On what plain are the Altai mountains. Altai mountains, Altai mountains
Altai mountains- a wonderful sight of nature. Mountain ranges frighten and cause admiration.
How many of those who want to conquer the snowy slopes, climb the peaks, from where you can view the sprawling beauty of several countries at once.
Altai mountains on the map
Geographical position
The Altai Mountains are located in Asia, or to be more precise, in Central Asia and Siberia. The mountain system covers several countries at once. She lay down on the borders of Russia - in the Altai Territory and the Republic of Altai, China - Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, Kazakhstan - East Kazakhstan region, and Mongolia - Bayan-Ulgiysky and Khovd aimags.
Flora and fauna
The vegetation of the Altai Mountains is diverse and to some extent unique. On a relatively small area mountain ranges you can meet almost all types of flora of the European part of Russia, Kazakhstan and Central and North Asia. All this is due to elevation differences (the difference ranges from 350 meters to 4500 meters).
Various altitudinal belts are formed. Each of them has its own flora. Once in the Altai Mountains, you can visit a variety of natural conditions in just a day. Steppe vegetation is widely represented in Altai. Here you can see a variety of shrubs (honeysuckle, sea buckthorn, wild rose), cereals (fescue, feather grass) and other plants.
If we turn to the southeastern region mountain system at an altitude of more than 1000 meters, then it will amaze with its semi-desert and scarcity. A completely different Altai appears in its famous forests, rich in flora. The world-famous black taiga is adjacent to the main forests and cedar forests, which occupy more than 30% of the territory of the Altai Mountains.
nature of the Altai mountains photo
At an altitude of 2000 meters, the alpine zone begins. It includes swamps and tundra. Separately, it is worth highlighting the alpine meadows. A huge variety of herbs spreads on them, some of them reach a height of more than one and a half meters.
The flora of Altai is a huge folk "pharmacy" with big amount medicinal plants. More than 100 plant species are used in the pharmaceutical industry. The most popular and well-known medicinal flower is Maryin root. The bright flowers of this peony burn with fire on the variegated green carpets of countless meadows.
On the next altitudinal zone mountain tundra reigns. There is no variety of herbs and shrubs here, vegetable world represented by numerous mosses and lichens. In some areas, you can see low-growing willows and birches surrounded by green mosses. You can also find stone blocks entwined with lichens, between which partridge grass grows.
snow leopard photo
The fauna of Altai impresses with its richness. Ecologists count here about 90 species of mammals, more than 260 species of birds, 11 different representatives of amphibians and reptiles, and two dozen fish. In the steppe at every step you can come across rodents. Voles, pikas, marmots and jerboas hide here. Foxes, wolves, hare hares live everywhere in the Altai steppes. At an altitude of more than a thousand meters, the fauna is already more diverse, although some representatives of the steppes are still found here.
In addition to them, a wide variety of birds is represented here. Here are the bustard, and the Indian goose, and the gray crane. Birds of prey also soar in the sky: black vultures, griffon vultures, saker falcons. The higher the mountains, the more animals can be found among the trees and rocks. Elk, roe deer, deer are the real decorations of the Altai forests. closer to northern territories the lucky ones can see the rare reindeer.
mountain sheep photo
And in the wilderness of the taiga, dangerous, predatory animals roam: bears, wolverines, lynxes. In alpine meadows, the diversity of animals, in contrast to plant species, is much less. Although it is here that rare animals listed in the Red Book live: snow leopards, argali, mountain goats.
Aquatic fauna represented various types fish. Lakes and rivers of Altai - perfect place fishing for fishermen. Pike, ide, perch, sterlet and minnow swim here. However, the higher the mountains, the more variety water world becomes poorer. The Altai Mountains are the only habitat of the Altai osman.
Characteristics of the Altai Mountains
Who discovered the Altai mountains
IN different countries The mountain was given various names. Like herself Mountain chain, and its naming is very ancient. It is impossible to determine who exactly discovered the mountains and gave them their real name.
beauty of the Altai Mountains photo
Linguists believe that the word "Altai" comes from a combination of two Turkic words: Alty - "six" and ai - "moons". For various nationalities, the Altai Mountains are “variegated” or “golden” mountains due to the fact that they are rich in bright colorful plants, and the snowy peaks shine in the sunlight.
