What is interesting to see in New Athos? Seaside holidays in New Athos: beaches, attractions, map and photos What you can visit in New Athos

New Athos – resort town in the Gudauta region of Abkhazia. Despite its modest size, this place is one of the most famous and visited by tourists. Pilgrims come here from different countries world, to touch the holy lands, where one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ, Simon the Canaanite, preached and died a martyr’s death.

Story

The first mention of the settlement of Anakopia on the site of present-day New Athos dates back to the 3rd century. They are connected with the developed trading activities of the city, which at that time was one of the main trading ports on the Black Sea coast. During the excavations, much evidence was found that the culture of the local residents was well developed.

In the 5th century, the Abkhazians built the Iverskaya fortress on the slope of the mountain. Two centuries later, a wall was erected to protect the fortress from the attacks of conquerors. By the end of the 8th century (during the period of troubles in Byzantium), Leon II arbitrarily declared himself king of Abkhazia. It is worth giving him his due; for these lands and the people of Abkhazia, he did everything in his power. Under his leadership, Anacopia was declared the capital of the country and flourished.

Later, the city was owned by the Byzantines, Genoese, and Turks. All of them, except the Turks, left a mark on this land in the form architectural structures that time. Then the Russians came, thanks to them, today we can admire the majestic monastery and the unique man-made gardens (with a system of artificial ponds) adjacent to it. All structures were erected by Russian monks who arrived on these shores from Greece.

Entertainment in New Athos

New Athos offers tourists little in terms of entertainment. This place is, first of all, the center of spiritual life. There are no nightclubs and restaurants, noisy discos, or drunken cheerful groups on the streets. People come here for a peaceful and measured holiday, which heals the soul from city stress and helps restore the nervous system.

Swimming in the clear sea, sunbathing and educational excursions - these are the entertainments New Athos offers its guests. Local kitchen will also not leave vacationers indifferent. Hospitable local residents sell aromatic delicacies of their own production, restaurants and cafes invite you to taste amazingly tasty Caucasian dishes.

New Athos is rich not only in amazing man-made attractions, there are many unique natural places. Among the must-see attractions when you come on vacation:

New Athos Simon-Kananitsky Monastery;
New Athos Cave;
grotto of Simon the Canaanite;
Novoafonskaya embankment.

IN late XIX centuries, Russian monks settled in the Psyrtskhi valley, who moved from the opposite shores of the Black Sea. In 1875, they began the construction of a monastery at the foot of the mountain, which is to this day the main attraction and pride of Abkhazia. The war with the Turks played a fatal role in its construction. The partially built buildings were destroyed by the Turks, and only a year after the end of the conflict the construction of the monastery was resumed.

In addition to the buildings of the monastery itself, the monks built a narrow-gauge railway here, which facilitated the construction process, cable cars to Mount Iverskaya and Mount Athos, a dam with a hydroelectric power station on the river. The surrounding area was cleared and landscaped, a beautiful park with artificial ponds and canals was laid out. The monks bred carp and mullet in them. Mountain slopes were planted with fruit trees, regularly producing juicy apples, olives, and tangerines.

The monastery buildings were erected for about 20 years; Emperor Alexander III took an indirect part in this. Upon completion of construction, the monastery was presented with chimes placed on the very high tower bell towers. In 1888, a chapel was built and an alley called Tsarskaya was laid out.

The Soviet period became critical for the monastery; its activities were suspended for anti-Soviet agitation. For almost 70 years, the monastery buildings were used by the Land of Soviets as a boarding house. Five years before the beginning of the new century, the Russian Orthodox Church carried out restoration work and restored the activity of the monastery. Today New Athos is the largest religious center on the Caucasian Black Sea coast.

In the Primorsky Park, in addition to the abundance of subtropical vegetation, there is a system of ponds. Previously, monks bred mullet, carp and crucian carp here; today their main inhabitants are beautiful swans. From the times of the Union, sculptures remained that symbolize Soviet time. This mixture of styles and times reflects the history of the park. You can admire the picturesque landscapes by sitting on benches located throughout the park for the convenience of tourists. Here you can take a photo, capturing this amazing romantic atmosphere as a memory.

Cave in New Athos

The New Athos cave is located in Iveron Mountain, the entrance is located near the monastery. It was opened in 1975 and immediately became a place visited by tourists. The cave stretches almost 2 km deep into the mountain; for ease of movement, there is a railway that can take tourists to the halls located 1.3 km from the entrance. There are 11 halls in total with many grottoes and galleries, there are even underground lakes. Electric lighting was installed in the halls, and all conditions were created for the convenience of 2 thousand tourists who visit this amazing attraction in one day.

