Dombay. What to see in winter? Dombay in summer - photo trip to the mountains of Dombay glade What kind of trees are in Dombay
My article for the magazine " Russian Photo"- http://www.rosphoto.com/travel/zolotaya_osen_v_gorah_dombaya-5461
Photo: Igor Gorshkov
Text: Igor Gorshkov
Dombay is a mountain resort village in Caucasus mountains in Karachay-Cherkessia. He is primarily known as ski resort, however, this is an amazing and very beautiful place from a natural point of view. Igor Gorshkov, a member of the Russian Photo club, tells the story.
Autumn is very beautiful time year, and especially in the mountains. I had never been to the mountains in the fall, so I decided to go and see with my own eyes the beauty of the golden mountain autumn and Dombay, where I had also never been.
It’s quite easy to get to Dombay, and you can live in a comfortable hotel among the mountains and get by with a minimum of things for walking in the mountains. In addition, at this time there is a lull and low season and, unlike summer and especially winter, the most low prices for accommodation. And most importantly, all the beauty of the mountainous autumn Caucasus is nearby.
Golden autumn in Dombay, view from almost the hotel of the beautiful Ine Peak.
From the village you can move in any direction: gorges lead to a variety of beautiful places - waterfalls, glaciers, the foothills of peaks. In addition to the northern one, there is a road, but it is also interesting to walk along it, it is very picturesque.
Highway Dombay is very picturesque, and such a picture greets those who come to this place at the height of the golden autumn.
The weather for a little more than a week (that’s how long the trip lasted) was difficult, but interesting: sun, rain, which was still a little more than we would like, and fog, and on the last day of our stay everything fell asleep first snow.
It was especially beautiful when the sun came out during the rain: moisture, fog, clouds on the mountain slopes and sunlight.
Mountain rivers flow in all the gorges, and sometimes you can go down to them and do beautiful shots V different times days and weather.
Amanauz River on an autumn evening. Panorama. Shortly before the photo was taken, a mass of snow fell from the top of Sofrudju (in the distance) - an avalanche. An impressive sight!
The same place the next morning: it rained at night, the water noticeably increased and turned brown. The log from the previous frame was simply washed away. Unfortunately, a couple of days later, excavators arrived at this place and raked up a high ridge on the left, clearing the main channel (it’s on the left), and this channel was filled up. But, apparently, this was necessary from a safety point of view when the water flow intensifies.
Sunset on the Dombay-Ulgen River.
River, peak and gorge Dombay-Ulgen. Panorama.
It was one of the darkest and stormiest days, snow and rain were falling, a piercing wind was blowing, tearing off the golden foliage, but I really wanted to reach this place and see the opening. And suddenly the mountains gave such a beautiful sky!
Then he was immediately drawn in.
On rare sunny days, all the mountain slopes and forests delighted with bright autumn outfits.
Autumn fogs in the mountains are always interesting and beautiful, although sometimes, most often at dawn or sunset, they were so thick that neither the neighboring slopes, nor even the mountains were visible.
Dombay bowl of evening fog from the Alibek gorge. Panorama.
Later, this fog rose to the tops and filled the entire space; the road back to the village was almost entirely in thick haze - we had to walk through a dark forest with one flashlight between us. After that, we always took flashlights with us, even if we planned to return before dark. And, by the way, they never returned before dark; the flashlights came in handy all the time. Therefore, when you’re in the mountains, you always have flashlights with you, even if the walk is planned for half a day.
Be sure to take comfortable and pre-worn shoes. It so happened that the first couple of days I felt very uncomfortable; apparently, over the summer my feet had become unaccustomed to the boots, although they were far from new. I was often reminded of the words of Sebastio Salgado: it doesn’t matter how good your camera is, what matters is how comfortable your shoes are.
In the Dombay mountains there are many different streams flowing along the mountain slopes or in forests, many waterfalls, which are reached by the main routes in the gorges.
Alibek waterfall. There is a road and a trail leading to it in the Alibek Gorge. You can cross the river and get closer.
