once upon a time, at the place where it is located, the ocean depths raged. Nature sculpted the local landscape, either raising mountains to the skies, or plunging them into the abyss of the sea. Once, during another restructuring, one of the colossal blocks broke, resulting in a giant crack. A tectonic fault divided a single mountain range into two - Ai-Petri and Boyka. The work on the formation of the depression was continued by the Auzun-Uzen River. For many millennia, the river "drilled" the rock mass, forming a canyon gorge. At the bottom of the canyon, many rapids, waterfalls and erosion pots, the so-called baths, appeared. Today, the channel is a three-kilometer depression with smooth walls along the sides, cluttered with boulders and boulders. Its maximum depth is 320 meters, the width reaches from 3 to 5 meters.

First " lost World» Crimea was described by Professor I.I. Puzanov in 1925. One fine day, traveling through the Crimean mountains with a friend, the scientist made an amazing discovery.

“Having climbed the Boyka massif, the rocky surface of which was no different from Ai-Petrskaya, of which it is an outpost, we decided to go straight to Ai-Petri. ... After walking for half an hour, we suddenly found ourselves on the edge of a bottomless cleft that stretched parallel to Yaila. Looking with bated breath into the abyss blocking our path, we saw that a river was flowing at its bottom. The opposite edge of the crevasse was also absolutely sheer, like the one on which we were standing. The direct distance to it was no more than 200-250 m. Through the abyss separating us, white-bellied swifts swept with a whistle, ”the traveler described his impressions in this way.

Perhaps the author of these lines was a little cunning. It's nice to feel like a discoverer of new lands! The gorge, of course, was well known to the locals even before Puzanov. Other researchers and local historians also knew about its existence. In 1906, the botanist I.V. Vankov mentioned the Canyon in a scientific article. In 1915, N.V. Rukhlov described in detail the main rivers in the mountainous Crimea, including the area of ​​the Grand Canyon. The Crimean Society of Naturalists, shortly before the First World War, publishes a guidebook of the Crimea, in which there is a mention that in the Kokkoz region there is ... "interesting mountain gorge"Canyon". A unique depression was marked on the topographic maps of the Crimea, published before the revolution. Puzanov popularized the exotic corner of the Crimea even more. After his article and the film "On the Grand Canyon of Crimea", filmed by F.F. Schillinger, the natural monument began to gain wide popularity. In the 30s of the last century, an excursion to the Canyon was included in the plan of the Kokkozskaya tourist base, and its description appeared in all Crimean guidebooks.

Nature of the Grand Canyon

high humidity and low level temperatures have formed a special microclimate in the Grand Canyon. The vegetation here develops with a delay of 3-4 weeks compared to the surrounding forests. Small groups of pines can be found on local limestone slopes. Broad-leaved forests grow in the lower part of the gorge. Age-old hornbeams, beeches, ash trees, oaks, maples, mountain ash and lindens are the eternal inhabitants of these places. The undergrowth is represented by many shrubs. Here, hazel, dogwood, barberry, buckthorn feel great ... A feature of the Canyon flora is the presence of one and a half thousand trees of the tertiary relic. Among them, a bright representative is the yew berry. There are real giants, reaching 1.5 meters in girth and 10-15 meters in height.

During the Ice Age, the well-isolated canyon became a haven for heat-loving plants. The hollow warmed rare species of ferns, relic hyoid needle, endemic saxifrage, more than two thirds of Crimean orchid species, among which there is a very rare flower called Lady's slipper.

Brook trout splash in the cold, oxygenated water of the rivers of the gorge. Travelers often meet hedgehogs, and if you're lucky, you can see a weasel, a badger or a roe deer. Of the birds, the most common are the titmouse, woodpecker, redstart, robin, warbler and jay. And, of course, the nimble lizard is the mistress of the stone jungle.

The unique nature of the canyon requires reverent protection and protection. In 1947, the Grand Canyon of Crimea was declared a natural monument, and since 1974, its territory (more than 300 hectares) by a decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR was declared a landscape reserve of republican significance. Today, on protected lands, it is forbidden to pick flowers, cut down trees, kindle fires, in general, rudely interfere with the ecosystem of the area. The state of the reserve is monitored by employees of the Kuibyshev forestry. They also developed special routes for tourists.

In the heart of the canyon

The journey to the heart of the Crimean Mountains begins near the Postal Oak. During the Great Patriotic War, partisans left secret messages in the once powerful tree. IN Peaceful time this tradition was continued by tourists. As a result of the fire, only part of the trunk remained from the oak. Tour guides suggest that the tragedy occurred due to a lightning strike, although it is quite possible main reason in human negligence.

