Digor Gorge. Threshold of the sky. Waterfalls. Golden autumn in the Caucasus. North Ossetia. Digoria, Dargavs, Tsei and more. I invite you on a journey. Tour conditions

Digori Gorge in the Iraf region of North Ossetia - one of the most beautiful and wild gorges of the North Caucasus. It was dug by the Urukh River in the Rocky Range, parallel to the Main Range. The road here runs along a narrow cornice carved into the rocks above the stormy waters of Urukh.

Conditions for rest and recreation in the gorge - at different altitudes above sea level there are dry mountain steppes, wet forests, alpine meadows, forest-steppe zone, lakes, glaciers, streams, waterfalls. There are opportunities for hiking along ecological trails, you can engage in educational tourism, making excursions through different landscapes with their historical, cultural and architectural monuments, and engage in water slalom.

Currently, you can relax here mainly in the warm months. In winter, during the season of heavy snowfall, the recreation areas do not function, but the landscapes here at this time of year are beautiful in their own way, and it will be interesting to see these places also in the winter months.

WHERE TO STAY

There are the following accommodation options for tourists for recreation: the Dzinaga LLC tourist center, the Digoria - Rostselmash recreational mountaineering base, the Taymazi mountaineering base of the Taganrog Radio Engineering Institute, the Komi-Art mountaineering base, and the Eagle's Nest recreation center.

Tourist base "Dzinaga" provides for vacationers hikes and walks through the territory of the Alania National Park, multi-day hikes to the Bartuy Gorge, to the Paradise Glade and the Taymazi Glade, to the Karaugom Glacier - one of the largest glaciers in the Caucasus Mountains, to the village of Zadalesk - the place of Alan's rebirth, to the waterfalls, "Digori Ring" with visits to villages and historical and architectural monuments.

The camp site is more focused on summer holidays for children and teenagers, whose stay here is financed from budgetary funds and extra-budgetary sources. There is an opportunity to receive families, tourist groups and individual vacationers. On the territory of the base there are eight buildings designed to accommodate 450 children. The cost of one day with a three-time stay is 500 rubles.

The distance from Vladikavkaz to the Dzinaga tourist center to Vladikavkaz is 115 kilometers, travel by bus (GAZelle minibus) from Vladikavkaz from bus station No. 1, the fare is 75 rubles. Travel time is 2 hours 30 minutes. Departure daily at 15.55.

Vacationers on recreation center "Digoria-Rostselmash" have the opportunity to take walks to waterfalls, popular hikes to the Paradise Glade, the Karaugom glacier, excursions through the territory of the Alania National Park, acquaintance with its flora and fauna, to the sanctuary of Zadaleski Nana.

On the territory of the recreation center there are summer houses and brick buildings. The total capacity is 250 people. The cost of accommodation including three meals a day is from 300 rubles in a four-bed room and up to 600 rubles in a double room.

The distance from Vladikavkaz to the recreation center is 125 kilometers, travel by bus from Vladikavkaz from bus station No. 1, the fare is 75 rubles. Travel time is about three hours.

Tourist base "Koma-Art"(former name "Digoria"). Total capacity – 150 people. Accommodation in two and four-bed rooms in wooden cottages and brick houses. The cost of living is 500 rubles per day per person.

The most popular routes in the summer are routes to the peaks of the eastern part of the Sugansky ridge and hikes to the Gebe gorge. For more prepared climbers, it is planned to climb the peaks of the central and western parts of the Sugansky ridge.

For experienced climbers, there are high-category routes that involve climbing to the peaks of Mount Uruymagova, Aikhva, Zagadok, Agibalova, Akritov, which are located in the eastern part of the Sugansky ridge.

The distance from Vladikavkaz to “Koma-Art” is 125 kilometers, the bus leaves from bus station No. 1, the fare is 75 rubles, the route goes to the village of. Stur-Digora, and from there five kilometers to the base.

Recreation center of Taganrog State Radio Engineering University "Taymazi" located in a picturesque place of the Digor Gorge on the Urukh River, at an altitude of 2100 m. Accommodation in houses for 4-6 rooms (rooms for 2-5 people), total capacity is 100 people.

For vacationers, two to three-day hikes along tourist routes of all difficulty levels are possible. The proximity of the mountains of the Main Caucasus Range allows the camp to be used as a base for mountaineering.

