Merdven-Tobe waterfall in the native village. Merdven-Tobe and Koba-Chair: a picturesque natural duet in Crimea Through cave Chair Koba Crimea

Ternovka village - Khvorostyanka village - Khlama mountain - Taushan-Tepe ridge - Chernorechesky canyon - Chair-Koba grotto - Merdven-Tubyu waterfall - Rodnoe village

We start our route today from the village of Ternovka, Balaklava district. In historical documents this village can be found under various names: Starye Shuly, Stary Shulyu, Shulyu, Shuli, Staroshuli, Staroshul. Ternovka is located in the valley of the Aytodorki River, the right tributary of the Black River, in the mountains of the Inner Range and the exact time of the settlement here is unknown, but it is quite possible that the convenient and fertile valley has been inhabited since the 2nd century AD.

Among the attractions of this village one can highlight the Pallas plane tree. The tree is named after the encyclopedist Peter Pallas. It is believed that he was the first Russian scientist to settle in Crimea and his achievements include “A Brief Physical and Topographic Description of the Tauride Region.” As a gift for his labors, he received two villages and one of them, the Shuli estate, as the name implies, was located on the site of today's Ternovka. Peter Pallas planted a plane tree in the center of the village, which is now more than two hundred years old. The tree has survived to this day and has received such respect that the branch of the plane tree is reflected on the coat of arms and flag of Ternovka, symbolizing the rich nature of the surrounding area of ​​the village. The tree is majestic and huge. The trunk width is an impressive 6.6 meters. The foliage has almost completely fallen off, all its gnarled branches, a stumpy trunk are visible, and under it a huge carpet of yellow leaves.

From Ternovka we moved towards Mount Zybuk-Tepe. In the southwest of the village, a path rises up, which is not on the maps, but even after the autumn leaves fall, the path is clearly visible, although it is clear that it is almost never used.

Ternovka is the front line of defense of Sevastopol, so there are many bunkers here (including those that have survived to this day) and other fortifications from the times of the Great Patriotic War. Therefore, it is not surprising that at the top we accidentally came across the “echo of war”. Our path led us to well-preserved trenches and caponiers. They are clearly visible on the ground, but in the photograph it is difficult to see them because of the variegated fallen foliage.

At the top of Zybuk-Tepe, the trail turns in a southeast direction, becomes more trampled, and then completely turns into a country road. On the left along the way there is a good view towards the Shuldan monastery and Mangup-Kale. And we, by the way, are approaching the next point of our hike today - the village of Khvorostyanka.

Until 1948, this settlement was called Upper Uzenbash, Nizhny Uzenbash; and even earlier Chamly Ozenbash. This is a Turkic toponym, translated means: “uzen” - river, “bash” - head, peak. The name corresponds to reality: the village was located in the area of ​​​​the sources of the Upa River. Why was it there? Because you won’t find any of these names on current maps. The fact is that on May 18, 1944, after the liberation of Crimea from the Nazis, according to GKO Resolution No. 5859 of May 11, 1944, the Crimean Tatars, who made up the population of this village, were deported to Central Asia. By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR dated May 18, 1948, 2 villages were renamed: Verkhniy Uzenbash to Verkhnyaya Khvorostyanka and Nizhny Uzenbash to Nizhnyaya Khvorostyanka, Balaklava region. Subsequently, the names of the two villages were not found in known documents and the name Khvorostyanka was used. The administrative-territorial division as of January 1, 1977 shows that such a village was excluded from the lists of settlements due to the relocation of residents.

And the place here is wonderful. There are many abandoned wild gardens around the village. The village itself was surrounded by horseshoe-shaped mountains. It's quiet and peaceful here. Almost nothing remains of the houses and only small piles of stones indicate that there was once a settlement here.

There is a Su-Bashi spring in the village, it is marked on tourist maps. But the spring is completely removed into wells and all the water is diverted through pipes towards Rodnoy. Be careful when planning your route; most likely you won’t be able to get water here.

Behind the village there is an old Tatar cemetery.

