Each of us has our most unforgettable place. That place that sometimes dreams at night, to which you want to return time after time. Surely, Tarhankut will become such a place for you. In everyday speech of tourists, Tarkhankut means the village of Olenevka, and Cape Tarkhankut itself and the stretched steep coastline, and the Dzhangul tract. That is, everything that is on the Tarkhankut Peninsula.
Cape Tarkhankut, clear water and wild rocks.
Where is it, the mysterious, magnificent Tarkhankut Peninsula? In the extreme western part of the Crimea.
Probably one of the few places on the Crimean sea coast that has not been touched by civilization - Cape Tarkhankut …
There are many bays on the Tarkhankut coast.
This part of the peninsula is the least developed by tourists and vacationers; resort and tourist infrastructure is poorly developed here. Accordingly, there are significantly fewer tourists here than in traditional resort and tourist centers of the Crimea. This is what allowed the nature of this region to preserve its original beauty and purity. Today it is the most ecologically clean water area of the Black Sea.
Landscapes of Tarkhankut.
Located on the Tarkhankut peninsula, the cape of the same name is the westernmost point of the Crimean peninsula with enchanting cliffs, caves, the cleanest sea, a mysterious underwater world that tirelessly attracts lovers of outdoor activities and extreme tourism.
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Landscapes of Tarkhankut.
The most unusual thing on Tarkhankut is the sea. Such a transparent, bright sea on the North Black Sea coast cannot be found anywhere else. And the inhabitants of the sea, not being shy, not shy or afraid, show themselves and their home to everyone who wishes. If you go to Tarhankut, be sure to take a mask and snorkel, this will allow you to plunge into the wonderful world of the sea.
And if you dream of getting to know the sea and deeper, then on Tarkhankut you can do it for a moderate fee. After all, the best, most experienced divers of Russia are going to dive there. Tarkhankut is a place of passionate strong people.
The transparency of the sea water allows for underwater photography competitions.
Bizarre outlines of the Tarkhankut rocks. It looks like a face in profile.
Unusual beauty on Tarkhankut and the coast itself: strictly vertical lines of limestone rocks, breaking off at the very sea. It seems that the endless steppe, heated under the Crimean sun, decided to bathe and immediately, without delay, jumped into the cool waters of the sea.
Capes Big and Small Atlesh.
From Olenevka to Atlesh there is a dirt road along the sea. In some places it branches, but you have to stick to the coast, so as not to circle the steppe expanses.
It is imperative to stock up on drinking water, since there are no water sources at the final point of the route. However, these and some other inconveniences do not scare away fans of "wild" rest.
In 15 minutes, when traveling by car, you will get from Olenevka to Bolshaya Atlesh. You will see a picture of extraordinary beauty: snow-white 40-60-meter coastal cliffs, yellow beaches in small cozy coves, blue sky and sea, greenish-white caves and grottoes. The coastline here bends in an arc, forming small bays. It is hard to imagine, but white rocks, limestone deposits are the bottom of an ancient sea. Here you can trace how sedimentation was going on (the process of deposition on the bottom of the sea, lake of the remains of organisms that lived on the bottom and in the water mass, as a result, over time, sedimentary rock is formed from these remains) in the distant geological past. The cliffs above sea level are younger. Lumps separated from the shore freakishly rise above the water.
One of these rocks is called the Turtle. At the western end of the Bolshoi Atlesh bay, a rock juts out into the sea, in which a huge Arch, the symbol of Bolshoi Atlesh, has been broken through by waves and winds. A metal staircase leads to it, which was built quite recently. Not far from the Arch, another two-flight staircase ends in the sea, which in ancient times was cut down in limestone by unknown creators. It was along this road that the main character of the film Taman (based on the story of the same name by M. Yu. Lermontov) descended to the boat. Waves hit the bottom of the stairs. Not far from the Arch, there is a grotto that has a peculiar shape. Here were filmed episodes of the films "Amphibian Man", "Pirates of the XX century".
