How to get from Yalta to Ai Petri. Sights of Crimea: the majestic mountain Ai-Petri. Mount Ai-Petri - ski resort of Crimea

Resting in the village of Gaspra, near Yalta and descending every day to the sea, we admired the jagged peak of Ai-Petri. On one of the days of our vacation, we independently visited one of the most picturesque mountains of the southern coast of Crimea. In ancient times, a church was built at the top of Ai-Petri in honor of St. Peter, after whom the peak was named.

Many legends are associated with the name of Mount Ai-Petri. They say that once upon a time at the foot of Ai-Petri there lived a young man and a girl who fell in love with each other. But their families were against this feeling and forbade them to meet. Then the lovers decided to jump off the mountain and stay together forever. They climbed to the top, but the gorge there was so narrow that it was impossible for the two of them to jump. Then the young man decided to step into the abyss first. He said goodbye to his beloved and jumped off a cliff into the raging sea. The girl, seeing a terrible sight, exclaimed “Ay, Peter”, because that was the name of her lover. Since then, the mountain has received this name. And the girl, after crying through the night, changed her mind about jumping down and returned to her relatives. They say that it was after this story that men began to let women go ahead.

View of the South Coast from Ai-Petri

The picturesque slopes of Ai-Petri were appreciated both by representatives of the royal family and the Yusupov family. The latter had estates on both sides of Ai-Petri. One in Koreiz, and the other in the current village of Sokolinoye.

Many of my friends, who had previously visited the Crimea, spoke with enthusiasm about the trip to Ai-Petri. Of course, living nearby, we could not refuse an exciting journey and climb to the top of these majestic mountains.

In 1987, the Miskhor-Ai-Petri cable car was built, which allows you to quickly go up. Its length is about three kilometers, and this distance is overcome in 20 minutes. The cable car is divided into two sections: lower and upper. The upper part is currently the longest unsupported cable car in Europe.

Ropeway Miskhor-Ai-Petri

It took us 15 minutes by minibus to get to the cableway station from the village of Gaspra. As soon as we got off the bus, we were immediately surrounded by a bunch of men who offered us to climb to the top of Ai-Petri by car. We listened to their suggestions and took a little time out to think.

The fare for the cable car is 220 rubles one way, the same is the cost of lifting a minibus. And since it’s not particularly interesting to go back and forth on the same road, we chose the following option: we decided to climb the mountain as part of a small group in an air-conditioned minibus along the Yalta-Bakhchisaray highway, and back down by cable car.

Another argument "for" was that the driver promised to make small stops near the Wuchang-Su waterfall, near the silver gazebo and on the observation deck almost near the top of Ai-Petri.

After waiting a bit for the group to gather, we hit the road along the slope of Mount Pendikul. The driver, who is also a guide, told us in an interesting way about the area we were passing through and the amazing plants we encountered along the way.

Trees on Ai-Petri

At first, the forest was dense, with lush vegetation, but as the height climbed, the trees thinned out, and the area became more deserted.

Quite quickly we got to the Wuchang-Su waterfall. In the summer, it flows in a barely visible stream, and it is most full-flowing in spring and autumn. Therefore, this waterfall did not particularly impress us, although the area in which it is located is very beautiful. Tall trees grow on the slopes, including mast pines, from which the Russian fleet was once built.

Uchu-san waterfall

We made the next stop at an altitude of 865 meters above sea level at the Silver Pavilion. It was erected at the end of the 19th century in honor of the builders of the Yalta-Bakhchisarai road. The work was carried out for more than a dozen years by the soldiers of the Russian army in difficult conditions. In winter, when the arbor is covered with frost, from Yalta, shimmering in the sun, it seems to be made of silver.

Silver gazebo

Stunning views of Yalta open from the observation deck near this gazebo-rotunda. Here you can buy souvenirs and take pictures with birds for 100 rubles. But I usually feel very sorry for attached animals.

View of Yalta from the observation deck at the Silver Pavilion

Further along the mountain serpentine, we climbed to the observation deck, located very close to the final stop. On this slope, in 1959, a monument was erected to Soviet partisans who died in battles with the Nazis in December 1941. The terrain here is quite flat, with small shrubs and trees.

