Nikolaevskaya fortress, Chelyabinsk region. All fortresses of the Leningrad region Nikolaev Fortress on the map

Gray-haired, shabby giants. It seems that they have grown into the ground like ancient stones, and are still keeping watch so that it is here, on their border, that the enemy does not enter their native land. Ancient fortresses are like honorable veterans, who, despite their age, still maintain a military bearing and are full of dignity and calm confidence in their indestructible strength, which is especially felt behind their walls, even if in some places they have long since failed.

Not only Western and Eastern Europe can boast a large number of ancient fortresses. There are about a dozen of them in the Leningrad region, not counting the castles and palaces, which sometimes also served as fortresses. A classic fortress is a fortification, surrounded by thick walls and, as a rule, a wide moat, having a permanent garrison, designed for long-term defense of a certain line in a state of siege. Over time, this description is supplemented by the romantic image of walls overgrown with grasses, soil dug by archaeological excavations, and numerous reenactment events and competitions. It is these fortresses of the Leningrad region that we will talk about today:

Korela Fortress

The Korela fortress, small in size and height, is located almost immediately at the entrance to the city of Priozersk, on the left side of the highway, on one of the countless islands of the Vuoksa River. Despite the fact that today there is a local history museum on its territory, neither the date of its foundation nor its earliest history are known for certain. Historical gossip claims that it was in this place that the mysterious Prince Rurik was buried in the 9th century, but the chronicle history begins only in the 13th century, when bloody battles took place between Russian and Swedish squads on the lands around the fortress. Korela changed hands several times, since it was a very important strategic object on the way “from the Varangians to the Greeks,” the possession of this fortress meant the possession of a huge trade flow. Over time, when Russian influence in these lands was finally established, due to the significant distance of the fortress from St. Petersburg, it was turned into a prison for political prisoners. Over the years, the family of Emelyan Pugachev, the rebellious soldiers of the Semyonovsky regiment and some rebellious Decembrists were kept in custody in Korel. Today, the Korela fortress has been properly restored and consists of a small courtyard, fortress walls and ramparts overgrown with grass, along which you can walk around it entirely, as well as a museum with a souvenir shop and the main fortress tower, the lower part of which can be entered freely, and the upper part can be entered only as part of a tour group.

Koporye

On the Izhora Upland, in the first half of the 13th century, the Koporye Fortress was founded by the knights of the Livonian Order. This was done for the same purpose as in the case of Korela. The pass was strategic and it urgently needed to be protected from Russian squads. However, a year later the fortress was captured by Alexander Nevsky and never passed to the valiant German Livonians. The Russian princes fought among themselves for these places, destroying Koporye to the ground and rebuilding it again. And in the face of an external threat from the Swedish state, the princes united and fought in unison, sometimes, to tell the truth, temporarily losing the fortress to the Swedes and winning it back. The fortress ceased to be a strategic defensive facility under Peter the Great, but still played its role during the Civil and Great Patriotic Wars. In the early 2000s, Koporskaya received the status of a museum and was open for free visits by tourists for a long time. However, due to the deplorable condition of the walls and ceilings, today you can visit Koporye only as part of an excursion group under the watchful supervision of guides. The fact is that the walls of the fortress, due to the large number of curious people, began to collapse much faster than during sieges by ancient troops. Intense destruction has become a threat to the health of tourists, which is why the fortress is closed most of the time. But this does not mean that the picturesque ruins cannot be photographed. A classic medieval building with high walls and four towers, one of which has almost completely crumbled, a high stone arched bridge over a dry moat and the spirit of another time - make this place one of the most romantic in the Leningrad region.

