The absolute height of the highest peaks of the Caucasus Mountains. The geographical position of the Caucasus Mountains: description, photo

Here is a detailed map of the Caucasus Mountains with the names of cities and towns in Russian. Move the map by holding it with the left mouse button. You can move around the map by clicking on one of the four arrows in the upper left corner.

You can change the scale using the scale on the right side of the map or by turning the mouse wheel.

What country is the Caucasus Mountains in?

Caucasian Mountain is located in Russia. It's wonderful a nice place with its own history and traditions. Coordinates of the Caucasus Mountains: northern latitude and eastern longitude (show on a large map).

virtual walk

The figurine of a "little man" above the scale will help to make virtual walk in the cities of the Caucasus mountains. By pressing and holding the left mouse button, drag it to any place on the map and you will go for a walk, while inscriptions with the approximate address of the area will appear in the upper left corner. Choose the direction of movement by clicking on the arrows in the center of the screen. The "Satellite" option at the top left allows you to see the relief image of the surface. In the "Map" mode, you will get the opportunity to get acquainted in detail with highways Caucasus mountains and main sights.

antiqus classicus

Caspian mountains

Caspian mountains
• and gate (Greek Κασπία ὄρη, lat. Caspii monies).
• 1. Panic mountains between Armenia and Albania on the one hand and Media on the other (now Qaradagh, Siah-Koh, i.e. Black and Talysh mountains). In a broad sense, this name means the entire chain of mountains south of the river. Arak (from the Kotur River to the Caspian Sea). Here were the so-called.

Caspian Gate (Caspiapila), a narrow mountain pass 8 Roman miles long and one chariot wide (now the Chamar pass between Narsa-Koh and Siah-Koh). This was the only way from Northwest Asia to the northeastern part of the Persian state, because the Persians blocked this passage with iron gates, which were guarded by guards (claustra Caspiarum).

Caucasian mountains- a mountain system between the Black and Caspian Seas.

It is divided into two mountain systems: the Greater Caucasus and the Lesser Caucasus.
The Caucasus is often divided into North Caucasus and Transcaucasia, the border between which is drawn along the Main, or Watershed, ridge of the Greater Caucasus, which occupies a central position in the mountain system.

The most famous peaks are Mt. Elbrus (5642 m) and Mt.

Kazbek (5033 m) is covered with eternal snow and glaciers.

From the northern foot of the Greater Caucasus to the Kuma-Manych depression, Ciscaucasia extends with vast plains and uplands. To the south of the Greater Caucasus are the Colchis and Kura-Araks lowlands, the Inner Kartli plain and the Alazan-Avtoran valley [the Kura depression, within which the Alazan-Avtoran valley and the Kura-Araks lowland are located]. In the southeastern part of the Caucasus - the Talysh mountains (up to 2492 m high) with the adjacent Lankaran lowland. In the middle and in the west of the southern part of the Caucasus is the Transcaucasian Highlands, which consists of the ranges of the Lesser Caucasus and the Armenian Highlands (Aragats, 4090 m).
Lesser Caucasus connects with Greater Caucasus Likhsky ridge, in the west it is separated from it by the Colchis lowland, in the east - by the Kura depression. The length is about 600 km, the height is up to 3724 m.

Mountains near Sochi - Aishkho (2391 m), Aibga (2509 m), Chigush (3238 m), Pseashkho and others.

Location of the mountain system of the Caucasus Mountains on the world map

(mountain system boundaries are approximate)

Hotels in Adler from 600 rubles per day!

Caucasian mountains or Caucasus- a mountain system between the Black and Caspian Seas with an area of ​​\u200b\u200b~ 477488 m².

The Caucasus is divided into two mountain systems: the Greater Caucasus and the Lesser Caucasus, very often the mountain system is divided into Ciscaucasia (Northern Caucasus), Greater Caucasus and Transcaucasia ( South Caucasus). Along the crest of the Main Range, passes state border Russian Federation with the countries of the Caucasus.

highest peaks

The largest mountain peaks of the Caucasus Mountains (indicators of various sources may vary).

Climate

The climate of the Caucasus is warm and mild, with the exception of the highlands: at an altitude of 3800 m, the border of "eternal ice" passes. In the mountains and foothills there is a large number of precipitation.

Flora and fauna

The vegetation of the Caucasus is rich in species composition and diversity: oriental beech, Caucasian hornbeam, Caucasian linden, noble chestnut, boxwood, cherry laurel, Pontic rhododendron, some species of oak and maple, wild persimmon, as well as subtropical tea bush and citrus grow here.

In the Caucasus, there are brown Caucasian bears, lynxes, forest cats, foxes, badgers, martens, deer, roe deer, wild boars, bison, chamois, mountain goats (tours), small rodents (forest dormouse, field voles). Birds: magpies, thrushes, cuckoos, jays, wagtails, woodpeckers, owls, owls, starlings, crows, goldfinches, kingfishers, tits, Caucasian black grouse and mountain turkeys, golden eagles and lambs.

Population

More than 50 peoples live in the Caucasus (for example: Avars, Circassians, Chechens, Georgians, Lezgins, Karachais, etc.) which are designated as Caucasian peoples. They speak Caucasian, Indo-European, as well as Altaic languages. Largest cities: Sochi, Tbilisi, Yerevan, Vladikavkaz, Grozny, etc.

Tourism and rest

The Caucasus is visited from recreational purposes: on the shores of the Black Sea there are many sea ​​resorts, The North Caucasus is popular for its balneological resorts.

Rivers of the Caucasus

The rivers originating in the Caucasus belong to the basins of the Black, Caspian and Azov Seas.

• swell
• Kodori
• Ingur (Enguri)
• Rioni
• Kuban
• Podkumok
• Araks
• Liakhva (Big Liakhvi)
• Samur
• Sulak
• Avar Koysu
• andean koisu
• Terek
• Sunzha
• Argun
• Malka (Kura)
• Baksan
• Chegem
• Cherek

Countries and Regions

The following countries and regions are located in the Caucasus.