Grotto of Simon the Canaanite

Simon the Canaanite is an apostle at whose wedding Christ turned water into wine. The shock from the influence of the personality of the God-man was so strong that Simon became one of the twelve followers of Christ and followed him, leaving his family. In the middle of the first century AD, he and Andrew the First-Called came to these places and preached the Word of God. Then Andrei followed further and reached the island of Valaam, and Simon remained in Anakopia, settled in a grotto and lived in it until the embittered Roman legionnaires killed him. A stone cross was erected at the site of the martyrdom of the apostle. The Grotto of Simon the Canaanite has been preserved almost in its original form; the passage to it was modified by the monks for ease of visiting. They installed a staircase and laid out mosaics depicting Jesus, the Mother of God and the Apostle Simon.

The embankment is especially beautiful in August, when pomegranates, acacias and magnolias bloom. It stretches for 6 km in length and its width is 35 meters. Tall broad-leaved palm trees are planted along the entire embankment, creating life-saving shade in the heat. It is always lively and noisy here, in the evening the lights turn on, the embankment acquires a special charm and mystery.

In addition to the attractions described, there are many more interesting places in the city and its surroundings for the inquisitive tourist. Among them are the Inexhaustible Well, Iverskaya Mountain, the Rock Garden, Stalin's dacha and about 30 more architectural and natural monuments.

By visiting the main spiritual shrine of Abkhazia, you will not only get an incredible healing effect and many vivid impressions from your vacation, but also put your thoughts and feelings in order.

I vacationed in New Athos in September 2017. I was lucky: I found myself in the company of a man who walked this city far and wide. He showed me all the sights and just Beautiful places New Athos. And I, in turn, will try to tell you about them.

The most famous sights of New Athos:

New Athos Cave (entrance 500 rubles). I highly recommend visiting. The cave is huge, the tour lasts more than an hour. By train you will go down into the cave and it will take you to the surface. You will need to walk about 1.5 kilometers. It's quite cool and damp there. Therefore, you need comfortable shoes and something warm (jacket, jacket).
Anakopia fortress. Located on the top of Iverskaya Mountain. The only restored tower of the fortress offers magnificent views of the city, sea and mountains. On the territory of the fortress there is an inexhaustible well from which you can draw water and the chapel of Our Lady of Iveron.
New Athos monastery. Very beautiful view the monastery opens from the side of the New Athos cave. The inside of the monastery is generally nothing special.
Abandoned railway station Psyrtskha.
Novoafonskaya hydroelectric power station is a huge waterfall in the city center. Located on the road from Psyrtskha station to Primorsky Park.
Gorge of the Psyrtskha River. The route starts from the stone turtle and ends with the cell of Simon the Canaanite.
Seaside Park - wonderful place for walks. Ponds with fish, bridges, flowers, statues from Soviet times. White and black swans, ostriches, peacocks, horses. Try to find the owls - this incredibly cute couple is sitting in a hollow next to one of the cafes in the park.
Stalin's dacha stands next to the monastery. If it will be free time, you can go.

All these attractions (except for the fortress) are located close to each other, almost in the city center. It may seem that it is very far to walk to the fortress and climb very high. But that's not true. Of course you will have to walk, but it’s not that scary.

About 2 kilometers from the city there are Three Cauldrons. At the bottom of the gorge there are three stone “baths” with the purest emerald water. The gorge itself is very picturesque. They go down the stairs into the gorge. To the left are the boilers, to the right is the waterfall. I didn’t see the waterfall, because there had been no rain for a long time and it simply dried up.

To get closer to the boilers, you need to climb down using a rope. If you are not in good physical shape, I think it is better not to do this. You will have to climb using the same ropes.

In the Armenian Gorge next to the railway tunnel there is a lake with a waterfall. They swim there, although the water is very cold, and they get water from a spring. You will have to swim to the spring. Water flows through a pipe directly from the rock above the lake.

The bravest ones dive into the lake after climbing up a rock. But the depth of the lake is different - somewhere deep, somewhere shallow. So before diving, check the depth.

New Athos is the richest city in Abkhazia. There are places to walk and things to see. But the most important thing in Abkhazia is nature: mountains, rivers, lakes, waterfalls.

I advise you to go on an excursion, for example to Lake Ritsa. The road to the lake and the lake itself make a strong impression.

Detailed photo article about seaside holidays in the resort of New Athos in Abkhazia in 2019. Attractions, beaches, map with GPS coordinates, where to stay, how to find accommodation, excursions, ways to get there on your own and more helpful information for tourists.