Staraya Ladoga Fortress

It stands on the high bank of the Volkhov River not far from the city of the same name and is one of the most visited tourist sites in the Leningrad region. It is considered one of the most formidable and impregnable fortresses on the northwestern borders of Rus'. Its history begins at the time of the accession to the Russian throne of the Scandinavian prince Rurik. At that time, the Staraya Ladoga Fortress was built for the first time to defend the strategic water trade route along the Volkhov. Destroyed to the ground after the Viking invasion, it was completely rebuilt and became even stronger. On a small island between Volkhov, Ladozhka and Zaklyuka, eight-meter walls, each three meters thick, appeared. And since then, with the exception of one small episode, the fortress has regularly performed its service, repelling attacks of foreign enemies one by one. At first it lost its strategic importance when Peter's troops pushed the Russian borders far to the north. Then it lost its commercial importance when the first railway appeared in Russia. Now it was no longer destroyed by enemies, but by evil winter winds. As a result, one of the towers completely collapsed inward and now gapes empty and overgrown with wild grasses. Even such a giant turned out to be powerless in the face of inexorable time. Since the beginning of the 70s of the last century, restoration work has been carried out in the Staraya Ladoga fortress, and one of the destroyed towers has again appeared above the river. Here is one of those places where time stands still and voices from the past rush over a small courtyard, over the heavy waters of the Volkhov, getting lost in underground corridors and guarding unsolved legends to this day.

Lyubsha fortress

The Lyubsha fortress, located just two kilometers from Staraya Ladoga, is called by historians and archaeologists nothing more than “the oldest stone city on the Volkhov.” It is located on the opposite bank from the village of Staraya Ladoga, opposite the famous mounds of the Sopki tract, where in ancient times there was the mouth of the Volkhov River. The fortress was discovered by archaeologists at the turn of the 1960s and 1970s. Its history is very bright, but very short. A stone-earth fortification about 50 meters in diameter appeared here on a high cape between Volkhov and the Lyubsha River around the beginning of the 8th century. It is called a city for a reason; the wall and earthen rampart around the fortress, according to excavations, reached 18 meters in thickness. Scientists suggest that before the Slavs appeared in these lands, an ancient Finno-Ugric tribe lived on the site of the Lyubsha fortress. Then the Scandinavians appear here. And only then did the Slavs build a real defensive line according to all the rules of early medieval fortification. Over its short history of one and a half centuries, the settlement was completely burned down twice, and was also subject to constant attacks from warlike Scandinavian tribes. And nature itself prevented the further development of the city. In the middle of the 9th century, the water level in Lake Ladoga suddenly dropped and the Lyubsha River became so shallow that a convenient port near the fortress ceased to exist. People left this place and moved to the area of ​​the Staraya Ladoga fortress, which initially had a less attractive location because the area was too swampy. If that natural disaster had not happened, it is possible that we could call the Lyubsha fortress the ancient capital of Rus'. Today, intensive archaeological excavations continue in this place, so you can get here in rare cases and only as part of special groups. You can admire the Lyubsha fortress thanks to the brush of the great Nicholas Roerich, who depicted it in the canvas “Overseas Guests”.

Fortress Oreshek

On the other side of Lake Ladoga, at the source of the Neva River, on Orekhovoy Island, near a place called Shlisselburg, there is another ancient fortress. So impregnable that it is commonly called Nut. It is located quite a distance from the coast, so you can only get to its territory by a small ferry. It is known for certain that this fortress was founded by the Novgorod prince Yuri Danilovich, the grandson of Alexander Nevsky, in 1323. For almost three hundred years it withstood constant attacks from the Swedes. They say that the icon of the Mother of God immured in the wall helped her with this. However, at the beginning of the 17th century and for almost a hundred years, the Swedes managed to recapture this Russian stronghold. Peter I returned it to Russia during the Northern War. And while another fortress was being built at the mouth of the Neva - St. Petersburg - the thick walls of the Oreshek fortress continued to protect the Russian borders. However, it soon turned from a military fortress into a military-political prison, a sort of Chateau d'If, where members of the royal family laying claim to the throne and the most objectionable political prisoners were kept. The fortress returned to its direct military purpose during the Great Patriotic War, when for 500 days a small garrison held back the attacks of German troops and defended the “Road of Life,” along which people were transported from besieged Leningrad to the mainland, and food was delivered to the city. The Germans fired at the fortress every day and mercilessly, but were unable to take it. All the internal buildings of the fortress, completely covered with traces of bullets and shells, remind us of the brutality of the battles today. All buildings are preserved in such a way as to remind visitors of the horrors of war and the perseverance of Russian soldiers. Since 1965, the Shlisselburg Fortress has become a branch of the State Museum of the History of Leningrad. The buildings of the Old Prison and the New Prison were restored and museumized, sections of the fortress wall were restored for visitors to view, the Royal, Sovereign and Golovin Towers were restored, and the Sovereign Bastion was cleared.

