The old Sevastopol highway is a road where you rarely see a car. Roman road from the Kharaks fortress to Chersonese Old road to Yalta

“... The road winds for three miles in whimsical bends and turns through the lands of the Foros estate and disappears into the tunnel. Despite the apparent steepness, the descent is completely safe and extremely attractive ... " 1913 Grigory Moskvich in his Guide to the Crimea.

The road issue has always been in the Crimea - the way to the sea was dangerous and difficult. This was especially true of its southern part, separated by a mountain range. After the accession of Taurida to the Russian Empire, following the example of the Empress, travelers often came here. In 1787, Catherine II herself did not visit the South Coast, but could only admire from the pass the sea stretching below and the winding coast going east, because the road laid for her journey ended at Baidary. The further path ran through the difficult and steep pass Shaitan-Merdven (Devil's Stairs), only an experienced traveler could overcome it, either on foot or on horseback.

The absence of roads for a long time hindered the development and development of the Crimea. Even the first governors, the Duke de Richelieu and Lieutenant General A. Borozdin-Tavrichesky, had to build their dachas for more than three years. Count M. Vorontsov, who began the construction of a palace in Alupka, also faced the same problem. Only after the acquisition by Emperor Alexander I, admiring the beauty of the South Coast, of the estate in Nizhnyaya Oreanda, did the greatest instruction to the Main Directorate of Railways follow to connect Simferopol, Yalta and Sevastopol by a highway.

The development of the project and its leadership were entrusted to Lieutenant General Betancourt, one of the organizers of the transport system in Russia. In 1824, according to the approved plan, with the active participation of the Governor-General Vorontsov, the construction of the highway began with the forces of the soldiers of the Kozlovsky and Nashembursky regiments and the battalion of the 40th Jaeger Regiment. In Crimea, all work was supervised by corps engineer-colonel P.V. Shipilov (until his death in 1834). The construction was completed by his assistant - engineer-captain Slavich, who received the rank of engineer-colonel after the end of the segment Sevastopol - Baidar Gates in 1848.

The road was built in several steps. The Simferopol-Alushta section was completed first in 1826. Then there was a long break due to lack of funds, and only in 1832, with the personal participation of Count Vorontsov, the construction of the section connecting Alushta and Yalta continued. In parallel, work was going on on the other side - from Sevastopol to Yalta.

Builders lived - soldiers, civilians, prisoners, convicts - in temporary houses along the road under construction. Through their efforts, more than a dozen stone blockages have been cleared, kilometers of retaining walls and many bridges have been built. In 1835, Captain Albrandt arrived to help Major Slavich, who was in charge of the work on the spot, and in 1842 their company was strengthened by Captain Frembter. It was thanks to the skill and professionalism of these people that the construction of the southern coast road was successfully completed.

Instead of five years, during which it was planned to complete the Simferopol-Yalta-Sevastopol highway, it took more than 20 years. In 1848, in honor of the completion of work on the Baydar Pass, propylaea gates were erected (architect K. I. Ashliman).

“Following the Baydarsky Gate, the crew completely imperceptibly rises to a height of 1631 feet. above sea level and ... stops at the station. “Baidar Gates”: a tourist takes a few steps to the stone gates, behind which suddenly, as if by magic, a magnificent panorama of the South Coast opens before him, lying below, as it were, in a deep abyss, by the boundless sea ”(Grigory Moskvich “Guide to the Crimea”, 1913).

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The old Sevastopol highway is a rare example of a route for the Southern coast of Crimea, which turned out to be almost forgotten after a more convenient road appeared. As a rule, any path-tracks on the coast are still used, since it has been mastered quite thoroughly. But on the old Sevastopol highway, a car can be seen very rarely, since it passes far from the sea and does not lead to almost any object in demand.

Therefore, we suggest that you take a walk along it, which will be quite easy to do, using some of our tips.

