Sochi national park often called the pearl of the area. Its territory covers about 200 thousand hectares. The park area was created in order to preserve the unique nature and wildlife, and is vigilantly guarded by employees of 15 forestries.
More than 40 rivers and streams flow here, which form canyons and waterfalls. One of the most famous is the Nut Waterfall on the Psou River. This attraction is often visited by tourists from all over the world.

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Vegetable world

Vegetation of Sochi national park unique. Hundreds of species of different trees grow here. large area occupied by beech forests, oak groves, European chestnut. You can endlessly admire the thickets of boxwood - a rare relic plant that is found only in the southern regions.
Many plants growing in the park are listed in the Red Book. They demand careful attitude and vigilantly guarded.

Animal world

Representatives of the mountain forest and high mountain fauna live in the Sochi National Park. Here, in natural environment brown bears, roe deer live, forest cats, wolves, martens, red deer, tours. The world of birds and reptiles is rich. In the rivers you can find rare species fish.
The main task of the park is to educate the population and promote respect for nature and endangered species of animals and birds. With the disappearance of at least one species of mammals or plants, serious disturbances in the food chain which will lead to irreversible consequences.

Camping

Tourists visit the park in order to get acquainted with the flora and fauna. Walks on the slopes fresh air strengthen health and allow you to enjoy the surrounding views. Among visitors, stopping in the park for the night in tents, going down mountain streams, riding horses along the slopes are becoming popular phenomena.
Excursion programs suitable for connoisseurs a relaxing holiday. Walking with a guide will be more informational. Travelers will learn many interesting, previously unknown facts about Sochi park.
Forestries are responsible for the protection of flora from violators of the order, the prevention of fires and pest control. They monitor the cleanliness of tourist routes, regularly look after 7 forest parks. Thanks to their efforts, today tourists have the opportunity to admire the plantations of hazelnuts, mimosa, and noble laurel.
A visit to the Sochi National Park will be a great way to broaden your horizons and learn more about unique nature Krasnodar Territory. This trip will be remembered for a long time.

Location on the map

Krasnodar region

Founding history
Sochi National Park is one of the very first parks created in our country. It was founded in 1983 with the aim of preserving and restoring natural complexes and objects of high environmental, scientific and recreational value. Its area is about 194 thousand hectares.
Sochi National Park is an ideal place for ecotourism due to unique for our country climatic conditions, biological and landscape diversity, the uniqueness of many natural objects.

Physical and geographical features
The national park is located in the northwestern part of the Greater Caucasus, on its Black Sea slope. The relief of the territory is mountainous, strongly dissected.
In total, 40 rivers and streams flow through the territory of the national park, the longest are Mzymta, Shakhe, Psou. Rivers and streams have a large number of waterfalls and canyons: Bezymyanny (72 m) on the Psou River, Orekhovsky (33 m) on the right tributary of the Sochi River at the confluence of the Bezumenka stream.
Interesting karst formations are located in the park - the famous Vorontsov and Akhun caves.
The subtropical climate of the territory is characterized by warm and mild winters and hot summers. average temperature air changes with altitude and movement from north to south. Average temperatures in the northern part of the coast in January are about +5ºС, in July +23ºС, and at an altitude of 2000 m (Cherkess Pass) -5ºС and +12ºС.

Diversity of flora and fauna
In the park, the most widespread forests are dominated by oriental beech. Its silver-gray trunks reach a height of 50 meters! Oak plantations occupy about a quarter of the forested area and are located mainly on the dry and warm southern slopes of the mountains. Only in the Caucasus, under natural conditions, the sowing chestnut (European) grows, which is a relic species.
Boxwood plantings are very picturesque: a lace of small, black-green, glossy foliage of boxwood and everywhere hanging from trunks and branches fluffy, long, like beards fairytale heroes, moss gives the forest a fantastic view of a green kingdom.
This territory, like the entire Caucasus, is rich in very rare and valuable species. Common figs, Caucasian lily, Caucasian kandyk, Lipsky tulip, species of orchids found here are listed in the Red Book of Russia: water-bearing ophrys, pyramidal anacamptis, purple orchis and many others.
Animal world The national park has about 70 species of mammals: brown bear, deer, lynx, Caucasian and European roe deer, marten, otter and others.
The most rare and valuable animal species are listed in the International Red Book. This is the Caucasian krestovka, the Aesculapian snake and the Caucasian viper.

What to watch
Dozens of tourist routes, many of which have a long history. They include visits to the Agur and Orekhovsky waterfalls, Mount Akhun, Vorontsov caves, Akhshtyrsky and Khostinsky canyons.
And you can’t help but visit the Narzan springs, the Mamedov Gorge, the Dolmen archaeological site, the Volokonskoye Gorge, speleological routes through numerous caves.