New Athos – holiday at sea in Abkhazia

New Athos is a calm and cozy Black Sea resort town in Abkhazia. Historically, the area has been known since the 3rd century, when the city of Anakopia (Trachea) existed here. At the end of the 19th century, monks from Greek Athos formed a monastery here. This is where the modern name of the city came from – New Athos.

For those who like to combine lying on the beach with interesting forays around the surrounding area, New Athos is an excellent choice. There will definitely be something to see here. If you come to New Athos for a seaside holiday, you can spend 2-3 hours every day visiting one or two attractions within walking distance (enough for a week). The beach infrastructure here is rather poorly developed, so lovers of holidays exclusively on the beach should choose or consider other resorts in Abkhazia.

Map of New Athos (Abkhazia)

New Athos on the map of Abkhazia:

The map is divided into layers that can be disabled/enabled in the settings. After clicking on the mark, the GPS coordinates of the selected object will be displayed.

Sights of New Athos

So, let’s list what you can see in New Athos. All attractions are marked on the map in the corresponding section of this article.

Description: New Athos Cave is the most popular attraction not only of New Athos, but throughout Abkhazia. A large karst cave with ponds, which you need to travel to by underground metro.
Coordinates GPS : 43.09065, 40.81001
Working hours: Summer – daily, seven days a week from 9.00 to 19.00. Autumn - spring - Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday from 10.00 to 18.00. The tour lasts 1.5 hours.
Ticket price: Adults and children over 8 years old - 500 rubles, children under 8 years old - free. Photography - 50 rub.

✔ Anakopia fortress on Iveron Mountain

Description: Ruin medieval fortress Anakopia rises above New Athos on Mount Iveron at an altitude of 344 m. There is an artificial spring of water on the territory. There is an observation deck on the tower. The climb up the mountain is quite tiring; it is better to follow an organized path. With us, my grandmother tried to take a shortcut along steep slopes and injured her leg (by the way, don’t forget before traveling to Abkhazia). The ascent takes about an hour. In the hot season, it is better to go in the morning or in the evening.
Coordinates GPS : 43.09459, 40.80807
Ticket price: Entrance - 150 rub. Parking - 100 rub.

✔Stalin's Dacha

Description: There are only a few rooms in the house. It felt like someone was even spending the night in the bedroom. Of all Stalin’s dachas in Abkhazia that are allowed for tourists to see, this is the only one we weren’t given a tour of. I liked it the least.
Coordinates GPS : 43.08872, 40.82626
Ticket price: 100 rub., access by car – 50 rub./person.

Stalin's Dacha

Description: The monastery was founded in the name of Simon the Canaanite in 1875 by monks from Athos (Greece). Hence the current name of the city - New Athos.
Coordinates GPS : 43.08816, 40.82087
Ticket price: for free.

Description: IN ancient church the relics of the Apostle Simon Kakanita rest.
Coordinates GPS : 43.09051, 40.8163

Description: A hydroelectric power station and a waterfall were created in 1882 to provide water to the inhabitants of the monastery.
Coordinates GPS : 43.09104, 40.81641

Description: A beautiful half-abandoned railway station with a pavilion above the lake of the same name Psyrtskha.
Coordinates GPS : 43.09189, 40.81575

✔

Description: A picturesque walking trail along the Psyrtskha River with iconic places of stay of the Apostle Simon the Canaanite.
Coordinates GPS : 43.09216, 40.81424
Ticket price: ?

Description: The seaside park in New Athos is located across the road from the sea, notable for its pond and swans.
Coordinates GPS : 43.08482, 40.81533

✔

Description: A memorial museum dedicated to the memory of those killed in the Georgian-Abkhazian war.
Coordinates GPS : 43.0847, 40.8125
Working hours: ?
Ticket price: for free.

✔Waterfall in the Armenian Gorge (near Iverskaya Mountain)

Description: A small picturesque natural waterfall. If you look at the waterfall, to the left of it you can climb the path and find a small artificial cave.
Coordinates GPS : 43.09157, 40.79942

✔

Description: - a natural attraction to the west of New Athos. It consists of depressions in the rock in the riverbed, which are shaped like three containers, which is where the name comes from. Beautiful place, there is a canyon nearby (the so-called “green”), along which you can take a walk. Attention - slippery!!!
Coordinates GPS : 43.1009, 40.804708
Ticket price: 100 rub.

⚠ If you come to New Athos from other resorts in Abkhazia public transport on one day, then for sightseeing you can use such a sequential route: Seaside Park – New Athos Monastery – Temple of Simon the Canaanite – artificial waterfall – Psyrtskha station – grottoes of Simon the Canaanite – New Athos Cave.

