Prospects for the development of winter tourism in the southern Urals. Prospects for the development of tourism in the Urals

Fascinating tourist trip the Ural Mountains are simply a paradise for tourists: river rafting, hiking, descents into caves, extreme tourism in the air, on the water and in the mountains. We will help you choose popular tour or create a new direction, we'll give useful tips and show interesting photo trips and video reports.

Tourism in the Urals

Tourist hiking and water tourism, as well as speleological exploration of caves that allow you to dive into the depths of our planet and reveal the secrets of the underground world with your own eyes.

How pleasant is the physical fatigue of a mortal body during rest - after a whole day of hiking with a backpack on your back through a green forest, hills or mountains, how many thoughts will you change your mind while you are walking? natural environment human habitat, which is not an artificial man-made city. Wildlife with springs, rivers, forests and mountains - this is a real cozy home to live in.

And here you are, so tired in the evening after a delicious dinner with a pleasant heaviness in your stomach, sitting near the fire, around which intimate conversations are taking place, exposing people’s hearts and removing masks from their faces. Then you direct your gaze to the night sky, there, under the firmament, a stunning view opens up - thousands of stars amid the darkness of the universe outline mysterious constellations, then the realization comes that for the sake of this moment it was worth going on a hike and enduring difficulties on the road all day. Hiking, is quite developed in the Ural region, you can go hiking in summer and winter, as there are many mountains and natural monuments that impress with their splendor and beauty, changing their appearance depending on the time of year, making the travel route more interesting and unforgettable.

There are also many rivers in the Urals that are suitable for water tourism (for kayaking and rafting), which attract travelers from different countries for getting thrills when overcoming dangerous rapids of a reservoir and also enjoying the contemplation of the amazing landscape. Most rivers are of the first and second categories of difficulty. The rivers are available for rafting from mid-May to September. For speleologists in the Urals there are many caves and grottoes for which people keen on underground travel have created speleological routes, some of which extend for tens or even hundreds of kilometers. Since the Urals are large and beautiful, we decided to describe routes for hiking and water sports tourism, as well as caves for speleologists. This information will be useful for those who like to combine extreme sport and outdoor tourism.

Introduction

Despite the dynamic growth of tourism over last years, Russia is still far behind leading countries in terms of the main indicators of tourism development. Tourism is considered as a source of financial income for the budget system Russian Federation, a means of increasing employment and quality of life of the population, a way to maintain the health of citizens, a basis for the development of the socio-cultural environment and the education of patriotism, as well as a powerful tool for education and the formation of a moral platform for the development of civil society.

Study current state tourism in the Russian Federation allows us to draw conclusions about positive dynamics in the development of this area. There is an increase in domestic and inbound tourist flows.

Russia, thanks to its unique natural and cultural potential, as well as interest foreign tourists as a new direction has every reason for the development of most types of tourism.

1. Tour development. industry at the moment

Over the past few years, holidays in the Southern Urals have been experiencing a tourist boom. Ski resorts are actively developing, old ones are being transformed and new sanatoriums, boarding houses and recreation centers are being built. Guests and residents of the region are attracted by the picturesque nature, unique healing factors, historical and cultural monuments, Ural cities and villages. The Southern Urals are considered the land of lakes, of which there are more than 3 thousand. Holidays in the Chelyabinsk region also include ecologically clean areas, nature reserves and national parks.

To develop domestic tourism in the Chelyabinsk region, it is planned to create zones united by one theme and attractions. According to the authorities, the tourism sector should develop according to a cluster system. The emphasis will be on different types tourism: recreational, health, environmental, amateur, educational, industrial, event, sports and others. The creation of a tourism cluster in the Southern Urals was discussed by guests of the press center of the State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company "Southern Urals"

Currently, the regional Ministry of Culture is preparing an application for inclusion of the project in the federal target program "Development of domestic and inbound tourism in the Russian Federation for 2011 - 2018." If the Chelyabinsk region project receives federal support, the region will be provided with 1 billion rubles. for tourism development

The terrain of the Southern Urals allows you to expand the geography and the direction itself winter tourism, as well as winter sports.

Currently, only 102 types of sports are cultivated in the Chelyabinsk region, including 17 winter sports, which are practiced by more than 55 thousand people.