According to oopt.info and zapoved.ru

Sochi National Park was created in 1983 and became one of the first national parks Russia. On a vast territory in the mountains, the size of which reaches 190 thousand hectares, any production activity was stopped. This land was transferred to the citizens of Russia for health and tourism purposes.
Sochi National Park is located in the south of the Krasnodar Territory, north of Sochi, in the foothills of the Greater Caucasus. Most of the territory of the park is occupied by mountains, dissected by river valleys. The foothill zone occupies a narrow strip along the Black Sea.
About 40 rivers and streams of the Black Sea basin flow through the territory of the Sochi National Park. Their length is small, only such rivers as Mzymta, Psou and Shahe are more than 50 kilometers long. Rivers and streams have a large number of waterfalls and canyons. The waterfalls are mainly located in the upper reaches of the rivers, 103 waterfalls with a threshold height of 2 to 73 meters are available for visiting.
The territory of the park itself is unique, because nowhere in Russia subtropics and highlands coexist so closely. That is why the mountainous Black Sea region is characterized by the most complex range of high-altitude zones on the territory of our country - from mountain deciduous forests foothills through mountain beech and coniferous forests to subalpine landscapes and highlands with exposed rocks and snow. The territory of the Sochi National Park belongs to the Colchis forest province with a very rich and diverse flora. There are about 1,500 native species in the Sochi National Park. higher plants, of which 164 species are classified as trees, shrubs, semi-shrubs and lianas, and all the rest are classified as herbaceous plants. The number of relict breeds and endemics is large. In the Red Book International Union The yew berry, which is often found in the Sochi National Park, has been included in the conservation area. And 51 species of plants are listed in the Red Book of Russia, including yew berry, Pitsunda pine, 2 species of snowdrops, 3 species of fingerheads, 3 species of ophryses, 9 species of thrushes, Colchis boxwood, Caucasian lily, Caucasian lyon and others.

The main places for tourists to visit in the Sochi National Park

33 Waterfalls- the Dzhegosh stream is located in the lower reaches of the Shakhe River, 11 km from the mouth and is the right tributary of this river. In the picturesque gorge there are numerous small waterfalls, rapids, waterfalls, which attract tourists and sightseers with their beauty. There are 33 waterfalls, 7 waterfalls and 13 rapids on the Dzhegosh stream. At a distance of 750 m from the mouth, a significant part of the Dzhegosh stream, 500 meters long, is a cascade of many low waterfalls, rapids and water slopes. The height of the upper waterfall is 2m, the lower one is 7m. Above the topmost waterfall there is a spring that gives water to the Dzhegosh stream.

Vorontsovsky karst complex- The Vorontsovskaya cave system is located on the ridge of the same name near the city of Sochi, 18-20 km from the village of Khosta on altitude 419 - 680 m above sea level. Vorontsovskaya cave is the longest karst cavity in Krasnodar Territory and takes 6th place in the classification of the longest caves in Russia. The length of the Vorontsovskaya cave is 11720 m, the height difference is 240 m. It is located in the upper reaches of the Kudepsta River, 3 km from the village of Vorontsovka, Khostinsky district. The system of Vorontsov caves consists of three parts: Vorontsovskaya, Labyrinth and Kabanya, which are interconnected by siphons - narrow passages filled with water. These labyrinths can be entered through 12 entrances, some of which were known to primitive people. The cave is not only a geological monument. Conducted archaeological excavations discovered material evidence of the settlement of the cave by primitive man 15-20 thousand years ago. Stone and bone tools, animal bones, remains of dishes were found. The bones of a cave bear were found in the Bear and Hearth Halls. Near the cave there are interesting statues of guardians, as well as a neo-Buddhist head spewing water.

Observation deck Eagle Nest- Arriving in Lazarevskoye, tourists tend to see all the beauties of this resort village. And they have a great opportunity see them all at once. To do this, they should visit the observation deck "Eagle's Nest", which offers a magnificent panorama of Lazarevsky. The observation deck "Eagle's Nest" is not called so by chance. On its territory there is a real eagle's nest, which everyone can also see. Its size is impressive, it is a huge structure, consisting of tree branches and grass.