During walking tours, you can get acquainted with historical monuments and ancient towers, and you can collect unique medicinal herbs, berries, mushrooms, and hazelnuts.

The formation of groups and transportation to the vacation spot is the responsibility of the Taganrog State Radio Engineering University, and vouchers are purchased directly from the university administration.

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CLIMATIC CONDITIONS

The climate of mountain Digoria is very diverse. The most important climate-forming factor for this area is the relief. Mountain ranges and their spurs, many valleys, gorges and intermountain basins greatly complicate the general circulation of the atmosphere and create a wide range of microclimatic features.

Within this region, according to climate, two territories are distinguished: the Zadales basin as a mid-mountain zone and a high-mountain zone.

Zadalesskaya Basin , like all basins of the North Jurassic Depression, is characterized by a peculiar dry climate. The rocky ridge protects it from the intrusions of cold arctic air. Therefore, winter temperatures here are low. In Fasnal the average January temperature is -2.4 degrees. This is the highest winter air temperature in North Ossetia. Rare temperature drops here can reach -30 degrees. The average July temperature reaches 15.8 degrees. In summer, although there are some hot days, the nights are always cool. The annual air amplitude is usually small and amounts to 18-19 degrees. The basin is characterized by low precipitation (400-500 mm) and optimal relative humidity (62%).

The protective influence of the relief is reflected not only in the small amount of precipitation, but also in the low wind speed. Local winds include mountain-valley winds and foehns inherent in mountains.

High mountain zone , located above 2000 m, has a harsh climate. During the long winter, significant accumulation of snow occurs. Stable snow cover lasts 120-160 days. Winter here is relatively cold. The average monthly temperature in February at an altitude of 3000 m is 11 degrees below zero. Spring comes at the end of April and beginning of May. Summer is cool. At an altitude of 2500 m, the average temperature in August is a little over 10 degrees.

The glaciation of the Vodorazdelny and Sugansky ridges has a great influence on the local climate. The significant reflectivity of ice and the heat loss from melting glaciers create a noticeable temperature difference between the upper and lower parts of the valley. This gives rise to downward glacial winds, which merge with mountain winds at night.

ATTRACTIONS

The main attraction of the Digori Gorge is Lake Tsada (Tabarakhtytsad). This is a unique mountain natural reservoir, a relict lake - the only one located on an ancient landslide, at the southern foot of the Rocky Range in the Digor Gorge, in the valley of the Aigamugidon River, above the village of Upper Faraskat (1500 m above sea level). In 2004, the first joint expedition of employees of the North Ossetian Nature Reserve and the Ossetian National Park to this lake was undertaken.

According to experts, the lake is in an age stage called “old age”, it is abundantly overgrown and is gradually turning into a pond. The entire bottom and walls of the original basin are covered with a more or less thick layer of silt, completely hiding its original shape. The original depression turned into a lake bed.

Above the lake rises a rock-remnant - Alhoina ("spindle") made of limestones that once slid down from the Rocky Ridge. Near it there are traces of landslides with individual boulders and screes. A karst spring gushes from under the rocks, and the sound of water can be heard constantly. To the west of the lake there is a small, never-drying stream.

The lake has an oval shape, about 60 m long and 20-25 m wide. Along the periphery of the lake, it is already overgrown with reeds and other moisture-loving grasses. On the dam itself there are individual birch trees. Among the woody plants around the lake grow shrubby willows, birches and cinquefoil (Kuril tea). This overgrown part, apparently, is flooded with water only during periods of snowmelt and heavy rain, that is, when the lake overflows with water.

In winter the lake freezes. Ice formation begins in late November-December. The shallowness of the lake, its relatively small size and small water exchange are little remarkable, but for this area, that is, the southern foot of the Rocky Range, it is the largest natural body of water. The lake is a good object for natural science excursions.

There are other places in the south of Russia that are well suited for winter holidays. A wide selection of materials with practical information about resorts and attractions of the Caucasus is offered to readers on the “Tourism” page and in the corresponding thematic section of the “Directory” on the “Caucasian Knot” website. We also invite you to see and appreciate the natural beauty of the Caucasus, with its unique landscapes and landscapes, in our special photo album "

Golden autumn in the Caucasus. North Ossetia. Digoria, Dargavs, Tsei and more. I invite you on a journey. December 13th, 2016

For travel enthusiasts, photographers and non-photographers. Difficulty level is zero. Suitable for absolutely all categories of traveling people, including children. Quite a family format.