Ai-Petri. Monument to partisans

View from the observation deck at the monument to the Partisans

After driving for another 10 minutes, we reached the upper station of the cable car. At this point we said goodbye to the group and our driver. I was already looking forward to wandering through the beautiful expanses of the plateau on the top of Ai-Petri. But it was not there. The magnificence of nature and the amazing atmosphere of this place are spoiled by the Crimean Tatars who occupied this section of the mountain.
Immediately I felt like I was in an oriental bazaar in Egypt or Turkey. It was impossible to take a single step without the Tatars working here running up to you and inviting you to their restaurant or for horseback riding. All this was done with their characteristic obsession. It was worth refusing one, another immediately approached. To be honest, I don’t understand why it was necessary to create here several dozen identical restaurants with the same food, in order to fight for customers later.

Plateau on Ai-Petri

We decided to explore the area. The caves that are on this mountain were closed, because, according to the locals, they have not yet figured out whether to make the entrance to them paid or not. Therefore, we decided to go to the teeth of Ai-Petri. They say that before the rise there was also paid. I don’t understand why they take money there: climbing to the battlements is quite difficult along a steep rocky slope.

First, the climb goes among outlandish trees, and then along the stones under the scorching sun.

Trees on top of Ai-Petri

Rocky road to the battlements of Ai-Petri

But the final destination impresses with its views. From here you can see the entire southern coast of Crimea, because the height of the peak of Ai Petri is 1234 meters.

At the peak of Ai-Petri

The cable car cabins seem very small from the teeth, you can’t even believe that they can accommodate up to 35 people.

Cabins of the cable car on Ai-Petri

Stunning views fascinate, here you understand that it was not in vain that you have come a long way. If possible, I think, every tourist,
wishing to see the picturesque coast of Crimea from a bird's eye view, you must definitely climb to the teeth of Ai-Petri.

View of Yalta from Zubtsov

After standing on the top for a while, we began to descend. Then we immediately went to the cable car station. Right now we had to descend to the foot of the mountain along the cable car. Cabins leave every half an hour. When the cabin of the cable car was almost full, we began to descend.

Being inside, it seems that we are moving very slowly, and the booths we met just rush past. At the middle station you need to make a change and go down further. Thus, the descent took about 20 minutes, while we went up by car for more than an hour.

By minibus we returned to Gaspra tired and full of impressions. We did not regret at all that we went upstairs by car. This allowed us to see the wonderful vegetation of the Crimean slopes from the inside and admire the views of the southern coast of Crimea from different viewing platforms. And the picturesqueness and wonderful prospects of the top of Ai-Petri will remain a vivid memory for a long time.

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A visit to Ai-Petri is a must for any tourist traveling along the southern coast of Crimea: it is here that one of the highest observation platforms is located, from where a beautiful panoramic view of the coast opens. It is vital for a tourist who is just discovering all the beauties of the Crimea to know how to get to Ai-Petri from Yalta. The Yalta mountain and forest reserve, located immediately under the Crimean mountains, includes the city of Alupka and the village of Koreiz, which are perfectly visible from Mount Ai-Petri; how to get from Yalta to these and other settlements, every Crimean from the South Coast knows, since most jobs are concentrated in Yalta.

It is for this reason that bus number 102 runs from Alupka to Yalta, which starts from the Vorontsov Palace and ends at the bus station. On the way, the bus also stops at the Swallow's Nest, another attraction of the southern coast of Crimea. Almost the same route has bus number 32, the final stop of which is not at the bus station, but at the clothing market. The bus fare is 25 rubles (the price is not fixed, many buses have a special system in which the main criterion for calculating the fare is the distance traveled by the bus).

If a visit to Ai-Petri is scheduled for the summer months, then you don’t have to worry about missing a stop, since a huge number of tourists traveling in these buses regularly ask both the driver and each other for the correct stops. To get to the top of Ai-Petri, you should get off at the Cable Car stop, which is quite easy to identify: a long line of lines stretching for tens of meters is visible even at the entrance. At the same time, it moves quite quickly, since the movement of trailers along the cable car is excellently established.