- Due to the unusual climate in winter in the Altai mountains, peculiar oases without snow cover are formed in some valleys. The temperature in them is usually 10 0 -15 0 degrees higher than in neighboring areas.
- The first mountains formed here 500-600 million years ago. However, due to tectonic processes, their relief was destroyed, and 66 million years ago a mountain range was formed here, which exists to this day.
- natural places located on the territory of the Altai Mountains (Teletskoye Lake, Altai and Katunsky reserves, Mount Belukha), were included in the UNESCO heritage list in 1998.
- Experts estimate the reserves of medicinal plants in the mountains in the amount of half a million tons.
- There are numerous mineral deposits in the mountains. However, the extraction of raw materials in these areas is practically not carried out.
- The mountain system is divided into: Altai, Southern Altai, Gobi Altai, Mongolian Altai and Steppe Altai.
- The length of the Museum Cave (the longest in the Altai Mountains) is 700 meters.
Mountain ships.
The eastern outskirts of this region - the Shapshalsky ridge - in the north merges with the Abakansky ridge, in the south - with the Chikhachev ridge. The highest point of Shapshala - Mount Ak-oyuk (3614 m) - crowns the Perevalny spur near the source of Chulyshman. In addition to Perevalnoye, the Saylykhem ridge (3585 m) extends into Tuva. To the north is a complex orographic node - the ridge
High, from which the Khemchik, Kozer, Saigo-nysh rivers originate. The Vysoky Ridge gives a branch to the north, connected with the system of Skalisty (3487 m) and Tarvanyga (2513 m) ridges. Even further north, the height of the ridge gradually decreases and does not exceed 2500–2700 m beyond the sources of the Chulcha Alashskaya. From the side of Tuva, a vast swampy plateau (up to 2100 m high) with lakes adjoins the ridge. From the east it is limited by the Yeri-Taiga ridge (3026 m). Further, Shapshal decreases to the minimum level (Pogranichny pass - 1976 m) and then, in a short segment, rising to 2858 m (Azhu-Taiga), joins the Abakan ridge in the west and the Saldzhur ridge in the east.
To the west, Shapshal also gives branches - the ridges of Kyzyl-Kochko (2813 m), Booshkon (2900 m), which, unlike the western ones, are short and do not give secondary spurs. From the west, Shapshal passes into the vast Chulyshman Plateau, stretching from Lake Teletskoye to the upper Chulyshman. Its heights range from 1800 m at Lake Teletskoye to 2300 m at Lake Khindiktig-Khol. In the northwest, the Sundruktyntaiga massif (2477 m) rises, and the middle of the plateau is blocked by the Kur-kure massif (3111 m), which merges through the Elbek-Tular-Kyr ridge (2756 m) with the Shapshalsky ridge. In the south, the Kiytykul (3066 m), Plosky (2801 m) and individual massifs rise, sometimes over 3000 m high.
Shapshalsky Ridge - the watershed of the two largest river systems. From the eastern slopes, water flows into the Yenisei basin, from the western slopes into the basin of the Chulyshman River, which carries its waters to the Ob.
The most significant rivers of the Yenisei system are Shui, Khemchik and Alash, in the Chulyshman system - Shavla and Chulcha.
Several dozen large lakes are scattered in the Shapshal Range and the Chulyshman Plateau. Among them is the famous Teletskoye, the second largest lake is Khindiktig-Khol, as well as Dzhulukul, Kara-Khol, Cheybok-Kul, Eri-Kul and others.
From the mouth of the Bashkaus to the junction with the Chikhachev Ridge, the Chulyshman Range stretches for 160 km in a southeast direction - the watershed of the two largest rivers of the Bashkaus and Chulyshman. From 2000–2100 m in the northwest, the ridge drops to the southeast by 500–600 m, forming a small Ulaganskaya steppe. Further, the ridge gains height, which at the junction with the Chikhachev ridge goes beyond 3000 m.