Behind the cemetery there is a country road that goes into an abandoned garden, turns south and this is the shortest road to Mount Junk, but we were so carried away by the descent along the main paved road that we missed this turn, then another one and stopped only when we saw that the road leads to Rodnoe. Oh, how tempting these old Crimean roads are. I just want to walk along them without turning anywhere.

It’s still too early for us to get to Rodnoe, so we turn around and move along the Munde-Dere gully in a south-easterly direction. This road leads from Rodnoye to Peredovoe. Due to an oversight, we had to regain the altitude we had lost on the tempting paved road. But the places here are beautiful, and several parallel country roads lead us smoothly up to an unnamed height of 521 meters.

At the top he comes across barriers. There are signs everywhere prohibiting passage, travel, hunting and training dogs. Here is the territory of the hunting base "Red Stone". There is also a crossroads of four roads. The road to Rodnoye, along which we came, has two descents to Peredovoe, one of which is marked with a wooden sign. But we choose the fourth road, in a southwest direction, and continue to climb Junk Mountain. On the way to the top, a beautiful view of the Chernorechenskoe reservoir and Ai-Petrinskaya yayla opens up.

First of all, at the top of Junk Mountain you will see a hunting tower installed here. Have you forgotten that you are in the hunting grounds of “Red Stone”? Behind the tower there is a triangulator and a clearing where there are troughs with water, apples are scattered in large quantities, and clearings of sprouted wheat are visible. There are metal utility containers nearby. And, of course, all this serves for a successful hunt for those vacationing in the “Red Stone”.

We decided to take a quick walk to the Red Stone base and see what it was like. It is immediately obvious that everything is in order here - the base is functioning. Clean, tidy, there is a parking lot, comfortable apartments, houses with European-quality renovation. And the hunters also have guns and it is not known in what state of alcoholic intoxication they are, and what they might think. Therefore, they didn’t come close, turned around and went back. Moreover, our further path runs along the top of the Taushan-Tepe ridge, and the base is located a little to the side.

We wanted to leave the hunting grounds as quickly as possible, so we quickened our pace and on the way we met another hunting tower. Again a large clearing, again tubs of water, again scattered apples. And then the country road, as if by magic, turns into a path and we come out onto the ridge.

I liked this part of the hike the most. Tired of broken country roads. And this path is like a gift. Soft, smooth and somehow pedestrian and cozy. When we began to worry that we couldn’t see anything in the forest, the trail began to go out first to the right and then to the left edge of the ridge, from where a beautiful view alternately opened up of either the Minesterskaya gully or the Chernorechensky canyon.

Having shown the beauty around, the path goes into the center of the ridge, begins to wind, becomes steeper, in order to quickly take us to the Chernorechensky Canyon. We didn’t see any dangerous or difficult sections, except that at the end of the descent we had to make our way along the river bed. And, if in our case the riverbed was dry, then in the spring, apparently, you will have to jump over a small tributary several times, since the path jumps from one bank to the other. But this area is small and should not present any particular difficulties.

The Chernaya River greeted us with the pleasant soft sound of running water. After the descent we rested a bit, and some even took a swim.

Continuing along the bed of the Chernaya River, after ten minutes we encounter concrete supports - the so-called German Bridge. It was built by the Germans during the Great Patriotic War. It was part of the road connecting the villages of Rodnoe and Alsou. Then this bridge was blown up by partisans. Not far from this place, in a wide clearing, a monument to the partisans was erected, and the clearing, accordingly, is called Partizanskaya.

From the concrete supports of the German Bridge we go up along a winding country road. There are several bases for ATV rides in Rodny, and this type of transport is very popular here.

And we rise higher and higher until we reach a clearing, from where “Object 221”, which our tourist club visited in March of this year, is clearly visible.

Then, without wasting time, we move to the village of Rodnoe. On the way we meet the Karshi-Chokrak spring. Although there is a lot of water here, it does not look suitable for drinking.

