CBR lakes names and depth. Mystery of nature. Why is the mystery of the Blue Lakes in the CBD still not solved? . Hot springs Aushiger

Many myths and legends are associated with these amazingly beautiful places.

Location

Blue Lakes KBR are located in the unique Cherek gorge, located on the territory of the district of the same name. It is considered the most densely populated in Kabardino-Balkaria, and it also has a large area. Mostly mountains are located here: five of the seven peaks of the Caucasus, the height of which reaches 5 km. It is here that the longest European glacier is located. There are in these amazing places and one of the oldest climbing camps"Bezengi", it was in it that the foundations of Soviet mountaineering were laid.

natural monument

The blue lakes of the KBR are considered unique Chirik-Kol - the second in the world in terms of the depth of the location of the karst source. It is a karst aquifer, which has sheer walls. The maximum width on the surface of the lake is 130 meters, the length is 235 meters. There is an extension in the upper part, so the depth difference is determined from 0 to 40 meters. Chirik-Kol has no tributaries, a small river flows out of it.

Temperature regime

The weather on the Blue Lakes of the KBR is determined by the time of year, but the water temperature is unchanged and is 9 degrees. This lake is absolutely transparent, in good weather visibility is about 30-50 meters.

Research History

For the first time, the Blue Lakes of the KBR were described by the geographer I. Dinnik in his work “Trip to Balkaria in 1887-1890”. The author emphasized the beauty and originality of these unique places, described the climate of the KBR, Blue Lakes.

How to get to this natural monument? This question interests many tourists. At the beginning of the last century, serious geographical research in this region was carried out by I. Shchukin. In the thirties of the last century, he was engaged in the study of the Blue Lakes. It was he who was awarded the Russian Geographical Society for the unique results obtained during the experiments, with a nominal silver medal. He managed to find out that the reservoir of this lake is a deep well, the steep walls of which are lined with layered limestones. Water comes here from below under strong pressure.

In the summer of 1980, the expedition of the Geographical Institute named after A.I. Vakhushti Bagrationi, belonging to the Georgian Academy of Sciences. G. Gigineishvili, Doctor of Geographical Sciences, became the head of the research group. The expedition confirmed the information about the depth of the lake, and during the work, new data on the chemical composition of the water were revealed. It turned out that only algae live in these places, there are no living creatures, and mineral salts in Blue Lake are present in minimal quantities.

Legends of Blue Lake

The history of the appearance of the dive center on the Blue Lake begins in the summer of 1982. In June, Roma Prokhorov, a Moscow student, appeared on the shore of the lake. In addition to a huge number of trunks, he had oxygen tanks, as well as diving equipment.

It was he who later became the champion of the Russian Federation by founding the Blue Lakes camp. KBR is famous all over the world for its dive center founded by Prokhorov. Now the buildings, built with the assistance of the government of Kabardino-Balkaria, have two tiers. The lower one is carved directly into the rock, there is an exit to the descent platform. There are showers, changing rooms, rooms for storing equipment, as well as a pressure chamber.

How to get there

Have you decided to visit the Blue Lakes of the CBD? How to get to these Amazing places? First, get to Nalchik. From Moscow you can get here by railway, as well as along the road. Along the gorge up behind the Blue Lake there are Cherek tunnels, part of the old road has been preserved. A narrow path to the reservoir begins at a small waterfall and winds along a cliff, the height of which is about one hundred and fifty meters.

A breathtaking view opens on the way to the Blue Lakes. After driving a few kilometers, you can get to the village of Upper Balkaria. The attraction of this locality is a unique suspension bridge leading to the old settlement. It was destroyed during the resettlement of the Balkars by order of Stalin. But the foundations and the remains of the walls still survived, looking at them you can imagine the narrow winding streets where the inhabitants of the ancient mountain village once walked. The Abai-Kala tower surrounded by apricot trees is also unique in its beauty. On a solid stone, the height of which is ten meters, to the left of Abai-Kala, there is a watchtower.

The highest peak in Europe, the main ridge of Kavakaz, mysterious gorges, water transparency mountain rivers, flower plains, snowy peaks - all these are the most beautiful places in Kabardino-Balkaria. Traveling to this bewitching land is a rich choice of sights, interesting excursion tours. Photos and videos taken in these places will leave this breathtaking trip in memory for a long time.