Autumn version of the tour in North Ossetia. On this trip you will visit the real Caucasus mountains, get acquainted with the culture, history and way of life of the Ossetians and Digorians still living in. And, of course, you will see amazing things not just from afar, but you will directly touch the nature of this region and walk with your feet along its roads and paths. And most importantly, the timing of the trip was chosen precisely on the basis that at this time there is a real riot of autumn colors here. Don’t be alarmed, everything is done only lightly and in a gentle manner. We won't have to live in tents, everything will be quite comfortable.

To warm up, we will visit the unique medieval necropolis in the village and see many other attractions along the way. Then we will have the central part of the tour, where we will explore one of the Digoria gorges in the Alanya National Park. In Digoria we will visit the old ones, with their amazing stone architecture and where the traditional way of life and way of life are still preserved, and we will even visit the local residents. Here we will go through simple routes lightly along the slopes of the Rocky Range and visit. Then we will have the third and final part of the journey. To do this, we will have to move to the Tsey ski resort, which at this time is simply a tourist center. There we will take a hike along the ecological trail to the Tseysky glacier. And as a final touch to the whole trip, we will go to the villages of Tib, Sadon and Verkhniy Zgid.

Contacts for applications and proposals at the end of the program.

Detailed travel program:

October 7th. Everyone comes to the city of Vladikavkaz. There are options by plane, train and even bus. We check into the hotel, get ourselves in order, get acquainted, and go for a walk around the city. Anyone who hasn't been here before, I can say for sure, will like it. If we are lucky with the weather, on this day we will already see the snow-capped head of Kazbek and the angular, flat-topped Mount Stolovaya, seemingly hanging over the city. And we will definitely see the Terek and walk along its embankment, and also take a walk along Mira Avenue, which is freed from car traffic precisely for truants like you and me.

October 8. Today we have a long trip. We are going to real mountains, to one of the Caucasian gorges, which is called Kurtatinskoye or sometimes it is also called Fiagdonsky. Along the way, we will stop at the place where the river has cut such a narrow canyon into the limestones that in some places the huge boulders hanging over it completely close together. But even higher, the gorge opens wide and here is the rather large village of Fiagdon. We will travel a little further than Fiagdon to visit the Holy Dormition Alan Monastery. This is a modern temple, but very beautiful. After the sightseeing tour, we will go back a little and begin to climb along the road to the pass. On the way up, right above the cliff, there is an Ossetian watchtower, and if you haven’t seen such towers before, this will be the first, but far from the last, on our route. A little more along the mountain serpentine and then pass and descend down to the village of Dargavs, on the outskirts of which the main object of our trip that day is located. This is the so-called "". In fact, it is a medieval necropolis, striking not only with its architecture, but also with its burial method. If you look inside, you will see human bones and even sometimes mummified remains. Why this is so, the history of these burials is not yet very clear to me personally. They say that epidemics once raged here, and sick people themselves went into these stone crypts to die so as not to infect the healthy. But researchers found no traces of these infections in the remains. Dargavs is the most representative and impressive crypt complex in Ossetia, but they are everywhere here and we will see them in other places. On the same day, if there is a normal road and if there is still time, perhaps we will have time to look a little further, through another pass into the Karmadon Gorge, famous for its tragedy in 2002, when people died during a catastrophic glacier meltdown. But don’t be alarmed, nothing threatens us, we will spend the night again in a city hotel. During this trip, a light snack is a good reason to lose a little weight. But in the evening you can have a blast.