We pass by a lake where city “savages” who have been taken out into nature scream and frolic. Recently, awnings were installed here, benches and tables were made, and relaxation has become more comfortable and more fun. But we have no time to rest. Sunset is approaching, and we still have one more planned object - the Chair-Koba grotto. At the beginning of September, a small group of us had already scouted out a trail around the ostrich farm, where they collect money from tourists for access to the grotto and waterfall. We find our little tour, made up of stones, and, without wasting time, we move along the already explored path to the grotto - this amazing corner of Crimea, which few people have been to.

Local residents call this place “Rodnovsky waterfall”; historical sources mention such toponyms as Koba-Chair (a cave among flowering gardens) and Merdven-Tubyu (the base of the stairs). The cave is a powerful overhanging grotto located like a horseshoe on the southeastern side of the lake. Many thousands of years ago, water saturated with lime created a powerful stalagnate (column), which formed the modern appearance of the cave. Jets of a mountain stream fall from the ceiling of the grotto into the lake, forming a beautiful waterfall, which is fullest in spring.

Merdven-Tubyu(bottom of the stairs) or Koba-Chair(a cave in a wild garden) - a horseshoe-shaped grotto with powerful swells and a waterfall in a rocky cliff. Located in the Balaklava region of Crimea, in a rocky cliff 250 meters southeast of the village of Rodnoy, above the pond. Translated from Turkic it means: “merdven” - stairs; “tube” - bottom. The waterfall is notable for the fact that it falls directly into the lake, which is located in a picturesque stone gorge. Its view from the outskirts of the village, from the cliff opposite the grotto, is especially impressive.

According to local residents, fifteen to twenty years ago, the water in the lake was bright blue. Now it is dull green, but this does not spoil the fabulous appearance of the surrounding area. In particularly dry years, the waterfall dries up and the lake is fed by one stream flowing from under the village and a river flowing into the lake from a gully.

Inside the grotto there are original sagging, rounded domes and niches through which water flows in a thin film. The stone blocks are full of small holes. Large drops fall from the ceiling every now and then. The name of this wonderful cave is Koba-Chair, which means “a cave among flowering gardens” and if you walk down the valley, you can see their remains - cherry and apple trees. And right next to the dam there was once a dogwood garden.

A graceful waterfall falls next to the grotto. Silver threads are intertwined with strands of evergreen ivy. Everything together - the lake, the cave with a grotto and the waterfall - looks like a skillfully executed set for Rowe's fairy tale.

The waterfall is weak and not high, but the waterfall + lake + Koba-Chair grotto with smudges create a uniquely beautiful natural complex and this seems to be the most original waterfall in Crimea. Its height is 5–6 meters, it originates from a stream from the Uppa River and falls into the lake from a steep rock wall.

For picnic lovers
There is a spring nearby in Poplar Balka.

If you look from the grotto, you can clearly discern the “oriental cucumber” (or “drop”) ornament in the outline of the entrance. This sign is considered very friendly. Resembling in shape a hatched sprout, an ovary, an embryo, it symbolizes movement, development, the origin of life, and energy.

How to get there?

Before the great Crimean toponymic revolution, the village of Rodnoe was called Uppa-Koy after the name of the river on the right bank of which it was located. Buses regularly go to the village from Sevastopol (from the “5th kilometer”, No. 5 and Sevastopol-Ternovka with a call at Rodnoe - No. 40), Simferopol (bus station “Zapadnaya” at 11:30 and 16:10) and Bakhchisarai. The bus stop is in the village on a small square, near the store. At the intersection you need to turn right, the road will go down and run into someone's gate. On the right there will be a path that after 20–30 meters will lead you to a rocky cliff.

This is where you will see a view of the pond, grotto and waterfall, and it is from this place that you should begin exploring this attraction. Then it is recommended to follow the path along the cliff to the cliff and see the stunning view of the valley. Returning back, you can go down the rope to the lake itself. If the rope is torn, then in order to get to the waterfall and grotto itself, you need to turn right before entering the village, there are signs and unfinished buildings there, towards the lake - an equipped recreation area and drive about 1.5 km. A little before reaching this place, the road to the waterfall goes to the left.