The Chulyshman Range feeds the Bashkaus with tributaries of the Kalbakay, Kumurlu, Artlag, Iolda, Kara-Tash, Saratan, Aturkul, Ulagan, Passepartout, Onysh, Kovaldut. The rivers Kara-Kem, Tar-Tagai, Elandu, Tuzhar, Katu-Yaryk, Koo carry their waters to Chulyshman.
Almost in the latitudinal direction stretches the watershed of Bashkaus and Chui - the Kurai Range. Starting at the sources of Bashkaus, it fences off the Eastern Altai from the south with a 3000-meter wall for almost 130 km.
At the western tip, the Kurai branches off into the Tongulak Range. Having average heights of 2700–2800 m in the east, the ridge gradually rises to 3000 m and in the western part reaches a maximum height of 3444 m. Its rivers Kokuri, Kyzyl-Tash, Kurai and Chibitka flow into Chuya.
Complicated orography, significant dissection of the relief, dense river network often with difficult crossings, taiga thickets along the valleys major rivers make the area quite interesting in terms of sports. Proximity to the region of the pearl of Altai - Lake Teletskoye - and two others largest lakes- Dzhulukul and Khindiktig-Khol, unpopulated areas make the routes especially attractive.
The climate of Eastern Altai is sharply continental, which is explained not only by remoteness from the ocean, but also by a relatively high absolute height. Average annual temperature in Kosh-Agach - 6.7°, in Ust-Ulagan - 4.2°, and the annual temperature amplitude sometimes exceeds 100°. The frost-free period is very short - on average about 50 days. The average annual precipitation is 110 mm in Kosh-Agach, 280 mm in Ust-Ulagan, and 340 mm in Chodro, more than half of which falls in the summer months.
The vegetation of the region is distributed over several belts. In the Kurai and Chui steppes, a belt of steppe and semi-desert vegetation is developed, the forest belt runs along the valleys: the Chui, Bashkaus, Chulyshman rivers, along the ridges, frames the steppes. Large spaces The Chulyshman Plateau is occupied by alpine tundra.
The Chulyshman plateau and the Kurai steppe are the most economically developed and densely populated in Eastern Altai. On the banks of the Chulyshman are the villages of Koo, Ak-Kurum, Chodro, Yazulu.
On the banks of the Bashkaus and its tributaries, the villages of Ust-Ulagan, Balyktuyul, Pasparta, Karakudyur, Chibil, Tuzhar, Kyzyl-Many, Saratan.
Altaic state reserve was organized in 1932. Now its area is 864 square meters. kilometers. It includes northern and eastern shores Lake Teletskoye, the entire Chulyshman Upland to the Shapshalsky Range, the right bank of the Chulyshman to Lake Dzhulukul.
The reserve is a scientific laboratory where flora and fauna are studied. animal world. In different natural areas climate, water regime, and soil-forming processes are monitored. These materials are widely used by specialists in various fields. National economy: hunters, foresters, agronomists - all whose work is related to the use and protection natural resources as well as natural scientists. Development of scientific bases for nature management, conservation of rare species of animals, control over the state of the biosphere - these are the main tasks of the Altai Reserve.
The reserve contributes to the preservation and increase of the hunting fauna in the Altai taiga. The previously rare sable has now become a common object of hunting. The number of deer and some other valuable animals has increased.
You can visit the Chulyshman Plateau and the Shapshalsky Ridge by obtaining a written permission from the Directorate of the Reserve. Her address: Altai Territory, Gorno-Altaiskaya Autonomous region, Turochaksky district, pos. Iogach.
Golden mountains - this is how the word Altai is translated. And it's hard to argue with that natural beauty Altai has few rivals. Altai mountains are the most high part Siberia and are located on the land of two subjects of the country - the Altai Republic and Altai Territory. They call it Russian Tibet amazing place. mountain rivers, crystal lakes, seething waterfalls, endless coniferous forests and alpine meadows - the generosity of the nature of these places conquers forever.