Ivangorod Fortress

In the west of the Leningrad region, on the Narva River, on the border with Estonia, there is an ancient outpost of Russian rulers - the Ivangorod fortress. It was erected by order of Ivan III to protect the western borders from Livonia. According to legend, when it was being built, they cut the skin of a horse into narrow strips and used them to mark the boundaries of the future building. Therefore, the original fortress was small in size, could not accommodate a large garrison and was taken by the Swedes at the first attack. Having recaptured the possessions, the king began energetically to rebuild and expand the fortress. The new building was distinguished by high fortification characteristics, because the most advanced achievements in the field of fortification and fortress architecture were used during construction. The Ivangorod fortress is considered the first and only regular building of this type in Russia. When all the strategic miscalculations regarding the banks and elevation changes were corrected, the fortress withstood numerous sieges for about two centuries in a row, but the Swedes managed to capture it and hold it for about a hundred years. But the troubled times passed and during the reign of Peter I the fortress again became Russian. Since then, only for a short time, during the First World War, the fortress fell to the enemy. The Ivangorod fortress failed to play a significant role during the Great Patriotic War. Its role was rather negative - concentration camps were located here. In addition, during the retreat, the Germans tried to destroy all the largest buildings on the territory of the fortress complex. Today the Ivangorod fortress has been restored and is open to free visits. However, there are rumors that under the fortress there are still unexplored tunnels and passages, access to which is completely blocked with stones.

Tiverskaya fortress

Not far from Priozersk, in the fast flow of the Vuoksa River, on the island of Tiure, there was located one of the most fortified fortresses in the North-West, which was called Tiverskaya. The topography of this area has changed greatly since then, and you can even get to the fortress by land. However, it is quite difficult to find it. Because at present, from the most fortified fortress, it has turned into the most destroyed. Historians still have thorough discussions about the year of its founding, as well as about the founders. Either it originally belonged to the Korels, or to the Novgorodians, or the remnants of pagans who desperately did not want to accept the Christian faith were hiding behind its walls. Nevertheless, the Swedes feared this fortress, which protected Korela from a direct attack, with terrible force and, at every suitable opportunity, leveled it to the ground. However, the Novgorod governors restored the fortification each time, making the new Tiverskaya fortress even stronger than the previous one. During its heyday, around the 15th century, the stone walls of the fortress reached two meters in height. They were built in a special way from huge local boulders, above which wooden parapets rose another two meters, bristling with stakes towards the enemy. This is exactly how the Tiverskaya fortress appears in the reconstructed images. The fortress served the Russian state until the 19th century, when the geology in these places changed significantly: the water level in the Vuoksa River dropped significantly, and the island of Tiuri itself became part of the mainland, the eastern branch of the river dried up and presented a bed of dry stone. Having lost its significance, the settlement began to gradually collapse. In addition, people also made an effort, breaking through the fortress walls for a new postal road. Today the Tiverskaya fortress is on the verge of complete oblivion. There is a large highway between the village of Melnikovo and the Priozerskaya highway, and the remains of the majestic structure are chaotic ruins of stones.

Annenkron Fortress (Annensky fortifications)

On the island of Tverdysh, within the city of Vyborg, is located one of the most powerful fortresses in the North-West. The length of its walls, which are built in the form of a large pointed crown, is about a kilometer, and Minikh, Hannibal and Suvorov had a hand in its construction at different times. Its name itself speaks about its shape. Annenkron translated from German means “Crown of Anne”, and in Russian, this fortress is called Annensky fortifications. Over the course of ten years, from 1730 to 1740, a huge stone wall grew around Vyborg, protecting the city in all strategic directions. Four bastions with ramparts lined with stone on all sides, and a wide and deep ditch on the north. Behind the walls there were roads protected from shelling, stone powder magazines, guardhouses, and even an engineering yard. Until the end of the reign of Catherine II, the fortress continued to be constantly strengthened and complicated, fearing an attack by the Swedes. However, this powerful fortification has not taken part in a single battle in its entire history. Therefore, today all the fortifications are in a sufficiently satisfactory condition for one to appreciate the full scale of the plan. The best views of the entire complex are from the historical obelisk in memory of Russian soldiers, located next to one of the entrances. Every year, more historical festivals and reconstructions are held on the territory of the complex.

