Blue lakes. Fall.

The blue lakes formed about 100,000 years ago when tectonic changes destroyed the natural dam and the waters of the ancient Kurai Sea rushed down, sweeping away everything in its path.

Icebergs and fragments of fallen glacier dams rushed in a frenetic mess, massive boulders were carried along the bottom for 10-20 kilometers along a super current. The power of the catastrophic flood of the prehistoric Altai was enough to throw boulders weighing 100 tons and above through watersheds into neighboring valleys. Giant fragments of rocks, hitting the surface of the earth, left huge depressions, from which, among other things, three Blue Lakes were formed.

The blue lakes of Katun alternately appear in autumn, when the water level in Katun falls and exist until April. In winter springs do not allow lake water to freeze, even in severe frosts up to -30oC degrees. In the spring flood, the lakes disappear, and in their place there is another branch of the river with an islet of a small area in the middle.

The total area of the Blue Lakes of Katun is about 400 square meters, the depth reaches 17 meters.

The name Blue Lakes was given for the unusual color of the water: on a sunny day they are stunning blue. Local Altaians believe that the water of these lakes is healing, and it can be treated with eye diseases.