(Tib. “Place of practice and implementation”) founded on May 15, 1995. This amazing place, in which you understand your atomic involvement in the creation of the Universe. Shad Tchup Ling is the place where the Sun is born!

Today I will tell you about my May Day trip to Mount Kachkanar, to visit the inhabitants of Shad Tchup Ling, and I will touch a little on the topic of creation and the amazing tranquility of people who have changed their everyday life.

My trip to Mount Kachkanar to the Shad Tchup Ling Monastery took place in early spring - May 6, 2016. I started my ascent from the barrier of the Western Quarry, because the passage through Kosya is difficult to pass in the spring. A lot of melting snow.

For those who decide to visit the community, my advice to you is to call them and ask them what to bring. This is not a mandatory action, of course, but as part of hospitality, they always welcome useful gifts from guests. This time I brought them cereals, bread and vegetable oil. The community telephone number is the same: +7 965 529 2708.

The climb to Kachkanar through the Western Quarry is like a long walk; the total distance from the barrier to the monastery is about 8.5 km. The entire climb is on a dirt road, so wear shoes with thick soles, otherwise your feet will hurt very much by the middle of the journey.

Getting to the entrance of the Western Quarry is very simple - you drive into Kachkanar, drive to Krylova Street and follow it straight all the time until you hit the barrier. Here you leave the car and go around the checkpoint through the forest to the left of the checkpoint, because Security will only let you through the barrier if you have a pass. Then the path goes along a dirt road, all turns are to the left. After about 1.5 km there will be a large turn to the left. On it, if you go straight, you can go out to an observation deck, which offers an interesting view of the Western Quarry. If you chose the route correctly and kept turning left, you will come to a tree with ribbons and a sign indicating the route: Camel Mountain - straight, monastery to the right.

The road from the sign to the community itself passes through a very picturesque forest. I was much luckier - my route passed through a spring forest, which revealed its natural artistic potential in all its colors.

The foot of the Buddhist community appears in a fabulous silhouette in the rays of the spring sun, like a fabulous impregnable castle that you must conquer. Just not with a weapon, but by stopping the internal dialogue.

The ascent along the kurumnik to the monastery is, in my opinion, the most colorful element of the entire route. Stepping carefully from stone to stone, you rise closer and closer. Closer to yourself and your questions.

The entire territory of the monastery is under active construction, the community is always open to help and is waiting for volunteers. The demolition of Shad Tchup Ling has temporarily stopped: the Kachkanar Mining and Processing Plant has frozen the development of the deposit until 2028, and the monastery, in turn, will receive landmark status. Therefore, I think this unique monument of a different faith will forever be preserved on the Ural soil!

This is a lift for cargo and building materials from the steepest section of the trail:

On the trail in good weather Yes, on weekends there are constantly pilgrims, curious and simply tourists passing through the monastery insofar as.

on the right in the hole - hens with chicks

Solar panels hang here and there on the walls. There is a bathhouse, they will also offer to take a steam bath in it if it is ready.

Water is taken from two clean lakes under the stones. This is a rarity and treasure at the top of the mountain.

Here - drinking

And here - for household needs:

an improvised aqueduct-pipeline is visible. Everything is thought out and convenient.

Vegetable garden: This is where we came out for the first time

So here they crumble extra rocks - they heat them up and hit them with a sledgehammer

They will not tear down the monastery for a quarry in the near future - either the economic crisis is to blame, or this is the way things are.

Pleasant and unusual place, is appropriate here regardless of whether you are a Buddhist or just good man. I'm glad I visited here again.

60 years ago on the outskirts Sverdlovsk region, around iron ore deposits, the city of Kachkanar and its mining and processing plant arose. In the mid-90s, in the mountain forests, just a few kilometers from the quarry, a graduate of the Buryat datsan founded a Buddhist monastery, the construction of which is still ongoing. Several years ago, the plant (owned by the Evraz Group of Companies, 31% of whose shares are owned by Roman Abramovich) announced a new development zone, the monastery falls within its boundaries. Thus, the interests of the Buddhist community and the metallurgical corporation intersected - and according to the law should not be resolved in favor of the monastery. In the meantime, Buddhists argue with the plant authorities and bailiffs, life continues at the top of the mountain.

Over the course of a year, The Village photographer Anna Marchenkova documented how Shad Tchup Ling lives and who finds refuge where the winter temperature drops to minus 40. We tell the stories of people who are building a Buddhist monastery on the outskirts of the Urals.