• Azerbaijan
• Armenia
• Georgia
• Russia: Adygea, Dagestan, Ingushetia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachay-Cherkessia, Krasnodar Territory, North Ossetia-Alania, Stavropol region, Chechnya

In addition to these countries and regions, there are partially recognized republics in the Caucasus: Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Nagorno-Karabakh.

The largest cities of the Caucasus

• Vladikavkaz
• Gelendzhik
• Hot key
• Grozny
• Derbent
• Yerevan
• Essentuki
• Zheleznovodsk
• Zugdidi
• Kislovodsk
• Kutaisi
• Krasnodar
• Maykop
• Makhachkala
• Mineral water
• Nazran
• Nalchik
• Novorossiysk
• Pyatigorsk
• Stavropol
• Stepanakert
• Sukhum
• Tbilisi
• Tuapse
• Tskhinvali
• Cherkessk

Cheap flights to Sochi from 3000 rubles.

Where is it located and how to get there

Address: Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Russia

The Main Caucasian (Dividing) Range is a continuous mountain range stretching for more than 1,100 km from the northwest to the southeast from the Black Sea (Anapa region) to the Caspian Sea (Mount Ilkhydag northwest of Baku). The Caucasian Range divides the Caucasus into two parts: Ciscaucasia (Northern Caucasus) and Transcaucasia (South Caucasus).

The Main Caucasian Range separates the basins of the Kuban, Terek, Sulak and Samur rivers in the north and the Inguri, Rioni and Kura rivers in the south.

The mountain system, which includes the Main Caucasian Range, is called the Greater Caucasus (or the Greater Caucasian Range), in contrast to the Lesser Caucasus, a vast highland located south of the Rioni and Kura valleys and directly connected with the uplands of Western Asia.

For a more convenient view, the Caucasus Range can be divided along the length from west to east into seven parts:

Black Sea Caucasus (from the meridian of Anapa to the Fisht-Oshten mountain group - approx. 265 km),

Kuban Caucasus (from Oshten to the source of the Kuban) - 160 km,

Elbrus Caucasus, or western (Karachai-Circassian) Elbrus region (from the source of the Kuban to the top of Adai-Khokh) - 170 km,

Tersky (Kazbek) Caucasus (from Adai-Khokh to the city of Barbalo) - 125 km,

Dagestan Caucasus (from Barbalo to the top of Sari-Dag) - 130 km,

Samur Caucasus (from Sari-Dag to the city of Baba-Dag) - approx. 130 km,

Caspian Caucasus (from Baba-Dag to the top of Ilkhydag) - approx. 170 km.

A more enlarged division is also adopted:

Western Caucasus (limited from the east by Elbrus);

Central Caucasus;

Eastern Caucasus (limited from the west by Kazbek).

The entire system of the Main Caucasian Range occupies approximately 2,600 km². The northern slope covers about 1450 km², and the southern one - about 1150 km².

The width of the Caucasus Range in the western (somewhat west of Elbrus, and including the Elbrus mountain range) and eastern (Dagestan) parts is about 160 ... 180 km, in the central - about 100 km; both extremities are strongly narrowed and represent (especially the western) an insignificant width.

The highest is the middle part of the ridge, between Elbrus and Kazbek (average heights are about 3,400 - 3,500 m above sea level); its highest peaks are concentrated here, the highest of which - Elbrus - reaches a height of 5,642 m above sea level. m.; east of Kazbek and west of Elbrus, the ridge drops, and more significantly in the second direction than in the first.

In general, in height, the Caucasian Range significantly exceeds the Alps; it has at least 15 peaks exceeding 5,000 m, and more than 20 peaks higher than Mont Blanc, the highest peak in all Western Europe. Forward highlands accompanying main ridge, in most cases do not have the character of continuous chains, but represent short ridges or mountain groups connected with the watershed ridge by spurs and cut through in many places deep gorges rivers, which, starting in the Main Range and breaking through the advanced heights, descend to the foothills and exit to the plains.

Mount Elbrus from the air - the roof of Europe

Thus, almost along its entire length (in the west - from the south, in the east - from the north), a series of high basins adjoins the watershed ridge, in most cases of lacustrine origin, closed on the one hand by the heights of the watershed, as well as its spurs, and on the other - separate groups and short ridges of advanced hills, which in some places surpass the main chain in height.

On the north side of the watershed, transverse basins predominate, and on the south, except for its western extremity, longitudinal ones. It is also characteristic of the Caucasus Range that many of the primary peaks do not lie on the Dividing Ridge, but on the extremities of its short spurs heading north (this is the position of the peaks of Elbrus, Koshtan, Adai-khokh, etc.). This is the so-called Lateral Caucasian Range, which stretches in the vast majority of cases (in many places) even below the Rocky.

Northern slope of the Caucasus Range

The northern, more developed slope of the Caucasus Range, formed by many spurs, adjoining in general almost perpendicular to the Main Range and separated by deep transverse valleys, reaches a very significant development in the vicinity of Elbrus (Elbrus ledge). The most significant uplift [the Elbrus-Mineralnye Vody fault zone] goes straight north from this peak, serves as a watershed between the waters of the Kuban (Azov) and the Terek (Caspian Sea) and, descending further in ledges, spreads into the island mountains of Pyatigorye and the vast Stavropol Upland (the main uplift frontal ledges reaches the Pasture Range, bordering the horseshoe Kislovodsk basin turns south (Kislovodsk) to the east, along with gorges and river valleys stretches to the Terek-Sunzhensky interfluve - forming the Terek-Sunzhenskaya upland, and further - up to the Andisky ridge).