The most popular are cross-country skiing - 27 thousand people, ice hockey - 13 thousand people, speed skating - 6.5 thousand people.

In recent years, thanks to the revival of the Spartakiad movement in Russia, new sports have been successfully developing in the region: freestyle, snowboarding, ski jumping, Nordic combined, curling, short track, sledding.

Today, winter sports have the following material base:

10 sports complexes With artificial ice,
261 ski resorts,
2 ski stadiums,
1 biathlon shooting range,
17 ski centers,
380 hockey fields, more than 300 skating rinks for public skating.

The unified regional calendar plan for physical education events and sports competitions provides for the holding of 400 winter sports events throughout the year. This includes regional sports competitions for students “Olympic Hopes of the Southern Urals”, sports competitions for students of primary, secondary and higher vocational education institutions, rural youth “Ural Snowstorm”, orphanages and boarding schools, among the disabled and the elderly.

In recent years, mass events have been revived, including the “Ski Track of Russia”, where from 30 to 40 thousand people participate, the “Golden Puck”, “Snow Ball”, “Silver Skates” tournaments, ski races for the prizes of the Council of the Ural Ski Battalions and annual competition for the prizes of the four-time Olympic champion in biathlon “V. Tikhonov’s Ski Track”, in the village of Uyskoye.

Work on preparing a sports reserve for winter sports is carried out in 65 sports schools and specialized departments with a total of 17,106 people involved. The best results are shown by the South Urals in the following disciplines: speed skating, hockey, alpine skiing, freestyle skiing, snowboarding, and curling.

The First Spartakiad of Russian Students left a bright mark in the memory of the residents of the Chelyabinsk region as a major sporting event and the result of fruitful work to strengthen the material base, purchase equipment and inventory for the development of winter sports. Using funds from the federal budget and other sources of funding, inventory and equipment worth more than 40 million rubles were purchased for sports facilities and sports schools.

Chelyabinsk region, which has good experience holding major sporting events, and for the achieved results in youth sports, the right to host the 1st Winter Youth Spartakiad of Russia, which starts in a month in 6 cities of the region, was entrusted. According to the decree of the Governor of the Chelyabinsk Region, 34.7 million rubles were allocated for the purchase of equipment and inventory, repair of sports facilities. Expenses from the federal budget for the preparation and organization of the Spartakiad will amount to 50 million rubles.

All sports equipment: machines for pouring ice, snowcats for preparation ski slopes, snow cannons, equipment for bandy, alpine skiing, biathlon, luge and skeleton sleds and other equipment are transferred to sports facilities and children's sports schools.

Olympic training. The ice palace hosts training camps for over 15 thousand athletes from 30 regions of the country, and hosts more than 40 competitions and other events a year. Up to 500 thousand people use public skating services throughout the year.

The development of physical culture and sports, including winter sports, largely depends on the position of the heads of municipalities. New forms of physical culture and health-improving work are appearing in cities and regions, programs and comprehensive plans for improving the health of the population are being adopted. In Chelyabinsk, Magnitogorsk, Satka, Plast, Chebarkul and other territories, the construction of sports grounds, hockey courts, and ice towns is actively underway.

Currently, the task has been set to revive and create conditions for active rest residents of the South Urals through the construction, on co-financing terms, of illuminated ski slopes and other low-cost structures. For these purposes, 25 million rubles have been allocated from the regional budget, and in 2017 similar facilities will appear in 15 municipalities.

2. Winter tourism industry

The tourism industry of the Chelyabinsk region consists of 17 ski centers, of which the most developed are: Abzakovo, Metallurg-Magnitogorsk, Adzhigardak (Asha), Zavyalikha (Trekhgorny) and Sunny Valley"(Miass), which together with the sports and tourist complex "Golden Beach" is part of the National Park of Sports and Tourism "Turgoyak". The park is constantly developing, in 2015 the volume of investments amounted to 300 million rubles, the planned volume of investments by 2016 is 1.2 billion rubles. Up to 180 thousand people visit the center annually; the volume of services over the past year amounted to 150 million rubles. In the future, there is the creation of an international level infrastructure for competitions, active recreation, tourism and recreation with visits of up to 350 thousand people per year.