You need to keep in mind that all the gorges and the surrounding area of the village of Dombay are the territory of the Teberda Nature Reserve, and on all the roads there are forest guard posts who charge a fee and give a ticket, but not always. In addition, this is also a border area; border guard posts are located a little further, and permission is required to be in this zone, rich in waterfalls, glaciers and other beautiful places. If you have a Russian passport, foresters can do it, but you must always carry your passport. Although in the fall there were practically no border guards at the cordons, and permission was not given to us right away, and in the first days we hoped for the strength of a Russian passport, a ticket from a forester, the absence of border guards and human understanding if we suddenly met a patrol.
Dogs often followed us in the village. First there was one dog who once kept me company during a morning shoot by the river. Then at some point there were four of them. It was fun with them, but sometimes I had to take up a twig for educational purposes, otherwise the camera and tripod could end up in a stormy mountain river or simply fly off onto the rocks. For some reason, the dogs liked to arrange all their games and fuss exactly in the place where I placed the tripod with the camera. One day, a couple of dogs went quite far with us, despite the frequent rain and wind, and even posed for shots.
At the Devil's Mill in the gorge of the Amanauz River.
There is a raging river here, sandwiched between the rocks. The animal became interested in something below, and managed to take several shots.
Upon our return, we had to buy sausages for the dogs because, despite the weather, they walked with us all day in the mountains and also worked as fashion models.
IN ski area There is a cable car and ski slopes. You can climb Mount Mussa-Achitara to a height of 3168 m above sea level in several stages, look around Mountain peaks and even, if you’re lucky with the weather, see the top of Elbrus (we were unlucky, it was hiding in a cap of clouds).
Hello, the mountains are so high!
Clouds flow through the Ptysh pass from Abkhazia. They flow down, bursting into the valley, and then fly up the mountain: then everything is covered in fog, but not for long, the wind quickly carries them further.
Play of light, shadows, clouds and mountains.
The peak of Sofrudju hid in the clouds with only its tooth exposed
High in the mountains we met a domestic alpine cat. In fact, this is one of the intermediate levels of the cable car, there are many buildings there - and somewhere there he lives at a cafe and “hunts” for tourists with sandwiches.
Dombay romance
The sun is hiding behind the mountains. Sunset in the mountains occurs earlier than on the plain or by the sea. And below - cloudy weather.
Lilac twilight in the mountains
Wanderer above the sea of fog. Self-portrait based on the painting of the same name by the 19th century German romantic artist Caspar David Friedrich.
While taking this and other shots, we were late for the cable car, although according to the schedule on the ticket it should have been running for a few more minutes. I had some time to admire the mountains illuminated by the full moon and the starry sky above the clouds, but, unfortunately, the batteries for the camera ran out and it was not possible to capture this stunning picture.
Then, some time later, after numerous calls to the hotel and unsuccessful attempts to find cable car workers, when we had already decided to go down on foot, excavator workers appeared and helped us go down in the duty trailer.
In the vicinity of Dombay there are many beautiful places- gorges, lakes, waterfalls, - but beyond a short time It’s impossible to be on time everywhere, especially considering the weather.
Emerald Lake Tumanly-Kol, also called Trout Lake, in the Gonachkhir gorge.
The famous Military-Sukhumi road with good asphalt passes through the gorge, and a lot of cars and buses come to the lake with excursions and vacationers. The shore of the lake is equipped with a parking lot, barbecues, tables and benches, so the most beautiful view It’s almost impossible to shoot against the backdrop of snowy mountains - all these benefits of civilization fall into the frame.
A gorgeous asphalt road in the Gonachkhir gorge towards the Klukhorsky pass, the former Sukhumi Military Road. The former, because now another country is beyond the mountains, well, the road fell asleep in the pass part.
Turquoise Gonachkhir
On the last day of our stay in Dombay, the first snow fell, and we managed, albeit briefly, to admire the view of the snow-covered autumn mountain forests.
A little about photographic equipment.
All frames were shot on a Fujifilm X-T10 camera and a small set of lenses for it. Walking in the mountains with a small and light camera and the same optics was very cool and comfortable, despite the fact that I always had a tripod and a certain amount of personal belongings with me.
