The stone mushrooms of the Sotera River valley near Alushta are one of the most amazing natural attractions of Crimea.
They were created by the power of wind and moisture from ancient glacial deposits. Once upon a time, mushroom caps lay on the surface, streams of water gradually eroded the soil, flowing around the legs of stone figures. This is how a whole mushroom family was formed with gray-brown stone caps and red-brown legs made of clay and rubble.
Back in the eighties, there were three mushrooms, but the largest and tallest - the five-meter "Glade Guard", as it was called, unexpectedly collapsed, and its hat rolled down, sweeping away everything in its path. But the remaining two, more dignified and stocky, remained and continue to grow.
Photo: visitcrimea.guide
Moreover, a new generation of these amazing creations of nature is making its way over the surface of the ravine - at the very end of the 90s, “boletus” 30-40 centimeters high appeared here. Now they have reached almost a meter growth.
Attracts a geological phenomenon and its mystical halo. According to legend, a woman who touches him will find love, and a man - health and strength.
Note that the Sotera Valley is famous not only for its amazing stone mushrooms - it is also a paleontological monument. Here, at the end of the 19th century, mammoth bones were found.
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And if you go a little up the river, you can see the picturesque Geyser waterfall. It got its name from the effect of rising water, which, falling from a ten-meter height, bounces off the bottom stone.
How to get there: from Alushta by bus or minibus, which go towards Sudak, Privetny, Rybachy. You need to exit at the 16th kilometer of the road, near the intersection with the Soter River, and turn left onto a dirt road. Further, the pointer will help to find the path.