Lake Chokrak in Crimea (village Kurortnoye) - photo, therapeutic mud, how to get there. Healing mud of Lake Chokrak in Crimea

Salt Lake Chokrak is located on the coast of the Sea of Azov, 16 km from Kerch. Translated from the Turkic name of the lake means "source" or "spring". This is one of the amazing and very valuable natural attractions of the Crimea. Since ancient times, the lake has been a source of healing mud, the magnificent healing properties of which are known far beyond the peninsula.

It is rather difficult to establish the exact time of formation of this lake. Written references to it are found in historical documents dating back to the 70s BC. In them, the lake is called Metaka. According to ancient manuscripts, the Bosporan king Mithridates VI Eupator used the mud of this lake to treat joint pains. So the age of Lake Chokrak exceeds 2000 years.

Lake Chokrak is a unique corner of nature, famous not only for therapeutic mud, but also for hydrogen sulfide springs, a spring, as well as beautiful and comfortable beaches. The reservoir itself and the territory adjacent to it are part of the hydrological reserve of local importance. The area of Lake Chokrak is more than eight square kilometers. The reservoir has a relatively shallow depth, which reaches a maximum of 1.5 meters. On three sides it is surrounded by low cliffs, overgrown with dense shrubs and herbs, among which there are medicinal plants hawthorn, wild rose, willow-herb, thyme and many others. WITH north side the lake rests on a small sandy embankment beyond which the Sea of Azov extends.

The lake bottom abounds with hydrogen sulfide springs, and its water is rich in various substances and minerals. Interacting with lake silt, hydrogen sulfide forms the very famous healing mud of Lake Chokrak, which has a powerful healing effect. The mud of Lake Chokrak includes salt brine, hydrogen sulfide, microelements, and organic substances. In the process of formation of mud, along with brine and salt, are actively involved and mud volcanoes located at the bottom and along the shores of the lake. Thanks to this, Chokrak is included in the list of the most environmentally friendly mud deposits on the planet. This is one of the few places in Crimea where you can use the gifts of generous nature for free. Back in 1895, the first mud bath in Crimea was built on the shores of the lake. Hundreds of tourists flock to the lake in summer. different corners countries and neighboring countries.

It has been established that the mud of Lake Chokrak is effective for problems of the musculoskeletal system, nervous system, organs of the gastrointestinal tract, and gynecological diseases. In addition to a powerful healing factor, Chokrak muds have a visible cosmetic effect, improve the condition of the skin, hair, and nails. True, mud should be used with caution, be sure to first consult with your doctor.

The nearest settlement on the way to Lake Chokrak is the village of Kurortnoye. You can get to the lake by taxi or regular bus, following from the bus station of the city of Kerch. Or by private vehicle through the villages of Voikovo or Bagerovo.

A sea of pleasures and interesting things has prepared for tourists the wonderful Chokrak peninsula, its therapeutic mud attracts thousands of tourists every year. Here, the most unpleasant ailments have been successfully cured for more than one hundred years.

Lake Chokrak in Crimea: geographical characteristics

Perhaps it is the most mysterious, mysterious and unexpectedly interesting area in the Crimea. Nevertheless, most tourists bypass it, preferring the more popular resorts of the South Coast.

Lake Chokrak is often called the generous gift of the planet Earth. All thanks to its unique healing factors, which include the most valuable mud and mineral springs.

The total area of Lake Chokrak is almost 9 square kilometers. However, the most great depth it does not exceed 1.5 meters. The shores of the lake are rocky, deserted and very picturesque. The local landscapes would have become a wonderful backdrop for some kind of dystopian, surrealistic film.

The shores of Chokrak are covered exclusively with herbaceous vegetation. Oregano, thyme, wormwood, willow-herb and other herbs grow here. Lake Chokrak is located in close proximity to Sea of Azov, it is separated from its water area by a narrow sand barrier.

How to get to the lake?