If you come by car, you can also capture the “Three Cauldrons”, the Anakopia fortress on Iverskaya Mountain and Stalin’s Dacha (from which you can easily get to the New Athos Monastery directly, avoiding extortion from local entrepreneurs and walking up the mountain, saving energy and time and money).

Excursions to New Athos

From other resorts in Abkhazia

✔Group . Excursions are sold everywhere in resort area. Cost for adults and children – 400 rubles. + ticket to New Athos Cave 500 rub. (optional).

✔ Individual , that is, with a personal guide in a car. The cost of such an excursion will cost around 3,500 rubles. for a group of tourists (1-3 people) or 900 rubles. per person (if the group is more than 3 people). You can see the description.

From Sochi (Adler)

✔Group . You can go to New Athos from Sochi (Adler) for one day group tour. Ask for prices and programs at tourist kiosks.

✔Individual . Cost – from 2400 rub. per person depending on the program and number of people (example).

Excursions around Abkhazia from New Athos

From New Athos you can travel by train.

✔Group . Public excursions sold in crowded tourist areas.

✔Individual . Excursions with a personal guide in his personal vehicle (usually an SUV). Convenient if you are relaxing with a group/family of 3-4 people. You can order on specialized websites or based on recommendations from friends. Examples are presented below.

Where to stay

Residential areas can be divided into three zones:

Housing areas in New Athos on the map

✔Residential area , where the main (most populated) part of the city is located - east of the historical part of New Athos. There are cafes, a market, shops, and a railway station. Housing is represented by numerous boarding houses, hotels and guest houses of various levels in the private sector. On the map at the beginning of the article the area is indicated in blue.

The best offers for hotels and guest houses in a residential area:

Guest house “Wonderful Garden” – rating 9,2 out of 10. Modern, clean guest house. The rooms have a private bathroom, free internet (weak), air conditioning, TV, refrigerator, hairdryer, kettle. The sea is a 2-minute walk away. There is a restaurant on site.
Guest House "Athos" – rating 8,5 out of 10. New guest house. The rooms have fast, free internet, air conditioning, TV, kettle. Private bathroom with hot water. The sea is across the road.

The route through the residential area of New Athos

✔Historical part the city where the main attractions of New Athos are located. Accommodation is represented by hotels and small sizes private sector. Guest houses are mainly located on a hill, so returning from the beach every day will not be pleasant for everyone. There are cafes and restaurants in the area. On the map at the beginning of the article the area is marked in red.

The best housing offers in the historical part:

Guest house "Riviera" – rating 8,9 out of 10. New guest house with friendly owners. The rooms have free internet, air conditioning, TV, kettle. Walking distance to the sights of New Athos.
Hotel Afon – rating 8,8 out of 10. New hotel with spacious clean rooms, pleasant service. Located near the sea. The rooms have free internet, air conditioning, TV, hairdryer. Free private parking is available on site.

✔Armenian Gorge (area of Topchana street) – west of the historical part. Represents a small private sector. On the map of New Athos at the beginning of the article, the area is indicated in yellow.

The best housing offers in the Armenian Gorge:

Guest house "Gladiator" – rating 9,3 out of 10. Guest house on the seashore with responsive owners. The rooms are clean, have a kettle and air conditioning. Shared bathroom with hot water, toilet and kitchen. In the courtyard there is a dining area, barbecue and private parking. Nearby there is a cafe and a shop.

How to find housing

Housing in New Athos, as in other places in Abkhazia, can be found in the following ways:

Search on site.
Search in advance via contacts from friends.
Search via communities on social networks.
Search and guaranteed booking through specialized sites: booking.com/novyj-afon (hotels and guest houses), airbnb (guest houses and private sector).
As part of the tour– you can view and book options on the websites, or.

Examples of housing:

Sea and beaches of New Athos

The resort of New Athos washes the Black Sea. If there is no storm, then the sea in New Athos is transparent and clean. In the mornings you can spot dolphins.

The beaches are pebble. Going into the water and sunbathing on pebbles is not a pleasant pleasure, so it is advisable to stock up on special rubber shoes and thick mats.

In general, all the beaches of New Athos are relatively clean and not crowded with vacationers. But the infrastructure is poorly developed. There are locker rooms and showers in some places, but their condition leaves much to be desired. Sun loungers and umbrellas can be found nearby large hotels(boarding houses). During the season, there are cafes on the shore in some places.