Dokshit and its top

In Russia, Buddhism is the traditional religion of three peoples - Buryats, Tuvans and Kalmyks. All of them profess Tibetan, or northern, Buddhism, and the main Buddhist center of the country is located in Ulan-Ude. There, at the Ivolginsky datsan, there is a Buddhist University and the residence of the main Buddhist of Russia. Every year, two dozen novices - huvaraks - are recruited to the university, and for five years they study Buddhist philosophy, oriental medicine, tantrism and meditation techniques, Buryat and Tibetan languages. As in a secular university, graduates receive diplomas higher education, and also religious ranks: men become lamas, women - khandams.

Now in Russia there are just over half a million practicing Buddhists; monasteries and temples operate in Kalmykia, Buryatia, Tuva, Irkutsk, Trans-Baikal Territory, Moscow and St. Petersburg. The only monastery in the Urals, where the Buddhist religion has never been traditional, the former military sniper Mikhail Sannikov began building in the spring of 1995.

In 1981, under a contract, he went to serve in Afghanistan, where he destroyed caravans with weapons from Pakistan. After the service, in the early 90s, Mikhail entered the tantric faculty of the institute at the Ivolginsky datsan, from where he left with a new name - now the lama’s name is Sanye Tenzin Dokshit. The teacher, Pema Jang, instructed Dokshit to build a monastery in the Urals - and he himself chose the place. In 1995, the lama climbed Mount Kachkanar and began building a Buddhist center in no man’s land, not far from the local mining and processing plant. Dokshit named the future monastery at an altitude of 887 meters in the Urals Shad Tchup Ling, or “Place of Practice and Realization.”

Stupas among the snow

At the top, the lama built the first house with his own hands: he burned meter-long boulders on fires, pounded them with a sledgehammer, installed electricity, and built a lift for heavy loads on a steep slope. Here he brought the first students - 22 years later they turned a wild mountain plateau into a Buddhist complex of several living rooms, a yoga room, a library, a workshop, warehouses and ritual premises.

There is no actual monastery on the territory of the complex yet, but there is already places of worship- Buddhist stupas. On a patch between the rocks, members of the community built the large and small stupas of the Awakening, the Parinirvana Stupa, and laid the foundation of the Tushita Descent from Heaven Stupa. In total, in the tradition of Tibetan Buddhism there are eight types of stupas associated with different stages of the life of the Buddha. They differ in architectural details in the middle part: the Parinirvana stupa is shaped like a bell and symbolizes the perfect wisdom of the Buddha, the Convergence stupa is different big amount steps. It is the stupas that truly protect Shad Tchup Ling because they are cultural heritage sites.

Only Dokshit and a couple of his followers remain permanently at the top of Kachkanar. In summer, 13–15 people live in a small community, in winter - half that number. Faces change, as does the reason why people are here. Students on sabbatical and searching for themselves, former military personnel and aspiring Buddhists rise to the top. The path up begins at the western checkpoint of the plant - the parties maintain silent neutrality, and therefore the path leads several meters into the forest to the left of the checkpoint. In the summer you walk six kilometers on gravel, another two along the roots of mountain pines, moss and kurum; In winter, on a well-trodden path, you can walk even faster. Kachkanar, where 40 thousand miners live, remains far below. Almost 300 kilometers to the west is Yekaterinburg.

Community members keep a logbook on LiveJournal and page“VKontakte”, they answer a common mobile phone. The log records the work done during the day, the names of those who live here permanently, and the number of tourists who have come in recent days. They also leave notes there for those who are going up and want to help the monastery - they ask to buy carrots and cereals, salt, matches, light building materials like self-adhesive film. Occasionally, donations for something large, like solar panels, are announced on social networks.

Danil

Seven years ago, Danil rode 500 kilometers on a bicycle to get to Kachkanar. He is the lama's eldest disciple and never interacts with tourists. A lot has changed here since he came to the top.

“Even in my youth, I wanted to get rich and started playing on the stock exchange and doing online trading. He loved analyzing financial processes and loved adrenaline. I dreamed of earning a lot of money, going somewhere by the sea, sitting at my laptop, drinking juice, and in the evening going to the teacher and talking about the meaning of life.

One day I was sitting at the computer and realized that I was getting dumber. God, I’m 30 years old, I’ll sit in front of the monitor for another 10–20 years - and nothing will change. I started looking online for someone to inspire me and came across the biography of Lama Dokshita. I got on my bike and rode off.