The cost of an adult ticket is 350 rubles, for a child from 6 to 18 years old - 250, for persons under 6 years old, a discount in the form of free travel can be applied in the summer months (again, this is not constant, even the residents of Alupka do not know what exactly its presence depends on). The cable car, carried out from Miskhor to the Ai-Petri plateau, by the way, is one of the longest unsupported "ropelines" in Europe. During its almost thirty years of operation, the accident happened only once: two cabins got stuck in the air in 2013; the damage was promptly repaired.

If it is decided to get to Ai-Petri by car from Yalta, then, firstly, it is necessary to move west towards Simeiz, Alupka and Miskhor. A kind of reference point is the sign of the sanatorium "Uzbekistan" (there is also a bus stop near it). A little further from the stop there is a fork, where the first road goes further towards Alupka (just in time for the cable car described above), and the second goes up towards Mount Mogabi. If along the way there are signs "Bakhchisaray", this will be another confirmation of the correct direction chosen. Soon, the sanatorium "Uzbekistan" itself should appear on the right hand.

The first five kilometers of the road will not be remembered for anything special, you will not meet any settlements on the way either. However, after that it will already be possible to notice wide plantations of lavender, from which it will exude a characteristic aroma. Approximately at the seventh or eighth kilometer of the road from the turn, a path will appear leading to the Uchan-Su waterfall, which is the main attraction of the lower ridge of the Ai-Petri Yayla. Since the waterfall is fed exclusively by karst waters, the flow of water is not constant: for example, in summer it is rather weak (sometimes it can dry out altogether), but in autumn it can be very powerful.

At the tenth kilometer of the road, which is becoming more and more serpentine and steep, you can see that the trees seem to grow at an angle, leaning to the sides and forming bizarre growths. This is due to active geological processes: since the Crimean mountains are among the youngest on the planet, the process of their growth is accompanied by landslides. The abundance of trees tilted in different directions gave the name to this place - "Drunken Grove". At the fifteenth kilometer of the road, you can see the ruined house "Pendikul", which previously belonged to the road superintendent. It is from here that the path begins, leading to the site "Silver Arbor", where you can make a stop.

After the Silver Pavilion, the steepest and sharpest section of the road begins, which is quite short and is only 2 kilometers long. Here, each driver should be as careful as possible, a second of relaxation can end in unpleasant consequences. The exit to the plateau is quite sharp: one turn, and the terrain changes dramatically. Coniferous trees surrounding the road give way to stunted wild grasses, and the plateau itself gives the impression of a local desert, among which there are small funnels and hills.

They appeared here due to the heterogeneity of the rocks that make up the plateau: reef limestone, as you know, is a highly porous rock, and atmospheric precipitation penetrating inside, as well as the activity of microorganisms, together formed the relief of the yayla. In general, the questions “How to get from Yalta to Ai-Petri”, “How to get by car to Ai-Petri” and the like are already so familiar to the residents of the city that you should not be afraid to ask them in order to clarify the route, almost all local residents will be happy to answer and suggest the best route.

Mountains of stunning beauty surrounded the city of Big Yalta in the Crimea like an amphitheater.

The sharp white teeth of Ai-Petri, the main peaks of the Ai-Petri massif, are familiar from films loved since childhood and are one of the famous Crimean sights.

If possible, it is worth visiting Ai-Petri to see the surroundings from a height of 1234 m. How to get to Ai-Petri from Yalta, this article will tell.

mountain name

The famous one got its name because of the Byzantine temple, which the ancient Greeks erected on its top and dedicated to St. Peter. Ai-Petri Temple existed until the 15th century.

mountain legend

What mountain would do without a tragic legend of love?! Ai-Petri is no exception. In local folklore, there is a story about how in ancient times a guy and a girl fell in love, but their parents forbade them to even dream of a wedding. The lovers decided to commit suicide and climbed a high mountain. The guy jumped first, and the girl shouted: “Ay, Peter!”, But she was afraid to jump, returned home and was unhappy all her life.

