Bear Mountain (Ayu-Dag). Crimea: nature, legends

2024 Author: Harold Hamphrey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:06

Many of us like to spend our holidays in our country. Someone (like the author of the article) is “pulled” by childhood nostalgia, when you want to visit the same reserved places again and again. It is uncomfortable for someone to leave too far from their homeland. Someone decides to save money or just take a short break in the form of a weekend in the old and well-known places - sort of like going to the country.

Welcome to Crimea

One of these places, of course, is the Crimean peninsula with its remarkably mild climate, magnificent mountain landscapes, colorful flora and boundless sea. About him, as well as about one of the legends of the Crimea - the famous hill Bear Mountain - and our further story will go. Many guests of the peninsula, while relaxing here, learn about local attractions, make new acquaintances, have a great time on the beaches and discos, in bars and other entertainment venues. But not everyone and not immediately join the legends of the Crimea, although the Bear Mountain is well known to any tourist from the post-Soviet space andforeign guests. So many curious legends are connected with it that it will be enough for more than one long excursion! One of them, in absentia, will be done by you and me.

Toponymic reference

To begin with, we note that the name Bear Mountain is not the only one for the geographical object of interest to us. Ayu-Dag is also generally accepted. Sounds pretty strange to a Russian ear, doesn't it? And in translation from the Crimean Tatar language, it means, in fact, Bear Mountain. But the Crimean Tatars themselves - the people who have inhabited the peninsula for a long time - gave the mountain a slightly different name: Biyuk-Kastel. It means a great fortress. And, of course, it was not associated with bears! The ancient Greeks called these places "Lamb forehead". Italian travelers and topographers of the Middle Ages even designated the hill as “Camel” - apparently, it reminded them of the humps of this animal. Here is the first legend and mystery of these places.

Geographic parameters

The Bear Mountain (Ayu-Dag) is located in the southern part of the peninsula, near the settlements of Partenit and Lavrovoe. At one of its foothills, the former All-Union Pioneer Camp "Artek" (ICTs "Artek") is located. The name of which, by the way, also according to one version, comes from the Greek word "bear". And nearby are Big Alushta and Big Y alta - large urban districts. The mountain range directly borders them. It rises above sea level by almost 600 meters, and has moved deeper into it by more than 2 kilometers. Real Bear Mountain! Ayu-Dag, and this is important, is a protected object. Therefore, so many extraordinary things are still preserved here. Even the energy here is quite special. The geological origin of the rock is a volcano.

The world is mysterious and ancient

But let's get back to the legends associated with the place where Bear Mountain is located. One of them says that once, in ancient times, a box with a small child was nailed to the Crimean coast, among the wreckage of ships. In that place lived a herd of giant animals, and their leader was an old and wise bear of enormous size. He heard the cries of the child, unwrapped the package and carried the child to his lair. So the girl (and the child turned out to be a girl) began to live among the animals, took care of them, and they shared their prey with her. We repeat, all these events took place exactly where Bear Mountain is located.

Continuation of the story

The miracles didn't end there, and the story of the generous rescue has an exciting sequel. Once, when the girl was already an adult, a dilapidated boat was washed ashore after a storm, in which a young man, exhausted in the fight against the elements, lay. The girl, although she had never seen people, took pity on him and moved him to a place away from the animals that could tear the stranger apart. When the young man woke up, she began to nurse him and bring food. After some time, the young man became so strong that he began to build a new boat for himself in order to get to his native shores. The young man liked the girl, and shereciprocated him. Finally, the young man persuaded his beloved to run away with him when the animals left for another hunt. It was hard for the girl to part with the tribe of bears that became her real family. But love was stronger, and she agreed.

Sorrow frozen in stone

As soon as the fugitives sailed some decent distance from the shore, as a huge bear leader, sensing something was wrong, roared and rushed back to the lair, which was not far from the sea shore. His instinct did not let him down: the boat with the young man and the girl could still be seen in the distance. Then the bear roared terribly again and, bowing his head to the sea, began to drink sea water. The rest of the animals, realizing what had happened, began to do the same. A swift current began to carry the boat of the fugitives back to the shore, to the angry beasts. Then the girl prayed to her former wild comrades and began to sing, desperately asking them to let go, begging for mercy. All the animals, except for the leader, listened to the marvelous song and broke away from the sea. Only the leader-bear, furious with such ingratitude, continued to drink and drink water, all hoping to turn the fugitives back … So he remained, having drunk water, by the sea, having lost his last strength from despair, looking at the sea surface with the boat disappearing in the distance. So it lies to this day, petrified, for thousands of years. This is how the Bear Mountain, Crimea, appeared on the peninsula, without which Crimea is no longer Crimea!

Two islands

There is another interesting attraction in the vicinity of Ayu-Dag,located right in the sea not far from the coast (several hundred meters from it), in the Gurzuf Bay, which is also legendary. These are two small cliff islands located side by side. Locals call them Adalary (which means “islands” in Crimean Tatar), or simply White Stones. They have different shapes and heights. Once upon a time there was even a restaurant on these islands, they planned to build a cable car, but the Second World War prevented.