Vysotsk Fortress (Trongsund)

The small port city of Vysotsk is located 20 kilometers from Vyborg on the archipelago of islands in the Vyborg Bay. It was founded by Peter I and until 1917 was called Trongsund. At Cape Otradny, the high walls and internal buildings of the Vysotsk fortress have been preserved to this day, in fairly good condition. Its history is interesting because the fortress was built faster than it was designed. Apraksin spoke to Emperor Peter I about the need to build a fortress in this area. Under his leadership, coastal batteries were erected, but the construction of a fortress never came to fruition. For almost a century and a half, builders could not decide in which place, on which island, it was best to begin construction from a tactical point of view. They chose from several options, and work began only in the second half of the 19th century. The fortress was built on a high rock almost next to the city. From an architectural point of view, the structure was a pentagon of earthen ramparts lined with granite slabs. On the territory of the fortress there was everything necessary: ​​food and artillery warehouses, a special officer’s house and even a telegraph. At the end of the construction work, the most advanced weapons were installed in the fortress: 30 long-range rifled guns. The Vysotsk fortress retained its military and strategic importance until the end of the First World War, but never entered into battle. Subsequently, all available weapons were removed from the fortress, but due to the absence of hostilities on its territory, all buildings have been preserved in excellent condition to this day. Today in the fortress you can explore both the underground casemates and safely climb to the highest point using the preserved stairs.

Yamgorod fortress

Loophole of the southwestern tower

Southwestern tower, first tier loophole

Pond acting as a moat on the east side

Yam Fortress. Engraving from the book by A. Olearius “Description of a Journey to Muscovy.” 1630-1640s

Yamgorod fortress around 1500

On the territory of today's city of Kingisepp, the village of Yam was founded many centuries ago. And since the village was at the intersection of important road routes, to protect it, construction of a fortress of the same name began at the end of the 14th century on the high bank of the Luga River. The fortress was considered one of the most powerful in this direction. It occupied an area of ​​about 0.2 hectares and was surrounded by walls 15 meters high. There were 28-meter watch towers at the four corners and along the perimeter, and the thickness of the walls was four meters. Today, all its greatness and power can only be appreciated thanks to ancient engravings. But it was precisely thanks to the protection of the fortress that the small village of Yam quickly grew to the status of a county town. For fifty years it was periodically besieged by Livonian squads and Swedish troops. However, invariably siege after siege, attack after attack ended in the defeat of the enemy. Sometimes, seeing the power of the Yamsky walls, the opponents burned the villages around the fortress out of anger, but never dared to storm. It also withstood a thirteen-day siege by the Livonian knights in the middle of the 15th century, but after their retreat the fortress had to be reconstructed, it was so seriously damaged. The endless Livonian Wars caused significant damage to the region's economy. Taking advantage of the critical situation for Russia, the Swedes began military operations and captured the previously impregnable fortress. However, after 9 years the Yamgorod fortress was returned to Russia. By order of Peter I, the village of Yam became the city of Yamburg and was donated to Menshikov. However, with the advent of Ivangorod, the significance of the fortress and the city itself was gradually lost, and by order of Empress Catherine II, the Yamgorod fortress was partially dismantled brick by brick. Today, of the eight bastions, only two can be seen, with the adjacent remains of the fortress moats and curtains.

Construction of the St. Nicholas Fortress began in 1836, and a little later the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker was erected on the territory of the fortress. The fortress was intended, like the Naslednitskaya fortress, to protect against raids by the nomadic detachments of the rebellious Sultan Kenisary Kasymov, during the period of expansion and strengthening of the Russian borders.

The Nikolaevskaya fortress, like the Naslednitskaya fortress, was built in the shape of a square 66.5 x 66.5 meters, but slightly larger than the Naslednitskaya fortress. The fortress has all the necessary attributes of a fortress: stone walls, the height of which is about four meters, observation towers, battlements on the walls and loopholes, as well as a forged lattice on the gate.

At first glance, the fortress does not seem to be a very serious fortification, but the nomads, knowing how to use only raid tactics, did not know how to conduct a long siege, did not have artillery and assault ladders. For them, even such low walls represented a very serious obstacle.