A bit of geography

In the past, the oceanic coral reef, Ai-Petri, due to tectonic processes, rose to a height of 1234 m.

The mountain range stretches for 25 km from west to east, protecting Yalta from winds and bad weather. The total area of ​​\u200b\u200byaila (the so-called Crimean table mountains) is 300 square meters. km, most of it is a mountain forest reserve.

Attractions of Ai-Petri in winter and summer

If you know how to get to Ai-Petri from Yalta, it is worth doing both in winter and in summer - the mountain deserves attention.

In summer, this is a wonderful observation deck where you can take unique photos. The surface of the plateau is covered with picturesque green meadows and forests, which are pleasant to walk on a hot day.

One of the favorite entertainments of vacationers is a walk along the adrenaline bridges, which are suspended from the main Ai-Petri plateau to the white limestone ledges at the top. Four teeth are separated from the plateau by a wide crack several tens of meters wide, the depth of the crevice is more than a thousand meters. A walk along the suspension bridge leaves an unforgettable experience.

In the warm season, it is interesting to walk along the plateau to the caves, there are about 300 of them on Ai-Petri. The most famous and equipped is Three-Eyes, where snow does not melt even in summer. An unforgettable adventure will be a hike to the Taraktash rocks, where the trail leads from the Uchan-Su waterfall.

In winter, people come to the Ai-Petri plateau to go skiing, snowmobiling, snowboarding. A dense snow cover appears on Ai-Petri in December and lies until March. For skiing on the gently sloping northern side of the plateau, ski slopes are equipped, their length is 120-1030 m. Ski lifts are open from 10 am to 3 pm.

What to consider when visiting

If you are going to conquer one of the Crimean peaks, you should take it seriously:

1. Pick up shoes. No flip flops, no heels, no slippery soles.
2. It is always windy on the mountain - it is better to grab a windbreaker or jacket.
3. It is much cooler on Ai-Petri than in Yalta, so you need to warm up. Even in summer the temperature rarely rises above +15-18 °С. In winter, the plateau is covered with snow, the air temperature drops to -20 °C.
4. In winter, you need to take spare shoes - there is usually a lot of snow on the plateau, the feet get wet quickly.
5. When taking photos, it is worth remembering your safety and not approaching the very edge, from where a strong gust of wind can throw down selfie lovers. In addition, the rock is slippery.
6. On holidays and weekends, long queues form at the lower station.
7. Visiting Ai-Petri is a rather expensive pleasure, but there are no ATMs upstairs yet.

Whoever has never been to Ai-Petri has not seen Yalta!

From the top of the Ai-Petrinsky ridge, an amazing view of the Big Yalta opens up: you can see the snow-white building of the Swallow's Nest, rocks and forests. At 130 km away, you can look at the sea surface with boats and motor ships.

It is much easier to get to the Ai-Petri peak than to any other Crimean mountain.

Arriving in Yalta, how to get to Ai-Petri on your own? You can choose from several options:

• walking along forest paths;
• by cable car in the funicular cabin;
• along the highway.

Hiking ascent

When setting out on a journey, you need to understand that climbing a mountain with a height of 1234 m is not a simple walk in the park, it requires physical fitness and appropriate equipment. How to get to Mount Ai-Petri from Yalta, fans of hiking know who have trodden paths to the plateau. Each has its own name:

• Miskhorskaya;
• Taraktashskaya;
• Botkinskaya;
• Koreizskaya.

Hiking takes 2 to 7 hours. It should be taken into account that there are no shops in the mountain forest reserve, so you need to take water and food with you. Another difficulty awaiting travelers is the lack of clear marking of the tracks.

If you really want to climb Ai-Petri (Crimea) on foot, how to get from Yalta to the foot? There are several options:

• you can take bus number 30 from the bus station to the Vodopad stop and climb along Botkinskaya or;
• along the South Coast highway by buses No. 107, 128, 142 to the fork near Koreiz to climb the Koreiz trail;
• by buses No. 107, 128, 142 to the fork in Miskhor.