The northern slope is even more developed in the eastern part of the Caucasus Range, where numerous, and very significant in height and length, its spurs form an extensive mountain country Dagestan (Dagestan ledge) is a large mountainous region enclosed by high Andi, Sala-Tau and Gimryn (2334 m) ranges. Gradually lowering to the north, the northern slope is formed by many advanced hills, which in places are in the form of ridges and mountain spurs; such mountain ranges include the so-called Black Mountains (see) (Pasture Range), located to the north of the Main Range, at a distance of 65 km from it. The Black Mountains form gentle and long slopes, in most areas covered with dense forests (hence the name), and fall in steep cliffs to the south. The rivers flowing from the Main Range break through the Black Mountains along deep and narrow, very picturesque gorges (Sulak Canyon up to 1800 m deep); the height of this advanced chain, in general, is insignificant, although (in the west of the Dagestan ledge) in upstream Ardona and Urukh, some of their peaks reach a height of more than 3,300 m above sea level (Kion-hokh - 3,423 m, Kargu-Khokh - 3,350 m, Vaza-Khokh - 3,529 m (Rocky and Side Ridge)).

view of the Caucasus Range from the Rosa Khutor base

The southern slope is especially poorly developed in the western and eastern parts ridge, reaching a fairly significant orographic development in the middle, where it is adjoined by parallel hills, forming longitudinal valleys of the upper reaches of the Rioni, Inguri and Tskhenis-tskhali, and long spurs extend to the south, separating the Alazani, Iori and Kura basins.

The steepest and least developed section of the southern slope is where it falls to the Alazani valley; The city of Zagatala, located at an altitude of 355 m at the southern foot of the Caucasus Range, is only 20 km away in a straight line from its crest, which here reaches a height of more than 3,300 m above sea level. The Caucasian ridge is not distinguished by cross-country ability; only on its western and eastern extremities are there convenient and low passes, quite accessible all year round for communication.

Throughout the rest of the length, with the exception of the Mamison and Cross Passes (see Georgian Military Road), the paths through the ridge in most cases represent pack or even hiking paths, partly completely inaccessible for use in the winter season. From all the passes highest value has a Cross (2,379 m), through which the Georgian Military Highway passes.

Central Caucasus

Glaciers of the Caucasus

In terms of the number of glaciers, their area and size, the Caucasus Range is almost as good as the Alps. The largest number of significant glaciers is located in the Elbrus and Terek parts of the ridge, and there are about 183 glaciers of the first category in the basins of the Kuban, Terek, Liakhva, Rioni and Inguri, and 679 of the second category. In total, in the Greater Caucasus, according to the Catalog of Glaciers of the USSR (1967 —1978), 2,050 glaciers with a total area of ​​1,424 km². The size of the Caucasian glaciers is very diverse, and some of them (for example, Bezengi) are almost as large as the Aletsch glacier in the Alps. The Caucasian glaciers nowhere descend as low as, for example, the glaciers of the Alps, and in this respect are of great variety; so the Karaugom glacier ends down to a height of 1,830 m above sea level, and the Shah-Daga glacier (ShahDag city (4243 m), in the BazarDyuzu region) - to a height of 3,320 m above sea level. Most famous glaciers Caucasian ridge are:

Mount Fisht, Caucasus

Name of the glacier (Mountain from which it descends)

Bezengi (bass. Cherek Bezengi) Shota Rustaveli Peak, Shkhara

Dykh-Su [Dykh-Kotyu-BugoySu]

Karaugom (Uruh, bass. Terek) Adai-hoh

Tsaneri [Tsanner] (bass. Inguri) Tetnuld

Devdoraki (bass. Amali) Kazbek

Big Azau (Baksan, Terek basin) Elbrus, southern shoulder

Snow Valley Jikiugankez

Malka and Baksan Elbrus, eastern shoulder

Tsei (Ardon, bass Terek)

Lekhzyr [Lekzyr, Lekziri] (bass. Inguri)

Ezengi (Yusengi)

Donguzorun-Cheget-Karabashi (west), Yusengi ridge (east)

Shkheldy glacier (Adylsu, bass. Baksan)

Shkhelda (4368 m),

Chatyntau (4411 m)

panorama of the Caucasian ridge

IN glacial period the glaciers of the Caucasus Range were much more numerous and extensive than they are today; from the numerous traces of their existence, found far from modern glaciers, it can be concluded that ancient glaciers extended in length for 53, 64 and even up to 106.7 or more kilometers, descending into valleys to heights of 244 ... 274 meters above sea level. Currently, most of the glaciers of the Caucasus Range are in a period of retreat, which has been lasting for several decades.

Main Caucasian Range - Abkhazia

MAJOR PEAKS AND GLACIERS OF THE CAUCASIAN RIDGE

Bezengi - mountainous area Kabardino-Balkaria, central, most high part Caucasus Mountains, including the Bezengi wall of the main Caucasian ridge and the lateral ridges adjacent from the north, forming the basin of the Cherek Bezengi river.

Bezengi wall

The Bezengi wall is a 42-kilometer mountain range, the highest section of the main Caucasian ridge. Usually, the peaks of Lyalver (in the west) and Shkhara (in the east) are considered the boundaries of the wall.

To the north, the wall abruptly breaks up to 3000 m to the Bezengi glacier (Ullu-Chiran). To the south, towards Georgia, the relief is complex, there are both wall sections and high-altitude glacial plateaus.