Atlesh is divided into two parts: Bolshoi (located 6 km southeast of Olenevka) and Maly (1 kilometer from Bolshoi). The name Atlesh comes from the Persian word atesh (fire). The name is obviously connected with the fact that since ancient times, fires were laid on the coast of steep rocky areas, which in inclement weather and at night showed ships the way to the coast. The Tarkhankut rocks are very dangerous for sailors, and the coastal waters can quite compete with the water area of Sevastopol and Kerch in the number of sunken ships. At the same time, since ancient times, the small bays of Atlesha served as a safe haven for pirates and smugglers.
Between the Bolshoy and Maly Atlesh capes, there is a three-kilometer cliff of vague Sarmatian limestones. It is easy to recognize by the changed color of the stone. Before that, the cliffs are yellow, yellow-orange. And between the capes Bolshoy and Maly Atlesh there are lumps of milky, almost white, color. And the entire coastline abounds in caves, grottoes, bizarre boulders.
On Maliy Atlesh, attention is drawn to a gigantic 98-meter tunnel pierced by waves in the thickness of the cape. The height of the tunnel from the water level to the top of the vault is 8.51 m, the thickness of the vault is about 10.7 m. This is an amazing natural formation that will take your breath away. The hero of the film "Pirates of the XX century" walks through this tunnel to the pirate island. Atlesh fishermen in the past were burdened by the fact that they had to drag the caught fish on their shoulders up a steep and dangerous staircase, they had the idea to break through from above a wide opening into the tunnel, and this greatly facilitated the work of the fishermen. Now boats with fish entered the tunnel and there dumped it into large baskets, which, by means of a gate, easily pulled through the airway to the surface of the earth. A hole in the tunnel, in other words, a through well on the surface of the earth can be seen,sailing through the tunnel itself. This exciting journey can be done on a small boat, air mattress, or by swimming. From above, the area where the well is located is not fenced in by anything, so it is better not to come close to this through hole. Do not throw stones down, remember - people can swim below.
Near the entrance to the tunnel, there is the lowest in Crimea, 150 meters, known to specialists, but not yet explored, the entrance to it is 10 meters below sea level. It ends in a small hall with a miniature sandy beach. You can go to the cave only in calm weather.
Take a dip in the bay - the aquarium "Chalice of Love". It is a natural pool surrounded by boulders on all sides. And it got its name because of the shape of the heart, which is formed by the stones and natural rocks surrounding it. The depth of the sea here reaches 6 meters. The "Chalice of Love" is connected to the open sea by a small underwater tunnel. The main character of the film Amphibian Man - Ichthyander - got into his father's house through it. Popular belief explains the name of this picturesque area as follows: before getting married, local young people had to check whether their union would be strong. Holding hands, they jumped together into the Cup of love. If their hands open under water, then the marriage bond will not be strong. If not, the union will be strong.
Since ancient times, this site has been chosen by fishermen. The Atlesh coast has a magnificent autumn and spring run of mullet and mackerel. There is a fishing camp on the territory of Bolshoi Atlesh. One of the researchers of Tarkhankut, PD Podgorodetsky, in his book "North-Western Crimea" describes fishing with the help of an original net-lifting device, called caravia, which was used for fishing in the 18th-19th centuries. Caravias were set up along the coast during the autumn and spring movements of mullet and mackerel. The main part was a huge rectangular network of kezne (cauldron), which was held by ropes fixed on pile towers driven into the seabed and spread over the shallow seabed. Three edges of the net were lifted to stop the fish entering it, and the fourth lay at the bottom. Two fishermenleading constant monitoring of the sea from special sites, warned of the approach of a school of fish. After the fish entered the net, its fourth side quickly rose. Immediately skiffs approached the net, and fishermen picked out fish with large scoops.