All about the golden mountains of Altai
IN Altai mountains the Biya and Katun rivers are born, from the confluence of which the Ob is born - one of the deepest and longest rivers in Russia.
Most high ridge Altai mountains - Katunsky. The Altai Mountains are famous for their caves, of which there are many. - the edge of waterfalls, the highest Tekelu flows into the Akkem River.
Winter in the region is long, up to 5 months. But in the area of Lake Teletskoye, winter pleases with comfortable ten degrees below zero. In summer, daylight hours in the region last from 17 to 17 hours - this is more than in Yalta or Sochi.
The Ukok Plateau is a place of burial mounds. Locals believe that the plateau is special sacred place to whom they entrust the bodies of the dead. Unique nature these places inspired Nicholas Roerich to create paintings. In the village of Upper Uimon there is a museum of the painter.
Chemal is a picturesque area of the Altai Mountains, where the Katun carries its waters past rocky mountains that fascinate with their impregnability.
Seven reservoirs amazing beauty, stretching in a chain along western slope Iolgo Ridge.
Lower Shavlinskoye Lake is located surrounded by mountains in the vicinity of the village of Chibit. Pagan idols are installed on the shore of the reservoir.
The discovery of the Denisova Cave, located in the valley of the Anui River in the Soloneshsky District, has become a notable event in world archeology. The remains of a 42,000-year-old man were found in the cave. The cave is accessible to people with any level of physical fitness.
Altai cave, one of the deepest and longest in Siberia and Altai, goes down 240 meters, and its length is 2540 meters. This natural attraction is located in the village of Cheremshanka in the Altai Territory. The Altai cave is actively visited by amateur tourists and professional speleologists.
Included in the Katunsky ridge and revered local residents as sacred - the highest point of Siberia and Altai, towering over the picturesque valleys of the Ukok plateau at 4509 meters. Belukha is located at an equidistant distance from the four world oceans and is the geographical center of Eurasia. Origins of the main Altai river Katun originate in the Belukha glaciers.
Why and why you need to see the Altai mountains
Those who love sports tourism have been visiting the Altai Mountains for many years. Mountain rivers of Altai are great for rafting. Speleologists descend into mysterious caves, and for climbers Mountain peaks Altai is a favorite place. lovers hiking you will see many places of bewitching beauty. Equestrian tourism is also developed in Altai, which makes it possible to visit the most inaccessible corners of the region.
Fishing in the Altai Mountains attracts tourists not only from nearby regions, but also from the European part of Russia. Local rivers are rich in delicious grayling, taimen, whitefish and rainbow trout.
People go to Altai to improve their health and relax in one of the most ecologically clean places on the ground. The region is famous for its healing thermal springs. Belokurikha is the most famous Altai resort famous for its unique microclimate and good opportunities For active rest in any season. At the service of tourists - chairlift, raising the guests of the resort to Mount Tserkovka (height 815 meters), from the top of which a stunning view of the Altai expanses opens.
One of business cards The Altai Mountains - deer, on the treatment of antlers which is based on an entire medical industry. On the basis of many marals, medical bases have been created, where vacationers improve their health among mountains and forests, enjoying peace and quiet in the bosom of Altai nature.
Visitors are welcome in winter ski resorts Altai - Manzherok, Belokurikha, Turquoise Katun, Seminsky pass.
Helpful information
Going to Altai even at the height of summer, be sure to take warm clothes - in the mountains, the night temperature can drop to +5°C.
Altai is a region where a tick carrying encephalitis and other dangerous infections is widespread. For protection, it is recommended to get vaccinated in advance. Also stock up on appropriate repellents.
Popular souvenirs from the Altai Mountains - honey, antlers, pine nuts, teas from alpine herbs, original wooden products of local residents, amulets, national musical instruments and household items.
And remember, local residents expect tourists to respect their land, ancestors and wildlife.
How to get to the Altai Mountains
Fly or go to Barnaul, or Biysk, and then go by buses and cars to your destination.