Despite the fact that moisture protection is not officially declared by the manufacturer, the camera withstood shooting in the rain - not a downpour, of course, but several times the camera and optics needed to be dried in the evenings, although I tried to protect it from water as much as possible. We were very pleased with the presence of a built-in raw converter and wi-fi, the ability to select the famous Fuji “film” profiles and other settings.
I could quickly share my impressions of what I saw with friends and on social networks. Some of the photographs presented were processed using the camera.
Something about the shooting process (on an old phone): 
Nature of Dombay
The nature of Dombay is rich and unique. The mountain forests covering the slopes are magnificent. Below it is mainly park-type beech with an admixture of hornbeam, ash, and maple; above, there are mighty tall beeches with several girths, slender, majestic fir, and occasionally there is a relict yew, more than a thousand years old - the once famous soft tree with dark noble wood . Higher up there are wet spruce-fir forests with special Pontic spruce, and on the dry granite slopes there are forests of pine-fir composition. Even higher there are thickets of mountain maples, birch, rowan, many shrubs - hazel, honeysuckle, azaleas, barberry, rose hips, euonymus. In the upper floor of the forest zone and in the clearings there are thickets of rhododendrons and junipers, a lot of berries - raspberries, currants, wild gooseberries, blueberries, lingonberries and strawberries.
And on Saturday alpine meadows with grass reaching two meters in height, and low-grass alpine meadows - a kingdom of flowers. There are many hundreds of species here. Different, completely different from each other. Some species have been known since ancient times and came from afar, others were born and preserved only here. Among the plants there are many “true Caucasians”. The thickets of Caucasian rhododendron are magnificent, a creeping shrub with strong glossy leaves and lush large inflorescences, with subtle shades of delicate moist petals. Herbaceous plants are innumerable. A characteristic flower of the highlands, gentiana comes in many variations, from azure blue and ultramarine to pale lilac, pink and white.
There are numerous primroses, anemones, bright saffron, and bluebells. The delicate crimson alpine daisy and mountain asters, crocuses and tulip-like hazel grouse are beautiful. Many species of saxifrage and succulents adorn the heated rocks. Even the stones in the forest and alpine meadows seem to be in bloom, colored with a wide variety of mosses and lichens. The fantastically colorful alpine carpets of Dombay are also one of its main treasures.
It is this diversity of vegetation, fauna, glaciers and peaks, the unique nature of these places that caused the creation of Teberdinsky in 1936 state reserve, in which the Dombay section is given a special, very important place. The reserve carries out extensive environmental and scientific work, carrying out extensive experiments on the acclimatization of plants and animals new to the area. Experiments have shown, for example, that ginseng takes root and is cultivated well here, and the sika deer, raccoon dog and Altai squirrel have already been acclimatized. Much attention is also paid to conservation and reproduction rare species animals and birds.
In the forest zone of Dombay there are numerous wild boars and Caucasian deer, roe deer and lynx, stone and pine martens, squirrels, brown bears and wolves; chamois and Caucasian black grouse hang out at the upper boundaries of the forest; among the rocks and stone placers there are partridges, mountain turkey - snowcock and a magnificent animal of the upper mountain belt - the Caucasian tur. Eagles and noisy alpine jackdaws are common here. In the rivers, piercing the tight transparent streams, beautiful trout quickly overcome the rapids, and on the smooth river boulders, here and there, a small white-breasted bird suddenly appears and disappears, fearlessly diving into the stormy stream. This dipper forages for food at the bottom of wild mountain rivers.