In 1966, athletes-enthusiasts from the club of amateurs of underwater exploration Ihtnandr visited Atlesh. In a special house, which was adapted for prolonged immersion under water, they carried out research related to changes in the human body during a long stay at a depth. Doctor A. Khaes and engineer D. Galaktionov spent three days under water. Not far from the dive site of the house, a limestone stone has been preserved, on which the words: Donetsk were carved. Ikhtnander. Dive site of the underwater house. August 23, 1966 … Unfortunately, time has erased a significant part of the inscription, and it is difficult to read it.
Museum at the bottom of the sea.
In the Atlesha area, the water is clean and transparent. The picturesque underwater world beckons and attracts. People also created an amazing and unusual creation here. This is a museum at the bottom of the sea, an underwater gallery of busts - "Leader's Alley", which is located a hundred meters from the coast at a depth of 12 meters. The scuba divers have embedded busts of Lenin, Kirov, Dzerzhinsky in the stones … Nearby is a plaque on which a record is made that the museum was opened by Vladimir Borumensky on August 25, 1992. Then the first bust was installed. His venture was supported by friends-scuba divers.
Sculptural images of cultural figures, writers, poets and composers appeared next to the busts of revolutionaries. You gaze with interest at familiar faces: Pushkin, Yesenin, Dobrolyubov, Beethoven, Blok, Mayakovsky, Tchaikovsky. And around - heaps of blocks, overgrown with algae, mussels. Simferopol filmmakers made a film about this amazing and unusual museum. There is no such underwater museum anywhere else in the world.
The territory of Atlesha attracts not only those who like to relax, sunbathe and swim with scuba diving. Scientists also come here: archaeologists, hydrologists, biologists, paleontologists. Tarkhankut can rightfully be called an inexhaustible storehouse of various scientific discoveries. So scientists-paleontologists in one of the limestone outcrops discovered the imprint of a fossil fish that lived in the distant geological past. The length of the fish is more than 1 meter. Another unique find is a colony of fossil oncoliths (rounded limestone concretions) - the size of individual specimens reaches more than 40 cm in diameter. Such is the paleontological museum on Atlesha.
Dzhangulsky landslide tract.
The westernmost point of Crimea is Priboyny Cape. Until 1953, it was called Kara-Mrun, i.e. Black nose. It is located in the west of the Tarkhankut Peninsula and encloses the Karadzha Bay from the north.
Dzhangulsky landslide tract.
Priboyny Cape is blunt, rocky, and composed of limestone. At the northern base of Cape Priboyny, there is a state reserve - the Dzhangul landslide coast (10 hectares).
For almost five kilometers along the high coast there are steps formed by landslides, and above them are white and light gray pillars, pyramids. This is the famous Dzhangul landslide coast. Locals call it shortly - Dzhangul.
The Tarkhankut plateau is one of the most favorite places for everyone who has been there. Magic transparent sea, ringing steppe, bizarre steep shores.
Huge "stone walls" are breaking away from the coast, sliding down. Closer to the sea, turning into sand over the centuries, the former hill finally becomes akin to the sea. And in many small gorges, gardens, flowers bloom, the grass turns green.
After walking seven kilometers across the steppe from the village of Olenevka in the Black Sea region, the plateau is unexpectedly cut by a small hollow, thanks to which access to a small wild beach is opened. Immediately to the left of this beach, huge chunks, as if cut off by a giant knife, begin their move to the sea.
The formation of this unique landslide area is predetermined by nature itself. Here limestones of Tarkhankut are underlain by clays (waterproof rocks). Through numerous cracks, rain and melt water easily penetrate deep into the depths. Upon reaching the clays, the water softens them, and the clays become slippery. And since the coastal areas are inclined to the sea, huge masses of limestone rocks, under the influence of their own weight, seem to slide down. Sea waves also weaken the stability of rocks.
In the summer of 1933, the inhabitants of the surrounding villages heard a powerful roar. It was on the coast, near the Ternovskaya gully, a landslide occurred. A massive limestone block 500m long, 200m wide and 35m high slid down to the sea.