Peaks of the area

Bezengi wall

Lalver (4350)

Yesenin Peak (4310)

Gestola (4860)

Katyntau (4974)

Dzhangitau (5085)

Sh. Rustaveli Peak (4960)

Shkhara (5068)

Mount Dykhtau, Side Ridge

side ridge

Koshtantau (5152)

Krumkol (4676)

Tikhonov Peak (4670)

Mijirgi (5025)

Pushkin Peak (5033)

Dykhtau (5204)

warm corner

Gidan (4167)

Archimedes Peak (4100)

Georgia, Trinity Monastery near Mount Kazbek

Salynan-bashi (4348)

Ortokara (4250)

Peak Ryazan

Peak Brno (4100)

Misses tau (4427)

Peak Cadets (3850)

Mount Shkhara

THE HIGHEST PEAK OF GEORGIA

Shkhara (Georgian შხარა) is a mountain peak in the central part of the Main Caucasian (Dividing) Range, the highest point in Georgia. Height 5,068 m above sea level, some sources give an estimate of 5,201 m. Located in Svaneti from the south and Bezengi in Kabardino-Balkaria from the north, on the border with Russia, about 90 km north of the city of Kutaisi. It is part of a unique 12 km mountain range known as the Bezengi wall.

Composed of granites and crystalline schists. The slopes are covered with glaciers, on the northern slope - the Bezengi glacier, on the southern slope - the Shkhara glacier, from which the Inguri River partially originates. popular place mountaineering. Soviet climbers first climbed Shkhara in 1933.

At the foot of the southern slopes of Shkhara, at an altitude of 2,200 m above sea level, there is the village of Ushguli in the Mestia region of Svaneti, which is included in the list world heritage UNESCO.

MOUNT TETNULD Main Caucasian Range

Tetnuld (Georgian თეთნულდი "white mountain") is a peak in the spur of the Bezengi Wall, the Main Caucasian Range in the region of Upper Svaneti, Georgia, 2 km south of the peak of Gestola and the border of the Russian Federation (Kabardino-Balkaria).

Height - 4 869 m.

The peak is two-headed, composed of ancient crystalline rocks. The glaciers Oish, Nageb, (sources of the Inguri), Adish and others flow down from Tetnuld. total area glaciers - 46 km².

22 km west of the summit is the regional center of Mestia.

Mount Gestola

Tsey Glacier

Tsey glacier (Ossetian Ts'yy ts'iti) is a valley glacier on the northern slope of the Greater Caucasus, one of the largest and lowest descending glaciers of the Caucasus.

The Tsey glacier is located in North Ossetia and is fed mainly by the snows of Mount Adai-Khokh (4,408 m). The Tseisky glacier descends to a height of 2,200 m above sea level, that is, below the vast majority of the glaciers of the Caucasus. Its length, together with the firn fields, is about 9 km, the area is 9.7 km². At the very bottom, it is rather narrow, and above it expands greatly, reaching 1 km in width. Cramped by rocks at an altitude of 2,500 m above sea level, it forms innumerable cracks and has several icefalls, but higher its surface becomes more even again.

The Tseisky glacier is formed from 2 large and 2 smaller branches. From the ice arch of the Tsey glacier flows the beautiful river Tsey (Tseydon), which flows from west to east through a deep picturesque and covered pine forest gorge. It flows into Ardon from the left side.

Near the Tseisky glacier there are climbing camps and the Ossetia tourist center, as well as the Goryanka hotel, the SKGMI scientific station and the weather station. Two cable cars are laid to the glacier. Mountain-climatic resort area - Tsey.

Many poems are devoted to the Tsey glacier and the gorge, both by eminent authors (for example, “Tseyskaya” by Yuri Vizbor) and folk:

What a beautiful camp Tsey, /

I have many friends here. /

And the mountains are nearby - I won't hide it. /

As soon as you go beyond the threshold, /

Before the eyes of Adai-Khokh, /

And a gray lump of "Monk" over his head ...

Mount Adai-Khokh

Friend, thank you for the cup,

I hold the sky in my hand

Mountain air of the state

I drink on the Tsey glacier.

Nature itself is here

A clear trace of bygone times -

nineteenth year

Purifying ozone.

And down from Sadon's pipes

Gray smoke stretches

To me during it

This cold did not carry away.

There, under the roofs, like a grid,

The rain breathes and trembles

And on a string a trolley

Runs like a black bead.

I am present at the meeting

Two times and two heights

And prickly snow on the shoulders

Old Tsey puts me.

Moscow, 1983. Arseny Tarkovsky

Mount Monk

MOUNTAIN Donguzorun-Cheget

Donguzorun-Cheget-Karabashi or Donguz-Orun is the peak of the Main (or Dividing Range) of the Greater Caucasus, in the Elbrus region. It is located in the Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria of the Russian Federation. Height - 4454 m.

Nearby, at an altitude of 3203 m, there is the Donguzorun mountain pass through the Main Range between the valleys of the Baksan (Russia) and Inguri (Georgia) rivers. At the foot of the Donguzorun-Cheget-Karabashi flows one of the tributaries of the Baksan - the Donguz-Orun River.

MOUNT ACHISHO

Achishkho (Adyghe goat mountain: Achi - “goat”, shkho - “height”, “peak”.) (Nedezhui-Kushkh) - mountain range in the Western Caucasus, located on the territory Krasnodar Territory Russian Federation. Altitude up to 2391 m (Mount Achishkho, 10 km north-west of Krasnaya Polyana).

The ridge is composed of shales and volcanic (tuffaceous) rocks. The landscapes of the Achishkho Ridge are characterized by ancient glacial landforms and ridge lakes (including karst ones), and there are waterfalls.

The ridge is located in a humid climate zone - the annual rainfall is up to 3000 mm ( greatest value on the territory of Russia), the thickness of the snow cover reaches 10 m. The number of sunny days does not exceed 60-70 days a year.

The slopes of Achishkho are covered with broad-leaved, mostly beech, fir forests in the north, and mountain meadows on the peaks.

The ridge is popular with hikers. There are dolmens.

Caucasian State Natural

biosphere reserve

The reserve is the successor of the Caucasian bison reserve, established on May 12, 1924, located in the Western Caucasus, on the border of temperate and subtropical climatic zones. The total area of ​​the reserve is more than 280 thousand hectares, of which Krasnodar Territory- 177.3 thousand hectares.

