On Ayu-Dag for snowdrops

Mount Ayu-Dag noticed by everyone who has ever passed on the southern coast of the Crimea. And even those who do not know the translation of these two Crimean Tatar words, unmistakably guess the name in Russian - Bear Mountain. This huge "bear" is difficult not to notice, because it is so loose that its head is far into the sea, and overgrown with forest sides extend for many kilometers in the direction of Big Yalta and Alushta.
Why some are limited to views of Ayu-Dag from afar, because there are many beautiful and interesting things on the mountain itself. For example, a quarter of the entire flora of the Crimea is found here. Medieval ruins, wild beaches...

Legend of Mount Ayu-Dag

There are even legends about this mountain. The most beautiful and a little sad.

Long ago, there were no people on the Crimean coast and only animals lived on the peninsula. Especially there were huge and ferocious bears. Once to the coast nailed the wreckage of the ship, and among them a pack of bears found a package with a little girl. The leader decided to keep the baby. The girl grew up among bears and was their universal favorite. She became a beautiful girl and her wonderful songs could touch the most severe bear heart.

One day she saw a boat on the shore, in which lay an exhausted young man. He escaped from slavery in a foreign country, but the elements were too strong, which did not allow him to swim to his native shores. The girl hid the young man and took care of him for a long time. He told her about his native land, where there are many people who live happily with each other.

The girl was fascinated by the young man and his stories, and the two lovers decided to swim away together. When the guy got stronger, they made a sail for the boat and left. They were far away when they returned from a long journey of bears. Seeing their favorite far in the sea, they became furious and fell to the water, greedily trying to drink the whole sea. The boat began to spin, and it began to quickly pull to the shore. The girl realized that her beloved was in danger of death, and she began to sing her most beautiful songs, urging the bears to leave them. The animals stopped drinking and listened to the songs. Only the leader of the pack did not rise from the water, but he stopped drinking. So there was a huge bear lying in the sea, looking at the receding boat. For a long time he lay... his head and torso were petrified, his sides turned into sheer rocks and he was all overgrown with forest “wool”...

A little history.

The legend of Ayu-Dag is impressive, but the legends are legends, and there is quite real historical evidence of what happened on the mountain.

There were found silicon tools, the remains of pagan sanctuaries, a Christian burial ground, the ruins of medieval fortresses and temples. In general, it is a real historical and archaeological monument. Most of the information is about the Middle Ages.

From the VIII to the end of the XV century there were settlements, and the monastery of the holy Apostles Peter and Paul operated. Then people left and Ayu-Dag became uninhabited. It seems to me quite plausible that this happened after the great earthquake in 1423. After it began the gradual dehydration of the mountain, so people left it after fifty years. The name of the mountain is unclear. It is the Crimean Tatars called it a bear, but it is possible that earlier the mountain was called simply Aya - the saint. And it had to do with her places of power, which I'll talk about later.

Ayu-Dag today

So, today the Ayu-Dag mountain is a couple of kilometers of unique rocks that jut into the sea. The mountain is not easy, because it is not formed by sedimentary rocks and is not a continuation of the ridge of the Crimean mountains. Ayu-Dag is a failed volcano that is made of magmatic rock. For scientists, the territory of the mountain is an open-air mineral museum. When you walk along the path, you yourself notice unusual stones that fall in smooth pieces and form mounds.
I have already said that there are a lot of plant species here: oak, robe, small strawberry, juniper, jasmine and dozens of other species. 44 of them are listed in the Red Book. In early spring, for example, the “back of the bear” is covered with snowdrops. On Ayu-Dag, there are all kinds of animals: foxes, badgers, hedgehogs, hares, squirrels, sparrows, doves, woodpeckers, owls, uji, yellowpouse, lizards. On the coast, the seagulls found excellent dwellings on the rocks.

- Transfer (there and back), Guide
- Insurance.
- Visit to Ayu-Dag Mountain;
- Visit to the Partenit embankment