First of all, you should think about the equipment. Pay special attention to shoes - the fact is that you will have to go not along dirt paths, but along an asphalt road. Therefore, instead of seemingly suggestive hard hiking boots, it is better to choose sneakers with a springy sole. As for the rest of the clothes, you will have to walk in a completely civilized area, so you don’t have to follow the militarized tourist dress code at all, although it will still not be very comfortable in an evening dress. Take something to drink with you (there will be no water for a very long stretch of the way) and a snack. In summer and winter, the track is of little interest, but in spring and autumn there will be something to see.

The old Sevastol road passes quite high above sea level. This is due to the fact that its builders could not solve two problems with the help of the technologies of their time, and therefore were forced to bypass them. The first is Mount Koshka above Simeiz. The builders of the new Sevastopol highway had to "break the spine of the animal", built of very durable limestone. A little further towards Sevastopol there is another mountain that stood in the way of road builders - the Dragon or Ai-Yuri. They did it “easier” with it - they broke through the only car tunnel on the southern coast of Crimea.

You can pass the old Sevastopol highway from two sides - from Alupka to Foros, or vice versa. Let's assume that we will start from Yalta, and therefore it would be logical to go from Foros to Alupka, that is, to the point of departure. So, we will need to get to the fork, where there is a turn to Foros.

However, we do not need him, but the road leading to the mountains to the Baydarsky Gate Pass.

Both branches are actually opposite each other, so you can go either by the Foros bus or the Sevastopol bus. Foros is the farthest village that is part of the so-called Big Yalta, and it is located directly from the city at a distance of 42 kilometers. It is interesting that Foros is closer to Sevastopol and some local residents prefer to look for work in the hero city. It will take about an hour to drive from Yalta, so we recommend leaving in the morning.

So, we reach the Foros fork and set off up the road to first look closely at one of the most famous Crimean churches - the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, located on a sheer Red Rock, which, by the way, celebrates its 120th anniversary on October 4, 2012. It was built at the expense of the Russian "tea king" Alexander Kuznetsov in honor of the miraculous rescue of the family of Alexander III in a train wreck. In Soviet times, the temple was used for industrial needs, including as a snack bar for tourists. Already under independent Ukraine, the fate of the unusual church was taken up by the then President Leonid Kuchma, and with his participation the church was restored, after which it became a very popular tourist and religious site. Often, it is she who is chosen by famous politicians or show business figures for a wedding. You will have to walk 4 kilometers along the road to it. True, initially the road makes a loop and, after walking 2 kilometers, you will be approximately above the point where you started your journey. However, we do not recommend looking for short paths, since these are still mountains and often they lead to very steep slopes.

The road to the temple, as it should be for any mountain road, is very winding. Therefore, during the famous Yalta Rally, one of the stages passes along the old Sevastopol highway.

The Church of the Resurrection of Christ offers a gorgeous view of Foros and the nearby mountains, although the temple itself looks no less impressive against the background of the coast, taken from the road above. In principle, it is not far from the church to the Baydarsky Gate Pass, and it is there that the old road to Sevastopol goes, but, having admired the sight, we’d better turn back, since the road will be very long.

Walking along the track is quite easy, since it very rarely goes uphill, and even then at a slight angle, but for the most part it is flat or slowly descends downhill. The first interesting object that you will meet on the way, or rather, it will be clearly visible from the road, will be the tunnel pierced by the builders of the new and existing Sevastopol route in Dragon Mountain.

It is small (about 50-70 meters), but not the most pleasant geological processes constantly occur around, and the walls of the tunnel began to collapse over time.

In recent years, traffic along it is one-way, that is, first cars go to Yalta, and then it is the turn of those who move in the opposite direction. In addition, anti-landslide work is constantly being carried out from Yalta. It was not possible to find out the exact date of its construction, but there is evidence that this happened in the early 70s of the last century. So, from about that time on, the old Sevastopol highway began to lose its strategic importance.