February 19, 1979 by decision of UNESCO Caucasian Reserve it was given the status of a biosphere, and in January 2008 it was named after Kh. G. Shaposhnikov. In 1999, the territory of the Caucasian State Natural Biosphere Reserve was included in the World Heritage List

Kuban hunting

In 1888, on behalf of the Grand Dukes Peter Nikolayevich and Georgy Mikhailovich, about 80 thousand acres of land in the Greater Caucasus Range were leased from the forest dachas of the Ministry of State Property and the Kuban Regional Military Administration. An agreement was concluded with the Kuban Rada on the exclusive right to hunt in these territories for the Grand Dukes. Later, the territories became known as the Great Kuban Hunting.

A few years later, the princes stopped traveling to the Kuban for health reasons, and then in 1892 they transferred the right to hunt to Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich, who took up active development of the territory.

bison reserve

In 1906, the ending lease on the territory of the Kuban hunting was extended for another three years, after which these lands were planned to be divided between the villages of the Kuban Cossacks. In 1909, Kh. G. Shaposhnikov, who worked as a forester of the Belorechensk forestry of the Kuban Army, sent a letter to the Russian Academy of Sciences with the rationale for the need to reserve the territory rented from the Kuban Army. The main reason for the creation of the reserve was the protection of the endangered Caucasian bison. The letter also outlined the boundaries of the reserve. Based on this letter, Academician H. Nasonov made a report, and the Academy of Sciences created a commission. As a military forester, Shaposhnikov participated in her work on the organization of the reserve. However, for a number of reasons related to the division of land by the Kuban Cossacks, things did not progress significantly.

Repeated attempts to create a reserve were made in 1913 and 1916. Finally, in 1919, a positive decision was made.

With the establishment of Soviet power in the region, the issue of the reserve had to be decided anew. Only in May 1924, the state Caucasian bison reserve was established.

Cross Pass - the highest point of the Georgian military road

DEFENSE OF THE CAUCASIAN RIDGE

Fighting on the passes.

In mid-August 1942, the 1st and 4th divisions of the 49th German Mountain Rifle Corps, concentrated in the area of ​​​​Nevinnomyssk and Cherkessk, began to move freely towards the passes of the Main Caucasian Range, since there were no our troops in this direction, and 46 The 1st army, which was instructed to organize the defense, did not even have time to approach the southern slopes of the passes. There were no engineering structures on the passes.

By August 14, the 1st German mountain rifle division reached the Verkhnyaya Teberda, Zelenchukskaya, Storozhevaya area, and the 4th German mountain rifle division went to the Akhmetovskaya area. Strong groups of specially trained enemy climbers, who had experienced guides, preempted our units and, in the period from August 17 to October 9, occupied all the passes in the area from Mount Elbrus to the Umpyrsky Pass. On the Klukhor and Sanchar directions, the Nazis, having overcome the Main Caucasian Range, reached its southern slopes, advancing 10-25 km. There was a threat of the capture of Sukhumi and disruption of supply along the communications that ran along the Black Sea coast.

On August 20, the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command demanded from the commander of the Transcaucasian Front, along with the creation of a strong defense in the main operational areas, the immediate strengthening of the defense of the Main Caucasian Range, especially the Georgian Military, Military Ossetian and Military Sukhumi roads. The Headquarters ordered to blow up and fill up all the passes and paths, mountain passes, on which no defensive structures were created, and to prepare the areas defended by the troops for an explosion in case of withdrawal. It was proposed to appoint commandants on all roads and directions, placing on them full responsibility for the defense and condition of the roads.

Fulfilling the instructions of the Headquarters, the command of the Transcaucasian Front began to deploy forces in order to stop the offensive of the Nazi troops on the passes of the Main Caucasian Range.

On the Elbrus direction, units of the 1st German mountain rifle division, taking advantage of the absence of our troops, on August 18 occupied the Hotyu-Tau and Chiper-Azau passes, the Krugozor and Shelter Eleven tourist bases on the southern slopes of Mount Elbrus. Units of the 8th Motorized Regiment of the NKVD and the 63rd Cavalry Division that approached here pushed the enemy back from these passes to the Shelter of Eleven, where he was held until January 1943.

The Klukhorsky pass was covered by a company of the 815th regiment. On August 15, the enemy sent a regiment here. Unable to withstand a strong blow, the defenders of the pass began to retreat to the southern slopes, where there were two more companies. The fighting was fierce. Having learned about them on August 17, the command of the 46th Army sent two battalions and an NKVD detachment to help the units of the 816th regiment, which, approaching the battle area on August 22, stopped the further advance of the Nazis. On September 8, enemy units were driven back to Kluhorsky pass where they remained until January 1943.

On September 5, the enemy regiment, after a concentrated bombing strike by aviation and a fire raid by artillery and mortars, launched an attack on the Marukh Pass, which was defended by two battalions. After stubborn fighting, the defenders were forced to leave the pass on September 7th. The further advance of the Germans here was stopped by the approaching reinforcements, but it was not possible to throw them off the pass until January 1943. The Sanchar Pass was defended by one company and a combined detachment of the NKVD. On August 25, the fascist German command moved a regiment against them. The Nazis managed to knock out our units from the pass and almost unhindered to reach the area, which is 25 km from Gudauta and Sukhumi. The urgently created Sancharskaya group of troops was sent to meet the enemy, consisting of one rifle regiment, two rifle battalions, two regiments of the NKVD and a detachment of cadets of the 1st Tbilisi Infantry School. On August 29, the group came into contact with the German units, stopped them, and on August 6, with the support of aviation, went on the offensive.

Two days later, she captured the village of Pskhu, which served as the enemy's main base on the southern slopes of the Main Caucasian Range. Now the Nazis did not have a single settlement left in this area. By October 20, our troops in the Sanchar direction, with the support of the aviation of the Black Sea Fleet, threw them back to the northern slopes of the Main Caucasian Range.