✔ Beaches to the east from historical district(from the side) the most popular, as they are located in a residential area of the city. All coastline divided by breakwaters. The beaches are pebble.

✔ Beaches in the historical area . The beaches of the historical part of the city are pebbly with small infrastructure in the form of changing rooms and showers. Parking for cars is paid - they ask for 150 rubles.

Beach view of the historic district

✔ Beaches to the west from the historical area (from Gagra, Gudauta). The sand and pebble beaches of New Athos are located here: pebbles at the water's edge, and sand in the sea.

How to get to New Athos

There are several options to get to New Athos on your own from other regions of Abkhazia:

By personal car . The main asphalt highway of Abkhazia leads from Sukhum, Gagra, Gudauta and other resorts to New Athos.
By public transport . Minibuses run regularly from (≈150 rubles), Gagra (≈120 rubles), Sukhum (≈50 rubles) and other resorts in Abkhazia.
By taxi . As an example, the cost of a trip from Gagra to New Athos will cost 1200-1300 rubles.

Details for help:

✔ Tinkoff map 4377 7237 4260 2448 Samorosenko Konstantin Igorevich (Elisha’s dad)

✔ Yandex money 410012258423394 Samorosenko Konstantin Igorevich (Elisha’s dad)

Sights of New Athos: photo with description on the map - Excursions of New Athos 2019 prices

The catalog contains the main attractions of New Athos with photos and descriptions, and a detailed map of their location. From the note you ask what New Athos is known for and what to see in it first, what worthy of attention places, monuments and natural beauties are available in its surroundings.

The history of New Athos is perfectly illustrated by the surviving construction monuments - and this is the main superiority of New Athos over other cities of Abkhazia.

Sights of New Athos - defensive buildings , made by the Byzantines in the 7th century, a stately monastery, a chapel, a grotto, a comfortable municipal park and a free embankment. In the vicinity of the town, not only the slides are fascinating, karst caves, thermal informants and dense forests, but also found historical artifacts - rock paintings, prints of old sites.

You can visit the most noteworthy places in New Athos in 2 days, creating an intensive excursion program.

The embankment in New Athos, which suggests a blossoming garden, is excellent for walks at any time of the year, and in the evening it is beautifully illuminated by dozens of lanterns. Basic suitable for a home holiday: in addition to landscape attractions and statues, the snow-white and dark swans that have chosen the district ponds attract interest.

They will suggest options for unusual routes according to the town and little-known ones interesting places, which traditionally do not enter into excursion programs in any way.

Extremely popular attractions of New Athos - , Of the main spiritual centers of the area, for the bulk of travelers, probably the only factor is to visit New Athos. The Lavra ensemble embraces 6 churches, connecting the main Panteleimon Temple - the largest religious building.

It is located within the town, but is surrounded by nature: the path to it runs through the depression of the Psyrtskha River.

Imbued with the spiritual splendor of the place, there is no need to rush back to the city: nearby there is a beautiful (true, fake) , a colorful discharge is revealed on Lake Psyrtskha.

Don’t forget about the city museums, which have collected artifacts that are very worthy of attention: you are allowed to visit them without the help of others. .

In New Athos there is a certain amount walking routes, leading to the main attractions and colorful natural places. The famous Road of Sinners allows you to feel the spirituality of the place along the path to the monastery, and the road is the Garden of Pebbles. The routes following natural attractions are no less interesting.

The most famous natural orientation in the vicinity of the town is , the largest in Abkhazia: the size of the karst cavity is about a million cubic meters. There are 6 halls for daily excursions, and along with the unusual stone formations, its attraction is the steel path for delivering travelers to the grotto.

Approximately 2.5 km. From the cave there is a magnificent place, famous as 3 cauldrons - probably 3 karst baths, the moisture in which has an emerald hue. This landmark is not included in the main routes, so there are not many people here.

Sights of New Athos: photo with description on the map. What to see, where to go on an excursion in New Athos in winter and summer 2019. Sights of New Athos in Abkhazia. Abkhazia New Athos attractions photo. New Athos attractions and entertainment 2019. New Athos attractions photos and descriptions. Abkhazia attractions. Excursions from Sochi to New Athos of Abkhazia. Abkhazia attractions excursions prices 2019.

Day 10. New Athos from the sky and from the ground 08/08/17 VTR

Monastic gorge - New Athos.

Mileage 110 km.

The next day of our stay on Abkhazian soil gave us new, bright and such diverse impressions! We saw all the sights of New Athos and took hundreds of photos. We went underground. We rose to the sky. We touched history. And they safely avoided meeting the president! What is hidden behind these metaphors? I'll tell you now. And I'll show you.