Seven years ago I knew nothing about Buddhism. It was difficult for me to accept this worldview; I did not want to agree that the essence of life is suffering. He said that he was happy - he was afraid that if I took it, I would really suffer.

Over the years I have become a different person, I have probably become sad. Previously, I was so happy about going to clubs, alcohol, girls and purchases that spoke of high status - but now I realized that there was no point in chasing after this, because there would always be not enough. I destroyed everything that made me happy before, but I didn’t find anything that made me happy now. And I’m going to go further: take a monastic vow and go to Mongolia or India to continue my search.”

Shad Tchup Ling without monks

For 20 years, Lama Dokshit has been building a monastery with his own hands and accepting new followers, whom he teaches Buddhist practice and diligent work. But while construction continues at the top of the mountain, the community remains secular - Buddhist monks are prohibited from engaging in physical labor. If each of those who chop stones or grow vegetables in the garden between the rocks becomes a monk, life in Shad Tchup Ling will stop. And while there are no monks at the top, the “Place of Practice and Realization” cannot be called a monastery.

There is almost an army routine in the community. Life glimmers in a narrow room with a stove and linoleum. During the day, those on duty in the kitchen prepare a simple soup from cereals and carrots, and in the evening, in the room heated for the night, the lama’s students lay out tourist foams and sleeping bags in order to get up promptly at six and start the everyday whirlwind of meditation and work. To stay in the monastery, you just need to ask permission from Dokshit and be prepared for hard physical labor. During the construction season, work on the summit continues until eight in the evening - with breaks for Buddhist practice, lunch and dinner. Twice a week a bathhouse is heated here, and on weekends they meet groups of tourists who sleep interspersed with novices or in tents away from the monastic housing.

A typical morning in August, when it’s already freezing at the top: after two hours of practice, the girls break the ice on a small pond and scoop up water to make breakfast and tea. In the yoga house, novices grind the moss, being careful not to damage the spores. They are needed to sprinkle them on a five-meter sculpture of a dragon, assembled from moss and polymer mesh. In spring the dragon will turn green. Over the summer, the novices built a gym, installed solar panels and built a statue of Buddha over the reliquary, where the monastery shrines are kept. In the last days of August, men cover the statue with white paint.

By November, the construction season ends, and the students who decided to spend the winter on the mountain melt snow and ice to get water, care for chickens and cows, prepare food for the dogs guarding the approaches to the monastery, chop wood and collect brushwood. The girls are busy sewing and preparing tea: each Buddhist community has its own secret recipe - in Shad Tchup Ling, for example, they love fireweed. There are fewer tourists; In winter, novices devote themselves to practice and prayer.

Travelers come and go - some stay for a week, others for six months. Satima lived here the longest; for several years at the top, she sewed thousands of colored flags, patchwork quilts and light fleece suits for students. Satima is currently undergoing training in India to become the first nun from the top of Kachkanar in the spring.

The lama teaches those who want to study Buddhism under the “Discovery of Buddhism” program. The student writes a statement and remains under the watchful eye of the lama for three months, strictly observing the rules of the community. Afterwards, it is customary to ask Dokshit for refuge and perform 111 thousand prostrations - a Buddhist practice that should help the student cleanse himself of vices and develop virtues. In Shad Tchup Ling, prostration is performed on special boards, wearing gloves: the one who performs the ritual lies down on the board, and then rises and stands with his feet where his face was just located. A hundred thousand prostrations take weeks and months, followed by a conversation with the lama. And if Dokshit believes that the student has not completely cleared his mind, he continues to work on himself in a special retreat house, reading mantras alone for days and receiving food from other members of the community. Afterwards the conversation is repeated.

Maksim

The big, bearded and smiling guy at first does not want to tell why he is in the monastery. “You see, I had problems. But it is not important. The main thing is that everything is fine now,” he says and leaves to clear the snow. The next time he decides to talk in the workshop where he worked all day.

“Life went topsy-turvy after the army. I served the required two years and agreed to serve under a contract and signed a report. It was September 2004. The next day I was taken to liberate a school in Beslan.

Those who went through a terrorist attack while protecting hostages are not given any psychological help. But something had to be done with these memories. I needed to calm down. I started with heroin and tried every drug available. After three years of service, he returned to his native Kachkanar as a drug addict.