In this region, you can admire the mysterious Baksan and Chegem gorges, enjoy the strength and beauty of the Djily-Su tract, marvel at the scale of the towers in the village of Kunnyum and visit many other equally interesting places.

Mountain Elbrus

This is the real pride of the local region, capricious, recalcitrant and so majestic - the queen among the mountain peaks of the Caucasus. Its name is translated as "eternal mountain", some call it "mountain of happiness".

The height of Elbrus is more than 5000 meters above sea level, they tried to climb to its top for many years, and only at the beginning of 1829, a group of climbers led by military leader G. A. Emmanuel climbed to the very peak. The mountain is shrouded in snow, at the top there are a large number of glaciers that do not melt even in summer.

A large number of climbers come to this place every day, dreaming of conquering the summit. For those who do not want to climb the peak on their own, a cable car has been built.

Mount Cheget

One of the most high mountains Caucasus, its height is about 3700 meters. From the mountain you can enjoy the view of the highest peak Europe - Elbrus. Another feature of Mount Cheget is the second line cable car, which passes through an area where snow lies throughout the year.

In total, there are 3 stages of the cableway. The first one is one of the most popular among tourists, its height is 1500-1600 meters. The second one starts from a height of 2700 meters. The third one starts from a height of 3100 meters, but the subscription does not apply to it and you can get there only for a fee. The best period for skiing on Cheget is from late November to mid-May, at other times of the year there is a danger of avalanches.

Chegem waterfalls

The real pearl of the Chegem Gorge is the Chegem waterfalls. Streams of water fall from a height of 55 meters, falling off the cliff and flowing out of numerous crevices. A powerful stream of water falls down, and a rainbow appears in a cloud of flying drops. If you look closely at the rocks, you can see unusual images, all this was done by water over many years.

Chegem waterfalls are very beautiful and spectacular not only in summer, but also in winter: a large number of icicles hang from above, impressive blocks of ice rise from below, covering the entire rock.

Waterfall Maiden's Braids

On the rocks of Barani foreheads, not far from the southern slopes of the Terskol peak, there is the most powerful waterfall in Kabardino-Balkaria, Maiden Spit. It got its name not by chance - streams of water flowing down small gutters are very reminiscent of the hair of a mountain girl.

Here, water flows in a stormy stream from the melting Gara-Bashi glacier, the height of the Maiden's Spit is 25 meters, the width at the lowest part is about 14-15 meters. Up close, the waterfall seems huge and very noisy.

In this place in 1967 they filmed one of the scenes of the movie "Vertical" with Vladimir Vysotsky in the title role.

Waterfalls Gedmishkh

In the Zolsky district of Kabardino-Balkaria, 11 kilometers from the village of Khabaz, there is a beautiful cascade of Gedmishkh waterfalls.

Waterfalls fall from a cliff more than 55 meters high, it seems that rocks and trees hang overhead like a huge umbrella, along the edges of which water flows. The waterfall is especially beautiful in clear weather, it is filled with sunlight and reflections of colorful greenery, and many rainbows appear in the spray cloud.

A feature of Gedmishkh is that the water in this place is clean and drinkable, since its sources are the purest springs. Scientists are still studying them, trying to identify the healing properties of this water.

Blue Lakes (Chirik-Kel)

The lakes are a network of 5 karst reservoirs, one of which is considered the world's second deepest karst source and is a water-bearing karst mine with sheer walls. On the surface, the length of the Blue Lake reaches 230 meters, the width is 125 meters, while its depth is not exactly known. The maximum depth of the shaft is 258 meters, in the extended upper part the water depth varies from 0 to 35 meters.

Blue Pond - mysterious place that holds many secrets. One of the main questions is where the lake, located 800 meters above sea level, is replenished from. Neither streams nor rivers flow into it, but at the same time a river flows out with a daily volume of more than 70,000 cubic meters of water. Scientists suggest that underground springs are located in this place.

Lake Donguz Orun-Kel

It is located surrounded by two peaks - Nakra-tau and Donguz-orun-towers, the height of which is 4228 meters and 4450 meters, respectively. Orun-Kel is located at an altitude of just over 3000 meters. Translated Donguz Orun-Kel means "next to the pig pen."