Agur Gorge- located in the bed of the Agura River in the Khostinsky district of the city, four kilometers from its confluence with the Black Sea. Here, for several hundred meters, there are three waterfalls with a height of 21 m - the upper one, 23 m - the middle one and 30 meters - the lower one. Since Agura feeds only on water that falls to the surface in the form of snow and rain, in summer time it often dries up completely, and waterfalls also disappear. Best time visiting this object is autumn-spring, when powerful rains fill the bed of Agura. Waterfalls then look menacing and majestic.

The fauna of the Sochi National Park includes about 80 species of mammals, about 120 species of birds, 17 species of reptiles, 9 species of amphibians, 21 species of fish. 15 species of animals are included in the Red Book of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, including leopard, corncrake, quail, Caucasian viper, Colchis snake, Colchis toad and others. Of those species of animals that are listed in the Red Book of Russia, 10 species of mammals, 9 species of birds, 4 species of reptiles, 5 species of amphibians, 3 species of annelids, from fish - trout and Ukrainian lamprey.
On the territory of the Sochi National Park there is a significant number of karst massifs - Alek, Akhun, Akhtsu, Akhshtyr, Dzykhra. There are about 200 caves on these massifs, of which 50 caves are the largest karst cavities that are of interest for scientific purposes and for speleotourism. The longest karst cavities in the country include the famous Vorontsovskaya cave on the Akhtsu massif, 12 kilometers long, and the Nazarovskaya cave on the Alek massif, 7 kilometers long. On the territory of the Sochi National Park there are 114 monuments of history and culture - these are the sites of ancient people, settlements, dolmen structures, well-shaped tombs, the remains of fortresses, temples, burial mounds, a sacrificial stone, obelisks and military monuments.
The priority direction of the park's work is related to environmental education. For this purpose, environmental education centers with small museum expositions have been created on the territory of the Upper Sochi, Golovinsky, Krasnopolyansky and Lazarevsky forestries.
After the creation of the Sochi National Park, its employees laid forest roads here, landscaped paths and bridges, and opened 50 natural sites for guests to visit. These were unique canyons, waterfalls, caves, dolmens, forest parks. And the guests did not keep themselves waiting - they poured on excursions to the Sochi National Park as part of numerous excursion groups.

Sochi is the second oldest park in the Russian Federation. It is located near the resort city of Sochi. Its area is almost 200 thousand hectares. It flows through the park, which has long been noticed by rafting enthusiasts from all over the world. A diverse landscape, many species of exotic animals and unforgettable views have made it the pearl of this region.

Creation of the park

The history of the park dates back to 1983. The main purpose of creating this reserve was to preserve the unique flora and fauna of the Greater Caucasus. Thanks to the joint efforts of scientists various areas managed not only to preserve the region, which has a high ecological and recreational value, but also to restore many destroyed natural objects. An important role is also played by the Park employees who constantly open new museum expositions that work on the territory of forestries.

Sochi National Park is not only a monument to a unique landscape. Its employees have laid comfortable forest paths and bridges along which guests of the park can walk. In addition, almost fifty natural objects were opened for guests, which surprise with their pristine beauty. These are unique caves, waterfalls and canyons, and most importantly - enchanting forest park areas with a picturesque landscape.

park landscape

A feature is the abundance of rivers and streams that create a huge number of canyons and waterfalls. The park is also famous for its unique caves, such as Vorontsovskiye and Akhunskiye. In addition, there are unique waterfalls on the territory, the beauty of which is annually visited by thousands of tourists.

In the Sochi park there are also such important geological monuments as underground rivers, limestone massifs with deep caves, as well as unique karst cavities.

Plants of the park

Beech forests here have a height of up to 50 meters. In addition, a fourth of all trees in the reserve are oaks that grow on the slopes of the mountains. In addition, only in this park you can find a unique European chestnut, which is a relic species. And thick moss gives the landscapes a charming look of a magical forest.

The most favorite place for tourists is the Riviera Park, which is covered with unique types of flowers, greenery and rare species of trees. The park in Sochi has a huge number of rare species of roses, from which the masters of the reserve create a new beautiful composition every year.

In summer, the park provides an opportunity for vacationers to hide from the scorching sun in the shade of tall chestnut and pine trees. And in winter you can enjoy the aroma of blooming magnolias and fragrant pine needles. Magnolia blooms in late autumn or even early winter. Even the snow won't stop it. Flowers are very fragrant, and primarily because in Sochi high humidity which contributes to the spread of the aroma.

Animal world

Sochi National Park is unique place for ecotourism, due to the presence on the territory of a huge number of unique species. Many species of animals that can be found in the Sochi reserve are listed in the Red Book.

More than 120 species of birds live on the territory of the reserve, some of which you will not find anywhere else. If we talk about animals, there are almost 80 different species in the park. Among them, deer should be distinguished, brown bear, otter, European roe deer, marten and many others, which you can hardly meet in the forests of our homeland.