Two paths lead from the Postal Oak. The first one goes to the bottom of the gorge, the second, the “Winter Path”, goes up and follows the right slope. The first option is convenient for a summer walk, it is interesting and not so complicated. This is the route followed by the main tourist routes.

After some time, travelers who have chosen the summer trail will find the first attraction - Blue Lake. Shallow in depth, the body of water is the widest in the Canyon. A surprise awaits those wishing to swim - the water temperature in local springs, the river and the lake, even in the hottest months, does not exceed 11°C. Blue Lake is the largest karst spring in Crimea. Every second it brings to the surface about 370 liters of water.

Walking along the bottom of the Grand Canyon of Crimea, you never cease to be amazed at the inexhaustible imagination of Mother Nature. Fanciful statues, carved by water in stone, are found here and there, evoking various associations.

Unusually picturesque small waterfalls. The water falling from the stones washes out the hollows under it, forming stone baths. One of them, the most famous, is called the "Bath of Youth". Modern name“baths” has been known since the early 1960s, and once it was called “Kara-Gol”, which means black lake. This is the deepest basin in the gorge, reaching 4 meters. There is a belief: they say that after bathing in it you can rejuvenate for several years. Indeed, 9-11 degree water is very invigorating!

The bath of youth is the last point of excursions along the Grand Canyon of Crimea. To go further, you need to have climbing skills. In the spring and during heavy rains, one must be prepared to move 100 - 200 meters knee-deep in cold water. Do not forget about the danger of rockfalls. During floods, driving along the extreme part of the canyon is strongly discouraged. Once a gardener who worked in Yusupovsky Park tea house, shared a warning with Professor I.I. Puzanov: "Our peasants say that at night wild cries, squeals and laughter are heard from the cleft of Auzun-Uzen - then the devils are celebrating their weddings ...".

Those who are not afraid of shaitans and witches and still decide to go further, are waiting for fabulous beauty corners of nature and unforgettable adventures!

Can't appreciate the beauty Crimean peninsula, unravel its secrets and comprehend the harmony of wildlife. But this will captivate us, this small world in the arms of a vast universe. Considered a young island, Crimea absorbed everything that is amazing, what nature is famous for. This is the world of violent winds of the vast steppe, the unattainable beauty of the Crimean mountains, and the enchanting expanse of the Black Sea. But among all the variety of natural areas that glorify it, there are places where time stops, where trees live an amazingly long life, where nature itself comes to the fore, acquiring the form of a living entity that lives in eternal contemporaneity. We are talking, of course, about the Grand Canyon of Crimea.

Nestled between two mountain ranges and Boyka, the canyon is a unique natural formation. The Grand Canyon of Crimea is an amazing area, enchanting with its colors and extraordinary liveliness. It is a perennial home of unique plants and animals. Here, every grain of sand, every sprout, every stream remembers the days when nature lived in harmony with man.

What is the Grand Canyon of Crimea

The Great Crimean Canyon is a unique geological phenomenon. The process of majestic changes in the natural environment. It was formed, more than two million years ago, in the process of displacement of lithospheric plates. The process of vibrations of earth rocks split the land into two parts. Under a hail of heavy rains, the mouth quickly filled with water, and over the years, the water washed away the earth's rock, widening and deepening the canyon, creating ideal conditions for the life of many species of plants and animals.

Nature of the Grand Crimean Canyon

The Grand Canyon on the map of Crimea is located in the southern part of the peninsula. It is an isolated area. Its impressive size allowed nature to create favorable conditions for the life of rare plants. The canyon has a length of more than 3 kilometers, its width, in the largest sections, can reach 185 meters, but for the most part does not exceed 50 meters. But the most important thing is the height of the canyon, which ranges from 350 to 600 meters. As a result of the gorges, the sun weakly penetrates deep into the canyon, forming a favorable climate. Even on the hottest days, the thermometer does not exceed + 18 degrees. As a result, most of the time, it is cool and humid in the depths of the canyon, which makes it possible for many plants to exist comfortably here. Among many plants there are very rare, which are almost impossible to meet anywhere in the world, these include:

• leaf scolopendra
• the only yew grove in Crimea
• sublingual needle
• orchid lady's slipper

The tourist route of the Grand Canyon of Crimea runs in two planes. You can go on a journey along the top of the Grand Canyon, appreciating from the height of a swallow flight, all the beauty and grandeur natural monument, or go, through the jungle, to the very heart of the reserve. One way or another, the impressions received from two different excursions are indescribable. The upper route is quite safe and suitable for travel at any time of the year, from here you can see a beautiful panorama of the beauties of the Crimean peninsula, the exaltation of its mountains. But the lower route is a truly unforgettable tourist trip. The route is a bit difficult, especially during the rainy season when the river fills up. But it's worth it, for the first time visiting the canyon, it is better to carefully listen to the instructions of the forester. The Grand Canyon is still a wild place, fraught with many mysteries.