Going even further, we will find ourselves near one of the most ancient Crimean transport arteries - the road built by the ancient Romans through the Shaitan-Merdven pass, or the Devil's Stairs, connecting the southern coast of Crimea with the rest of it.

The "road" now looks more like a well-equipped trail and it's quite easy to follow. It is said that Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin personally overcame this pass, holding on to the donkey's tail.

In fact, even for younger students, there should be no problems in overcoming one of the lowest Crimean passes. The ascent takes about 20 minutes at most and the main thing is not to forget about shoes, although even in flip flops you can easily walk there. Again, there is evidence that during the visit to the Crimea of the first famous tourist - Catherine II - they did not dare to lower the royal person to the South Bank, then practically wild and without roads. However, it was from this pass that the empress looked over the new Russian acquisitions and was generally satisfied. This protected object is a monument, so the entrance is paid, but you will be offered an excursion and, again, do not forget that you are still in the mountains, so an experienced guide will not be superfluous. However, it is better not to combine a walk along the highway and climbing Shaitan-Merdven, it is better to do it another time. By the way, rock climbers are happy to use the surrounding rocks for training, so do not be surprised if you see tiny figures of people hanging on ropes or walking along sheer cliffs.

Well, we're moving on. By the way, the reason why there are practically no cars on the highway will soon become clear. A few years ago, a large landslide descended on it, because of which it was not only dangerous to drive there, it was dangerous to walk. But now the road has been restored, but the danger of a landslide remains, so motorists do not favor this area.

And for us pedestrians, it's even better. On the way, we will meet two villages - Opolznevoye and Goluboy Zaliv, through which the highway passes through and outlived their best times even before the appearance of a new route. There are shops there and you can resupply water and food. In addition, you can leave from there by bus if your forces leave you or it becomes clear that you will not have time to go through all the highways. In addition, there are many branches leading from the old highway down to the new one, so that at any time you can interrupt your walk and return to civilization. As for the coast, during the journey we will pass immediately over several settlements, some of which are so small that it is difficult to distinguish them from a simple cluster of residential buildings. Also in this region there are several large boarding houses and sanatoriums, which are clearly visible from above. Some have retained the characteristic features of Soviet resort architecture, others have been modernized, and still others have been built from scratch in recent years.

Having passed the Blue Bay, we come to the "ridge" of Mount Cats.

Its upper part is still closed to the public and military facilities are located there. During the preparation of the lunar program, Sergei Korolev decided to test lunar rovers there, which caused damage to ancient burials, but scientific progress then did not take much into account with the past. That part of the mountain, which turned out to be below the new route, is the most popular place for visiting newlyweds, as well as an archaeological site. And you can also buy the famous "Yalta" sweet onion there, and it is the region of the Blue Bay, Oliva, Opolznevoy and Katsiveli that is most favorable for its growth. If you look from above, then to the right of the Cat there will be the village of Katsiveli with an Aquapark and a huge telescope (Crimean Observatory), and to the left - the village of Simeiz with the Diva rock standing in the sea and the most Mediterranean microclimate in the entire South Coast. From Simeiz, and, consequently, from the highway above it, the most famous Crimean mountain Ai-Petri, which is often mistakenly called the highest on the peninsula, is perfectly visible.

After winding down the slope of Koshka, we will reach the outskirts of Alupka and the intersection of two “generations” of the Sevastopol highway. By the way, in order to take a regular bus, you will have to walk about 100 meters back along the new highway. If you do not do this, then the next stop will be already in the Koreiz region after 10 kilometers. The fact is that buses just don’t stop on the highway, and you hardly want to have such a bonus to a walk along the old highway. By the way, let's count how many have passed. So, from the crossroads at Foros to the temple - 4 kilometers, another 2 - the way back to the crossroads, from which we leave towards the mountains, and from it to Alupka - 22 kilometers. Total - 28 kilometers. That is why it is better not to be distracted by hiking around Shaitan-Merdven, and without it you will see a lot of interesting things.