Ski center "Abzakovo" includes 13 ski slopes with artificial lighting and developed infrastructure, with a total capacity of 5 thousand people per hour. In 2015, the number of visitors amounted to 222 thousand people living not only in the Chelyabinsk region, but also in many other territories of the country.

In recent years, thanks to active advertising and information activities Chelyabinsk region has become attractive to tourists from other regions of Russia. Participation in numerous domestic and foreign exhibitions, holding promotional tours throughout the region, creating films, regular coverage of tourism resources in central media mass media allowed us to change attitudes towards the Chelyabinsk region. Every year the flow of tourists, including foreign ones, increases and currently amounts to about 80 thousand people per year. At the end of 2015, the region was awarded the Golden Crown prize in the category “Development of Inbound Tourism” of the international award “Tourism Industry Leaders”.

Sports tourism in the region is practiced in 885 associations, centers and stations of young tourists, the number of participants is more than 15 thousand people. Over 2 thousand hikes are held annually, in which up to 25 thousand people participate, and 56 tourist routes have been created.

6 universities, 2 colleges and 2 branches of SUSU in the branch of the Moscow International Academy of Tourism are engaged in training personnel in the field of tourism industry. 600 people are studying at SUSU, 350 people at UralGUFK. Student conferences and exhibitions on various tourism topics are held 2-3 times a year. The Chelyabinsk region is the initiator of the Russian Student Olympiad “Tourist Mecca”, which is held annually at SUSU with the participation of representatives from many regions of Russia.

In order to further effectively work to create a healthy lifestyle for the population of the region, organize leisure time, and attract young people to mass physical culture and sports, it is planned to implement:

- development of the law of the Chelyabinsk region “On physical culture and sports” in a new edition;
- development of the law of the Chelyabinsk region “On tourism” regarding the accreditation of tourist and recreational centers of the Chelyabinsk region”;
- further strengthening of the material and technical base of physical culture and sports: including construction ice palace in Chelyabinsk, a biathlon complex and a ski stadium in Zlatoust, physical education and sports complexes with artificial ice in the cities of Satka, Chebarkul, Snezhinsk, illuminated ski slopes in 15 municipalities;
- increase in the number of children and teenagers involved in winter sports in sports schools to 14.5% of the total number;
- ensure high-quality training of South Ural athletes for Russian national teams in winter sports, win at least 320 medals at all-Russian and international competitions;
- increase the number of workers employed in the tourism sector to 14.5 thousand people.

The Southern Urals are an ideal place for winter active recreation. Winter here is frosty and snowy, and the mountains covered with a white blanket shine in the sun, striking with their grandeur and beauty. An exotic journey on a horse-drawn sleigh or on horseback along forest and mountain paths passes along snow-covered spurs and ridges.

Holidays in the Urals have become a “return” for many tourists. And this is not surprising. The beauty of the Ural land is multifaceted. It is not possible to comprehend all the attractiveness of the Urals in one trip. Tours to the Urals will introduce you to this beauty. Starting from the southern part, the natural treasures of the Urals open up.

Geographical location: The Urals are located at the junction of Europe and Asia. The main part of the region is the Ural mountain system. Includes the Southern Urals, Middle Urals, Northern Urals, Subpolar Urals and Polar Urals.

You can experience all the delights of a real Russian winter only in the Southern Urals! Winter holidays in the Urals are not only about admiring the fabulous winter landscapes, but also about meeting the rich national traditions indigenous population while visiting small ancient Ural cities. It will also be a good idea to relax by engaging in active sports or making an unforgettable horseback riding trip. The Southern Urals seem to be specially created for a good winter pastime.

Conclusion

In winter, the main entertainment for active recreation lovers of the Urals and tourists coming to the Urals is horseback riding. alpine skiing. In the Urals, like in any mountains, there are places to ride. There are many ski slopes here to suit every taste, many of them equipped with the latest technology. You can find trails for both professionals and those who are starting to ski or snowboard for the first time. Active recreation in nature will be remembered for a long time.

There are more than five dozen ski centers in the Urals with a total length of more than 200 kilometers. The leaders in terms of quantity are Bashkortostan, Chelyabinsk and Sverdlovsk regions.