October 9. The excursion part is over, now we have a real journey, with a deep immersion in the environment. We leave the city, go to Digoria and to the Digorians. Digoria is one of the regions of North Ossetia, adjacent to Kabardino-Balkaria, and the Digorians are Ossetians, but they speak their own Digor dialect. To begin with, we will drive for a long time along the plain and look at the Caucasus ridge from the side, but when we reach the village of Chikola we will turn straight into the mountains and a little further we will drive into a narrow gorge. And here the Urukh River carved a very narrow canyon in the limestone, 70 meters deep and only 10 meters wide in some places. We will definitely stop at the observation point called “Devil's Bridge”. And they really built a bridge over the abyss, but it’s unlikely that the devil did it. There is also a short tunnel nearby and an old road that bypasses this tunnel. And next to the tunnel is a real natural cave. A little further we will stop at a horseman on a high rock, this is the statue of Uastirdzhi, the most important Ossetian saint, in the Orthodox form associated with St. George. And a little further we will stop at a holy place, into which women are prohibited from entering. I think there is no need to be outraged about gender inequality when it comes to some historical traditions. Having driven even further, we will find ourselves in the territory of the Alania National Park, which will be announced by the full houses along the road. Here we have to turn left into another gorge, which forms the right tributary of Urukh, the Songutidon River. And then a little more and immediately after the village of Makhchesk we will climb a little hill and already in the village of Kamata we will find our new refuge. This is the visitor center of the National Park, equipped to receive tourists. Let me point out right away that accommodation here is for not very demanding travelers. No, for me personally this is the height of comfort, but maybe you have slightly higher requirements. In fact, this is an ordinary village house, it has four rooms. One large, for ten people and three family ones with three beds each. Plus there is a large kitchen with a dining room and a common table for a large group. Separate shower and toilet facilities. There is a gas heater for the shower from a gas cylinder, and there is also an electric water heater in the kitchen. It’s okay, albeit a little spartan, but it’s worth it, here we have the most interesting part of the trip and it’s only three days. Already on the same day we will have time to walk around the immediate surroundings, climb the Abisalovs’ tower and probably even go on a visit.

October 10. On this day we will get acquainted with the old ones in the Songutidon valley and even higher in the Wallagcom valley. In the village of Fasnal you will see the old walls of a Belgian mining and processing plant, which operated here back in the 19th century, and even then there was electricity and sewerage. Then we will climb higher along the road, where the previously very narrow mountain valley opens wide and here it is already called Huallagk. Three mountain villages are concentrated here - Dunta, Kamunta and Galiat, where very few local residents remain, and where the life and atmosphere of the old mountain villages are still preserved. And you will definitely be amazed by the stone village architecture and towers, often all of this, of course, in the form of ruins. But you will definitely be impressed. Well, then, if there is time and energy left, the volunteers will go with me on foot along the upper road along the slope of the Rocky Ridge to the very base where we settled. Walking here, if you just walk, and not be distracted by anything, at a brisk pace for about two hours. But I hope we have enough enthusiasm to shoot something. And the landscapes here are wonderful. And in some places, herds of horses walk by themselves. Plus, bright autumn colors. This will be our first walking route. Those who refuse to walk in the mountains, after a tour of the villages, will simply go back to the base.

October 11. But on this day a very good walk awaits us. Along the road we will again reach the village of Galiat, and then the walking part will begin, although along a relatively road, but in some places it’s quite steep uphill. Our goal is to climb the pass in the Rocky Range. This place looks like a huge gap in a solid limestone wall. It is really beautiful there and there is a holy place there, which is visited periodically by local residents. And if we’re lucky, we’ll be able to look on the other side of the pass; in May 2016, I wasn’t able to do this because everything there was covered with clouds. For those who came to take photographs, there are a lot of landscape scenes here. But this is not our only goal on this day. At this time, a herd of yaks should be grazing here. Naturally, animals will also become the object of our visual contact and photography. Climbing to the pass can take quite a long time. But if time remains, and the enthusiasm remains in our ranks, we can march along the slopes of the Rocky Ridge straight to our base. Those who have time to walk around the pass will go to the base by car.

October 12. After breakfast we will leave the hospitable shelter in the village of Kamata. We will also leave Digoria. On this day we will leave for Tsey, which is located in another mountain gorge. Before entering the Alagir Gorge, we will visit the Epiphany Alan Convent. A little further we will make a stop at a holy place at the huge Uastyrdzhi monument, which seems to fly out of the rock and hang over the road. Even higher we will pass tunnels and old mining villages, where the architecture of the Soviet era is still preserved. And then we will climb steeply into the mountains and finally reach Tsey, a tourist and ski center, which is nestled in a narrow gorge under the Monk rock. We'll check into a hotel. For those who found the previous base in the village of Kamata not very comfortable, living here will seem like the height of bliss. But we will still have time to walk around the surrounding area and visit such interesting sites as the Rekom sanctuary. This is a men's sanctuary, but there is something for women here.