Bicycle lift

Fans of cycling will also enjoy visiting Ai-Petri. There is a little trick here: it is better to go up on the cable car, and go down on your own.

In addition, you can ride a bike from Ai-Petri not in the direction of Yalta, but in the direction of the Grand Canyon and drive to Bakhchisaray along beautiful mountain roads.

Caution: mountain road! To the top by car

You can drive to the top of Ai-Petri by car from Bakhchisaray and Yalta. The Bakhchisaray road is in poor condition, in winter the road is often covered with snow, and you have to wait until it is cleared. It can only be driven by a four-wheel drive vehicle.

How to get from Yalta to Ai-Petri by car?

• Drive along the Yuzhnoberezhnoye Highway, connecting Yalta and Sevastopol, until the turn to Vinogradnoye and turn right following the sign. In Vinogradnoye, by the way, there is a theater of marine animals, and in summer dolphins, whales, seals, fur seals and walruses perform in the open air.
• Through Vinogradnoye move along the mountain serpentine.
• The length of the route from Yalta to Ai-Petri will be 30 km. The journey will take about an hour.

Mountain narrow serpentine is quite dangerous and requires increased attention from the driver. On the way Yalta - Ai-Petri there are almost 300 turns, and many of them are closed.

Going to the top of the Crimean visiting card, you can make several stops:

• near the Wuchang-Su waterfall - a waterfall with the beautiful name "flying water" falls from a height of almost 100 m;
• near the "Drunken Grove", where trees grow at an angle;
• at the mountain lake Karagol;
• on the observation deck "Silver Arbor".

If it’s scary to climb by car on your own, you can get to the lower station of the cable car on Ai-Petri (Yalta). How to get here by car:

• leave Yalta on the South coast highway towards Sevastopol;
• drive 14-15 km along it;
• turn left at the fork near the large concrete sign "Sevastopol - Yalta";
• go down the road SO-11806, winding in a serpentine, down for about 5 km.

You can leave your car in a small parking lot.

cable car

There is no easier and more comfortable option, how to get to Ai-Petri from Yalta by cable car. This unique engineering structure, built in 1967, is an interesting attraction in itself:

• The Yalta cable car is the longest in Europe, its length is almost 3 thousand meters.
• The construction was created according to the unsupported principle - a span of 1670 m in length has no supports.
• near the mountain, the angle of elevation of the cabin is almost 50°.

Four spacious cabins, in which even bicycles can be transported, are designed for 30 people each. They move on the principle of a pendulum - towards each other.

Consists of 3 stations:

• lower in Miskhor;
• medium in Sosnovy Bor;
• the upper one is on the Ai-Petri plateau.

At the middle station, a transfer is made, tickets are checked. The whole journey takes approximately 17 minutes.

The cable car operates seven days a week in the following mode:

• from 11:00 to 15:00 - rise;
• from 11:00 to 16:00 - descent.

In 2017, tickets cost 400 rubles. adult, 250 rubles. child from 6 years old.

From Yalta to Ai-Petri by bus

Tourists who come for a couple of days want to quickly and easily get to the top of the famous Crimean mountain.

How to get to Ai-Petri from Yalta with minimal independent movement? The answer is simple: find one that will directly go to the top of the mountain. These minibuses are not on the schedule, they do not pass technical inspection, being the property of the driver. If you want to take a risk, you can go on it. You can find transport by the cries of drivers inviting tourists to Ai-Petri. The cost is discussed on the spot.

If you choose a safe option, then how to get from Yalta to Ai-Petri from the bus station? You need to take buses No. 102, 107 or from bus No. 132 to the lower station "Miskhor" of the cable car and take the funicular to the top of Ai-Petri.

Unforgettable impressions and a lot of fun are guaranteed!

The most famous in Crimea and not only Mount Ai-Petri is one of the main symbols of the Crimean peninsula. It is part of the Yalta Reserve. The picturesque mountain is considered the windiest point in the Crimea and the place where foggy days are most often observed. You can find out more about where Ai-Petri is located, how you can get to it, by reading the information provided in the article.