The largest ski centers in the Urals in terms of length of slopes.

You can also note the development of other types of winter active recreation. Great growth and interest of tourists from different regions. The general increase in lovers of active and passive recreation among schoolchildren, students and young people.

Every year, the Southern Urals are rapidly developing the tourism sector and especially winter tourism.

Therefore, it is possible to conclude that the Southern Urals is a promising direction for the development of winter tourism.

Bibliography

1. Geography of Tourism. Textbook A.Yu. Alexander2 - corrected edition. And addition - M: KNORUS, 2009. - 592.
2. Alexandrova A. Yu. international tourism: Textbook / manual for universities. M.: Aspect Press, 2001.
3. Aleksandrova A. Yu. Structure of the tourist market: Textbook / manual for universities. M.: Solo-Press, 2002.
4. Ananyev M.A. International tourism. - M.: International relations

The Ural region is the easternmost region of the Center of Russia. It occupies the mountains of the Urals, Cis-Urals and Trans-Urals. Administratively, it includes the Perm, Yekaterinburg, Chelyabinsk regions, Bashkiria and East End Udmurtia. Characteristics of the recreational and tourism potential of the region involves highlighting the features of assessing socio-economic parameters and recreational and tourism resources of the Ural region: The region is politically stable, is in the leading political positions in the Russian Federation in terms of initiative and legislative activity. The Ural region is rich in unique natural monuments and attractions. The Urals are located between the European part of the country, Siberia and Central Asia, with which it is connected by a developed transport network. The region has a relatively high level of development of market infrastructure. The Urals have a historically high intellectual, scientific, technical and cultural potential. Conditions for development are determined by the mountains and existing transport links in the region. Recreational potential significant area: rivers - Kama, Belaya, Tura, Iset; tributaries – Chusovaya, Mias; lakes - Uvildy, Shartash.

Main tourist centers districts are Yekaterinburg, Chelyabinsk, Perm, Ufa, Nizhny Tagil, Nevyansk.

Climate- Climate continental area. The level of solar light radiation varies from insufficient in the north (1650 hours) to moderate (1800 hours). In the north, the level of ultraviolet radiation in winter is insufficient, in the rest of the territory it is optimal. The frost-free period lasts from 95 to 140 days. Summer is warm. average temperature July + 18° C. Winter is moderately cold. The average January temperature is -15° C. In the north, snow cover lasts 150-190 days, and in the south about 110 days. Its height reaches 40-60 cm. The most favorable period for tourism and recreation begins at the end of May and ends in September. It can sometimes be overshadowed by cold rains in the mountains in the north and excessive heat and drought in the south. The winter season is favorable for skiing and downhill skiing.

Ancient mountains, "gray-haired Ural" - the brightest natural feature region. They create a unique image of the Urals, making it attractive to numerous tourists and vacationers. In terms of landscape, the area can be divided into several parts. Ural ridge consists of the mid-altitude Northern Urals (1569 m above sea level), the low-mountain Central Urals (up to 700 m above sea level), and the mid-mountain Southern Urals (1640 m above sea level). The foothill plains are bordered from the west by the Verkhnekamsk (300-330 m above sea level) and Bugulminsko-Belebeevskaya (380-420 m above sea level) uplands. The dissected relief creates conditions for the development of various species active tourism. Many most high peaks Northern and Southern Urals - Isherim (1331 m), Denezhkin Kamen (1492 m), Konzhakovsky Kamen (1569 m), Bolshoi Iremmel (1582 m), Yamantau (1640 m) - rocky and treeless. They are popular among mountaineers and rock climbers.

The territory of the region is watered by a large number of rivers. The largest of which are: Kama, Belaya, Ural, Tura, Iset, as well as their tributaries: Chusovaya, Yuryuzan, Inzer, Ay, Miass). There are many lakes in the foothills: Uvildy, Argazi, Irtyash, Shartash, Kalkak. Among water bodies, the Kama Reservoir plays an important role.