In addition, the rivers rich in Sochi National Park abound in rare species of fish. In addition, you can meet rare species of reptiles (there are almost 20 of them in the park).

Thanks to the collective work of employees, there is an active dissemination of information about those who live here. Volunteers are constantly involved in the work to disseminate information (including online).

Rest in the park

Every year ecotourism is only gaining popularity. Nowadays, it is fashionable and prestigious to engage in outdoor activities, stay overnight in tents, and also visit national reserves and parks. The Sochi National Park has become a favorite place for tourists from Russia and other countries. Its map allows you to perfectly plan the route. And the huge areas capture the spirit of the tourist with their magnificent reliefs, unique flora and fauna.

You can visit the park as part of an excursion, as well as on your own. For extreme tourists, rafting on mountain rivers, horseback riding on the slopes are offered. More relaxed travelers can visit one of the excursion routes suggested by the guide, just take a walk with the family and relax in the coolness of the dense forest.

The Sochi National Park was established by the Decree of the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR No. 214 dated May 5, 1983 in order to preserve unique natural complexes Black Sea coast Caucasus, their use for environmental, recreational, educational and scientific purposes.

The national park is located on the territory of Greater Sochi: from the borders with the Tuapse region, between the mouths of the Shepsi and Magri rivers in the northwest to the borders with Abkhazia in the southeast and from the Black Sea coast to the watershed line of the Main Caucasian ridge. Most of the territory of the park is occupied by mountains, dissected by river valleys. The foothill zone occupies a narrow strip along the Black Sea. About 40 rivers and streams of the Black Sea basin flow through the park.

History of the park

Before the October Revolution around 1896, Sochi was the center of a large district of the Black Sea province, the borders of which largely coincided with the borders of present-day B. Sochi. In terms of total area, it was even a larger administrative entity than the modern city (more than 4,000 square miles).
It included part of the territory of modern Abkhazia, the districts of Pilenkovo, Khristoforovo, to Gagra, which were withdrawn from the Sochi region in the late 20s and early 30s.

Sochi forestry was organized in 1870. Initially, it included the territories of the Sochi and partly Velyaminovskiy (now the Tuapse region) departments of the Black Sea District.
Administratively, it was subordinate to the State Property Administration in Yekaterinodar. The forestry consisted of a department and nine government dachas: Adlerskaya, Muravyovskaya, Aleksandrovskaya, Tsarskaya, Kubanskaya, Golovinskaya, Lazarevskaya, Makopsinskaya and Velyaminovskaya.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the forestry included only five dachas: Golovinskaya (33940 acres), Kubanskaya (3236 acres), Tsarskaya (4220 acres), Adlerskaya (25797 acres) and Muravyovskaya (85186 acres). The total area is 152379 acres. Convenient forest area was 133256 acres.

By 1915, due to the transition to private ownership and economic development of the coast, the territory of part of the land served by forestry decreased to 114,745 acres (forest area - 77,612 acres).
The main functions of the forestry were: land surveying of state lands, their description, sale and leasing. In addition, the forestry carried out various activities to protect the forest, issued permits for hunting, catching birds and animals, was engaged in logging and selling forests, supervised the colonization of the entire coast, and the organization of settlements.

Forestry was a highly profitable institution, and its income was constantly increasing. They were formed both from the use of the wealth of the forest, and from the lease of land, fines, own economic activities, and the issuance of various permits.

Forestry also incurred significant costs for various needs And economic activity. But basically the expenses fell on the payment of salaries, the maintenance of the forest guard and the office of the forester. The forestry was engaged in the repair of forest paths, clearing the forest, planting seedlings, and uprooting.

In 1907, at the Muravyovskaya dacha (it also included Krasnaya Polyana), selective felling of forests was carried out on 151 acres. For reforestation work, the forestry had its own nursery. Seeds were collected for him valuable breeds trees. In 1905 alone, 94 ? pounds of seeds.

Extinguishing was clearly organized at Muravyovskaya dacha forest fires. For this, they attracted locals who received bonuses. For example, for extinguishing a fire on October 28-29, 1916 in the forest at Muravyovskaya Dacha, 26 peasants were paid bonuses of 3 rubles each.

A part of the forest was released by the forestry to the poor for free. In 1905, 0.3 cubic fathoms of wood and 36.4 cubic fathoms of firewood and brushwood were released this way. Forestry incurred large expenses for the maintenance of a large Khludovsky estate, in which there was a large nursery, a garden, and a valuable park.