The Merdven-Tobe waterfall (Merdven-Tubyu) is located in a gorge in the vicinity of the village of Rodnoe (Balaklava district). You can get to it by car, turning off the road leading to Ternovka, from the side of the village of Khmelnitsky, to the right. Before reaching the village, the road dives down, here you need to turn right onto a dirt road leading towards the Chernorechensky canyon, then go down and turn left.

The Uppa River is a relatively small right tributary of the mighty Chernaya River. Originating in the vicinity of the village of Rodnoe, it, as if reluctantly, heads south, to the place where it flows into the main channel. And only in one area, barely breaking out from under the cover of a dense broad-leaved forest, the Uppa stream breaks down from the horseshoe-shaped rock step of Imam-Kayasa into a vast pond that looks like a real lake, the banks of which are overgrown with reeds and cattails. This is the Merdven-Tobe waterfall - the “inverted staircase” (look closely: the relief of the rocky ledge really resembles the giant steps of an inverted “upside down” staircase). Under the ledge of this staircase there is a small through grotto, along which you can approach the very base of the falling stream. The damp walls of the semi-dark cave are abundantly covered with calcite deposits - beautiful tuff and limestone draperies.

Location:

19 km to the northeast, on the outskirts of the village. Native.

Tourists who find themselves in the territory of the Balaklava region may get the impression that they find themselves on the Cote d'Azur of France, on one of the islands of Greece or on the shores of the Apennine Peninsula, assigned to Italy. Judge for yourself: in the area, in addition to the warm sea coastline and low mountains, there are many interesting industrial facilities and wonderful natural attractions. For example, many citizens and guests of Ukraine are well familiar with the taste of the products of the Zolotaya Balka agricultural company or the Inkerman Vintage Wine Factory, as well as Balaklava smoked fish - golden-sided anchovy, horse mackerel, silver mullet and mackerel.

The list of luxurious gifts given to the Crimean “Côte d'Azur” by Nature opens, naturally, with Balaklava Bay. But it is on the lands of this region that Cape Sarych is located - the southernmost point of all of Ukraine, as well as the largest reservoir of water on the peninsula - the Chernorechenskoye Reservoir. Not so grandiose, but very picturesque is another local attraction - Merdven-Tobe waterfall.

This hydrological object is located on the outskirts of the village of Rodnoe. Along Vodopadnaya Street, along a dirt road, guests should go towards the Chernorechensky Canyon. Having descended into the most delightful river valley of the peninsula, tourists should turn left. Here they will see a whole range of luxury attractions. Firstly, the Merdven-Tobe waterfall itself. Secondly, the Koba-Chair grotto. Thirdly, a small flowing lake. It was formed by the Uppa River, which carries its waters into the Chernorechensky Canyon.

To be honest, the power of the Merdven-Tobe waterfall is not comparable to Niagara, Victoria, or the Crimean Uchan-Su, Dzhurly or Dzhur-Dzhur. The entire waterfall is a thin stream falling from a height of 4 meters. The width of the stream is no greater than what could flow from the neck of a large amphora if someone set it in a rock and filled it endlessly with water. The uniqueness of the Merdven-Tobe waterfall lies in its originality. It looks very unusual, surrounded by a crescent of rocks, the appearance of which is enlivened by a playful stream of water.

The Koba-Chair grotto formed under the waterfall. It is through, so tourists can hide from the scorching Crimean sun under its arch. The walls of Koba-Chair are covered with sinter formations. This is the result of underground water seeping into the cave from under the main stream of Merdven-Tobe. The grotto is damp and cool. But it is from here that it is most pleasant to admire the Sun, which shimmers, sparkles and is reflected in the stream of water of Merdven-Tobe. This landscape is not typical for the Crimean mountains, which is why a comparison arises with a stay on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, which is very characterized by such chamber waterfalls, crescent lagoons and wet, cool grottoes, in which a legion of mythical creatures usually lives: Scylla, Harbids, Demos and Phobos!

It is interesting that at one time