October 13. This day will be completely devoted to a hike to the Tsey glacier. Follow the path along the bed of the Tseyadon River. We will walk slowly to examine everything in detail and take pictures. I hope we will be lucky with the weather, and the landscapes here are stunning, real mountainous. Most likely, there will still be time on this day, and those who wish will be able to take the cable car up to the Skazsky glacier.

October 14. On this day we will go to the mountain village of Tib. Along the way, we’ll look at the Zaramag reservoir from above, located in a narrow valley among high mountains. In Tiba we will touch the ruins of ancient ancestral towers and visit unique mineral springs. And on the same day we will visit the old mining villages of Sadon and Verkhniy Zgid. In these villages we will see unique Soviet architecture, unlike anything else, and still preserved traces of the catastrophic mudflow that destroyed Sadon. We are still spending the night in Tsey.

October 15. Well, that's it, the journey is over. On this day we say goodbye and go home. Departure from Tsey in the morning with the expectation that everyone will have time for their transport from Vladikavkaz.

Conditions for participation in the trip:

The cost of participation is 44,000 rubles. Prepayment - 15,000 rubles, the rest can be done on the spot.

Included in the price:

All transport movements, starting from the airport or train station and ending there.
- Accommodation at all points of our route, including Vladikavkaz. These are hotels and a visitor center of the National Park. Double and triple accommodation in hotels. It is possible to stay in a more populated room at the visitor center. Single accommodation is negotiated everywhere and calculated separately. Single occupancy is not guaranteed at the Visitor Center.
- Meals along the entire route. Regular three times a day. On routes outside hotels and bases, snacks will be provided.
- Your guide
- Photography and other consultations
- Entrance ticket to the Dargavsa necropolis

The price does not include:

Travel from your city to Vladikavkaz and back.
- Souvenirs and personal expenses.
- Alcohol.
- Cable car in Tsey, if you use it.

Equipment:

The trip is simple, without any extreme. But we will still have simple routes in mountainous areas, so we need to prepare for these conditions.

Particular attention to shoes. Regular trekking boots or mountain hiking boots are best here. If you don't have any, then at least take rubber boots. You can walk in the dry places of the Rocky Ridge in sneakers, but on a hike to the Tseysky Glacier, if you don’t have boots, boots will come in handy. In addition, there should be replacement shoes, such as sneakers and slippers for hotels and bases.
- Waterproof clothing is also important. In case of rain, you should have a waterproof raincoat or cape or suit.
- Simple and comfortable clothes for hiking in the mountains.
- It can be quite cold, especially in the evening or morning. Warm clothes are needed, but not winter, but autumn-spring.
- A small backpack for photographic equipment, clothes in case of rain and other small items during the routes.
- Change of clothes for the hotel and the city.
- Lightweight headdress.
- Personal hygiene items.
- A personal mug and spoon wouldn’t hurt either.

Send applications, questions and suggestions by email [email protected] or by phone 8 903 102-99-36 .

By mutual agreement, some changes to the program are possible.

Below in the photographs are some of what you can see on this trip:

Necropolis in Dargavs. In details .

Kurtatinskoye Gorge at its narrowest point.

The Holy Dormition Alan Monastery in the village of Khidikus outside Fiagdon.

Watchtower over the Kurtatinsky gorge.

Damn bridge.

Visiting local residents. In details

The trip to the Digor Gorge had been planned for a long time, but on this particular day we weren’t going to go, we had completely different plans... But, probably, the stars aligned that way, and in the morning, over a cup of coffee, we decide - we’re going!
The weather was pleasant, a sunny autumn day + good mood and we were on our way.
I want to say right away that I didn’t like it - there are no signs to attractions, it was difficult to find where to eat (there are practically no cafes), and the lack of gas stations (you must take gasoline with you).
In the meantime, we are passing through Kabardino-Balkaria

Let's go to Ossetia

We drive to Figator as our final destination, the village of Dzinaga. We have some little information along the route, but we didn’t think that the objects were not marked anywhere for tourists and we would have to look for them at random... and this is a waste of time (((.
We reach the tunnel, a little before reaching it, there is a turn to the right - this path leads to the Devil's Bridge, which spans the Urukh River.