By the end of the 19th century, the Nikolaev Fortress completely lost its purpose, gradually turning into a temple fence...

In the mid-1990s, the fortress and the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker were restored, and services began to be held in the church again.

Currently, you can enter the temple territory only during divine services (when the priest arrives). The service schedule is traditionally posted on the gate.

How to get to the Nikolaev Fortress, GPS coordinates:

Nicholas Fortress is located on the border territories of Russia and Kazakhstan.

It is mandatory to take passports with you for all passengers - documents can be checked at any time.

The Auto Route must be combined with other architectural sites in this direction, for example, you can drive along the Auto Route: a mausoleum and two white stone fortresses (follow the link).

The distance from Yekaterinburg to the fortress is about 580 km. From Chelyabinsk
We leave towards the city of Yuzhnouralsk. From the city of Yuzhnouralsk we go to the city of Plast and then to the village. Varna - village Nikolaevka. You can also drive through the city of Troitsk, the distance is slightly shorter than through the city of Plast, but the traffic of heavy vehicles (trucks) is significantly higher.

The distance from Chelyabinsk to the fortress is about 360 km. From Perm
we leave in the direction of Yekaterinburg - Chelyabinsk (we pass it along the bypass) - Yuzhnouralsk. From the city of Yuzhnouralsk we go to the city of Plast and then to the village. Varna - village Nikolaevka. You can also drive through the city of Troitsk, the distance is slightly shorter than through the city of Plast, but the traffic of heavy vehicles (trucks) is significantly higher.

The distance from Perm to the fortress is about 935 km. From Ufa
we leave in the direction of Beloretsk - Magnitogorsk - village. Ferchampenoise - village. Kartaly - village Varna - village Nikolaevka.

The distance from Ufa to the fortress is about 630 km. we leave towards the city of Orsk - village. Bredy - village Varna - village Nikolaevka.
The distance from Orenburg to the fortress is about 695 km.

On the border of the Chelyabinsk region with Kazakhstan there are two little-known and little-studied fortresses - twins. One of them - Nikolaevskaya - is located in the village of Nikolaevka, Varna district, the other - Naslednitskaya - is located in the village of Naslednitsky, Bredinsky district, there are more than a hundred kilometers between them, but the fortresses have a lot in common.

Coordinates for GPS navigator

53.032778, 62.004722

Nicholas Fortress on the map

In the 30s of the 18th century, Orenburg governor V.A. Perovsky drew up a project for a new line of fortifications in the east of the province to prevent raids by nomads. Fortresses subsequently appeared along this line. However, the title plates indicate that the structures were built in the 17th century, but this is just a mistake by local historians.

According to various sources, there were five or more such fortresses. They were located every hundred kilometers, and redoubts were built between them. Since the nomads did not have artillery, these not very massive fortress walls coped well with their defensive function. During 1837 alone, the fortresses of the Orenburg border line had to withstand about fifty attacks organized by the Kazakh Sultan Kenesary Kasimov.

The Nikolaevskaya and Naslednitskaya fortresses are the only ones from that line of fortifications that have survived to this day on the territory of Russia. They were built according to the same standard design, which is why they are like two peas in a pod: a square fortress measuring 66.5x66.5 meters is surrounded by a battlemented wall, in the corners there are massive towers with embrasures, in the middle there are steel gates and, as researchers say, both have underground passages.

In the center of each fortress there is a temple, only in Nikolaevskaya there is a temple of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, and in Naslednitskaya there is a temple of the Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky.

The fact that both churches have survived to this day is largely due to the local residents. In Soviet times, when churches were destroyed everywhere and turned into cultural education institutions with the “light hand” of government agencies, these churches also had a hard time.

The Alexander Nevsky Temple, for example, was used for the needs of a machine-building station; inside there were machines and workers working.

Looters destroyed the churches, the paintings on the walls were irrevocably damaged by treasure hunters, and some of the icons were burned right in the church yard. The first priest of the Alexander Nevsky Church, Father Mikhail, was first persecuted and then sentenced to death.