Where is the Grand Canyon of Crimea

Where is the Grand Canyon located? Everything is quite simple, it is located in the southern part of the Crimean peninsula, where two huge mountain ranges touch: Ai-Petri and Boyko. Nearest locality, the village of Sokolinoye. When setting off, remember that the last store you take away is located in this village. Therefore, buy water and food here.

Grand Canyon of Crimea how to get there

How to get to the Grand Canyon of Crimea? The main reference point for you will be Ai-Petri mountain. Moving from Yalta, head towards the top of Ai-Petri, as soon as you cross the plateau and go down, you will a large number of signs pointing the direction to the Grand Canyon. Attention! The path through Yalta is the most dangerous, and sometimes the road is completely blocked due to landslides.

Through Bakhchisarai, follow the signs towards the village of Sokolinoye. From Falcon the road goes to Ai-Petri. At the parking lot of the Grand Canyon, there is a parking lot and a cafe. You can walk along the canyon from below, you can go from above. As for public transport, there is a regular bus from Bakhchisaray to Sokolinoye. From Falcon to the canyon, it may take a little time, get all the necessary products from the nearest village store.

Having reached the beginning of the path, there will be a forester's ticket office, where the forester raises a symbolic fee for entering the reserve, and spends detailed instructions, about behavior on the track tourist route. In winter and early spring, the forester's booth is often empty, you can visit the reserve absolutely free of charge.

Trail

The path from the forester's point goes down and leads to the Sary-Uzen river, in summer time it can be easily crossed over the stone ledges, then the road leads to the bridge over the river Kokkozka. Two rivers will merge further into a pit, the road will lead to a beech forest, and you will meet the first sight of the route - “Post Oak”.

post oak

The Great Crimean Canyon in the photo, picturesquely painted forests dotted along the rivers. The most famous of the many plants is the ancient oak. The plant is over 350 years old. In the past, people put notes with wishes into it and the oak fulfilled them. Now a small trunk remains from the tree, the tree burned down. To a greater extent, it serves as a pointer to further attractions.

Blue Lake

Further along the route, the road leads you to blue lake. The bluish tint near the lake appears as a result of the reflection of the sun. The water in the lake is very clean and cool. In summer, the reservoir warms up enough to swim in it.

Source of Pania

As the great canyon of Crimea was formed, river flows began to wash out small pits. One of them is the Source of Pania. In the Middle Ages, there was a chapel next to the spring. It had the name "Our Lady", which in Greek meant "Panagia". The water in the spring is cool, bathing in it is good for your body, as it stimulates the circulatory system. Every second, more than 300 liters of water are washed out of the karst spring, this is the largest spring in Crimea.

bath of youth

From the source of Pania, the river of the Grand Canyon of Crimea will lead you to the final point of our tourist route - Bath of Youth. The water in the natural pool is very clean and cool. This reservoir is unique in nature, has cool water with high mineralization. Since ancient times, people have noticed the healing properties of water, bathing in it will allow you to significantly improve your health, and allow you to recharge with life-giving energy, which will be enough for you all the way back.

On note tourist

It should be remembered that when going to the Grand Canyon of Crimea by car, you should stock up on drinking water and food for the entire route in the nearest store in the village of Sokolinoe. But if suddenly you didn’t manage to do this, in the parking lot, there is a cafe “Three minnows”, with a wide variety of delicious dishes, going on the route, it is advisable to refresh yourself. Set out on the route, wearing comfortable shoes, the path is not easy, with frequent rocky drops, and although the roads are well trampled and the routes are marked, there are difficult sections wildlife. Walking along the trail, strictly follow the signs and follow all safety requirements.

Great Crimean Canyon, amazing place striking beauty of living colors. This is a small planet where time is subordinate to the weather. This is a small oasis in the heart of the Crimean mountains, captivating with its beauty and uniqueness.