The object is located in the eastern part. The city of Kerch is located 18 kilometers away. Lake Chokrak is located near the village with the corresponding name - Kurortnoye (Leninsky district).

You can get here as public transport(buses depart from the Kerch bus station every 30-40 minutes), and by your own car. However, it is worth warning: the road to Kurortny is far from the most best quality. After the village of Voikovo, the hard surface disappears altogether, so you have to drive through dust and pits with minimum speed. As a result, a distance of 20 kilometers is overcome in an hour!

Chokrak - a world-class resort

Lake Chokrak in Crimea is a famous balneological resort. Local mud began to be used by the ancient Greeks in the first century BC. They actively exported this healing resource to Europe. The very word "chokrak" can be translated as water saturated with hydrogen sulfide, there is also enough here: they come out both along the shores of the lake and on its bottom.

The main wealth of Chokrak is its therapeutic mud. They successfully treat arthritis, radiculitis, as well as various gynecological diseases. And after taking mud baths, you can soak up the neighboring sandy beaches and swim in the warm Sea of Azov. Fishing enthusiasts will also find joy in Chokrak: goby and other fish are perfectly caught here.

Professor S. Albov devoted a lot of time and effort to studying the resort. According to him, Lake Chokrak is much more than Matsesta and Saki put together. The main thing healing factor resort we will talk Further.

Therapeutic mud of Lake Chokrak

Lake Chokrak is rightly considered one of the most valuable deposits of therapeutic mud on the planet. In addition, local mud is characterized by great environmental cleanliness. It contains silt, brine and various trace elements that enter it from numerous mineral springs. Chokrak mud is also distinguished by a rather high content of colloids (3.6%).

On the basis of the mud deposits of Lake Chokrak, several medical institutions operate today. Among them, the largest is the Feodosia sanatorium "Voskhod".

Chokraka mud, unique in composition and properties, is successfully used to treat diseases (including various inflammatory processes in the genital organs), spinal diseases, digestive system ailments, disorders of the peripheral nervous system, and so on. However, in some cases, mud therapy is strictly contraindicated. These include pregnancy, angina pectoris, arrhythmia, asthma, active tuberculosis, diabetes mellitus, cirrhosis of the liver and some other diseases. Before going to Chokrak, it is necessary to consult a doctor.

Doctors recommend taking a full course of mud therapy, which consists of 10-12 procedures. Each of them should not last longer than 15 minutes. After the procedure, all dirt should be washed off the body. It is worth noting that in the first days, patients on Chokrak often experience side effects of treatment: fever, slight numbness of the fingers, as well as general weakness and fatigue. However, after a few days, all unpleasant symptoms usually disappear.

Mud from the Chokrak deposit can also be used for cosmetic purposes. Experienced recreants are also advised to collect local mineral salt on Chokrak. Gargling with its solution helps well with sore throat.

Surroundings of Chokrak Lake

Rest on Lake Chokrak is not limited to balneological procedures. In between sessions of mud therapy, you can visit many interesting objects located in the vicinity of Chokrak.

First of all, this is Cape Zyuk in the village of Kurortnoye, which is famous for its long line of beautiful beaches and cozy coves. south of the lake, in the Kerch steppes, is the famous Valley of Mud Volcanoes. These are small (up to 1.5 meters in height) mounds, periodically spewing mud to the surface. see these natural phenomena very interesting with my own eyes!

It is low (175 meters above sea level), but very picturesque, rising above the spacious steppe 10 kilometers from Chokrak. The mountain is pronounced in relief and has a beautiful rocky peak. The slopes of the Crimean Ararat are covered with shrubs and fragrant herbs.

Conclusion

Lake Chokrak is a truly amazing place Crimean nature and an invaluable recreational facility. The resort is located on Kerch Peninsula, twenty kilometers from Kerch. The main wealth of Chokrak is the local therapeutic mud, which is effectively used to treat many diseases.