The bright spring sun gives birth to thousands of ringing streams from granular melted snow, the young greenery of the first grasses covers the slopes awakening from winter sleep, the trees bloom, cheerful bird trills sound in the clear blue sky, the peaks of the mountains shed their snow-white clothes, the spring festival sparkles with colors. Summer brings lush green foliage, the thunder of rainbow-colored waterfalls, carpets of flowers, forest rustles, azure sunrises and regal sunsets. The life-giving air spreads with subtle aromas through the gorges, the sun's rays are crushed in the edges of the rocks and turquoise blocks of the icefalls. Autumn gives birth to a riot of colors and transparency of distances. As if by magic, huge yellowed meadows are covered overnight with a continuous soft lilac cover of billions of crocuses, and the morning grasses sparkle with sparkles of frost. The fabulous winter forest captivates with the play of sun glare and the diamond dust of collapsing snow caps, and the crystal purity of the graying peaks captivates the eye. Thick, silent snowfalls of myriads of large soft flakes give way to dazzlingly sunny days, and untouched snow lights up with a scattering of diamonds, sapphires, emeralds and rubies.
The village of Dombay is completely unique. The immoderate accumulation of endless hotels, inns and shops, stuck on top of each other, as if in an anthill and displacing the last remnant of the relict forest on the Dombay glade, has undoubtedly spoiled it. They themselves don’t deny it. local residents. But what is the view of the mountains like?! Monsters at 4000 m with eternal glaciers approach closely and nobly allow themselves to be seen without interruption from civilization. Plus a cable car. For people with disabilities who want to revere this natural power and breathe in the fresh mountain air, it’s hard to imagine a more convenient place.
Dombayskaya Polyana, village. Dombay (Bison with Karach.) Above the village, the Alibek Valley stretches to the peaks
Dombay village. Ahead there is a view of the Amanauz valley (Evil Mouth), with the peak and tooth of Sufrudju, 3781 m. and 3600 m. (Sufruju - Tiger's Fang)
On the left is Ine Peak, (Igla), 3455 m. on the right is Mount Dzhuguturluchat (Turs' Pasture), 3921 m. In the middle is the Dzhuguturluchat glacier.
Teberda River ( Comfortable spot). Clean, big, wide
Cable car from the village. Dombay to the Mussa-Achitara ridge
Views from the cable car.
Embodied power and splendor...
For lovers of more active rest Dombay also has all the conditions, especially in summer. In winter, there is nothing for a tourist to do here; you can’t go anywhere, everything is covered with snow. At this time, Dombay is a Mecca for skiers. And the price of housing during this main season soars 10 times. And in the summer - grace. Housing is plentiful, and you can find quite cheap and comfortable accommodation from private owners. In 2013, Koshka and I rented a one-room apartment with all the amenities for 700 rubles. per day. Cheaper than in our Mezmay. The main “mattress” routes are filled with “elephant” paths, so it’s impossible to get lost. Navigating them is a piece of cake. There are descriptions on the internet. Therefore, it is completely unclear why, under these conditions, resort to the services of guides, because of an irresistible desire to part with extra money, or what? The only caveat is the need for a border pass. Otherwise, you will have to limit yourself to the cable car and trampling in the immediate vicinity of the village.
Amanauz Valley. Ahead, behind the lake, is the Amanauz glacier.
The end of the glacier, from under which a fully formed river bursts out in a stormy stream.
Alibek waterfall
Top of the waterfall. To imagine the scale of the phenomenon, it is worth paying attention to the little man standing above on the rock, to the right of the water discharge.
The first time I met a real Russian red fly agaric was in... Karachay-Cherkessia.
Alibek glacier. The photo absolutely does not convey the atmosphere and color of true reality. You need to see this with your own eyes
Turye Lake against the backdrop of the Alibek Glacier
View from the back, against the backdrop of Mount Semyonov-Bashi, 3602 m.
Valley of the Ptysh River. On the right is a long and gentle airy waterfall Girlish braids. The horns of Dombay-Ulgen stick out above.
Ptysh glacier
Overnight at the Ptysh glacier
Blueberry. There's plenty of it here in August. Like raspberries
"Valley, wonderful valley...". Klukhorskoye Gorge. Heavenly place. Beautiful river, gorgeous meadows along the shore.
Lake Tuman-Ly Kol, or Trout Lake, is located in the Klukhor valley. The water warms up to 20-22 degrees. You can swim and dive in smaller sizes. Plus there is a highway nearby. Therefore, it goes without saying that it is equipped for a picnic holiday.