Restoration of temples and fortress walls began relatively recently. Today both churches are active. The decoration of the temples is very modest: a wooden iconostasis, ancient icons on the walls, but luxury and beauty are not the main thing, there is a special, peaceful atmosphere here.

What fascinates in these places is not only the fortresses with their rich history, not only the landscapes from the cover, but also the absolutely amazing, kind and open people: be it a random passer-by or a priest. Everyone is ready to pay attention and provide assistance.

The exception is border guards. Since both fortresses are located next to real border posts, have your identification documents ready, otherwise you won’t be able to get through or get through.

How to get to the fortresses?

From Yekaterinburg you need to go along the Chelyabinsk highway to Troitsk, then to Stepnoye, then to Chesma, then to Varna, there will be a sign for Nikolaevka. The road is good all the way to the fortress, which is clearly visible when approaching the village. The total mileage is 500 kilometers.

To get to the Naslednitsky fortress, you need to drive from Varna to Kartaly, from there to Bredy, there you will find a sign for Naslednitsky. The last 15 kilometers are a dirt road. The total length of the route is about 700 kilometers.

In large regional centers: Varna, Bredy and Kartaly there are small, very budget motels where you can spend the night.

Naslednitskaya fortress
Naslednitskaya fortress
Nikolaev Fortress
Nikolaev Fortress
Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in the Nicholas Fortress

The easternmost point of the Chelyabinsk region. The border line cuts like a wedge into the territory of neighboring Kazakhstan. This is Varna district. Nikolaev Fortress- the ambitious brainchild of a grandiose Orenburg project - is visible from several kilometers away. In the 18th and 19th centuries, Cossacks protected the local population from raids by nomadic tribes - Kyrgyz-Aisaks, as the Kazakhs were called in the 18th century, who set up ambushes along rivers, in forest groves, attacked and took someone to Central Asia and sold them there.

In total, 5 fortresses (or more) were built according to a standard design, located at a distance of 100 kilometers from each other. They formed the line of the fortified area. Built around the same time. Redoubts were built between the fortresses. The Imperial, Konstantinovskaya, and Mikhailovskaya fortresses have not survived. And if they had survived, they would now be standing on the territory of Kazakhstan. And another Naslednitskaya is located further south in the Bredinsky district. It was built in 1835 and named after the heir to the throne Alexander, the future Second, who recently visited these lands. On the territory of the fortress there is a temple in honor of the Holy Prince Alexander Nevsky. There are more than a hundred kilometers between Nikolaevskaya and Naslednitskaya, but they look like twins. Within a radius of 20 kilometers around each fortress there were Cossack settlements.

Nikolaevskaya was built in 1836-1838. The temple in it is exactly the same, only in honor of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. The fortress was built of red brick of an unusual shape. The four towers in the corners are observation posts. There were also secret warehouses for gunpowder. The temple was not only a temple, but also a defensive element; it could be used for shooting during raids. In 1837 alone, the fortresses of the Orenburg border line withstood about 50 attacks by Kazakh nomads led by Khan (or Sultan) Kenesary Kasimov (aka Kene Khan and also Khan Kasym). This comrade zealously fought against Russia in 1837-1847.

The main task of the Cossack border guards was to patrol the border. The Nikolaev Fortress took 2 years to build. To be more precise, this is not a fortress, but a fortification, because the walls were not designed to withstand cannon strikes. But the nomads didn’t even have guns, and most importantly, they couldn’t jump over three-meter walls on horses. The fortress is small and remote. It withstood more than one raid by nomads. The biggest resistance came in 1839, when Nicholas Fortress Khan Kasym's detachment of about two thousand people attacked from the direction of Steppe. The Kazakhs now erected monuments to him, probably no less than the Bashkirs to their Salavat. There were no further serious attacks. The fortress regularly played the role of intimidation. The nomads, having arrived on the other side and seeing these powerful walls, immediately quickly realized that they could not interfere further.

The history of the fortress is connected with the name of the famous Vladimir Dahl, a compiler of an explanatory dictionary and an expert on Russian literature. They say that he personally participated in the selection of a site for the construction of the fortress. In 1833, Dahl was sent to serve in Orenburg, where he became an official for special assignments under the military governor.