The main political event of the day - Russian President V.V. visited Abkhazia. Putin.

For some reason he often began to fly after us. Last year we were in Belarusian Minsk, and Vladimir Vladimirovich rushed there. Today we are in Abkhazia, and he is right there! Such attention is nice, but what if it’s not just a coincidence?

We expected some heightened security measures in the small republic, but we didn’t notice anything. Except that yesterday a couple of potholes were paved over on the main square of Pitsunda. In general, I assumed that Putin would go to Sukhum, where he would meet with local president Raul Khadzhimba. All the police will be gathered there. Therefore, I decided not to go to Sukhum for now. And visit the closer New Athos. After Ritsa, this is the second most visited place by tourists in Abkhazia.

Because Our friends were already in the New Athos Monastery and in the Anakopia Cave, so we went there without them. Unrelated to anything, we quickly had breakfast in the morning, swam and got ready for the road.

As already mentioned, the main route to the Monasheskoye Gorge lay through the center of Pitsunda and further along the coast to a dead end. But I saw on the map that there is a more direct road through the mountains to the Sukhumi highway. When I asked the hostess about this, she just winced. She said that the road there is bad, and they use it only in the spring, when the river flowing through the gorge overflows so much that it is impossible to cross it by car. In the summer, we crossed this stream every day quite calmly, more than once.

But if there is a road, and there is our almost “jeep” Qashqai, then why not drive through? In the morning, having rolled out of the gate, we turned not to the right as usual, but to the left and went to local mountains! Only at the beginning, where there were still remnants of broken asphalt, it was a little difficult to drive, but then a completely normal dirt road began, along which local horsemen are racing with all their might in VAZ classics. Mountain road can be called with some stretch. It simply flowed from one hill to another.

Found it not far from the pass comfortable spot in order to take some beautiful photographs of our car against the backdrop of the Abkhazian mountains. At this time, the wife managed to pick up some blackberries on the roadside bushes. All the wild hills in the area were covered with thickets of this thorny bush. Those who wished could independently pick any number of ripe, juicy berries.

After the pass the road went down. Gravel and small stones rustled unpleasantly under the wheels. But within ten minutes we drove out onto the asphalt of the Sukhumi highway, noticing the turn-off point in order to return back the same way. How thoughtful this was! The road through the mountains turned out to be not at all as bad as the locals described it. But if you go towards Gudauta, then almost 20 kilometers are cut off!

There were still about forty kilometers to New Athos, which we covered in an hour. We probably need to make a small digression and talk about Abkhaz roads. All road network Abkhazia is based on one main highway, which stretches across the entire country from Gagra in the north to the Gali region in the south. This is the Sukhumi-Abzhuyskoe highway. From the highway there are turns either to the sea or to the mountains. The asphalt is of pretty decent quality. But the markings are present sporadically. We didn't see any new asphalt or even road cars. Another feature of the local roads are cows that walk completely freely along the roadway. If the cow wants to, she can lie down in the middle of the highway, where the shadow of the tree falls. Cows are something! They roam throughout Abkhazia restless. It is not clear how their owners monitor them and whether they are milked, because cows can be seen on the road at any time of the day (such encounters are especially dangerous at night).

In Gudauta there is a Russian military base. Driving along the railway, which runs parallel to the Sukhumi highway, we could observe how military equipment was unloaded.

Here comes New Athos! Like all major Abkhaz cities, it is located on the seashore, occupying a narrow strip of land between water and mountains. Following the navigator's instructions, we get to the entrance to the cave. It’s difficult to find a free parking space nearby, so we drive a little further and pull into a paid parking lot. One hundred and fifty rubles seems like a small price to pay for a place in the shade of an old eucalyptus tree.

Taking windbreakers, we go to the entrance to the cave. There's a crowd of people there. Constantly driving up sightseeing buses. But the ticket office is located in the next room, through which tourists exit. They are allowed into the cave according to a schedule. Now tickets are on sale at 11-30. We will have to wait more than an hour, but nothing can be done. For two adults and a schoolchild we give 1,500 rubles. We return to the car. Vova feels bad again. The temperature has risen. They gave me Nurofen and put me to sleep.

Even from our parking spot there is a magnificent view of the New Athos Monastery. The shine of its domes is visible, it seems, from anywhere.

About 20 minutes before the appointed time we wake up Vova and go to the entrance. There's already a queue there. We started launching earlier, because... There are only two turnstiles at the entrance - you put your ticket in and go through. And behind the turnstiles is a real platform with an underground train.