But in general, at the beginning of the 20th century, almost all the expenses of the forestry fell on the payment of its employees. The number of employees of the forestry at that time, compared with the area of ​​forests served by them, was small. In 1905, 11 forest guards (travelers) worked in the forestry.
In 1914, the number of guards increased - 12 rangers and 3 foresters.

For many years at the beginning of the century, V. Tokarzhevsky-Karashevich served as a Sochi forester. The forester had his own office, and other employees were subordinate to him. All coastal settlements were completely subordinated.
He, in addition to the direct management of forestry, resolved issues of land acquisition, construction, laying roads, supplying villages, their cleanliness, improvement, and economic development in them. Those. almost all power was in his hands.

No one could on the lands of the forestry (and he owned a significant part of the territory of the district) without the permission of the forester to engage in any economic activity to resolve any issues.
Before the revolution, foresters and rangers not only guarded forest estates, but also carried out survey work. They determined the areas of growth of valuable species of trees, identified mineral springs, described everything unusual that they encountered in the forest.

The largest timber industry organization during the years of Soviet power was the Sochi timber industry, established in 1930.

In 1976, on the basis of order No. 501 of December 19, 1975 of the Krasnodar Regional Forestry Department, the Sochi Experimental Forestry was renamed the Sochi Experimental Forestry Association of the Krasnodar Regional Forestry Department.

In 1978, on the basis of the order of the Krasnodar Forestry Department No. 9 dated January 5, 1978, the association was disbanded and the Sochi mekhleskhoz continued to function as an independent organization.

Mekhleskhoz existed until 1986.

Since May 1983, on the basis of the Sochi, Adler and Lazarevsky mechanized forestry enterprises, the Sochi State Natural National Park was created (Decree of the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR of May 5, 1983 No. 2146, Order of the Ministry of Forestry of May 21, 1986 No. 1228 and Krasnodar Regional Forestry of June 13, 1986 No. 396).
The main tasks of the National Park were: the preservation and restoration of natural complexes of special economic, historical and aesthetic value and their use for recreational, educational, scientific and cultural purposes.

On the basis of Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of October 9, 1995 No. 990 “On changing the decisions of the Government of the Russian Federation in connection with the adoption of the law “On specially protected natural areas"and also on the basis of the order CEO Sochi State Natural National Park dated November 15, 1995 No. 158, the park was renamed the Sochi National Park.

Arboretum Park

The arboretum in Sochi is a green treasury of the Russian subtropics, numbering more than 2000 exotic and rare plants brought to the park from different parts of the world. In addition to the flora, the arboretum is proud of the rare animals and birds living in it, as well as the cable car, with impressive views of the mountains and the sea, which open at the top of the arboretum.

Gark "Dendrarium", founded in 1892 by Khudekov S.N.

Sochi "Dendrarium" is a wonderful monument of gardening art, a wonderful recreation area and an object of educational excursions for residents and guests of the resort city of Sochi, which contains more than 1600 species, forms and varieties woody plants from different parts of our planet.

In the early 60s of the last century, the total area of ​​the Arboretum increased to 48 hectares. Ponds with cascades, a rose garden, geographical departments were created, in which the floras of the Caucasus and the Mediterranean, Northern and South America, East Asia(Japan, China, Himalayas, Far East), Australia and New Zealand. For the convenience of visitors, in 1978, a suspended cable car. From a bird's eye view, the panorama of the entire park and the city is clearly visible.

The following main tasks are assigned to the national park:

a) preservation of natural complexes, unique and standard natural sites and objects;

b) preservation of historical and cultural objects;

c) environmental education of the population; d) creation of conditions for regulated tourism and health-improving recreation in natural conditions;

e) development and implementation scientific methods preservation of natural complexes in conditions of recreational use;

f) implementation of environmental monitoring;

g) restoration of disturbed natural and historical-cultural complexes and objects;

h) development of scientific, technical, informational and cultural cooperation with protected areas Russian Federation And foreign countries, other organizations, enterprises and institutions in accordance with the goals and objectives of the national park;

i) protection, protection and reproduction of forests, based on the principles of sustainable forest management and conservation of the biological diversity of forest ecosystems, improving the ecological and resource potential forests of the national park.

Attractions:

In June 1998, the Museum of Nature was created on the basis of the Matsesta forestry.

Tourism:

On the basis of the Golovinsky, Lazarevsky, Krasnopolyansky and Verkhnee-Sochi forestries, centers for environmental education have been created. At the beginning of 2005 there were more than 49 recreational objects in the national park. 28 excursion routes have been opened, 10 parking lots have been organized.