Today, the forged cast-iron gates open once a week on Thursdays for parishioners of the small church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, which miraculously survived the years of Soviet power. There are not many of them, 5-10 local residents, and the priest comes 90 km from Varna. They say that an underground passage came from the fortress, which led far beyond its borders. They even tried to find him, but abandoned the idea. The bell for the temple was once brought all the way from Nizhny Novgorod, there were many icons. But vandals in the 30s destroyed everything, including the cemetery. Here in the temple there was a granary, and grain chests were stuffed with icons, gravestones were stolen around the house. In 1979, it was decided to restore the temple and fortress. Restorers from Kyiv removed the domes, crosses and took them away. After a while they returned it but without gilding. Everything in the Alexander Nevsky Church was also destroyed. But both of these temples have survived and are now working. The decoration is very modest. There is no luxury here, unlike the capital's churches. As the elders of Optina Hermitage predicted: “Everything will be in gold, but there will be no grace.” So here it’s just the opposite. Grace and such a special peaceful atmosphere. Once in the Nikolaev Fortress, you need to climb the bell tower of the fortress church, to its windy height. The Ayat River will sparkle below. Its rather steep bank will rise and disappear towards the horizon. Somewhere to the south is foreign land. The new line returned after 1991 and the collapse of the Union.

And we present to your attention our walk from Ropsha, through Kipen, to Wolkowice. We passed it at the end of February 2016, it was about 20 kilometers. We walked it and were almost not tired, but you can also ride a bicycle....

It all started in the morning on Leninsky Prospekt, where we were waiting for minibus 639a. We waited, 50 minutes drive - and we were there :)

Unfortunately - or fortunately, there is no way to get into the palace now - there is a fence, security, scaffolding. For decades, since the 90s, the palace stood, burned and collapsed, and reached the extreme state of devastation. Now they have taken on it, and perhaps they will restore it :) And, perhaps, access will be free... For now, just look at two photographs - what the palace was like at the beginning of the 20th century, and a couple of years ago...

In addition to the palace, there are other attractions in Ropsha. In summer it’s nice to walk through Ropshinsky Park, along the banks of the ponds. But now, in February, we also saw a war memorial dedicated to the Ropshin operation of 1944, when our troops liberated Ropsha. The KV-1 tank of Captain Pilyutin was the first to enter Ropsha, was hit and burned. Later it was placed on a pedestal.... For extreme sports fans, you can even climb inside....

Not far from the tank, there is the Orthodox Church of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Or rather, its ruins. We pass by a modern small wooden church and approach the ruins. According to legend, it was built by the son of Alexander Nevsky, Dmitry (no wonder the church is called Dmitrievskaya in the Census Book of 1500), during Swedish rule it was a church, under Peter the Great it was a house church... Rebuilt in the 18th century, it stood almost until the end of the 20th century centuries, after which it instantly collapsed....

A strange picture, mirrors and tape recorders, cow skulls and strange things probably symbolize the victory of the bright beginning, spring and goodness :)

In the village of Malye Gorki we leave the highway onto country roads. At the local cemetery there is a ruined church of Peter and Paul, built in 1798, belonging to the local Lutheran parish of Rops. All that was left was the walls...

And on the way we almost celebrated another New Year :)))

When the well-trodden path ends, we follow it further. Probably, we should take out contracts for tracking in the snow :)

We pass Bolshaya Gorki unnoticed, and find ourselves in Nizhnyaya Kipeni, near the Valley of Springs. Kipen is an old Russian word meaning a boiling spring gushing upward. But the springs are now being crushed (I only recently realized that we are still rising upward, 3 mm per year, after the departure of the glacier 12 thousand years ago). Nevertheless, they exist, there is also a valley (or rather, a valley ) springs, and they form a small stream :)

Where the stream forms a small backwater, small colorful delicacies swim in the water - colorful trout :) And nearby is a half-abandoned water tower, which is impossible not to climb.

This stream, by the way, is the source of the Strelka River, which is in Strelna. Next we follow along the stream. It gets bigger and bigger - and we understand that we are on the wrong bank :) We have to get across....

With the help of a bridge and a stick, we did it :) A little more through the snow - and we go out along the road, another kilometer along the road - and we come out to the Nikolaev Amusement Fortress...
The fortress is the creation of just one person, a local resident, Nikolai Rogozev (the fortress group is in contact.