The fact is that the cave, located in the depths of the Anakopia Mountain, has a natural entrance from the surface in the form of a well. I opened it not so long ago, about 50 years ago, local Givi Smyr, precisely by descending on a rope into a bottomless hole. A special branch of the underground railway was laid for tourists. Like the metro. A train consisting of five or six closed trailers. A little smaller than a real metro. It takes about five minutes to drive through the tunnel, and everyone comes out onto the station platform, where the tour of the cave begins.

Up to a hundred people are brought at the same time, who then go with a guide around tourist route. There are a couple more accompanying people in the group, who, without standing out in any way, keep order - so that they don’t touch anything with their hands, don’t lag behind, and don’t get ahead of themselves.

Along the entire route there is a concrete path with fencing for tourists. There are five or six stops at special viewing platforms. The cave is large, if not huge! Some halls are 20 meters high. The photographs, of course, don’t turn out well, God knows what, but they are still our own.

The route was laid out very competently. If at first you are only amazed by the huge grottoes, where there is nothing remarkable except lakes or clayey mud at the bottom. Then more and more appear in the halls various entities- stalactites, stalagmites, stalagnates. At the end, when it seems you can no longer be surprised by anything, you suddenly see a huge frozen stone waterfall. The combination of the openwork of the formation with its enormous size is impressive. How many thousands of years did it take to form?

This is not our first time underground. We also saw our Kungurskaya ice cave, and the Moravian cave Punkva, now we have passed the New Athos cave, but it is impossible to say which of them is more interesting. Each one has some zest. In Novoafonskaya - this, of course, is its huge volumes, the size of the sinter formations and the delivery of tourists back and forth by train.

Yes, after completing the entire route, we again went to the platform, where a familiar train was already waiting for us. But this platform was different, not the one we arrived at, but deeper. Driving to the surface, we rushed past the first one.

It's quite cool in the cave. Although the temperature of 12-14 degrees is considered high for underground passages, it is very chilly without outer clothing. We prudently took windbreakers with us, and people in T-shirts and T-shirts were openly shivering from the cold.

And one more life hack. An uncle sits at the entrance to the cave and sells permission for photography inside the cave for 50 rubles. You can safely ignore it, because in the cave no one controls it at all. And the drab receipts of some individual entrepreneur against the background of beautiful ones printed in the printing house entrance tickets caves, generally raise doubts about the legality of such a sale of permits.

And it's hot outside! To quench our thirst, we sampled two bottles of juice - tangerine (similar in color to carrot) and feijoa (more like gooseberry). We ate a sandwich and moved on. And our next goal is at the very top of the Anakopia Mountain, inside which we just walked. And this attraction is called the Anakopia Fortress.

We made half the way up the mountain by car. We reached a small parking lot, but all the spaces were occupied. The local parking attendant quickly resolved the situation and found a space for us, asking a taxi driver to drive away. It’s not a pity to pay 100 rubles for such a service.

Right there, at the beginning of the walking path to the mountain, there is a booth - entrance to the fortress territory is paid. Adult tickets are 200, school tickets are 100 rubles. We go further up the mountain on our own two feet. The stone-lined path winds in a serpentine pattern. The path is not at all easy and not close. It took us about an hour to reach the very top of the mountain. And this is 344 meters above sea level!

As we climbed, we first saw the lower belt of defensive fortifications with a dilapidated corner tower. Once upon a time, the capital of the Abkhazian kingdom was located here. And the fortifications on the top of the mountain were the most powerful in Black Sea coast. More than once foreign conquerors broke their teeth on these stones. Now the whole mountain is overgrown with trees. But the remains of formidable walls give the impression of a once large fortified city.

We go higher and higher - and now we are already at the very top, which is crowned by the remains of a once formidable citadel. The main tower of the fortress has been restored, and its top platform has an excellent observation deck. We will go up there again, but for now we will make a stop at the Anakopia inexhaustible well.

In general, the very location of the water source on the top of the mountain raises questions, and the fact that it is inexhaustible is even more strange. But you can draw water from it and drink it, which is what we did. So, if you go to Mount Anacopia, don’t skimp on water; at the top you can easily replenish your supplies.

From the top of the mountain there is a magnificent view of the entire New Athos. The domes of the monastery are golden, the sea is blue, the breeze is blowing - beauty. But we will rise, of course, even higher - to the upper platform of the tower. That's where the royal look comes from! Mamzyshkha was not standing nearby.

Again, like after visiting Malaya Ritsa, you get the feeling that you have escaped the tourist crowd and were able to get to where many are not allowed to go. No, here, on the top of the Anakopia Mountain, it is not deserted, but not noisy either. A dozen or two visitors scattered around the ruins, almost unnoticed.