Nature has worked wonderfully well here, creating a mysterious Ghost Valley on the coast and in the sea: a bizarre heap of limestone rocks, the traveler will see with imagination towers, pyramids, stone sculptures of giant animals. The waves of the surf continue their work - they polish, hone sculptures, create new ones, eroding blocks. From the height of the steep coast, along a narrow path, you can descend, being careful, to rocky areas, to the sea, to a small string of limestone pellets, pebbles of bizarre shape and color. You can walk among the collapsed boulders, piling up in long rows over a narrow rocky coastal strip. In one of the sections, a fault line is clearly visible, running parallel to the coast, where a layer of limestone broke off and slid down.
The sea is perceived in a special way here. Severe in its pristine beauty, it delights and attracts a person's gaze, at the same time alarms and as if warns of the unpredictable power lurking in it. The light reflections of the sun's rays breaking on the rocks are fancifully reflected in the azure surface of the sea, as if competing with the grandiose shadows cast into the depths of the waves by stone blocks. And near the coast, among stones and small sandy islands, the sea surf is in charge, subject only to laws known to him. In inclement weather, the water boils and foams, the waves overwhelm the rocks, breaking with great force against the limestone heaps. Do not try at such a moment to measure your strength with the sea element.
Insidious underwater currents will throw you away from the shore, carry you into the endless distance or throw you on a rocky shore. The sea draws us to itself. Man is ready to worship him today, as our distant ancestors once did, whose traces were found on the rocky bank of the Dzhangul.
The Dzhangul coast differs from the surrounding area not only by the splendor of stone sculptures, the originality of the sea, but also by bright juicy greenery against the background of the steppe scorched by the sultry sun. Due to the fact that the groundwater is close to the surface, the original vegetation has been preserved here. Near herbaceous plant species (thyme, fescue, asphodeline with silver-yellow flowers, feather grass, asparagus, hedgehog, katran koktebel, mallow, waida), there are shrubs (blackthorn, hawthorn, wild rose, blackberry, barberry, jasmine) and trees wild pear and apple tree).
You can also see forest plants here: aronic, violet, openwork fern. The steep walls of the coast are completely covered with Crimean ivy.
Among the wild Dzhangul rocks, foxes, steppe vipers, and scarab beetles are still found. In spring and autumn, in the coastal steppe and on the rocks during the flight, you can meet many birds (more than 90 species).
This section of the Western Crimea is of great interest to diving enthusiasts and scientists. Explorers and travelers are attracted by underwater canyons, which originate at the mouth of the ravines and have a stepped structure, numerous grottoes and caves. Some objects have their own name, for example, such karst cavities are distinguished - Burun-Koba, Beach, Gromykhalo, Yuzhnaya, Treshchinnaya.
The largest cave is Burun-Koba. Its length is 17 m, area 75 sq. M. volume 11O cubic meters The main gallery of the cave is half-flooded. Its depth ranges from 0.7 to 40m. The height of the vault is from 1.0 to 2.5 m. The bottom of the gallery is covered with limestone blocks of the collapsed vault. During a storm, visiting the cave is very dangerous as a strong current arises here.
In the Peschernaya Bay, next to the Burun-Koba karst cavity, there is the Gromykhalo Cave. During a storm, the incoming water, like a piston, compresses the air in the far part of the dungeon. Breaking through the water column to the exit, it makes very loud sounds. Hence the name of the cave.
In the southern part of the Peshchernaya Bay, there is the Yuzhnaya Cave, which is 12 m long, 2 m wide, and 5.5 m high.
Dzhangul attracts more and more wild recreation lovers every year. However, there are few convenient parking places, and the slopes to the sea are not very convenient. But it is simply impossible not to visit this magnificently beautiful coastline, to bypass it. Inconvenient access roads, dusty roads - all this will pay off the positive emotions received a hundredfold. The magnificence of Dzhangul will not leave anyone indifferent.
Since 1968, this natural site has been declared a protected area.