From ancient times, along the southern coast of Crimea, there were several routes through the Main Ridge of the Crimean Mountains. Many paths were laid by local residents, Tauris and Greeks, and Roman legionnaires laid stone roads through the pass.
"Via militaris" in the Crimea connected the second half of the 1st century AD. e. two large Roman garrisons - Chersonesos and the fortress of Kharaks on Cape Ai-Todor, passing along the coast through the Devil's Staircase Pass (Shaitan-Merdven) to the Baidar Valley and further through the Roman fortress "Symbolum portus" Simbalon on the shore of the Balaklava harbor to Chersonesos.

The Devil's Staircase Pass (Shaitan-Merdven) is a pass over Gurzuf, Vasil-bogaz near Yalta, Gaspra-bogaz in the area of Mount Krestovaya, Eski-bogaz over Simeiz, Baidar pass. However, the most remarkable among them in terms of nature and beauty and the shortest way from the South Bank to the Yayla plateau is the "Devil's Staircase". The main ridge of the Crimean Mountains decreases near the village of Mukhalatka, forming a wide depression. A path passes through it, leading through the pass at an altitude of 578 meters to the northern slope of the mountain range. Roman legionnaires used this mountain road through the pass, paving the way from Chersonesos to the Kharaks fortress on Cape Ai-Todor.

Old Roman road - Spiras

Now you can see several sections of the old Roman road, all of them are small, but you can follow them all the way through the Shaitan-Merdven pass, connecting the foothill regions with the southern coast of Crimea:
"Via militaris", starts from the village of Kalenda (now the village of Podgornoye) - Kalendskaya trail goes towards the Black Sea through the pass "Devil's Stairs". (in Tat. Shaitan-Merdven).
The second section of "Via militaris" Mordvinovskaya road preserved near the village of Orlinoe
The third section of "Via militaris" preserved near the village of Rodnikovoe, then the path leads through the tract Karadag forest to the Baidar valley.
From the village of Podgornoye, "Via militaris" went straight to the village of Shirokoye, the Roman road crossed the Baydarskaya valley, then climbed the slope of Mount Simnalykh and further up and down the low mountains, where steep slopes are overcome by serpentines, and led to the village of Morozovka. Further, "Via militaris" walked along the right bank of the Chernaya River, along the Kara-Koba valley, and from there in Tauric Chersonesos.

The first attempts of the Roman Empire, made in the early 40s of the 1st century, to take control of the Bosporan kingdom ended in failure. In the 60s of the 1st century Greek Chersonese himself turned to Rome for help , because he could not independently defend the city and repulse the Scythians. The Roman Empire took advantage of the situation to strengthen its influence in Tauris and the Black Sea region.

The Roman military garrison was headed by the legate of Moesia, Tiberius Plautius Silvanus, commanded XI Claudius, I Italian, V Macedonian legions and 40 ships of the Ravven squadron, which settled in the Quarantine Bay.

In addition to Chersonesos, an outpost of the Roman army in the Crimea, it was decided to build another military fortress to control the vast territories of Taurida. The choice fell on the former military Fortress of the Tauris on Cape Ai-Todor, the Roman fortress was named Charax and new fortifications were erected.
Communication between the Roman fortresses was carried out by sea, but this route was clearly not enough due to frequent sea storms and hurricanes that often raged on the Black Sea in autumn and winter. The soldiers of the Roman garrison undertook the construction of a land road reliable in any weather.

Old Roman road - Spiras

In many places of the old Roman road, embankments and retaining walls - "crepes" - were preserved - characteristic technologies for the construction of Roman roads in mountainous areas.
The old Roman road was the shortest road, connecting the sea coast with the valleys of Taurida. Not only the Romans used the Roman road, but also the local inhabitants of the Taurus, Greeks and Scythians. Roman legionnaires more than once engaged in battle with the inhabitants of Taurida, the locals fiercely resisted the Romans and often set up ambushes and attacks on the road.