About the name of the mountain

The name is associated with the Greek monastery of St. Peter standing in this place a long time ago (this is how “Ai-Petri” is translated from the ancient Greek language). The remains of this ancient building have survived to this day.

In fact, the name "Ai-Petri" can be used to refer to the southernmost point of the plateau - the top of the mountain, and the entire Ai-Petrinsky yayla (called the "table massif"), which covers an area of ​​300 square meters. meters.

We learn more about where Mount Ai-Petri is located after a short description of it.

Ai-Petri: description

The mountain rises 1234 meters above the surface of the Black Sea. Oddly enough, the top of the mountain is almost flat and even.

There is one misconception about the highest point of Ai-Petri. In fact, the highest peak is not the main peak of Bedene-Kir (translated from Turkic as “quail mountain”), but the western peak, which has the name Roka. Its height is 1346 meters. There is also a third peak (eastern) at Ai-Petri, reaching a height of 1100 meters.

Often photographs capture peculiar teeth - the most beautiful views of the mountain range. It is these ledges that have been officially a natural monument since 1947. This unique work of nature covers an area of ​​approximately 614 hectares and consists of 4 huge (height - about 60-80 meters) and many small ledges on the crest. The reason for the formation of this miracle of nature is the gradual weathering of limestone rocks from marine reefs (Upper Jurassic age).

What settlements are located where Ai-Petri is located? The city of Alupka and the village of Koreiz are located directly under the mountain.

The line of the sea horizon is visible from the top of the mountain at a distance of about 130 kilometers (for comparison: from the coast of Yalta, it can be traced at a distance of up to 10 km).

Location

Where is Ai-Petri located? All connoisseurs of the beauty of nature should definitely visit the mountain and its picturesque surroundings, located near the resort town of Yalta. The peak rises, as noted above, directly above Alupka and the village of Koreiz of the Crimean Peninsula, which are part of the Yalta Reserve.

This peak is one of the most visited by tourists who come for a beach holiday in the resort areas of Crimea. The mountain belongs to the Ai-Petri Yaila (mountain range), which is part of the Crimean Mountains.

old legend

Among the people living in Mount Ai-Petri), there are many beautiful fairy tales, legends, impressive fables and stories about the amazing and mysterious mountain. One of the most popular legends, vaguely reminiscent of the well-known sad Shakespearean story, is the story of a young couple in love.

A long time ago, not far from this mountain, there lived 2 families, quite wealthy. Some had a son (Peter), others had a beautiful daughter. Young people fell in love with each other with real, bright, pure love, the kind that happens only once in a lifetime.

Unfortunately, parents on both sides were categorically against this union: for both the girl and the groom, a rich groom and an enviable bride, respectively, had long been selected. Parents, having learned about the desire of children to tie their fate, set an ultimatum: either parents, father's house and wealth, or shame, poverty and hunger next to a loved one.

Young people, in despair, made the only right decision, in their opinion: not to give in to their parents and not to renounce them at the same time. They decided to commit suicide and stay together forever, though not on earth.

Holding hands tightly, they climbed the mountain and stood at the very cliff into the Black Sea. Having sworn for the last time in love forever where Ai-Petri is located, they said goodbye. However, the rocky cliff was too small and narrow for the two of them, so one of them had to jump first. The guy volunteered to do this, and his beloved promised to do it right after him. Peter, looking at the sky, took his last step and crashed against the rocks. His body immediately disappeared under the surface of dark water.

The frightened girl changed her mind to repeat the jump after him. She threw up her hands to the heavens and let out a cry of despair: “Ay, Peter!”. She sat down on a stone and began to mourn her beloved. At dawn, with the first rays of the sun, her tears stopped flowing, the cliff and the sea no longer seemed terrible. Birds chirped all around, and the girl decided that she shouldn’t be killed so much for the departed young man, because she would have more fans and she would meet a second love. She turned around and went home.

Since then, this mountain has been called Ai-Petri (the meaning is “Saint Peter”), and now Christian men everywhere let women go ahead.