The role of the aviation of the Black Sea Fleet in defeating the enemy grouping in the Sanchar direction is enormous. Aircraft DB-3, SB, Pe-2 and R-10, based at the airfields of Gudauta and Babusheri at a distance of 25-35 km from the front line, daily made 6-10 sorties to deliver bombing strikes against enemy troops, and on days of intense fighting - up to 40 sorties. In total, in September 1942, the aviation of the Black Sea Fleet dropped about a thousand FAB-100s on the Sancharsky and Marukhsky passes.

Thus, our troops, having almost no artillery and mortars, received the greatest and only support from naval aviation.

The fascist German command also tried to seize the Umpyrsky and Belorechensky passes. On the Umpyrsky Pass, which was defended by two companies, the Nazis on August 28 threw two reinforced battalions. However, thanks to a well-organized defense, the courageous actions of the Soviet soldiers, numerous enemy attacks were repulsed. The Belorechensky Pass was stormed by an infantry regiment and several squadrons of enemy cavalry supported by artillery. By the energetic actions of our forces and the approaching reserves, the enemy was stopped, and then thrown back far to the north.

So, by the actions of units of the 46th Army and aviation of the Black Sea Fleet, the offensive of the 49th German Mountain Rifle Corps, specially prepared for combat operations in the mountains, was thwarted. By the end of October 1942, a stable defense of the Main Caucasian Range was created.

Antiamphibious defense of the Poti naval base. In July - December, the defense of the Black Sea coast from the Soviet-Turkish border to Lazarevskaya was carried out by the forces of the Poti naval base together with the 46th Army of the Transcaucasian Front. In the second half of August, when the Nazi troops approached the passes of the Main Caucasian Range, the 46th Army was redirected to repulse this main danger, the defense of the coast became the sole task of the Poti naval base.

The composition of the base forces changed with the situation. The enemy stepped up reconnaissance of the main base of the fleet and began to bombard the base and ships. By the end of December, the air defense base area was replenished with a regiment and thus included three anti-aircraft regiments and a separate anti-aircraft artillery battalion. The infantry units of the base also increased by one battalion and two platoons of marines. But these forces were clearly not enough to organize a reliable defense of the coast, so it was built on the principle of creating separate centers of resistance that covered the main directions. Between the nodes of resistance, blockages and notches were built, separate machine-gun points were installed, and anti-personnel minefields were set up.

The strongest defense from land was created in the area of ​​Poti and Batumi, where it was decided to equip four lines: forward, main, rear and internal. The forward line of defense was supposed to pass from the base at a distance of 35 - 45 km, the main line - at a distance of 25 - 30 km, the rear - at a distance of 10 - 20 km from Poti and Batumi, the internal one - directly on the outskirts and deep in the gardens. For street fighting, it was planned to build barricades and anti-tank obstacles.

However, planned engineering fortifications were not built. Due to the lack of manpower, the forward and main lines of defense were not equipped at all, and on the rear line, by October 25, work was only 75% completed.

The entire defense area of ​​Poti from the land was divided into three sectors. The first sector was defended by a marine battalion with the support of eleven coastal artillery guns, the second sector was defended by the coastal defense school and the border detachment (343 people and seven guns), the third sector was the personnel of the 1st brigade torpedo boats and a border detachment (105 men and eight guns). There were about 500 people in the reserve of the commander of the Poti naval base. In addition, all sectors were supported by naval artillery.

In order to better use forces in the defense of the coast, a manual was developed on the antiamphibious defense of the Poti naval base.

However, there were significant shortcomings in the organization of coastal defense. The engineering structures created at the beginning of 1942, due to the long time frame for their construction, fell into disrepair by 30-40% and required a solid repair. Coastal artillery was poorly prepared to repulse the enemy from land. Batteries No. 716 and 881 had no shrapnel shells at all. Over 50% of the personnel of the 164th separate artillery battalion did not have rifles.

There were major shortcomings in the organization of the air defense of the base, which were revealed during an enemy air raid on Poti on July 16. First of all, the monitoring and warning system was poorly developed. So, due to the location of patrol boats near the base, the command of the air defense base area was not able to detect the enemy in time and raise fighter aircraft, and some anti-aircraft batteries were not even notified of the approach of enemy aircraft.

However, despite all these shortcomings, the formations and units of the Poti naval base ensured a reliable basing of the fleet and created favorable conditions for the operations of units of the 46th Army on the passes of the Main Caucasian Range.

Conclusions on the actions of the Black Sea Fleet in the defense of bases and coasts

As a result of a five-month offensive in the second half of 1942, the Nazi troops achieved significant success. They captured the North Caucasus and the Taman Peninsula, reached the foothills of the Main Caucasian Range and the Terek River, and captured the passes. The enemy managed to occupy economically important areas and create a difficult situation for our troops in the Caucasus, but he was unable to overcome the defenses of our troops and achieve strategic success.

In the course of fierce defensive battles, Soviet troops and the Black Sea Fleet bled the enemy, stopped his advance in the foothills and at the turn of the Terek River, and thereby thwarted Hitler's plans to capture the entire Caucasus and the Soviet Black Sea Fleet.

The Black Sea Fleet and the Azov Flotilla, operationally subordinate to the command of the North Caucasian Front, and then the Transcaucasian Front, closely interacting with these fronts, provided them with great assistance in the defense and defeat of the Nazi troops in the Caucasus. The Black Sea Fleet and the Azov Flotilla reliably covered the coastal flank of our ground forces, organizing the antiamphibious defense of the Azov and Black Sea coasts, allocating for this purpose about 40 thousand people from the marine corps units, coastal and anti-aircraft artillery units, 200 anti-aircraft guns, 150 coastal artillery guns, 250 warships, ships and watercraft and up to 250 aircraft.