Legend of the brothers

If you ask the old-timers, they can tell other legends of the Crimea, which also feature Bear Mountain, the photo of which you see here. Tradition tells that there was once a castle on the hill. Two brother-princes lived and ruled the surroundings in it, very similar to each other. Their names were George and Peter. They were brave and fearless warriors, fought together and protected each other. They ruled the district fairly, in which their faithful and wise adviser, the sorcerer Nympholis, greatly helped them. Once Nimpholis felt that his days were numbered. He called Peter and George to his deathbed and said: “Soon I will be gone. Finally, I will give you two chests. They hold the keys to great knowledge. But you promise me and swear that you will never use these gifts out of your own self-interest or to the detriment of other people. The brothers swore that they would never use these gifts out of selfishness and harm to anyone, but only for knowledge. Soon Nympholis, a wise adviser and soothsayer, was gone…

The vicissitudes of love

You ask how Bear Mountain is connected with these events? The legend is not over yet, read what happened next. Remembered to take on the caskets. Peter opened his, and in it was a bone rod with the inscription: “If you raise it, the waves of the sea will disperse; if you lower it, you will learn the secrets of the bottom of the sea.” George's casket contained two silver wings. The inscription on them was this: "Tie them - and they will carry you across the sky, across the wide world, you will know all its secrets."

Since then, the brothers have been known as even wiser rulers than they were. After all, there were no secrets left for them either in the steep sky, or in the depths of bottomless waters. But after a few years, they became lonely and bored. And then both of them somehow found out that one overseas prince had two daughters - also twins, beauties that are rarely born. How could one refuse to try to get such happiness? The brothers thought: “We are trying not out of self-interest, but for the good, for happiness and its knowledge!” So they were cunning, but they did not admit it to themselves. Deciding not to hesitate, Peter and Georgy kidnapped the girls and brought them to them against their will. But the sisters were very angry with the brothers, they did not like such a thing!

So the Adalars appeared

And then the brothers decided to achieve the love of beauties with the help of the gifts of Nympholis. The younger George took two silver wings, tied them to a horse, put his brother and sisters on the horse and soared high into the sky, intending to show the sisters the sun itself. But then the voice of Nympholis rang out like thunder: “Come back!” George was frightened by an angry shout andturned the horse back home. The sisters only laughed at him: “Afraid, coward? Didn't show us the sun? Then the next day Peter decided to win the hearts of the beautiful sisters with his boasting. He took his brother and the girls in a chariot to the seashore, waved his rod, lowering it - and, exposing the bottom, the watery abyss parted. And Peter led their chariot through the bottom of the sea. But after driving a little, they again heard the voice of Nympholis: “Stop! With bad thoughts you opened the abyss of the sea, for that you will be punished if you do not return immediately! However, Peter became stubborn, and the chariot continued on its way even faster where it is not permissible for any mere mortal to tread. Then the king of the sea became angry, struck with his trident staff - and killed the brothers, struck again - and the sisters died … But their bodies did not disappear - they became the very rocks that are still known as Adalars … These are the poetic legends of Crimea and the surroundings are kept for those who are inquisitive, inquisitive, interested in history and local history. But we have not yet talked about the “Pushkin path”: the great poet, according to legend, has been here, climbed the Ayu-Dag, looked into the distance of the “free element” with dreamy longing. His famous "To the Sea" was born here, when Pushkin dreamed about other countries, about the will, so necessary for him. They contain legends of the Crimea and "terrible" stories - about ghost ships, drowned sailors, unprecedented deep monsters.

Natural we alth

Crimea attracts not only sights, the spirit of antiquity and romance. The nature of Crimea is another, separate topic for the tour. Of course, it is better to go here in the summer or at the end of spring, when everything is green, blooming and pleasing to the eye. Vacationers are waiting here, first of all, cypresses ennobling the air. Their slender "candles" rise in the velvet southern sky and fill everything around with their fragrant "breath". The diversity of the wildlife of Ayu-Dag is generally the same as throughout the peninsula and corresponds to it - thanks to the mountainous landscape. For example, in addition to the already mentioned cypress, there are pine forests (mixed), oak and beech. The flora of imported exotic plants is represented by more than 1000 species. Of the fauna, it should be noted such mammals familiar to us on the plain as foxes, badgers, hares and hedgehogs. Near them live both seabirds - gulls and cormorants, and "land" ones - woodpeckers, owls, sparrows and tits. There are many snakes of several species on Ayu-Dag, and lizards also live.

Road to the sea

How to get to the Bear Mountain to climb to its top and take a photo? Here are some recommendations. The distance along the highway from Y alta to Partenit (as to a nearby settlement) is about 24 km, from Simferopol - 62 km, from Sevastopol - 104 km. You can get to Partenit from Simferopol or Y alta by trolleybus (No. 52), but this is slow. Better is a bus. From Y alta, for example, express number 110 runs. You can also take a taxi, but it's quite expensive. Do not think that it is impossible to get lost on Ayu-Dag and its environs. Very even possible! For example, counselors of ICC "Artek" with experience,stories were told of how sometimes the pioneers, driven by curiosity, ran away from the camp to the mountains. As a result, to search for them (and even save them!) it was necessary to call rescuers and involve the local population. It ended, as a rule, with the fact that frightened children, of course, were wandering on Ayu-Dagu for a day or two without food and water. After all, there are often fogs on Bear Mountain (especially in spring and autumn), enveloping both the top of it and the whole - right down to the foot. Therefore, if you decide to take a walk to Ayu-Dag with children, be careful not to let them go too far alone!