The place is called Akhsinta Canyon, and if you drive across the bridge, the road will lead to the Didinag (flower) tract, to hay meadows. The height of the canyon is about 70 meters

We drive past the bronze monument to Uastrji. Its weight is 13 tons, height 6 meters + cliff 30 meters.

Not far from the monument there is a men's sanctuary, there is a legend about how it appeared -
Hundreds of years ago, a lone traveler was traveling along a narrow road. Suddenly the cart almost fell into a cliff, but miraculously the man remained alive, as if some unknown force prevented him from falling to the bottom of the ravine. In gratitude to Saint Uastyrdzhi, this sanctuary was erected, which has already been renewed several times

And all around are mountains, sun and clean air!

The place where the great prayer festival takes place

On the opposite bank, high in the mountains, we see the remains of towers and decide to turn off. The turnoff is approximately five km away. from the tunnel and leads to the remains of the villages of Lezgir, Donifars, to the Satayi Obao crypt and to the necropolis.

Climbing upward, we come across an archaeological expedition that has been traveling to these places for about 20 years and is excavating the settlement of Saouar. On a plot of only 70 sq.m. A powerful production center has been discovered, including 5 pottery workshops, 2 metallurgical complexes for smelting ferrous metal and bronze, a bone-carving complex and a charcoal burner's workshop! The age of the village is 2-4 centuries. BC!
The guys had already preserved the excavations until next year and the most interesting things were already covered and packed, but we still clicked the camera as a souvenir

We rise even higher to the ruins of the village of Donifars

A little to the side is the village of Lezgor

Donifarsko-Lezgorsky necropolis

A little history. The village of Lezgor is one of the most ancient villages in mountainous Digoria; in 1886 there were 58 households in it. Residents abandoned it in 1927 after a mudflow, which brought many casualties and destruction. The village was part of Donifar society and an important strategic point. From here the attacks of the Digor feudal lords were repelled. Residents of Lezgor and other Donifar villages never submitted to the local nobility.
The village of Donifars is the only completely Muslim village in Ossetia.
Donifarsko-Lezgorsky necropolis - a large number of stone crypts and stone steles. It is not as famous as the city of the Dead in Dargavs, but is much larger in area and includes tombs of various types. Presumably, burials were made from the 5th to the 18th centuries.

Above the village of Zadalessk, on the edge of the cliff, the Sedanovs’ tower is visible

Along the road Tsyrt is a roadside stone in memory of a deceased person

In front of the Dzinaga camp site, on a stone, is a rather tattered portrait of Stalin.

We pass the tourist center and enter the village of Dzinaga

In general, we have completed our plan, it is already three o’clock in the afternoon, and we are terribly hungry))). Unfortunately, there are no cafes; at the camp site we were told that vacationers cook for themselves, because... the season is closed...
And only after returning to the village of Matsuta, right before entering the reserve, we found a shop where we were fed delicious Ossetian pies of enormous size. A master class on making them was held for me, so I hope that on winter evenings we will eat Ossetian pies at home and remember sunny Ossetia)))

We didn’t see much, so there will be a goal to return...

This article will tell you about amazingly beautiful mountainous places, famous for their numerous historical monuments and magnificent natural landscapes.

This unique natural monument is located in What is the Digori Gorge? The relief, attractions and many interesting things will be discussed in this article.

North Ossetia: general information

Alania (North Ossetia), part of the Russian Federation, is located in the north of the Caucasus Mountains. The entire territory has an area of ​​approximately 8 thousand square meters. km, and it is inhabited by more than 670 thousand people. The overwhelming majority of people living here are Ossetians (approximately 53%) and Russians (30%). There are also Ingush and Armenians in the Republic. The administrative center of the Republic is the city of Vladikavkaz.

The largest cities in the region are Beslan, Mozdok and Alagir. Since 1991, North Ossetia has had the status of a Republic, part of the Russian

Forests occupy a fifth of the territory, and they are predominantly broad-leaved (hornbeam, beech, linden, ash, alder, oak, maple).

Mountain range of the region

Let's briefly look at the mountain range of these places before we find out what it is like - the Digor Gorge.

North Ossetia has a border with Kabardino-Balkaria in the west, the Stavropol Territory in the north, and the Chechen Republic and Ingushetia in the east. Its southern territory borders on Georgia.