Swimming season in the north of the Ural region it is quite short - only about one month, while in the south it reaches three. Hydro mineral resources The Ural region is quite diverse. Along with sulfate drinking waters and sodium bromine chloride brines, carbonic ferrous, hydrogen sulfide, bromine, iodine-bromine and radon waters are common here. In Bashkiria there is a unique natural resort “Yangantau”, where the main healing factor is natural hot steam and dry hot gases coming to the surface from the cracks of Mount Yangantau. Sodium chloride brines (salt waters) with mineralization from 35 to 150 g/l were opened in different regions Volga region at depths from 400 to 1500 m, they are used in the Udmurt sanatoriums “Varzi-Yatchi” and “Metallurg”.

The Uvildy resort is located in the Argayash district of the Chelyabinsk region. Natural healing factors: unique mild climate of the southeastern shore of Lake Uvildy with high natural ionization and saturation with phytoncides, highly active natural radon waters from a natural source (the most effective in Russia); natural sapropel mud from Lake Sabanay. Sanatorium profile: diseases of the nervous, cardiovascular, endocrine systems, musculoskeletal system, gynecological and urological diseases.

Sanatorium Obukhovsky, Kurya, catfish-mud of Lake Moltaeva,

Resources therapeutic mud in the area are represented by peat and sapropel mud. There are small lake-spring deposits of silt sulfide mud. Peat mud is found in the forest zone in Udmurtia - the Varzi-Yachi resort.

Sverdlovsk region is a combination of a developed economy and infrastructure with a variety of natural resources: picturesque mountains, forest lands, healing lakes. Ekaterinburg is a center of business tourism, business, congress and exhibition, corporate tourism. Many excursion programs (sightseeing and thematic), museums. There are many caves in the region, and therefore caving tourism is developed here. Popular ski resorts on the Uktus Mountains, in the vicinity of Revda, Mikhailovsk, Pervouralsk, Nizhny Tagil, Sredneuralsk, etc. Educational tourism: 1Sysert: Bazhov places, Talkov stone, horse-riding, horse-drawn sleigh rides, excursions in the Bazhov places park. 2Kholzan (Sysertsky district): aviary complex for the rehabilitation and monitoring of birds of prey. 3Koptelovo - not far from Nizhnyaya Sinyachikha. The village is famous for its Museum of the History of Agriculture and Life of Peasants. 4Nevyansk - Tavolgi: Family nest of the Demidovs, the famous dynasty of industrialists and metallurgists (located more than 80 km from Yekaterinburg). The symbol of the city is the Nevyansk leaning tower. 5Oleniy Ruchi: The excursion route passes through a section of forest that has the status of a natural monument of regional significance with an amazing variety of flora and fauna. 6Kungur Cave - unique monument nature, the age of the cave is about 10-12 thousand years. 7Ganina Yama: Ganina Yama is a tract 17 km from Yekaterinburg, an abandoned copper mine. In the summer of 1918, the remains of the family of the last Russian Emperor Nicholas II Romanov were secretly destroyed in one of his mines. A monastery was built here in the name of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers. 8Verkhoturye is the spiritual center of the Urals. Many Orthodox churches. 9Alapaevsk - N. Sinyachikha Alapaevsk is the birthplace of the great composer P.I. Tchaikovsky. House-Museum of the composer P.I. Tchaikovsky. Nizhnesinyachikha Museum-Reserve of Wooden Architecture and Folk Art right below open air. 10IrbitMuseum of Fine Arts (graphics and engravings), historical and ethnographic museum, motorcycle museum. Ostrich farm "Irbit Ostrich".

Types of tourism: Ecotourism (Oleniy Ruchii, Bazhovsky Natural Park, Lake Arakul - Shikhan rocks, Natural Park“Chusovaya River” etc.), skiing, caving tourism, business, educational.