Addiction made me violent. This is understandable in war: if you don’t kill, they will kill you. But even after returning I didn’t consider people as people. I perceived my parents as a source of money, and silently beat strangers who said rude things to me half to death. They were taken to intensive care, and a statement was written against me. Then everything repeated again.

One day I left the house and realized that there was nowhere to fall further. Here, in Kachkanar, everyone knows about the monastery, and out of desperation I went up the mountain. When I told Lama Dokshit about everything, he replied that he would think about what could be done. And he silently gave a job, like everyone else who decides to stay. So, while I was working, it was as if I was turned 180 degrees. I couldn’t get drugs, I got rid of my addiction, and suddenly I started communicating with people. It’s still strange to me that my mother speaks to me again in a loving voice - as if I was a child, and she was putting me to bed.

Valya doesn’t answer the lama, she’s lost in thought. Valya is 31, born in Perm, worked as an accountant in Moscow. She has been tormented by psoriasis almost her entire adult life.

“Before, there were rashes all over my face. I was embarrassed to go out to people: it’s ugly, unaesthetic, and everyone always pesters me with questions. Psoriasis appeared when I had a fight with my parents and left home. They say genetic predisposition is to blame, but no one in my family was sick. I'm the only one unlucky.

In Moscow I worked an awful lot. I was so tired of the routine that I moved out of the rented apartment, gave away all my things and went traveling - I wanted to find a cure for psoriasis. I lived in India for two years. Salty water and the sun gave a cosmetic effect, the disease went inside, but did not disappear. When I returned to Russia, exacerbations began again. Here, on the mountain, I want to cure my head, because any disease is psychosomatic. Once I’m cured myself, I’ll start helping others.

I came here in deep depression, and now no worms can get into my head. It’s too beautiful here for heavy thoughts: I go out into the yard, look around, and happiness goes off scale.”

The dog barks - the caravan moves on

For the last two years, the monastery has been under threat of demolition. In the depths of the mountain on which it is located there are deposits of titanomagnetite ore. Eight kilometers below, explosions thunder every day: after a ten-minute siren, two short signals sound, and clouds of crushed rock rise into the air. When the resource of the Western Quarry is exhausted, Evraz will need a new deposit - the same one next to which the Buddhist stupas of the Shad Tchup Ling monastery stand. The complex falls within the sanitary protection zone of the new quarry, where any construction is prohibited.

Mikhail Sannikov started construction illegally, and therefore the enterprise has the right to expel uninvited guests from its territory. Lama Dokshit tried more than once to legalize his buildings, negotiated with the administration of the city and the plant, but in February 2017, the Bailiff Service issued a decree on the demolition of the monastery. Then the authorities and social activists, including musician Boris Grebenshchikov, stood up for the Buddhists, and the bailiffs, because of the washed out road, were unable to hand over the decree to the lama for a long time. Along the way, it turned out that the construction equipment needed for demolition was unlikely to climb up the steep slope to the top. The question hangs in the air, and life on the mountain continues.

From time to time, a new turn occurs in the conflict. For example, a month ago, State Duma deputy Andrei Alshevskikh submitted a request to the administration of the governor of the Sverdlovsk region about how the group to preserve the monastery is working. In response, the administration sent a letter with the results of the examination conducted by the St. Petersburg state museum religion. They said that the religious organization on top of Kachkanar was illegitimate because it did not have a charter, and could not yet be considered a monastery because it did not have the required number of monks.

In response to the results of the examination, the residents of Shad Tchup Ling shrug their shoulders. After the news about the examination, they contacted the main specialist of the museum, and it turned out that the specialist did not know about the study. In the spring, the first nun of the monastery, Satima, will return from India, and then others will study. The dog will bark, and the caravan will move on.

Mount Kachkanar located near city ​​of the same name in the Sverdlovsk region, approximately 260 kilometers from Yekaterinburg.

Kachkanar is one of the most high mountains Middle Urals, reaching a height of 887.6 meters above sea level. It is composed of gabbro, peridotite and pyroxenite rocks.

Toponymists believe that the name of the mountain comes from the Turkic words “kachka” - bald and “nar” - camel.

Near the mountain lies the border of two parts of the world - Europe and Asia, as well as two regions - the Sverdlovsk region and the Perm region. Near the mountain there were gold and platinum mines.

The first scientific description of Mount Kachkanar was made by a traveler in the Urals in 1770 Academician P.S. Pallas in the book “Travel through different provinces of the Russian Empire” (1786). The Voguls showed Pallas two mines where magnetic iron ore had previously been mined.