A feature of Lake Donguz is its unusually beautiful color, which it received thanks to glaciers: along with melting water, minerals from mountain deposits enter the reservoir, which painted the amazing lake in 3 colors.

The lake is flowing, on the one hand the Donguzorun river and the Medvezhiy stream flow into it, and the Donguz-Orun Baksan river flows out.

Lake Syltran-kel

It is considered one of the most delightful alpine lakes in the Caucasus region. It is located at an altitude of about 3000 meters between the mountain peaks of Mukal and Syltran, its area is more than 9 hectares. It is located in a deep pit of a rock-scree circus. Translated from the Turkic name Syltran-kel sounds like a "beautiful lake".

This place has a kind of severe charm due to the rocky shores of Syltran-kel, the proximity of snow-capped peaks, bright plants in rocky crevices and the remnants of icebergs floating in the reservoir in the summer.

Valley of Narzanov

Not far from the village of Baidevo is the famous Narzanov Valley. This is the only convenient and affordable source of narzan for tourists. The glade has an area of about 3 square kilometers and is equipped for the convenience of visitors.

In a clearing surrounded by a pine grove, several mineral springs of narzan gush out of the ground, coloring everything around in a bright orange color - the water here is rich in calcium, iron, sodium, magnesium and potassium.

Since ancient times, narzan has been famous as water of extraordinary healing power. According to legend, the water from this source strengthened the strength of warriors, healed mortal wounds and raised the hopelessly ill to their feet. The healing liquid should be drunk only from the source, since when narzan is put into a container, a “rusty” sediment appears after a short time.

Baksan Gorge

The most famous gorge of the Central Caucasus. The Baksan Gorge takes its beginning near two ridges (Pasture and Rocky), in an area with sparse forests that lead to the foot of Elbrus.

The ridges stretch through the villages of Zhankhoteko and Lakshuty. On one side of the gorge, limestone sheer walls of yellowish color are visible, on the other - a cliff to the Baksan River.

The Baksan gorge is quite wide, it begins to narrow only behind the village. Outside the city of Tyrnauz, the gorge is covered with a picturesque pine forest, which stretches to the Azau glade, located at an altitude of 2300 meters. At this point, the gorge road ends at the village of Terskol and the route to Elbrus and other Caucasus Mountains begins.

Cherek Gorge

A very picturesque place, which has gained great popularity among tourists. In the gorge there are Blue Lakes and ancient historical monuments of the Balkar people. According to legend, it is the original place of settlement of the local people - the Balkars.

The main sights of the gorge are Kurnoyat Castle, Andemirkan Mound, Zylgi Fortress, City of dead, Tower of Amirkhan, Hot lake, small waterfalls. A stormy river Cherek flows along the bottom of the canyon. The most interesting section is the place where old road in Upper Balkaria.

The walls of the Cherek gorge are almost vertical, their height reaches 500 meters. They are vertical, and at some points converge up to a distance of 30 meters. The majestic canyon of the gorge is Tesnin, so deep that sunlight rarely gets here.

Chegem Gorge

Gorge of the Chegem River, which divides the Kabardino-Balkarian mountain zone into northern and southern parts. Over the waters meandering and deep river cliffs rise, as if artificially decorated with the greenery of trees and shrubs. Noisy, beautiful waterfalls fall down from the rocks. All this creates a unique flavor of the Chegem Gorge.

The narrowest point of the gorge is the Chegem gorge, in which the main part of the waterfalls is concentrated. There is a 17th-century watchtower up the gorge, and next to the bridge lies a “stone of shame”, according to legend, criminals were tied to it.

Walking along the Dzhilgi-su river, you can see the ruined ancient Greek sanctuaries carved into the rocks. Also in this beautiful place there are lakes with crystal clear water and mineral springs.

Adyr-Su Gorge

A picturesque place located on the territory national park"Prielbrusye". At the beginning of the gorge, you can admire the bewitching waterfall, which is formed by the turbulent waters of the Adyr-Su River. There are many mountain peaks here (Dzhailik, Sullukol, Tyutyu-bashi, Kayarta, Sakashil, Killar and others), on which routes of various difficulty categories are laid.

In Adyr-Su, a reserved regime is observed, there are few casual visitors and tourists. Tours live in these places, bears live in the berry fields and in the thickets of the undergrowth. Among the talus and rocky walls live mountain turkeys - snowcocks. However, this bird is rarely seen, but often in the silence of the mountains you can hear its melodic singing.