The Aviasales.ru service will help you choose a plane ticket. In a matter of minutes, the metasearch engine will select the cheapest flights for the desired date.
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Geological structure and a long history of relief formation reveal a picture of the origin of the plains and mountains. In the Archean, Proterozoic and at the beginning of the Paleozoic, the territory of Altai was covered by the sea - it was part of a vast geosynclinal region stretching between the Russian and Siberian platforms. In the Paleozoic, powerful tectonic movements took place, the seabed experienced a significant fluctuation in the horizontal and vertical directions.
At the end of the Paleozoic, on the site of the modern plains of the region, land arose, which experienced oscillatory movements. At the beginning of the Mesozoic, there is a slow sinking of the land and the formation of troughs. One of such troughs is the Kulunda lowland.
In the middle of the Mesozoic (Jurassic period), the land sank so much that again the sea covered almost the entire flat part of the region.
In the next Cenozoic era (Paleogene), the lowering of the base of the Altai plains continued and the sea existed until Neogene period. Sedimentary rocks of the ancient Paleogene sea leveled small depressions, and when the sea receded, the perfectly flat surface of the Kulunda lowland remained.
The maximum thickness of sedimentary deposits that have accumulated on the plain over all geological eras reaches 3000 m. The crystalline rocks that form the bases of the plains are located at great depths.
In the Quaternary period, the plains experience tectonic movements of an eiperogenic nature. The terrain is slowly sinking. Favorable conditions are created for the accumulation of sediments, mainly due to the material brought by the rivers. In the Quaternary, the relief of the plains is formed.
At the base of the plains of the region lies a section of the West Siberian plate. The West Siberian plate is part of a young Paleozoic platform composed of Hercynian and Caledonian folded structures overlain by a thick sedimentary cover.
Geological history The Altai mountains are more complex than the plains. The base of the Altai Mountains is composed of the same structures of the young Paleozoic platform as the plains, only they are not covered by sedimentary deposits and come to the surface. The Altai Mountains are part of a vast mountainous country that arose in areas of the Paleozoic Sea and occupies a territory stretching for thousands of kilometers from Altai south to the Tien Shan, west to the Urals, east to the Sea of Okhotsk and the Sea of Japan.
The beginning of the formation of the Altai Mountains refers to the Caledonian folding, when the northeastern ranges arose, located east of the Katun. The sea still existed in the southwest. At the end of the Paleozoic, in the Hercynian era, the bottom of the sea crumpled into folds, internal forces squeezed them up, forming a mountainous country. Mountain building movements were accompanied violent eruptions volcanoes that poured lava onto the surface of young folds. Above the vast plain rose high the folded Mountain country.
In the Mesozoic era, the Altai Mountains were gradually destroyed under the influence of the sun, wind and other forces of nature. Over millions of years, the former mountainous country has turned into a flat, vast elevated plain with single elevated areas protruding in the form of remnants. There were lakes and swamps everywhere.
In the Cenozoic era, tectonic processes of Alpine mountain building reappear in Altai, which proceeded in a special way, due to the fact that the land passed into a platform state. Flat areas, consisting of destroyed folds, could no longer compress, since the rocks were very hard, the earth's crust lost its mobility. Under the influence of tectonic processes, faults arise, separate blocks are formed, which move one on top of the other, simultaneously rise and split.
Tectonic movements in the Altai Mountains were accompanied by intense volcanic activity, under their influence magma rushed into the cracks and poured out to the surface. With the vertical movement of the layers of the earth's crust, horsts and grabens were formed. The greatest uplifts occurred in the southern part, where a mountainous country formed instead of an elevated plain.
Cooling began in the Quaternary period. In the Altai Mountains, high-elevated flat areas were covered with thick layers of ice. Glaciers slowly slid down the slopes of the mountains. After the first glaciation, the interglacial period began, during which tectonic movements resumed. There is a sinking and raising of land along the lines of old and new faults. The formation of the Teletskoye Lake graben dates back to this time. Melt waters do a great deal of destructive work, forming deep river valleys.