Baduk lakes, by analogy with the Murudzhinsky lakes, are located on the territory of the Teberda Nature Reserve, almost reaching the village. Dombay. But unlike Muruju, these lakes rest lower, in the forest zone. Like our Kardyvach. Their significant advantage is that they are quite close to each other and to the highway: an hour and a half walk. Cool lakes.
Along the way, we cross the Khadzhibey River along the logs (Prince who visited Mecca for the Hajj)
First Baduk Lake
Near the medium-sized and second-largest lake, right on the shore, in a centuries-old forest, there is a cozy clearing with a fire pit. The trees come close to the water. If on high mountain lakes, where there are only stones and grass around, there is often nowhere to hide from the scorching sun during the day, then here are all the conditions for a comfortable rest and overnight stay. Peace, tranquility and harmony reign around. I don't want to leave.
Second Badukskoe
The second lake against the backdrop of the Devil's Castle, 3300 m.
Third Baduk Lake
Goodbye, Dombay, Dreamland castles of the Snow Queen, mountains more beautiful than which I have never seen...!
Dombay is a land of untouched nature, snow-capped mountains and forests. Athletes and walkers flock here. The Dombay Valley, where the resort village is located, is surrounded by mountain ranges. On the southern side it is the Main Caucasian Range, on the eastern side - the Dombay-Ulgen gorge, on the northern side - the Amanauz gorge and the Alibek gorge on the western side.
And to make it easier to navigate, below is a list of all the attractions of Dombay with photos and descriptions.
It occupies an area of 85 thousand hectares on the northern slope of the Caucasus Range. The Dombay Valley, where vacationers stay, is the southern part of the Teberda Nature Reserve.
There are many beautiful places on the territory of the reserve that are worth visiting. free time. These are mysterious gorges, observation platforms, snowy peaks, glaciers and lakes. There are about 150 lakes in the reserve, and the famous one is Lake Klukhorskoye. It is located at an altitude of 2676 m above sea level and is covered with ice almost all year round.
And the main river of the reserve, Teberda, is associated with legends and stories. According to one of them, the name means “God’s gift.”
Amanauz Gorge
Translated from Karachay, “Aman” means evil, and “auz” means mouth. This is what the ancient inhabitants of the Dombay valley called it. The fact is that the Amanauz River flows through the entire gorge. The water crashing against the rocks makes a loud roar. It was believed that this was an evil spirit and the residents did not dare to go to the gorge.
The passage through the gorge is quite narrow and is surrounded by the peaks of the Belalakaya Mountains and Theater Peak. Even in summer, light barely penetrates here, and there are snow islands on rivers and slopes.
The walk through the gorge starts from resort village Dombay runs along the river and ends on a cliff. From the cliff there is a view of the stormy Amanauz River, which makes its way into a narrow gorge.
Each attraction in Dombay is unique. But it is worth highlighting the Murudzhinsky lakes in the valley of the Ullu-Murudzhu River at an altitude of 3000 m. The lakes include 15 reservoirs, but tourists tend to see only two. You can only get to the lakes on foot, but it is better to resort to the help of a guide and allocate two days for the walk with an overnight stay.
Blue Murudzhinskoye Lake differs from other lakes in its size. The diameter is 500 m, and the depth is about 52 m. It is called blue due to the color of the water.
From blue lake hiking trail leads to Black Lake. But the water in the lake is not black, but rather dark green. In the vicinity of the lakes there will be open for tourists amazing landscapes and encounters with wild mountain goats.
Sentinsky Temple
This christian temple, which is located on the territory of the village of Nizhnyaya Teberda. Although the temple dates back to 965, it is in relatively good condition. Inside the building you can see the remains of a fresco, and a stone mausoleum was built next to it.
The temple is considered one of the oldest buildings in Alanya.
Or Baduki in simple speech. They are a cascade of three lakes on the Baduk River. You can get to the lakes in 3 hours, so the trip to them will take one day without an overnight stay. It’s worth visiting the Baduk Lakes in the fall. Around the lakes grow pine and birch thickets, which fill with colors in autumn.