Perm region - was located in the Western Urals in the upper reaches of the Kama River. Not far from Perm, on the high bank of the Kama, there is the only one in the Urals architectural and ethnographic museum-reserve "Khokhlovka", covering an area of 42 hectares. Unique wooden buildings of the 17th-19th centuries were transported here from the north of the region. Every summer, folklore festivals are held on the territory of the open-air museum, which attract groups from many regions of Russia. Kungurskaya ice cave - a unique natural monument of all-Russian significance. City Solikamsk is one of the oldest cities in the Urals. There is a unique salt museum here. The cities of Osa (museum, architectural monuments), Cherdyn (collection of copper-bronze plastic (Perm animal style), architectural buildings of the 17th-18th centuries, Usolye (architectural monuments) are rich in sights. Places through which the river flows Chusovaya River associated with many historical events, with famous figures in Russian history (Ermak, Stroganovs, Demidovs, Emelyan Pugachev) Stone City(Damn town)– Bizarre rock outcrops form a network of corridors and tiers on a hill in the middle of the forest. Usvinsky Pillars and Shumikhinsky Rocks“Usva Pillars” - pillar-shaped light gray outcrops rise steeply 150 m above the level of Usva, on the right bank, rising with multifaceted stone bell towers. Their peaks are almost inaccessible. The pillars are often visited by tourists, both while traveling around Usva and on their own. There is a good path leading to the top of the stone. From the top platform there is an amazing view of the Usva River valley. One of the attractions here is the Usvinsky (Devil's) finger, this is a free-standing rock outcrop of impressive size. There are several difficult mountaineering and climbing routes along it, which are accessible only with special equipment and preparation.

Ski tourism – Mount Gubakha. Cruises on the Kama.

Medicinal Natural resources varied: Ust-Kachka resort.

Chelyabinsk region National parks: Zyuratkul - Lake Zyuratkul is the main decoration of the park; it also has all the opportunities for sports tourism - fishing and active recreation. Ecological trail, ascent to the Zyuratkul ridge. Very beautiful Whale pier (designed like a theme park) Ilmensky Reserve- more than 260 minerals were found here, 11 of which were discovered for the first time in the world, and among the plants there are species found only here. More than 30 lakes, one of the famous ones is Lake Turgoyak. Specialized natural landscape and historical and archaeological center "Arkaim". Arkaim has already become a kind of spiritual center, our Russian Mecca. There are many deep, universal mysteries associated with the Arkaim phenomenon. Today, only one thing can be said with certainty: Arkaim and the “Country of Cities” are one of greatest discoveries XX century. Zlatoust the city is rich in historical and architectural monuments, temples and museums, a dam and an ancient factory, and German streets.

Ski tourism – ski center "Adzhigardak", "Zavyalikha", "Egoza", "Sunny Valley". Recreation on lakes and fishing - Uvildy, Turgoyak, Itkul, Zyuratkul, Arakul, Kisegach, Sungul.

Bashkortostan – Nature has endowed Bashkiria with a unique and rare beauty: there are majestic mountains covered with coniferous and deciduous forests. Mountain rivers with picturesque waterfalls, numerous lakes and caves (about 300 karst caves), as well as a significant number of sunny days, climate moderation, diversity of flora and fauna. The healing mountain air, the aroma of herbs, Bashkir honey, kumiss, and the purity of wild rivers will bring a lot of health to travelers. Big choice active tours By the most beautiful places Bashkiria: horseback riding tours, catamaran rafting on the Belaya and Zilim rivers, walking tours, bus routes. Sanatoriums, resorts and recreational tourism. In Bashkiria there is a unique resort, Yangan-Tau, where the natural healing factor is natural hot steam and dry gases. Popular ski resort"Abzakovo", ski center "Metallurg-Magnitogorsk".

Business tourism - 90% foreigners. Industrial tourism. River cruises“Perm - Kazan - Ulyanovsk” - Mikhail Kutuzov, “Perm - Tchaikovsky - Elabuga - Kazan - Nizhny Novgorod- Gorodets - Kostroma - Yaroslavl - Myshkin - Uglich - Moscow - Fedor Panferov. The quality of service does not depend on demand.

Conclusion: It is not easy to make the capital of the Urals a tourist Mecca, because for a long time it was closed to foreigners. And the Ural brand is an opportunity to promote the Ural tourism product. In general, the potential is great, but there are problems in receiving tourists in Yekaterinburg:

1. accommodation, no hotels tour. class; price discrepancy; no discounts in hotels; 2. lack of a vehicle fleet (old buses) 3. poor service on out-of-town excursions - no toilets on the route. 4. opinion about Russia that they rob us, shoot in the streets, and bears walk around....6. no maps or signs in English. (for foreigners) 7. lack of personnel - guides with the language, qualified tour guides, almost all at the amateur level.

Related information.