In the 240s A.D. e. The Roman legionaries left the fortress of Charax, and the old Roman road remained in the Crimea. You can still walk the Kalendsky path today, but, after all, Roman legionnaires walked along it 1775 years ago.

In some places along the route of the Roman "Via militaris" you can also see a solid cobblestone pavement, but this is already the merit of the inhabitants of the Baidar Valley, who for hundreds of years maintained the road in proper condition, and in return were exempted from paying taxes.

The Kalendsky trail has been used for centuries as a road for pack animals carrying loads. The Kalendnaya path is paved with good-quality cobblestones in some places, goes up, winding through a dense forest, periodically comes to a cliff on the Devil's Stairs.
Deep ruts from the wheels of wagons, crashed into the rocky surface of the old Roman road for a thousand years, are best seen on the yayla to Kilse-Burun. On the trail, among the stones, you can find fragments of ancient Greek ceramics dating back to the 1st century AD and fragments of medieval ceramics.

The researchers of the Kalendsky trail have no doubt that the path itself existed on the Kilse-Burun yaila even before the arrival of the Romans in Taurida, however, the legionnaires fortified the mountain path of the “barbarians” and laid a real road along it and ensured its protection. Roman road guards - beneficiaries, monitored the movements along the Roman road and warned the Roman garrison of an ambush and the danger of clashes with warlike Tauri.

Old Roman road - Spiras

Toponymy of the name
How is the toponym translated Calenda? Kalenda, from the root of the word kala - kāla - kolo, circle of life, moment in time, space, time-calendar, eternal cycle of life. Most of the ancient calendars are round and have the shape of a circle, a wheel.
To protect the roads in Tavria, fortresses were built at the beginning Kalendsky trail, and on the south side of the Devil's Stairs. The high walls of the fortress closed in a circle, which is why the fortresses were called “kale”. Fortress in the Crimea Yeni-Kale, a city in France Calais in the Pas-de-Calais strait.
Some researchers believe that the name of the village of Kalenda dates back to the time of the Romans' stay in the Crimea, when the main base of troops and fleet in the 1st century A.D. e. was for the Roman legionnaires Greek Chersonese.
In 1820, A.S. Pushkin and his companions climbed along the old Roman road along the “Devil’s Stairs”, heading to the St. George Monastery, which is near Sevastopol.
Read more: http://italia-ru.com/page/dorogi-drevnego-rima

"Off-road for the mass consumer" - this is how you can call the road along which we went to the fifth base camp. From there we will go to the Demerzhdzhi ghost valley, and then, along the old Bakhchisaray road to Kuibyshevo, having previously stopped at Mount Ai-Petri. In general, we are delving into the central part of the Crimean peninsula. The most famous sights of the peninsula are left behind, wild Crimea is waiting ahead.

2. The search for a clearing for the fifth camp led us to a place where "adventurers" are brought on jeep tours, ride on prepared UAZs. They shake well while driving over stones, so that everyone who buys a ticket for a GIP safari realizes what "Crimean off-road" is, and understands that it was not in vain that they paid money for the adrenaline received.

3. So. Under the gloomy glances of the uazovods who earn money by delivering tourists to the Dzhur-Dzhur waterfall, we entered in Khapkhal gorge . We drove slowly, photographed the beauty, drove around the stones, until we were caught up with a "charged" UAZ - full of tourists. Caught up, buzzedto the delight of touristsus in the back, and went to the waterfall.

4. In the meantime, we found a beautiful clearing for the fifth camp ( 44.80506; 34.46464 ), between two plateaus - Demerdzhi and Karabi-Yayla.

By the way, this is the only place very close to the waterfall where you can camp with a tent. Plus, there is a source of fresh water nearby.

5. Beautiful views of the border of the Demerdzhi plateau open up from the glade.

6. And to the border of the Karabi-Yayla plateau. There are most likely cosmic views on Karabi now, and zero visibility - because of this, cosmic views open from the side. Actually, we are on our way to Karabi.