The entire republic is located in the foothills of the Greater Caucasus and on its northern slope. The northern territories are located on the Stavropol Plain, the southern ones - on the Sunzhensky and Tersky ridges. In the southern part of the region there are the Side and Main ranges of the Greater Caucasus. The highest point is Jimara Peak (height 4780 m). The Ossetian Plain extends in the central part of the North Caucasus. The low-mountain ridges mentioned above rise from it, and behind them is the Mozdok Plain.

In the Ossetian mountains there are eternal glaciers, the largest of which are Tseysky and Karaug. The highlands are intersected by numerous Kasarsky, Dargavsky, Kurtatinsky, Alagirsky, Kobansky, Tseysky. These include the Digor Gorge. Along them and their side branches pass the beds of mountain rivers of glacial-snow origin and connecting at the exit from the mountains with the large, full-flowing Ardon, Urukh, and Kambileevka.

Features of climatic conditions

The climate in these places is temperate continental. On average, temperatures in January reach -4 °C, and in mid-summer - up to +22 °C. In total, about 800 mm of precipitation falls per year.

The North Ossetian zone is marked by increased seismicity. Also in the mountains there are quite frequent occurrences of powerful snow avalanches, and numerous mudflows and rockfalls occur. Heavy hail is often observed on the foothill plain. He causes great harm to the republic.

In any case, North Ossetia (Alania) is widely popular among tourists and vacationers.

The most beautiful and farthest from the city of Vladikavkaz (120 km) is the Digorskoye gorge, located in the west of North Ossetia.

It is located in the basin of the Urukh (Iraf) River, the tributaries of which originate in the kingdom of huge centuries-old glaciers and ancient snows. The rocky ridge in which the gorge formed is located parallel to the main ridge.

In Digoria there is a wonderful national natural park "Alania". Depending on the altitude above sea level, here you can find either wet or magnificent forests. There is also a forest-steppe zone, glaciers, lakes, waterfalls, and streams.

Like the entire North Caucasus, the Digor Gorge is replete with amazing historical and cultural monuments.

Facts from history

The narrowest point of the gorge is Akhsinta, which is a natural fortress. It should be noted that its walls saved local highlanders from enemies more than once.

There is another interesting point. In the area of ​​​​the villages of Lezgor, Donifars, Nar and Zadalesk there was the 2nd defensive line (Matsute center). On watchtowers and on hills, in case of any danger, damp straw was lit. Thanks to the resulting smoke, news of the threat quickly spread throughout Digoria.

Watchtowers and family towers have been preserved in many areas of Digoria. Some ancient dwellings also remain here, especially in the villages of Dzinaga, Kamunta, Mosca, Dunta and Odola.

Holidays in the Digor Gorge: attractions

As a rule, a trip to Digoria usually begins from the village of Chikola. Due to the large distance from large settlements and due to the lack of a good road, people do not come to these places to relax for 1-2 days.

In general, you can relax in these places only in the summer months, and in winter it is better not to go there, since heavy snowfalls prevail during this period. However, it is worth noting that the scenery in the gorge is beautiful at any time of the year.

Let's take a short excursion along the way to the gorge. After the first village, the road along the plain leads through the village. Ahsarisar. Its name translates as “the height of military valor.” It is named after the fact that in ancient times in these places the Alans heroically fought the Tatar-Mongols (Timur’s troops), who tried to penetrate deep into the gorge.

Further the road passes by the village of Kalukh and stretches to the very foot of the Skalisty ridge. In these places, not far from the tunnel, lies the Akhsinta canyon, across which a concrete bridge was built, nicknamed “Devil’s” by tourists. From this bridge there is a magnificent view of the Urukh River, the forest in the western part of the gorge and the streams flowing from karst springs descending from the steep walls.

North Ossetia has many not only historical monuments, but also natural attractions. The Digor Gorge is famous for one of the most magnificent and largest glaciers - Karaugomsky, which is the second largest in the entire North Caucasus.

A little about the origin of the name of the gorge

It comes from the name of the Ossetian ethnic group - Digors (in Ossetian - “Digoron” or “Dyguron”).

They are native speakers of the Digor dialect of the Ossetian language and represent the bulk of the population of this republic.