On request

Combined tours, horse and water trips, walking and water tour

Rafting and water trips along the rivers of the Urals

Excursion tours in the Urals

* upon request - the tour is conducted for organized groups of 10 people or more

The Ural (from Bashk. үр - upland, Bashk. үрал - belt) is a geographical region in Russia, stretching between the East European and West Siberian plains. The main part of this region is the Ural mountain system.

The Urals are located at the junction of Europe and Asia and are the border between these regions. The stone belt of the Urals and the adjacent elevated plains of the Urals extend from the shores of the Arctic Ocean in the north to the semi-desert regions of Kazakhstan in the south in the form of a 100-400 km strip: for more than 2,500 km they separate the East European and West Siberian plains.

Territorial division

· Polar Urals

· Subpolar Urals

· Northern Urals

· Middle Urals

· Southern Urals

The Urals have long amazed and amazes researchers with the abundance of minerals and its main wealth - minerals. In the depths Ural mountains there are iron and copper ores, and chromium, and nickel, and cobalt, and zinc, and coal, and oil, and gold, and precious stones. The Urals have long been the largest mining and metallurgical base of the entire country. Forest resources are also among the riches of nature. The Southern and Middle Urals provide agricultural opportunities.

This natural region is one of the most important for the life of Russia and its citizens.

Features of nature

The Ural Mountains consist of low ridges and massifs. The highest of them, rising above 1200-1500 m, are located in the Subpolar (Mount Narodnaya - 1895 m), Northern (Mount Telposis - 1617 m) and Southern (Mount Yamantau - 1640 m) Urals. The massifs of the Middle Urals are much lower, usually no higher than 600-800 m. The western and eastern foothills of the Urals and piedmont plains are often dissected by deep river valleys; there are many rivers in the Urals and the Urals.

The Ural Mountains are old (they arose in the Late Proterozoic) and are located in the region of the Hercynian fold.

Climate

The climate of the Urals is typical mountainous; precipitation is distributed unevenly not only across regions, but also within each region. The West Siberian Plain is a territory with a harsh continental climate; in the meridional direction its continentality increases much less sharply than on the Russian Plain. Climate mountainous areas Western Siberia is less continental than the climate of the West Siberian Plain. Interestingly, within the same zone on the plains of the Cis-Urals and Trans-Urals natural conditions noticeably different. This is explained by the fact that the Ural Mountains serve as a kind of climatic barrier. To the west of them there is more precipitation, the climate is more humid and mild; to the east, that is, beyond the Urals, there is less precipitation, the climate is drier, with pronounced continental features.

A couple of centuries ago animal world was richer than now. Plowing, hunting, and deforestation have displaced and destroyed the habitats of many animals. Wild horses, saigas, bustards, and little bustards have disappeared. Herds of deer migrated deeper into the tundra. But rodents (hamsters, field mice) have spread on the plowed lands. In the north you can find inhabitants of the tundra - reindeer, and in the south typical inhabitants of the steppes - marmots, shrews, snakes and lizards. The forests are inhabited by predators: brown bears, wolves, wolverines, foxes, sables, stoats, and lynxes. They are home to ungulates (elk, deer, roe deer, etc.) and birds of various species.

The differences in landscapes are noticeable as you climb. In the Southern Urals, for example, the path to the tops of the largest Zigalga ridge begins with crossing a strip of hills and ravines at the foot, densely overgrown with bushes. Then the road goes through pine, birch and aspen forests, among which there are grassy glades. Spruces and firs rise above like a palisade. Dead wood is almost invisible - it burns out during frequent forest fires. In flat areas there may be swamps. The peaks are covered with stone deposits, moss and grass. The rare and stunted spruces and crooked birches that come across here do not in any way resemble the landscape at the foot, with multi-colored carpets of herbs and shrubs. Fires on high altitude are already powerless, so the path is constantly blocked by rubble from fallen trees. The top of Mount Yamantau (1640 m) is a relatively flat area, but it is almost inaccessible due to a pile of old trunks.

Natural resources

From natural resources Of the Urals, its mineral resources are of utmost importance. The Urals have long been the country's largest mining and metallurgical base. And the Urals ranks first in the world in the extraction of some mineral ores.