7. As for the Dzhur-Dzhur waterfall, according to Wikipedia, this is the most powerful waterfall in Crimea: its average water flow is 270 liters per second.

There is not much more to say about the waterfall, except that a tick stuck to the driver of the field here. The latter, during bathing procedures, was creakingly removed from Seryoga's body. Then we went to the valley of ghosts Demerdzhi.

8. In general, thanks to landscape photographers, I associated the Demerdzhi ghost valley with wild horses in the frame, against the backdrop of beautiful mountains. And all the way, while driving to the valley of ghosts, somewhere deep in my soul I was worried - "What kind of photographer will I be if I don't bring a frame of horses against the background of Demerdzhi" (sarcasm). And here she is luck.

Photograph equids against the background of foggy Demerdzhi - done.

9. Most likely, such activity of a small but proud donkey is explained by what he sees around.

10. Yes, even in such quantities.

11. And yet, while we were driving to the valley, I noticed how the crew on the MPS sat on our tail. Later it turned out that they were also from Moscow, they came to look for adventures on the fifth point. And the first question they asked me was “Damn, where can I get stuck here? We were told we won’t pass Demerdzhi for sure, we followed you in the hope of getting stuck together - we didn’t get stuck ...”.

He suggested that they break through to the Dzhurla tract. =) After that, just in case, they switched to the same wavelength with our walkie-talkies, and left somewhere. We never heard them on the radio again.

12. "For the best places on this planet." Naturally, we are talking about NIVA 4 * 4. See? And she is.

13. We didn’t stay long at Demerdzhi, or rather a squally wind with snow forced us to go further. Bypassing the coastal towns, we set off to the most beautiful road in Crimea.

14. Old Bakhchisarai road. Despite the fact that on the map this road looks like a minor one, and signs are hanging before entering the pass - "the pass is closed", every car traveler who has been in the Crimea should see this road with his own eyes.

15. The road is narrow in places. Mountain on the left, cliff on the right.

16. Dozens of sharp turns, due to which oncoming cars take off from time to time. And suddenly a field, with snow on the bumper. =o

On the street + 15.

17. At an altitude of 800 meters, there is more snow, crazy views open up. We have to create emergency situations, stopping at the pass in order to take a picture.

18. Turn 180 degrees, 300 meters and turn again, and again, and again turn 180 ...

19. Simply put, the entire pass is turns. And a long climb to a height of 1000 meters.

20. And the higher - the more snow.

21. And even more desire to stop and take pictures of the beauty around.

22. Intermediate finish. Ascent behind, ahead of no less spectacular descent.

23. But first, let's take a ride to Ai-Petri.

24. Here is Ai-Petri, or rather a fragment of it. By the way, the height of Ai-Petri is 1234 meters. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 meters, very easy to remember.

25. From the mountain you can see the "toy" Yalta, and a huge cloud on the horizon, which in 30 minutes will reach us and change the landscape around beyond recognition. If you don't believe me, scroll down.

26. Yalta - like the Crimea is diverse. For example, five-star hotels.

27. Boarding houses of the times of the USSR, some of which have long been abandoned.

28. Private sector.

29. The epic coming of that same cloud from the Black Sea. The difference with the previous frame is several minutes.

30. General plan - for clarity.
How impressive it looks live - do not convey.

31. And a landscape that has changed beyond recognition.

32. After 15 minutes, the sun again.

33. And down the old Bakhchisaray road. Again, dizzying turns, crazy views around, cliffs ...

34. And a beech forest. Generally, beech grows in the mountains - at an altitude of up to 2300 m above sea level. Therefore, this area of beech forest is unique.

35. Ordinary forest.

36. Landscape typical of the old Bakhchisaray road.

37. And the Great Crimean Canyon. Which we didn't get to see. More precisely, we walked literally a kilometer, and realizing that until it got dark we had to find a place for the camp - we drove on.