20 unique places in Russia that you rarely see in travel guides

Lakes with colorful water, rocks inhabited by ghosts, ancient abandoned cities, and sands surrounded by ice - this is not a list of scenery for an adventure film, but points on the map of our country. This article is about places in Russia that know how to impress!

Russia is not just a generous soul, but also thousands of places where you can rest with this very soul. The Valley of Geysers, Lena Pillars, Baikal, the Kazan Kremlin are known to almost everyone. Still, hundreds of natural and architectural beauties in our country do not often get into tourist ratings, although they deserve no less attention. Today we are talking about a few of them - get inspired and pack your bags!

20. Kutkhiny Bati, Kamchatka

Pumice rocks, sacred for the Itelmens, are a real place of power. According to legend, the creator of the world, Kutch, who loved to fish on the Kuril Lake, folded his boats upside down so that he could go fishing at any time. This is how the Kutkhins Baty appeared - in translation "Kutkha boats" - picturesque slopes, the views of which are now admired by tourists. Locals make Kutkh figurines from wood and bone: they are purchased as souvenirs and as talismans.

19. Bolgar, Tatarstan (Bulgaria, Tatarstan)

The ancient city of Bolgar survived both the campaigns of Tamerlane and the rule of the Horde. It is here that the world's largest Koran is kept - as much as 800 kg! His story proudly flaunts on the front pages of the Guinness Book of Records. The main architectural treasure of the Bulgarians is the White Mosque. It is a white marble ensemble that combines the authenticity of Islamic minarets from the Medina and modern mosques with intricate arabesques.

18. Pink lake Sasyk-Sivash, Crimea

There are only a few lakes of unique pink color in the world, one of them is in Russia! Dunaliella algae give a rich shade to the water. The color changes depending on the activity of the microorganisms. To find the color pink, come to the lake from June to August. And also, pay attention to the time of day: the water turns bright pink at noon, burgundy in the evening, and shimmers with lilac and purple at dawn.

17. Oymyakon, Yakutia

Oymyakon is a place where winter lasts almost nine months, eyelashes become covered with frost in a couple of minutes in the cold, and reindeer racing is not an exotic entertainment but an everyday thing. The translation of the name of this picturesque corner of Yakutia, at first glance, is completely illogical: "non-freezing water," but ironically, precisely because of the abnormally low temperatures, the soil, and underground rivers freeze so much that their volume pushes the non-frozen water out. No wonder Oymyakon bears the proud status of the coldest city in Russia!

16. Teriberka, Murmansk region

On the shores of the Barents Sea, there is a place with the great name Teriberka, where several dozen ships are buried. These lands are impressive: fishing trawlers are drifting aground, the remains of boats are scattered along the coast - all this against the backdrop of the gloomy and desert landscapes of the Kola Peninsula. It is not surprising that filmmakers settled in such a picturesque corner: the main scenes of Zvyagintsev's "Leviathan" were filmed here, and in Alexei Mizgirev's film "The Duelist" Teriberka "played" the role of the Aleutian Islands.

15. Glass Bay, Vladivostok

The pebbles and sand of the bay mixed with glass cut by the sea. Red, blue, yellow, green - what kind of pebbles are not here! This is an ideal place for a spectacular photoshoot: glass pebbles shimmer in the sun with all the rainbow colors, sparkle, and throw motley glare everywhere. Glass Bay is a unique phenomenon; you will not find a similar place in our country anymore.

14. Lake Kezenoyam, Chechnya

Located on the border of Chechnya and Dagestan, Lake Kezanoyam is clean as a tear and cold as ice. This is what the locals say about him. Mountains and untouched nature surround the lake. The seclusion of this place has given rise to many legends. Rumor has it that the Horde gold is hidden in Kezanoyam, and the mekhkarii - local Amazons - once lived on its shores.

13. City of the Dead, North Ossetia-Alania

A narrow road winds through the Dargav Gorge, past rocks and forests, which leads wanderers to the "City of the Dead" - a medieval necropolis of 97 crypts. The history of mass graves dates back to bloody wars between Alans and Tatar-Mongols. In those days, the land was so expensive that residents could not bury the dead in meadows suitable for sowing and grazing. Then they chose a rocky slope, where crypts were gradually built. Because of the wars, so many people were killed that the small cemetery grew into a whole necropolis - the "City of the Dead."

12. Ruskeala marble canyon, Karelia

The canyon appeared on the site of mines, the excavations of which began with the light hand of Catherine II. From the depths of Ruskeala, marble was mined to decorate St. Isaac's Cathedral, Mikhailovsky Castle, and the Hermitage. Now mines and quarries have turned into lakes, and even so picturesque that they are often used for filming. For example, "The Dawns Here Are Quiet," "The Piranha Trail," and "The Dark World" was filmed here.

11. Valley of ghosts, Crimea

A thick fog similar to the smoke from a forest fire descends from the top of the mountain over the entire valley. The sight is so mesmerizing that Lovecraft and Edgar Allan Poe could draw inspiration here. The legend of the mystical phenomenon tells about the anger of Mount Futuna, which avenged the robbers for the beauty killed on its top. Of course, ghosts have not been officially discovered here. Still, even without this, the valley attracts travelers: dozens of stones of the most bizarre shape - there is even one, very similar to the Egyptian Sphinx, dizzying views and clouds that seem to be touched. And it was here that the "Prisoner of the Caucasus" was filmed, and you can take a photo on the stone, on which Nina sang her "Song about bears."

10. Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP, border of Krasnoyarsk Territory and Khakassia

The triumph of human thought - the Sayano-Shushenskaya hydroelectric power station - stands on the legendary Yenisei River. Yes, yes, to that river, which is the deepest in Russia, and which, due to its impressive length, gives water to both bears in Siberian forests and steppe camels. The hydroelectric power station, surrounded by taiga expanses, survived an 8-point earthquake in 2011 but survived. After that, as if nothing had happened, it amazes tourists and photographers with its grandeur during the day and bright illumination at night.

09. Lake Jack London, Magadan

A huge ten-kilometer reservoir with four picturesque islets owes its name to an unusual find: an expedition that discovered the lake found on its shore a book by the famous writer Jack London. How the book got here and who the mysterious intellectual turned out to be in this deserted area of ​​the Magadan region is unknown to this day.

08. Gamsutl, Dagestan

The oldest settlement of the Caucasus spread out at the very top of the mountain, called the local Machu Picchu. A grotesque ghost aul was erected at the crossroads of the Great Silk Road to meet trade caravans and eventually fell into decay, and the locals left it. From the top of the aul, one can see the mountains, rocky gorges, and the nearest villages. Here you can walk along the silent medieval streets and, if you're lucky, meet the “last resident of Hamstul” Ziyavudin - he doesn't officially live here, but comes every day from his village to restore the house in which he plans to meet and give tea to tourists.

07. Krenitsyn volcano, Kuril Islands

Located on the Onekotan Island, the active volcano Krenitsyn is a truly unique phenomenon. This is not just a volcano, but a volcano within a volcano, and even the largest in the world. Around its top, overgrown with forests, a ring of lake closes, enclosed in flowering slopes - calderas. The mesmerizing landscape is complemented by the haze enveloping the lake - neither give nor take the scenery for "Jurassic Park"!

06. Mount Big Bogdo, Astrakhan region

Where did the mountain appear in the endless Astrakhan steppe, and even an unusual color - red? This is due to the concentration of metals in its soil, but there is also a less prosaic explanation: according to legend, the nomadic Oirats, leaving their native spaces, wanted to take the mountain with them. The monks carried it on their shoulders. However, one of them could not hold Bogdo - the mountain fell and remained in the middle of the steppe. This place is part of the Bogdinsko-Baskunchaksky reserve, where comfortable conditions are created for tourists and excursions are conducted. Big Bogdo is the only mountain in the Caspian lowland.

05. Charsky Sands, Transbaikalia

Sandy desert among glaciers - sounds like a mirage of a weary traveler. However, the Chara Sands is precisely where such an anomaly occurs in reality: the hot desert is surrounded by the harsh glaciers of Kodar. Accurate, this neighborhood makes its adjustments: instead of camels - deer, and palms in rare oases - larch and cedar. This contrast gives the place even more charm.

04. Solovetsky Monastery, Arkhangelsk Region

The monastery has stood here, among the northern landscapes of the White Sea, since the 15th century, and the history of the construction of the Solovetsky Kremlin is a mystery to this day. The weight of some of the boulders, from which the walls are laid, exceed 8 tons, and the age of the lichen growing on them is 2000-3000 years! Even historians do not know when by whom and how the construction was started. There are also one and a half kilometers of tunnels under the monastery: the monks used them both as a sewer and back door. The Solovetsky Monastery is a natural fortress, impregnable and fortified. During the Crimean War, the English fleet tried to bombard the monastery with cannons. The result of nine hours of continuous fire was only a knocked-out seagull and a damaged icon.

03. Ordinskaya cave, Perm region

To visit the cave, which is more than two hundred million years old, is the dream of many travelers. And if it is also filled with water - it already looks like a challenge in the spirit of Indiana Jones! Intricate corridors, blue caves, and stalactites reminiscent of the scenery of a "Space Odyssey" - who would not want to look at this? This can be done in the Orda Cave, located in the Perm Territory in the region of the Kungur River. Divers have already explored five kilometers of its labyrinths, and precisely the same number are waiting for their discoverers.

02. Diamond Mine "Mir", Yakutia

The artificial diamond quarry was called "Mir" for a reason: having discovered the source, geologists sent to Moscow a coded radiogram: "We lit a pipe of peace, excellent tobacco." Why a pipe? It's simple: this is exactly what geologists call such deposits. Nowadays, the mine is no longer operational, and tourists have a chance to look at a colossal quarry - one and a half kilometers in diameter! The Yakuts believe that diamond deposits in their lands are associated with intervention from above. Once, it was so cold that a deity hovering in the sky froze his hand and dropped a whole bag of diamonds on the ground.

01. Lake Elton, Volgograd region

Surrounded by a ring of snow-white salt, Lake Elton is also called the golden bottom because due to algae, the reservoir shimmers with all the colors of precious stones: from gold to pink and bright indigo. The lake is so shallow that you can walk on it: the average depth in summer is only 5 cm. This is an excellent opportunity to take beautiful pictures with reflection, creating the illusion of walking in the sky. Here you can also see flocks of cranes and waders, and if you're lucky, catch the flowering of rare Schrenk tulips listed in the Red Book.