For those who like to take a bird's eye view of the area, I definitely recommend observation deck on the tower of the Anakopia fortress. The view is gorgeous! You can say that you are surrounded by the quintessence of all of Abkhazia!

The way back is much easier and faster. Still going downhill. Half an hour without stopping, and we are near our car.

These adventures tired us out. There was even a thought to give up everything and go home to rest. But I remembered the old parable about how you don’t finish something, and then you won’t be able to come back and you’ll regret it. Therefore, gritting our teeth, we decide to continue our program. Moreover, despite the large number of points in it, they are all located nearby.

Having left the mountain, we set off towards the Psyrtskha gorge. Having driven through the tunnel, we find ourselves in a half-empty paid parking lot. Vova was left to sleep in an open car under the supervision of a parking attendant.

Through the bridge we approach the railway stopping area with a rather interesting pavilion. And the place is impressive too. On both sides high mountains. Railway emerges from the tunnel to disappear again under the mountain after 200 meters. A stopping area is located in this space. If you cross the path, then from there you can walk along the gorge to the cell where Simon the Canaanite (Zealot) lived, one of the twelve apostles-disciples of Jesus Christ. But the gorge is laid hiking trail, and there is an entrance fee. We hesitated - do we need to pay 500 rubles to see a small cave? Let's go in the opposite direction.

One side of the pavilion hangs over a small reservoir. Once upon a time, people used to ride on catamarans on this man-made lake. But now everything is overgrown with algae. At the end of the 19th century they wanted to build a hydroelectric power station here. They built a concrete dam 7-8 meters high. So they abandoned it. The dam still stands. And the water flows over its upper edge, forming an artificial waterfall, which has already become a landmark of New Athos. Below the waterfall there are parks with a lot of people walking around idly.

There is also a temple of Simon the Canaanite. The temple has been closed for restoration for many, many years. Can only be viewed from the outside. Opened its doors for those interested Archaeological Museum. But we didn’t want to, but returned to the car. They took a couple of bottles and filled them with water from a spring that flows down the mountain.

Now it’s the turn of the New Athos monastery itself. We enter the coordinates into the navigator, and it obediently leads us to the walls of the monastery. Many tourists arrive on buses and walk up the long stairs past the souvenir stands. The navigator led us onto a narrow winding path that rose straight to the monastery site. On the occasion of evening time, places on free parking have already been. But the number of people did not decrease. The monastery is one of the main attractions of Abkhazia. Tourists are brought here from all over by buses and livestock trucks.

The children were already tired and did not come with us, but my wife and I decided to visit this temple. At the entrance, women are given skirts, aprons and headscarves. Restoration work in the monastery continues gradually. But from the outside it now looks very decent. Much better than from the inside. IN main temple came in too. A service was taking place there, and only a small space was fenced off with ribbons for idle onlookers. We stomped around the door and on our way out.

Then we walked a little more along the parapet, from which the good view on the seaside part of New Athos and no less magnificent on Mount Anakopia on the opposite side. The top of the mountain is crowned by a tower. It's nice to know that we were there today!

Thus, we visited all the main attractions of New Athos. You can safely go towards home.

They decided to return along the same road, through the mountains, directly, without stopping at Pitsunda. From the Sukhumi Highway, the entrance to the pass is steeper, and the road has pebbles and gravel, making driving on them not very comfortable. But they still climbed up. We stopped again at the blackberry bushes. We ate some berries and drove down to the hotel.

And in Pitsunda that day the end of the world was happening! Our president “found out” that we were vacationing here, and decided to go not to Sukhum, but to Pitsunda! I arranged a rendezvous with my colleague under the canopy of relict pines at the state dacha. I don’t know how he got there, probably by helicopter, but all ground traffic was paralyzed. The roads are blocked. And there are only a few of them. No one could leave or enter anywhere! We had such a great time riding through the mountains today! No worries!

Vladimir Vladimirovich talked with the President of Abkhazia on tourism safety issues and signed another batch of contracts. He promised a few more yards of material assistance. And with that he left. Didn't stay the night.

We had dinner and also began to go to bed. We were still very concerned about our son’s health. The child walked with us all day with a fever as long as he had strength. Therefore, the next day we decided to go to an appointment with the same otolaryngologist at the resort clinic. Let him take a look and prescribe the right treatment.

Today turned out to be a great day! Its richness can be judged by the number of attractions we visited in New Athos. Five hundred photos were clicked! Of which I have the opportunity to show only a small part to the devoted reader who managed to overcome this long opus.

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