To this day, this peak and the surrounding fabulous places remind people of that tragic love story of two young people.

Where is the cable car located?

On Ai-Petri, the largest recognized in Europe is laid.

For tourists, during an excursion to the top, there is an opportunity to use the funicular that follows the cable car. This path allows you to fully enjoy the picturesque views of the Yalta Reserve and see vast areas of coastal land from a great height.

In order to use the cable car, you need to come to Miskhor (part of Gaspra village). There is the first cableway station. You need to go down to Miskhor from the South Coast Highway. Bus routes No. 27 and 32 run from Yalta to this station.

Travel by cable car

The ascent takes 15 minutes. Cabins, which are held on strong steel cables, can accommodate 40 people. As they move up the road, passengers are greatly breathtaking from the breathtaking panorama of the sea coast and the surrounding area gradually opening from a height.

In the process of lifting, there is one exit from the cabin and a transition to another. This takes place at a transfer station located in the middle of a forest in the mountains, and it is called "Pine Forest". It should be noted that the next section of the road is unique - the unsupported section is the longest in Europe. Its length exceeds 1500 meters, and the rise has an angle reaching 46 degrees.

Fabulous, indescribable beauty opens up to the gaze where Ai-Petri is located.

How to get there?

By car, you need to get along a rather winding and narrow mountain road (“serpentine”). The winding highway "Yalta - Bakhchisarai" leads to the Tyuzler site, after which you should go to the Uchan-Su gorge (mountain river) past a pine grove called "Drunk".

The higher the road rises, the cooler and cleaner the air becomes, and the vegetation in the mountain forests thins out. At an altitude of about 1 kilometer above sea level, an almost treeless hilly plain opens up, where pine and beech groves are only occasionally found.

You can also take a walk up the mountain on foot along the trails, including the famous one. You can also get here, to the right point, by a fixed-route taxi departing from There are several ways to get to the mountain. However, the most comfortable, fastest and most popular is the ascent along the cable car.

In any case, a trip to Ai-Petri will allow you to get acquainted with other natural attractions located in the vicinity of the mountain: the Bedene-Kyr peak, the Ai-Petrinsky meridian, mysterious caves and a weather station.

Finally

In the Crimea, where Ai-Petri is located, tourists feel some kind of invisible connection with the amazing mountain nature, bewitching with its beauty and freshness of the atmosphere.

It should be noted that at the most windy place in the Crimea, a wind speed record of 50 m / s was once registered. And it was in this place in 1970 that meteorologists recorded a total of 215 days a year with fogs.

Mount Ai-Petri in Crimea is a place that every vacationer should visit

One of the most important and popular symbols of the Crimean peninsula among tourists is the famous Ai-Petri mountain, which belongs to the Yalta mountain forest reserve.

The name of the mountain is associated with the Greek monastery of St. Peter that once stood here (namely, Ai-Petri is translated from the ancient Greek language), the ruins of which have survived to this day. In fact, the name "Ai-Petri" can also be given to the southernmost point of the plateau - the top of the mountain, and the entire Ai-Petri yaila (which is also called the "table massif"), whose area is about three hundred square meters.

The height of Mount Ai-Petri is 1234.2 meters above the Black Sea. Contrary to popular belief, the top of the mountain is almost even and flat.

Climbing Mount Ai-Petri by funicular

There is another misconception about this mountain: the highest point of Ai-Petri is actually not its main peak, called Bedene-Kir (translated from Turkic as “Quail Mountain”), but the western peak called Roka, whose height is 1346 meters. The third, eastern peak of the Crimean mountain Ai-Petri reaches 1100 meters in height.

In the photo of Mount Ai-Petri, its peculiar teeth are often captured, which make up one of the most beautiful views in the entire mountain range, and since 1947 have been officially a natural monument. These teeth occupy an area of ​​about six hundred and fourteen hectares and represent four large (about eighty meters high) and a whole scattering of small ledges on the ridge. The reason for the formation of teeth was the gradual weathering of limestone rocks from the reefs of the Upper Jurassic Sea.