The first lake in the cascade is small. The water does not warm up above 5⁰C. There is a path along the left bank of the river to the second lake. A gazebo for relaxation and picnic was built next to the lake. You can get to the third lake in two ways. The third lake is the largest of the cascade and is located at an altitude of 1990 m above sea level.
Alibek glacier and waterfall
One of the most popular and mandatory places to visit. The glacier viewpoint is easily accessible, and along the way there are many trails to other attractions.
The route to Alibek starts from the camp site of the same name along a forest path. The trail will lead to the Uzun-Tala clearing, from which you will have a view of the glacier and the snowy tops of the mountains. Even on a hot summer day, the glacier is covered with a layer of ice and snow, just like in winter. The Alibek glacier is not the only one in the vicinity of Dombay, but it is the largest. Unfortunately, the area of the glacier has been decreasing over the years, but it never ceases to amaze tourists with its power and contrast to the green forests and meadows.
Returning from the glacier back, you will meet a sign to the Alibek waterfall. The path to it is easy and will take no more than half an hour. The waterfall is 25 meters high and falls from smooth stones called “ram’s foreheads”. Alibek waterfall is powerful and loud, the splashes from it reach tourists a couple of kilometers from the waterfall.
Chuchkhur waterfall
This waterfall was formed from the Chuchkhur River. It descends from the Chuchkhur gorge to the Dombay-Ulgen gorge. The waterfall has three cascades that are easily accessible. The path starts from the village from the Crocus department. First you will pass Leah's glade, and then Russian glade. It will offer the first view of the waterfall. After the Russian Glade the trail will branch. Turning right leads to the gorge, and turning left leads to the Chuchkhur waterfall. The road to the waterfall will lie through alpine and subalpine meadows. Along the way you will encounter stone blocks higher than 5 meters, which were brought to the meadows by descending glaciers thousands of years ago.
The waterfall consists of three cascades. First, the trail leads to the middle cascade, from it you can climb to the upper one, but the trail there is more difficult and it’s not worth going in rainy weather. From the upper cascade there is a panoramic view of the Dombay-Ulgen peak (4046 m).
Another local attraction that is worth visiting during your holiday in Dombay. It is better to combine a walk to the Devil's Mill with a walk to the Amanauz gorge. There are signs to the waterfall. The main thing is not to get lost with it and not to go beyond the signs indicating the border zone.
During the hike to the Devil's Mill you will come across many small waterfalls and streams. These are all the results of melting glaciers. The waterfall itself passes through a narrow crevice in the shape of the letter S. The water falls along a steep inclined surface, forming a mill of jets. Near the Devil's Mill there is a small Observation deck on a steep cliff. Therefore, you should be extremely careful while walking.
The peak of Dombay-Ulgen captivates the attention of tourists at any time of the year. In summer, the icy tops bathe in the rays of the bright sun; in winter, the reflections of sunset can be seen on the snow cover. And in autumn, when the entire forest becomes colorful, the mountain looks even brighter and more contrasting. All year round The tops of the mountains are shrouded in snow and ice. The rapid Teberda River originates from the Ulgen glaciers, descending towards the village.
You can look at Mount Dombay-Ulgen from anywhere in the village. This mountain is the highest in the Western Caucasus. The mountain consists of three peaks with heights: 4046 m, 4036 m and 3950 m. From the main and high peak a ridge comes off, which is popularly called the “Dombay saddle”.
The lake is located not far between the Alibek and Bilingual glacier. If the hike to it is combined with a walk to the waterfall, you will have to return to the Alibek camp site and follow the signs to the lake. The trail will not be difficult, but in some places you will have to cross mountain rivers on bridges and walk along kurumniks. Kurumnik is a mound of stones, fragments of rocks and rocks.
Turje Lake is of glacial origin. The water there is bright blue and until mid-summer is covered with a layer of ice. Only the bravest travelers dare to swim in Lake Turye. Mountain goats, called aurochs, are often found near the lake. It was they who gave the name to this lake.
What else to see in Dombay
In addition to the listed attractions, there are many more places to visit in Dombay. No one will have the question “What to do?” and “What to do?”