Porridge with stewed meat and infant sleep until morning

Route “Water and Stones” Crimea, June 26 - July 1, 2011.

Clouds were gathering below, which, like the foam of porridge with milk, wanted to overflow and climb out onto the plateau. From time to time, small pieces of clouds flashed in front of our noses, giving us a little coolness... And after several hours of obstacles, we came to a small clearing near a stunningly beautiful river with clean, transparent cold water. Porridge, tea, gatherings around the fire with lots of stories. Around the tents, and the baby's sleep until the morning...
It was sad that the adventure had come to an end. Although...perhaps...this is not the end, this is just the beginning! Thanks to everyone with whom I spent these unforgettable six days.

One February evening, looking for an idea for an active and interesting holiday... I came across the outdoorukraine website. But time has passed... and I’m already walking to the gathering place near the storage lockers.

Day one.

It was hard not to notice a bunch of people with backpacks :) I find my group “Water and Stones”, get acquainted and set off on the road. We did not take provisions with us; she had to catch up with us in a car with three participants in the hike, who arrived a little later. We load into the trolleybus and go to the village of Perevalnoye. Having landed in Perevalnoye, we go along the road into the forest. Here is the first climb, it was not easy for some, but then everyone got involved... The forest gradually gave way to grassy and rocky slopes. Along the way, Taras (our guide) picked various herbs for tea and told us about them...

The main climb ended and we came out onto a flat surface... hands immediately reached for the camera... below is the village of Perevalnoe, very tiny... In the distance is Simferopol. Here we came out onto a donkey path, along which we walked along the lower plateau of Chatyrdag. Blooming meadows, a fresh breeze and not at all welcoming clouds on the horizon... but during the entire hike I never needed a raincoat) At about 5 o'clock we went to the caves, where we met with our provisions and three other hike participants. Having parked, Taras let the group go to look at the caves, and he himself began to prepare food. Buckwheat with stew and seasonings... and then tea with herbs... and around the tents. Baby sleep until morning)

Day two.

Porridge, tea, packing and backpacks. The backpack became heavier, now it contained bones from the tent and provisions... Special thanks to the guys who sheltered me in their tent. We set out on a hike through flowering meadows... beauty..., and in the distance we could see the upper plateau of Chatyrdag and the top of Mount Angar-Burun, on which a cloud lay, and which we needed to conquer. And so we dived into the forest, through a yew gorge, along the edge, over a cliff, and came out straight to the foot... From above, the trees look like small grass, but in fact there are giant beeches there, amazingly). We took photos, admired them, rested and began the climb... not easy) It seems like “there’s just a little here”... but no)

We decided to triple the snack upstairs. It was fresh from above, you could touch the clouds with your hands, which the wind drove, clinging to the rocks) We had a snack... I can’t ignore that huge amount of lard and other edible surprises that Vlad pulled out of his backpack, like magicians pull rabbits out of a hat)))) Many thanks to him for this. We enjoyed the views, put on our backpacks, and moved along the plateau, towards the descent to the southern side of the mountains, to the next stop. Along the way we met a large group of students who said “don’t understand” in Russian... and dived into the forest. Evening gatherings near the fire and in the tents... A strong wind rose, the trees creaked, but as soon as I got into my sleeping bag, I immediately passed out)

Day three.

After having a snack and quickly getting ready, we set off. We had to go through the Angarsk pass to the tourist site Dzhurla. We walked through the forest, and by lunchtime we came out to a viewing platform, where we had a snack. Vertical cliffs, rocky ledges and stunning landscapes... Then the road went along the slopes of Northern Demerdzhi... A small path wound among the stones, sometimes reaching the very edge of an almost vertical slope.

Then the descent began and now we were almost there... in a birch grove near a small mountain lake. We dropped our backpacks and went to South Demerdzhi without our backpacks. It’s unusual at first without a backpack, it seems like you’ll break away right now and fly into the sky))) We looked at the valley of ghosts, climbed onto the South Demerdzhi triangulator, jumped, climbed over rocks and back to the camp, where porridge and stew was already waiting for us. We had a snack. We were kept company by several owls who squawked all evening nearby) Apparently mating season)... Around the tents...

Day four.

Morning, invigorating coolness, the sun is rising... We had a snack, got ready and hit the road. We crossed a stream, overcame a climb, got out onto a motley plateau with a bunch of colorful flowering plants... today our goal is Khapkhal. Clouds were gathering below, which, like the foam of porridge with milk, wanted to overflow and climb out onto the plateau. At times, small pieces of clouds flew in front of our noses, giving us a little coolness... We walked on and wandered into a cloud... The cool, wet air was very helpful).

We had a snack right in the cloud and began our descent to Khapkhal. Very steep descents with a lot of obstacles and majestic trees. And after several hours of obstacles, we came to a small clearing near a mountain river. A stunningly beautiful river with clean, clear, cold water... we drank straight from the river. Porridge, tea, gatherings around the fire with a bunch of different stories... and around the tents.

Day five.

Here is a new day... We had a choice: go to the mountain lake and camp there for the night or go to the sea. We decided to go to the sea. We continued our descent, crossed the river and ran into a rock... a kind of barrier between nature and the world of people... we climbed along it, clinging to ledges, and climbed over to the other side... to the Jur-Jur waterfall... and a bunch of people. All in one voice... “Taras, what is this horror, there are a lot of people here”...

One way or another, we were already in civilization... having gone down to the village of Generalskoye, we caught a car and drove to Solnechnogorsk, where, having bought up food, we went to the wild beach towards Alushta. We stood on the shore alone) We swam, sunbathed, rested... so evening crept up unnoticed. Spoons and plates clanked... soulful gatherings and a fire with Crimean wine. When it got dark, we watched the moon through a telescope.

There were a bunch of small crabs running along the shore, which could be “paused” with the light of a flashlight)))…. Lying down on the couch near the fire, I watched the endless starry sky, which was beautiful... And I didn’t even notice how almost everyone had gone to their tents...

Day six

The next morning we had a snack and exchanged contacts. It was sad that the adventure had come to an end. Although...perhaps...this is not the end, this is just the beginning!  Thanks to everyone with whom I spent these unforgettable six days. It was a wonderful hike and a great adventure.