With climate warming, there was a gradual reduction in glaciers, which continues to this day. During the melting of ancient glaciers, powerful streams of water were formed, which carried away a huge amount of gravel and sand to the plains.
Melted glacial waters flowed into the region of the Kulunda lowland, where vast lakes. Some of the lakes of Kulunda are the remains of these dried-up reservoirs. IN glacial lakes clays were deposited. In the interfluve of the Biya and Katun, in the foothills of Altai, loess-like deposits up to 25 m thick were formed. In river valleys, on the slopes of hills, along watersheds, loess-like deposits filled the negative forms of the surface and gave the relief a smooth character.
Second mountainous area represented by the Salair ridge. The Salair Ridge has a complex complex of layers of the earth's crust of various ages. This is explained by the location of the ridge on the border between the mobile areas of land, where the formation of the Altai mountain system was taking place, and the giant stable block of the Siberian platform.
The beginning of the formation of Salair belongs to the Caledonian era of folding, its final formation took place in the Hercynian time. Since then there has been weathering rocks Salair. From the slopes of the ridge, the destruction products are carried to the Kuznetsk basin and to the west - to the Chumysh and Biya valleys. In the central part of the Salair Ridge, ancient layers come to the surface. In low places they are overlain by later deposits.
Siberian Alps, Russian Tibet - this is the name of this amazing place. The Altai Mountains, the photos of which are amazing, are not in vain included in the UNESCO list. And not only tourists admire the pristine beauty of this region, for the indigenous people it is also the one and only.
height and main ranges
The Altai Mountains are a complex system of ridges located on the territory of several states. Their Russian part is concentrated in This is the most high part Siberia, which attracts with its severe beauty and snow caps. Travelers, scientists, tourists, climbers, artists, photographers, as well as pilgrims come here every year.
Altai - mountains, the height of which is different. The highest is the Katunsky ridge: its peaks rise on average 3200-3500 meters above sea level. Outwardly, it resembles the Alps: sharp peaks, steep slopes, powerful glaciers and eternal snow. That is why this part of the system is visited most often. In addition, Belukha is located here - the highest of the mountains (4506 m) - and many picturesque lakes.
Belukha and Altai (mountains): height and legends
This peak is considered not only amazing but also a real shrine of the region. It is interesting that it is removed at equal distances from the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, being the geographical center of Eurasia. It is surrounded by glaciers from which the Katun River originates. For many centuries, the locals have considered the mountain a haven of evil spirits that punish anyone who disturbs their peace. Buddhists believe that somewhere up there, at the top, is the fabulous Shambhala.
The peak got its name because of its eternally white cover. Although Belukha has been conquered more than once, it remains difficult to access, and the seismic activity here is quite high. And in 1997, a natural park was opened in the vicinity of the mountain.
Chui Range
Altai is not only proud of these peaks. The mountains, whose height is not much lower, make up the Chui Range. In fact, these are two chains - southern and northern. The first is located away from the known tourist centers, hard to reach for transport, wild. highest point- Iktu peak (3941 m). The other one is more developed, because there are not only high mountains, but also colorful meadows, lakes, rich flora and fauna. Here is the second highest peak of the system - Maashey-Bashi, 4137 meters - this is the height of the mountain. Altai in this part is generally rich in huge peaks, which attracts climbers here.
This is another interesting peak that rises only 1210 meters. This is the most Kolyvanovsky ridge. Climbing it, you can see fantastic landscapes: the Kulunda steppe, the famous pine forest, blue-eyed lakes and other snow-capped mountains. Fir forests on the slope of Sinyukha gave it an unusual color, which formed the basis of the name. It is also sacred to the inhabitants of these places, and there is a healing spring on the northern slope.
Altyn-Tu, located next to Lake Teletskoye, is especially revered by the locals. Beautiful views on the river will give from its top that is near Lake Aya. Tourists do not miss small rocks of bizarre shapes - the Big Monastery (near the village of Ust-Pustynka), the Castle of Mountain Spirits (Akkainsky Pass), Stone Mushrooms (near Teletskoye Lake) and many others.
Altai Krai is the most wonderful place on earth!