Parts of the Marine Corps, Coastal Artillery and Aviation, operating on land, showed stamina, high moral and political spirit, mass heroism and an unbending will to defeat the enemy.

Although the antiamphibious defense of the coast by the Black Sea Fleet was organized in accordance with the situation and fully justified itself, it should be recognized that it was poorly saturated with rifle units, which gave the enemy the opportunity to land troops on the Taman Peninsula on September 2, 1942 and make an attempt to land on the night of October 30 landing on east coast Tsemesskaya bay.

The experience of the defense of Novorossiysk and Tuapse showed that the delay in organizing forces for defense, the shallow depth of defense and the dispersal of forces led to significant losses in manpower and equipment and the loss of Novorossiysk, and the timely creation of the Tuapse defensive region made it possible to organize a deep, strong defense of the base from land and not allow the enemy to enter the defended area. The experience of base defense also showed that one of the main reasons for their rapid fall was the lack of reserves at the base command, which did not allow timely reflection of enemy attacks.

The experience of base defense confirmed the need to organize interaction and unite all forces under a single command. best form such an organization was a fully justified defensive area, divided into sectors and combat areas.

The heroic defense of the Caucasus was a good combat school for units of the Soviet Army and the Black Sea Fleet. In the course of it, they accumulated vast combat experience and mastered the tactics of operations in the mountains. The Soviet troops were re-equipped with light weapons, the infantry units were reinforced with engineering formations, the commanders mastered the art of command and control in difficult conditions, the rear organized the supply of troops in the mountains, using aviation and all types of transport, including pack.

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SOURCE OF INFORMATION AND PHOTO:

Team Nomads.

B.A. Garf. Bezengi Gorge. - Moscow: State Publishing House geographical literature, 1952.
A.F. Naumov. Central Caucasus. - Moscow: "PHYSICAL CULTURE AND SPORT", 1967.

http://www.sk-greta.ru/

Bush I. A. Glaciers of the Western Caucasus. Notes of the Russian geographical society in general geography. T. XXXIII. No. 4, 1905,

Dictionary of modern geographical names / Under the general editorship of acad. V. M. Kotlyakova. - Yekaterinburg: U-Factoria, 2006.

around Elbrus. Tourist route map (M. 1:100,000). Pyatigorsk: North-Kav. AGP. 1992. Roskartografiya 1992, 1999 (with a more detailed description)

http://www.anapacity.com/bitva-za-kavkaz/glavnyj-kavkazskiy-hrebet.html

Topographic map K-38-13. - GUGK USSR, 1984.

Wikipedia site.

Opryshko O. L. Cloudy front of the Elbrus region. - M .: Military Publishing House, 1976. - 152 p. - (The heroic past of our Motherland). — 65,000 copies.

Beroev B. M. Elbrus region: Essay on nature. Chronicle of the conquest of Elbrus. Tourist routes. — M.: Profizdat, 1984. — 208 p. - (One hundred ways - one hundred roads). - 97,500 copies.

http://ii1.photocentra.ru/

http://photosight.ru/

The mountains of the Caucasus, born in the collision of the Eurasian and Arabian plates, are like a symbol of the mentality of the peoples living next to them. Proud and tall, they stand as a miraculous wall between the Asian and European parts of our continent on land. Mankind has not decided whether to attribute them to Europe or Asia.

The height of the Caucasus Mountains: 5642 m (Great Caucasus) and 3724 m (Little Caucasus).

The length of the Greater Caucasus: 1100 km. small - 600 km.

See the geographic location of the Caucasus Mountains or where they are located and how they are located on the map. To enlarge the map of the Caucasus Mountains, just click on it.

Not crossed by rivers, the Caucasian ranges are called the watershed line. The mountain system of the Caucasus, the same age as the Alps, with a history of thirty million years, is firmly inscribed in the memory of mankind through biblical lines and Greek myths. It was on one of the mountains of the system that a dove released from noah's ark, on top of Ararat. The legendary Prometheus, who gave fire to people, was chained to one of the Caucasian rocks.

The Caucasus is divided into two parts, which are called the Greater and Lesser Caucasus. The first stretches from Taman almost to Baku and consists of the Western, Central and Eastern Caucasus. One and a half thousand square kilometers of ice, the most high point Eurasia - Elbrus (the top of the Caucasus Mountains), an iron mountain, and six mountain peaks, five thousand kilometers high - that's what the Greater Caucasus is.

The Lesser Caucasus is a mountain range near the Black Sea, with peaks up to four kilometers high.

The Caucasus Mountains are located between the Caspian and Black Sea coasts and simultaneously in several countries. These are Russia, South Ossetia, Abkhazia, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey.

The climate of the Caucasus is diverse: from typically maritime in Abkhazia, it changes to sharply continental in Armenia.

The Caucasus is inhabited by unique animals - chamois, mountain goats, wild boars, in especially remote and hard-to-reach places you can meet a leopard or a bear.

Alpine meadow grasses, coniferous forests climbing up from the foothills, turbulent rivers, lakes, waterfalls, springs with mineral water, the cleanest air.

It is thanks to such a successful combination of values ​​for human health that the region has a huge number of sanatoriums and resorts.

Rock climbers are attracted by the royal Elbrus and its neighbors - Shkhara, Kazbek, Dzhangitau, Dykhtau and Koshnantau. Among the snows of the Caucasus there is a place for skiers and snowboarders, lovers of hiking and thrill, adherents of rafting, as well as all those who value their health. Terrenkur, Norwegian walking, rock climbing, river rafting, skiing and many other activities active rest offers the Caucasus.

Once having visited the mountains, sung by the "genius of Lermontov", you will remember them for a lifetime.

Video: Wildlife of Russia 4 of 6 Caucasus Mountains.

Video: Hiking in the Caucasus mountains.