In the 1860s, the Kachkanar massif was studied by the famous geologist A.P. Karpinsky, who later headed the Academy of Sciences.

In 1957, construction began at the foot of the mountain Kachkanarsky mining and processing plant, soon one of the youngest cities in the Sverdlovsk region grew up here - city ​​of Kachkanar.

Currently, the development of titanomagnetite ores of Mount Kachkanar continues, existing huge quarries are being expanded, and new ones are being planned.

Mount Kachkanar has two peaks - northern and southern. They are called the "Northern Horn" and the "Noon Horn" respectively. Each of them is beautiful in its own way, each offering a magnificent view (the city of Kachkanar is visible only from the southern peak).

At the top of the mountain there are many strangely shaped rock remains. Many of them have their own names. The most famous remnant is camel rock.

In 1995, on the top of Mount Kachkanar, Buddhist monastery "Shad Tchup Ling"(translated from Tibetan - Place of practice and implementation). Its founder is Mikhail Sannikov. The monastery has long become the main attraction of Kachkanar. Many tourists come to visit the only Buddhist monastery in the Urals; the inhabitants of the monastery do not refuse anyone. There are two stupas built in the monastery, which are considered shrines.

However, very soon the monastery, built over many years by the hands of several enthusiasts, may be wiped off the face of the earth. EVRAZ, which owns the Kachkanarsky Vanadium Mining and Processing Plant, demands the demolition of “unauthorized buildings.” Enterprises and authorities at all levels are on the side.

So, instead of a monastery on this picturesque place another quarry should be formed by 2015... At the same time, while destroying the only local attractions (the mountain and the monastery), the authorities of Kachkanar are talking about grandiose plans for the development of tourism.

In general, have time to visit Mount Kachkanar and the only Buddhist monastery in the Urals before it’s too late!..

How to get to Mount Kachkanar

1. Exit to the foot of Mount Kachkanar

From the administrative square of Kachkanar (see photo), onto Krylova Street (north) towards the bus station (200 m).

Kachkanar city administration building

Further along Krylova to the fork of the Western Quarry - the village of Valerianovsk. We are heading towards the Western Quarry. We pass the peninsula with the dispensary" Cape Verde" (on the left) and we go out to the dam. On the right Railway, on the left is a bay with a tower rising from the water. We pass the dam and see a parking lot on the left. At this point, we consider the first stage to be completed.

2. We go to the southern peak

The southern peak of Mount Kachkanar (yes, the mountain has two high points, and the highest, northern one, is not visible from the city), although it is not the highest point, it is worth visiting. The path there is not as well-trodden by tourists as to the northern peak. The view of the city of Kachkanar is only possible from the southern height. The summit rocks are compactly located. The path is about 6 kilometers with a constant uphill climb. The slope is small, so it can be overcome in one transition.

If you have a car, you will have to leave it on the site. On the left we find a path running along the shore and move along it. You need to walk to the old ski slope (600 m). You can walk along the shore, but it’s better to go uphill, so that later you’ll have to crawl up the clearing less often. The climb is steep. Having climbed to the very top, we follow the road to the left.

View from the old ski slope

After 100 meters we go out onto the road and go right, after 100 meters we turn left. We walk along the forest road without turning anywhere. At first unimportant, the road gradually widens and becomes better. After about 3.5 kilometers, you must not miss the path to the top. The road at this point goes to the right, and the path goes straight. The beginning of the path (N 58g 44m 58s; B 59g 24m 52s) is usually marked with ribbons on the trees. We go onto the path and after about 15-20 minutes we come out to the rock massifs. It’s better to remember or mark the exit of the path so that when you go back you don’t get lost in the surrounding area.

The rocks of the southern peak used to have slabs with names. Now all that remains of the slabs are holes in the stone.

Views from the southern summit

3. Let's go to mountain lake

Before the northern peak, on the mountain there is lake. Apparently they took samples of ore and dug a pit, which was subsequently filled with water. You can stop near the lake for a rest or overnight. There is a barbecue and a gazebo.

Lake on the site of a former mine

There is a road to the lake itself, but you can drive by car only with passes, since the road passes through the territory of the Kachkanarsky Mining and Processing Plant.

From the site (see point 1) we move further along the road. After about 2 kilometers there will be a security post at the Kachkanarsky GOK. If you are driving, feel free to leave the car in front of the post. Then we go on foot. We reach the buildings and follow the road to the left. After 300 meters, on the left, there will be a checkpoint ski slope(see photo), but we go straight with a slight deviation to the right.