The lowlands of the gorge are covered with forests, but with height they thin out, give way to alpine meadows, and behind them - snowy peaks, impregnable rocks, glaciers.

Dzhil-Su tract

This is a place where you can admire waterfalls, mountain ranges, turbulent rivers with crystal clear water, alpine meadows and mineral springs.

The mineral springs of the tract were formed in layers of solidified volcanic magma and are located at a peak of 2350 kilometers above sea level. Scientists have found that the mineral water substances can treat many diseases, including cancer.

Also in this area flows a large river Malka, along which pastures are spread. In the Jil-Su tract, you can admire the Sultan waterfall, the height of which is more than 35 meters.

National Park "Prielbrusye"

The territory of the national park is located in the Central Caucasus and includes part of the Lateral and Main Caucasian ridges. Within the "Elbrus region" there are several forms of relief: medium-altitude mountainous, high-mountain-glacial, lacustrine-hollow and lava flows.

The beautiful nature of the park attracts many tourists. Here you can enjoy the view majestic mountain Elbrus, picturesque gorges North Caucasus, snow-capped mountain peaks.

Also on the territory of the park you can visit many wonderful places, for example, the Narzan Glade, the upper reaches of the Malka River, the Dzhil-Su tract, and numerous lakes. One of the most interesting is Syltran-Kel, located at the head of the Syltran River.

The rivers of the national park are famous for their extraordinary beauty with waterfalls. These are Sultan, Maiden braids and others. Monuments of archeology, history and ethnography are represented in this place by the remains of household and residential buildings, burials.

Archaeological and tourist complex "Upper Balkaria"

The final point of the popular excursion route through Aushiger and Blue lakes. The complex is located in the village of Upper Balkaria, in the southeast of the Chereksky district.

The territory of the archaeological and tourist complex is rich in various sights. Here you can admire the objects cultural heritage indigenous people of the late Middle Ages: watch and battle towers, feudal residences, underground and above ground mausoleums - crypts-tombs, fortifications of Malkar-kala, Zylgy-kala, Bolat-kala, Karcha-kala, Kurnayat-bashi castle, ruins of ancient Balkar villages.

Tserik-Kel

Scientists have found that the Lower Blue Lake in the Cherek region of the republic is much deeper than previously thought. This lake is also called Tserik-Kel. It is located at an altitude of 809 meters above sea level. The temperature is +9 degrees all year round. Researchers suggest that it was formed due to the collapse of an underground karst cave.

A river flows out of the lake - more than 70 thousand cubic meters per day. But what feeds the reservoir itself - for many years it was not clear, the flowing sources are not visible from the outside. Until recently, it was believed that the depth of the lake is 258 meters. But it has recently become clear that this is not the case.

“The Underwater Research Center of the Russian Geographical Society, professors and scientists from all over Russia (about 60 people in total) carefully studied the Lower Lake,” says Mukhamed Kozhokov, chairman of the Kabardino-Balkarian branch of the Russian Geographical Society. - More than 90 deep-water descents were made in a couple of months. For the first time, underwater vehicles were used - controlled robots. With their help, scientists discovered three caves in the deep part of the lake. The deepest point we managed to descend to is 279 meters. It also turned out that underwater rivers feed Tserik-Kel. The water is incredibly clear, you can see every pebble, even at a depth of 25 meters. Further, the water becomes azure-turquoise due to hydrogen sulfide. There is no flora and fauna in the lake - hydrogen sulfide kills all life. But why the temperature of the water is constant and what is at the very bottom is still unknown.”

Going to the bottom “I went down to the Lower Lake several thousand times,” says Eduard Khuazhev, head of the KBR Underwater Research Center, president of the Kabardino-Balkarian Underwater Sports Federation. - The task of the last expedition was to determine a more accurate depth. And understand where the water comes from. In the bowl of the lake, we found several cracks from different sides, three of them are 1.5 meters wide, powerful streams come from there.”

At the bottom of the lake, not far from the shore, there are several sunken cars. Empty, without people. Old-timers say that in the 30s of the last century, a truck loaded to the top with boxes of port wine fell into the water. The researchers debunked this myth: there really is a “Lawn” at the bottom, but there is only a box of port wine in it. They got one bottle, tried it, evaluated the endurance.