Greater Caucasus- a mountain system between the Black and Caspian Seas. Extends more than 1100 km from the northwest to the southeast, from the Anapa region and the Taman Peninsula to Absheron Peninsula on the Caspian coast, near Baku. The highest peak is Elbrus (5642 m).

The state border of the Russian Federation with Abkhazia, Georgia, South Ossetia and Azerbaijan passes through the Greater Caucasus.

Scheme of the ridges of the Greater Caucasus. Volcanoes are marked with red circles.

The Greater Caucasus, together with the Lesser Caucasus, makes up the Caucasus Mountains and is separated from the latter by the Colchis and Kura-Araks lowlands and the Kura valley in the middle reaches between them.

The Greater Caucasus reaches its maximum width in the Elbrus region (up to 180 km). In the axial part is located the Main Caucasian (or Dividing) Range, to the north of which a number of parallel ranges (mountain ranges) extend - the Side Range, the Rocky Range, etc.

Parts and districts

View from Ushba to Elbrus. Photo by O. Fomichev.

Traditionally, the Greater Caucasus is divided into 3 parts:

Table 1. The peaks of the Caucasus are higher than 4700 m (bold type indicates the height along topographic map scale 1:50000).

Climate

Rest in the Adish Icefall. Photo by A. Lebedev (1989)

The climatic features of the Greater Caucasus are determined by the altitudinal zonality and the rotation of the mountain barrier formed by it at a certain angle to the western moisture-bearing air flows - the Atlantic cyclones and the Mediterranean western air currents of the middle layers of the troposphere. This rotation has a decisive influence on the distribution of precipitation.

The wettest is West Side the southern slope, where more than 2500 mm of precipitation falls annually in the highlands. The record amount of precipitation falls on the Achishkho ridge near Krasnaya Polyana - 3200 mm per year, this is the wettest place in Russia. Winter snow cover in the area meteorological station Achishkho reaches 5-7 meters in height!

Glaciation is especially significant in the Central Caucasus and in the eastern part of the Western Caucasus. In the Eastern Caucasus, small glaciers are found only in individual high mountain nodes.

Caucasian mountains- the great division between Europe and Asia. The Caucasus is a narrow strip of land between the Black and Caspian Seas. It strikes with an incredible variety of climate, flora and fauna.

The pride of the Caucasus is its mountains! The Caucasus is not the Caucasus without mountains. The mountains are unique, majestic and impregnable. The Caucasus is amazingly beautiful. He is so different. You can look at the mountains for hours.

The mountain range of the Greater Caucasus is a lot of pastures, forests, as well as amazing natural wonders. More than 2 thousand glaciers descend through narrow gorges. Chain large mountains almost one and a half thousand kilometers stretched from the northwest to the southeast. The main peaks exceed 5 thousand meters and significantly affect the weather in the regions. The clouds that form over the Black Sea are pouring rain, running into the mountain peaks of the Caucasus. On one side of the ridge there is a harsh landscape, and on the other - rough vegetation. Here you can find more than 6 and a half thousand plant species, a quarter of which cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

There are many legends about the origin of the Caucasus Mountains:

A long time ago, when the earth was still very young, a huge plain stretched on the site of the modern territory of the Caucasus. Huge sled heroes lived here in peace and love. They were kind and prudent, they met with joy both day and night, they knew neither evil, nor envy, nor deceit. The ruler of this people was the gray-haired giant Elbrus, and he had a beautiful son, Beshtau, and his son had a charming bride, the beautiful Mashuki. But they had an evil envious - Kite. And he decided to harm the Narts. He prepared a terrible potion in which he mixed the teeth of a wolf, the tongue of a boar and the eyes of a snake. At a big feast, he poured a potion into all the drinks of the Narts. And, having drunk it, they acquired the greed of a boar, the anger of a wolf, and the deceit of a snake. And from that time on, the happy and carefree life of the Narts ended. The father decided to take the young bride away from his son and, sending him on a hunt, wanted to forcefully marry Mashuki. But Mashuki resisted Elbrus. And in an evil battle she lost her wedding ring. I saw the Beshtau ring and hurried to help the bride. And a terrible battle began not for life, but for death, and half of the Narts fought on the side of Elbrus, and the other half on the side of Beshtau. And the battle lasted for several days and nights, and all the sledges perished. Elbrus chopped his son into five parts, and the son, inflicting the last blow, dismembered the gray head of his father into two halves. Mashuki came out after the battle on the battlefield and did not see a single living soul. She approached her lover and plunged the dagger into her heart. So the life of a great and old people stopped.

And now the Caucasian mountains rise in this place: the helmet from the head of Beshtau is Mount Zheleznaya, the Mashuk ring is Mount Koltso, five peaks are Mount Beshtau, nearby is Mount Mashuk and far, far from the others - gray-haired or simply snow-covered handsome Elbrus.

The Caucasus Mountains are the result of the convergence of two plates

Let's look at one of the narrowest places in this grandiose mountain belt. At its northern outskirts, in Ciscaucasia, there are flat areas that belong to a solid plate called the Scythian. Further to the south are the sublatitudinal (i.e., stretching approximately from west to east) mountains of the Greater Caucasus up to 5 km high, the narrow depressions of Transcaucasia - the Rionskaya and Kura lowlands - and also sublatitudinal, but convex to the north mountain ranges Lesser Caucasus in Georgia, Armenia, Eastern Turkey and Western Iran (up to 5 km high).

To the south are the plains Northern Arabia, which, like the plains of Ciscaucasia, belong to a very strong, monolithic Arabian lithospheric plate.

Therefore, the Scythian and Arabian plates- it's like two parts of a giant vise, which are slowly approaching, crushing everything that is between them. It is curious that directly opposite the northern, relatively narrow end of the Arabian Plate, in Eastern Turkey and Western Iran, there are the highest mountains in comparison with the mountains located to the west and east. They rise just in the place where the Arabian plate, like some kind of solid wedge, squeezed the pliable deposits most strongly.