Passage to the ski slope

Almost immediately there will be a wide road to the right, but we don’t need to go there, we go straight up the mountain with a slight slope. After turning left the road will go around Western Quarry. There will be many paths to the right. You can follow them to the edge of the pit and watch the quarry at work.

Western Quarry

I’ll say right away that the Western Quarry has Observation deck which will be on our way. Now we have reached the turn of the road to the left (about 1 kilometer away), we go there. But, if you go straight a little, on the right there will be an observation deck of the Western Quarry at the highest point.

Observation deck of the Western Quarry

But let's get back on the road. Distance from observation deck The lake is approximately 4 kilometers away.

Road

A little before reaching the lake, the path to the Buddhist monastery begins.

The beginning of the path to the Buddhist monastery

4. We go from the mountain lake to the Camel rock and to the top of Mount Kachkanar

To climb the mountain, you need to go around the lake (preferably on the left), follow the path to a clearing and start climbing. After about 700-800 meters, rock outcrops will begin and a platform with a gazebo will appear. From the site you need to turn onto the left path. Let me make a reservation right away that if you go to the right, the path will lead straight to the Buddhist monastery. But we are going to the Camel, and I’ll tell you about the monastery further. Passing through rocky rubble Camel rock appears in all its glory.

Rock "Camel"

After looking at the panorama and climbing the rock, we go further to the top, which is already visible from the Camel.

View from "Camel"

The path to the top begins immediately behind the Camel. After walking for 10-15 minutes we approach the top of Mount Kachkanar from which a panorama opens to the north. The most high point marked by a concrete structure with a pipe. Directly below the mountain is the village of Kosya, a little further from Pokap, in the northeast you can see the buildings of the monastery.

The top of Mount Kachkanar

View from the top of the villages of Kosya and Pokap

View of the monastery buildings from the top of Mount Kachkanar

Gagarin's Rock

5. We go from the mountain lake to the Shad Tchup Ling monastery

As I already mentioned, you can also get to the Shad Tchup Ling Monastery via the road leading to the top. But you need to understand that the monastery is not just a landmark and just coming to stare there is not welcome. If you want to be given attention and given a tour, and also treated to local tea, then it is better to plan such an event. It is not customary to come to the monastery empty-handed. Food is welcome: sugar, tea, cookies, cereals, etc. Also, near the beginning of the path to the monastery there are building materials, and if you take bricks, boards, or whatever else is there, it will be good.

So, the beginning of the path to the Shad Tchup Ling monastery is not far from the lake on the way from Kachkanar. There is no way you can miss this place. You can see piles of building materials, old cars, a sign reminding “Friend. When you go to the monastery, take some bricks, don’t allow empty runs,” as well as a sign for tourists indicating that it is not at all necessary to go through the monastery to the Camel.

After about a kilometer, a large clearing with a cable crossing will appear, along which construction materials are dragged into the monastery.

Glade with cable crossing

Monastery Notice Board

The monastery has two stupas, living quarters, a bathhouse, a guest house, and a farmstead. Constant construction is underway.

M.V. Malakhov wrote about Kachkanar in the 19th century:

“I climbed Kachkanar from the east, from where access is considered less convenient than from the west. Having passed Mount Elovaya, which is the eastern spur of Kachkanar and covered with fragments of rocks very similar to Kachkanar in its general character and content of magnetic iron ore, we began to climb Kachkanar The entire rise is covered with boulders; the bulk of them consists of grains of augite with veins of magnetic iron ore. We observed its first significant occurrence on the large terrace of the Isovsky slope of the mountain in typical coarse-grained augite rock. The co-occurrence of iron and this rock here is apparently not accidental. , which is confirmed by further observations throughout the entire rise to. northern peak From this occurrence, magnetic iron ore was found at every step, but in small veins only, as well as on the northernmost peak. Heading from here along the slope of the Kachkanar peak, you have to go down into the hollow separating both peaks. Further, the signs of magnetic iron ore disappear and sharply appear again in the vast placer of magnetic iron ore located at the base of Kachkanar."

A trip to Kachkanar can be combined with a visit to Mount Kolpaki.

Monastery on Mount Kachkanar

Welcome to Mount Kachkanar!

© Alexander PETROV (route description, photo),
Kachkanar, 2011
© Pavel Raspopov (place description)
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