Locals avoid the lake because of superstitions. It is believed that in Tserik-Kel one cannot even wet one's feet.

By the way, swimming there is really impossible even in summer. From cold water, an unprepared person cramps muscles, and at a depth it is very dangerous.

four lakes

“There are four lakes in the Cherek Gorge - Lower, Dry, Secret and Upper,” says local historian Khadis Tetuev. - For the first time, the "bottomless" lakes of the Caucasus are mentioned in 1864 in the notes of the Russian officer Fyodor Tornau.

The first special observations of the Blue Lakes group were made in 1892-1895 by geologist Konstantin Rosikov. Scientists have established that all lakes are of karst origin. But they are all completely different. If you rise from the Lower Lake to the northeast, then on the mountain plateau 187 m above the Lower Lake there is a huge, now dry, Kel-Kechkhen sinkhole. Translated from Balkar - "the lake has flowed away." The depth of the failure is 177 meters. Below you can see the lake, which from above seems very small - the size of a saucer. They call him "Dry". According to legend, once its waters reached the upper edge of the failure, but the mountains shuddered, and the water flowed into the Lower Lake.

Modern researchers suggest that the Lower and Dry lakes are indeed connected. The secret lake seemed to be hidden in dense thickets of shrubs and trees. On the opposite side of it lies the Upper Blue Lake. At the beginning of the 20th century, there were three small reservoirs in its place, which eventually merged into one big lake. The water in the Secret and Upper lakes freezes in winter, and in summer you can swim and fish in them - there are a lot of living creatures in them.

In the valley of the Cherek-Balkarsky River, 6 km upstream from the confluence of the Cherek-Balkarsky and Cherek-Bezengisky rivers into the Cherek River, 43.227778 , 43.55 43°13′40″ s. sh. 43°33′00″ E d. / 43.227778° N sh. 43.55° E d.(G)(O). The lakes include the Lower Blue Lake (Tserik-Kel, Cherek-Kel) and the Upper Blue Lakes (including Dry and Secret). Jacques Yves Cousteau, during the research, could not reliably determine the depth of the lake (approximately from 2 m to 2.5 m)

The lower blue lake has a greenish-blue color and a constant water temperature of 9.3 ° C. Flowing. Located at an altitude of 809 m above sea level. The area of the lake is 0.0216 km² (235 X 130 m). Depth - 368 m. There are camp sites on the shore. The current from the lake is constant and not subject to seasonal fluctuations. It is approximately 70 million liters. water per day. The water is crystal clear, transparent, the walls of the lake can be seen to a depth of 22 m. Its color is changeable. In clear weather, soft blue, and in other weather conditions changes to azure (due to the content of hydrogen sulfide). The water surface of the lake is calm, it seems that it has frozen, frozen in its mysterious, enigmatic beauty. The legend says that the lake was formed when a dragon fell to the ground, killed by a folk hero, the forefather of the modern inhabitants of the North Caucasus.

To the east of Lake Tserik-Kel is Lake Kel - Ketchkhen. The basin of the lake is a deep karst mine with steep walls 177 m deep. At the bottom of the well there is a reservoir with an area of 2500 square meters, a depth of 5 m. The origin of Kel-Ketchkhen is similar in origin to Lake Tserikkel: it is the result of karst processes. Translated from the Balkar Kel - Ketchkhen means "the lake has flowed away." According to legend, in a dry failure there used to be a real lake with clear water. One day the mountains shuddered and Lake Kel-Ketchkhen disappeared, flowed away.

To the north of Kel - Ketchkhen in a huge karst depression is the Upper Blue Lake. Compared to Tserikkel and Kel - Ketchkhen, this is a shallow lake (18 m.). The basin of the lake resembles a bowl: the shores are low, gentle, the greatest depth is in the center. The source of nutrition of the Upper Blue Lake is mainly precipitation, so its level is subject to fluctuations.

Upper blue lakes up to 17 m deep. All 4 lakes are connected. In the lakes, except for the Nizhny, there is grass carp, carp, trout. In the Lower Lake, there is only one representative of the fauna - the gammarus crustacean.

CBR lakes names and depth. Mystery of nature. Why is the mystery of the Blue Lakes in the CBD still not solved? . Hot springs Aushiger