The oldest legend of Mount Ai-Petri

There are a great many legends, fairy tales, impressive stories and fables about this, undoubtedly, mysterious and amazing Crimean mountain. One of the most popular legends associated with Ai-Petri is the story of a young couple in love, somewhat reminiscent of Shakespeare's sad story of Romeo and Juliet.

Good view of Mount Ai-Petri

Once upon a time, not far from Mount Ai-Petri, there lived two wealthy families, one of which had a son, and the other had a beautiful daughter. It so happened that young people fell in love with each other with that pure, bright and all-encompassing love, which can only be for the first time.

But, unfortunately, the parents of each of the lovers were categorically against their union: a rich groom had long been chosen for the girl, and an enviable bride for the young man. Having learned about the desire of the children to be together, the parents gave them an ultimatum: either the father's house, parents and wealth, or poverty, hunger and shame, but next to their loved one.

Desperate, the young people made, as it seemed to them, the only right decision in this situation: not to yield to the will of their parents and, at the same time, not to renounce them, but to commit suicide, thereby remaining together forever, even if not in this world.

Hand in hand, they overcame the difficult climb to Mount Ai-Petri and approached its cliff into the Black Sea. Having sworn to each other for the last time in sincere and devoted love forever, they said goodbye. But the rocky cliff was too narrow to accommodate two young people at once, so one person had to jump first. And then the guy, whose name was Peter, as a man volunteered to be the first to take the torment of death, and his beloved promised to jump after him. Looking into the sky, Peter took the last step in his life - a step into a frightening dark abyss. Crashing against the rocks, his body was immediately hidden under the dark surface of the water.

Beautiful view of the Black Sea coast from Mount Ai-Petri

The girl, frightened by what she saw, changed her mind about jumping to her beloved, threw up her hands to heaven and let out a desperate cry: “Ay, Peter!”. Her hands dropped down, her gaze faded. Then the girl sat down on a stone and began to mourn her lover.

With the first rays of dawn, tears stopped flowing from the eyes of a young beauty, the cliff no longer seemed so terrible, and the sea so dark and fatal. Birds chirped joyfully in the sky, the leaves of trees rustled soothingly, and then the girl decided that she, young and beautiful, should not be so hurt by the young man who had left early, because she would still have a huge number of fans and, of course, someday she would meet her second love. The girl turned and walked towards the house.

Since then, this mountain has been called "Ai-Petri", which means "Saint Peter", and all Christian men everywhere let women go ahead.

The picturesque view from Mount Ai-Petri to this day reminds people of that bitter love story.

Cable car on Mount Ai-Petri

The cable car passing through Mount Ai-Petri is recognized as the largest in the whole of Europe.

During a fascinating excursion to Mount Ai-Petri, each resort visitor can use the services of a funicular that follows the cable car and enjoy magnificent views of the mountain forest Yalta Reserve and look at the seaside land from a great height.

Rave reviews about this method of climbing Mount Ai-Petri can be easily found on the Internet.

Where is Mount Ai-Petri located?

Every connoisseur of the true natural beauty of the mountains should definitely visit Mount Ai-Petri near Yalta, the photos of which cannot but amaze with their picturesqueness. This mountain rises directly above the resort towns and, in the Yalta region of the Crimean peninsula.

How to get to Mount Ai-Petri?

On your own car, you need to get to Mount Ai-Petri along the "serpentine" - a narrow and winding mountain road. Looping along the highway “- Bakhchisarai”, the road leads travelers to the Tyuzler site, and from here - straight to the gorge of the mountain river Uchan-Su, past the pine grove “Drunk”.

Climbing Mount Ai-Petri along the road serpentine

The higher the travelers rise along the road, the cleaner and cooler the air around becomes, and the vegetation of mountain forests gradually thins out. Already at an altitude of about one kilometer above sea level, tourists have a view of an almost treeless hilly plain, on which only occasionally there are beech or pine groves.

After climbing to the top of Mount Ai-Petri, all tourists are visited by a surprisingly joyful and light, incomparable feeling of freedom and peace.