Back in the 16th century, deposits of rock salt and sandstone containing copper were known on the western outskirts of the Urals. In the 17th century, quite numerous iron deposits became known and ironworks appeared.

Placers of gold and deposits of platinum were found in the mountains, and precious stones were found on the eastern slope. The skill of searching for ore, smelting metal, making weapons and artistic items from it, and processing gems was passed on from generation to generation.

In the Urals there are numerous deposits of high-quality iron ores (mountains Magnitnaya, Vysokaya, Blagodat, Kachkanar), copper ores (Mednogorsk, Karabash, Sibay, Gai), rare non-ferrous metals, gold, silver, platinum, the best bauxite, rock and potassium salts in the country (Solikamsk, Berezniki, Berezovskoye, Vazhenskoye, Ilyetskoye). In the Urals there is oil (Ishimbay), natural gas (Orenburg), coal, asbestos, precious and semi-precious stones.

The hydropower potential of the Ural rivers (Pavlovskaya, Yumaguzinskaya, Shirokovskaya, Iriklinskaya and several small hydroelectric power stations) remains a far from fully developed resource.

Rivers and lakes

The rivers belong to the basins of the Arctic Ocean (on the western slope - Pechora with Usa, on the eastern slope - Tobol, Iset, Tura, Lozva, Northern Sosva, belonging to the Ob system) and the Caspian Sea (Kama with Chusovaya and Belaya; the Ural River).

Origin of the toponym

There are many versions of the origin of the toponym “Ural”. An analysis of the linguistic contacts of the first Russian settlers in the region indicates that the toponym, in all likelihood, was adopted from the Bashkir language. Indeed, of all the autochthonous peoples of the Urals, this name has existed since ancient times only among the Bashkirs, and is supported at the level of the language, legends and traditions of this people (the epic Ural-Batyr). Other indigenous peoples of the Urals (Khanty, Mansi, Udmurts, Komi) have other traditional names for the Ural Mountains, adopting the name “Ural” only in the 19th-20th centuries from the Russian language.

In the Bashkir language, the toponym “Ural” is perceived as very ancient, probably dating back to the Proto-Turkic state. It should be associated with the head. Ur ~ Old Turkic. *ör “height, eminence.”[

“Ural” in Bashkir means belt. There is a Bashkir tale about a giant who wore a belt with deep pockets. He hid all his wealth in them. The belt was huge. One day the giant stretched him, and the belt lay across the entire earth, from the cold Kara Sea in the north to sandy shores southern Caspian Sea. This is how the Ural ridge was formed.

In Greek books written two thousand years ago, you can read about the distant “Riphean Mountains”, where sullen vultures guard countless golden treasures. The Bashkir folk epic “Ural Batyr” deserves more attention, telling about the ancestors of the peoples of the Urals who survived the Flood, the conflict that arose and the subsequent struggle of the Urals with their elder brother Shulgan, who chose the path of evil and the settlement of the adjacent lands by their descendants. The main toponyms of the Southern Urals are directly related with the events of the epic. The conflict of life, mercy and the natural principle “the strong eats the weak”, the theme of the search for Living Water and personified Death for its subsequent destruction, for the sake of eternal life, the idea of selfless service to people, equality and self-sacrifice for the benefit of others are considered.

The contribution of the Urals to the artistic culture of Russia is not only great, but also remarkably unique. The solid foundation on which the decorative and applied arts of the Urals flourished was industry, its main centers being factories. The importance of industry in the development of the region and its culture was well understood by contemporaries themselves. One of the official documents states: “Ekaterinburg owes both its existence and its flourishing state only to the factories.”

With good reason, the Urals can be considered the birthplace of Russian industrial marble processing, subordinated to the needs of domestic architecture. If we turn to antiquity, then this is primarily folk arts and crafts. For example, carpet weaving, patterned weaving, embroidery, leather processing, vivid examples of which have been preserved in Bashkir folk art. In the museums of the Republic of Bashkortostan you can directly come into contact with the rich variety of ancient products. Continuers, creative reformers folk traditions one can rightfully name contemporary artists such as A. Mazitov, D. Suleymanov, T. Sirazhetdinov, G. Kalitov, R. Minnibaev, A. Korolevsky, Meos, B. Domashnikov, Yu. Aminev and many others.

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