It is located next to the Chokraksky mineral springs, which were studied back in the 19th century, as mentioned in the works of Bertenson "Mineral Waters and Muds" (1884). The therapeutic mud of Chokrak is one of the best on the territory of the former Soviet Union and, according to a number of prominent experts, in its properties it significantly surpasses the mud of the Moinak and Saki lakes.

Even before the revolution, there were salt mines on Chokrak and they belonged to Ginzbur. Salt was also mined here in the 1920s. The lake is located so close to the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov that it was fed by its waters and formed salt reserves.
The medical part of the lake was separated from its industrial part by a dam. The mud bath, founded by the Association of Doctors, was located on east coast lakes.

People from all over Russia came here for treatment. Despite the remoteness from the city, the hospital was well supplied with food by the inhabitants of the surrounding villages. Chokrak is valuable both for mud and mineral waters, brine. Mud therapy restores mobility in the joints, resolves inflammatory infiltrates, heals wounds faster and restores mobile nerve trunks: bones grow together faster in case of fractures.

The Chokrak mineral springs are of great therapeutic value, which, in their composition, are the same as the Matsesta springs. belong to the group of mixed sulphurous waters, that is, to hydrosulfide-salt waters. They are subject to diseases of the cardiovascular system, organs of movement, nervous system, skin diseases ...

The first official birth of the mud bath is considered to be 1859. But these muds, as medicinal, were known back in ancient times and the lake was considered sacred. The mud of Chokrak was treated by the Bosporus king and the great conqueror Alexander the Great, the Pechenegs, and the Cossacks.

And in the late 20s - early 30s of the last century, the development of mud therapy at Chokrak received a scientific basis. Highly qualified specialists worked here, supported by big staff served personnel.

Many decades have passed since then, and already at the beginning of this century, perhaps, the last witness of those events, Valentina Zinovievna Karmasheva, recalled: “My father, Zinovy Dmitrievich Karmashev, was the last director of the Chokrakskaya mud bath. In support of this, I provide you with a photograph of the staff of the sanatorium, on which I ended up, when I was still a 12-year-old girl, for publication. I am sitting at the feet of my father in a light scarf - in the first row, third from the right.
I found this photo card while sorting through my archive, then I was still a child and therefore I don’t remember who’s name. But I can still remember something. In the top row, second and third from the left are the Glavatsky spouses (they are without bathrobes), who lived on the territory of the sanatorium. He studied the sulfur springs of Chokrak mud, brine... By profession, it seems, he was a hydrologist. My father is sitting surrounded by doctors (the second to the left of him is the head physician). There are two nurses next to me on the right. The top row is the employees of the sanatorium, mainly from the attendants.

I am born in 1922. And this is what I remember from my distant childhood. I also remember that one poet or writer from Yalta was at our house, talked with his parents, and then published a number of articles in the Kerch Worker ...

Crimean peninsula- it's not only Black Sea beaches and mountains, not only relict forests and cozy sea bays. There are absolutely other places in Crimea. Here, the waves of the Sea of Azov smoothly turn into the waves of the steppe feather grass, and the border between them beckons with uniqueness, surprises with history and generously endows with natural strength. One of those places is eastern Crimea, South coast Sea of Azov, Chokrak lake.

Acquaintance or a reason for love

For those who are just discovering the Crimean peninsula - given place can become the first, and therefore the most vivid impression of the upcoming holiday. In support of this, statistics recent years says that the number of tourists on the shores of Lake Chokrak is growing rapidly. There are many among them who consider the rest in these places to be the best and therefore come back here again and again.

How to get there

For those who travel around Crimea by private car, the following route will help:

Kerch - Voikovo (4 km);
Voykovo - Kurortnoye (14 km);
Resort - Lake Chokrak (4 km).

In the summer, shuttle buses run from the Kerch bus station at intervals of 30 minutes to the Kurortnoye village.

With the current state of the Kerch-Kurortnoye road and its almost complete absence in the village itself, the travel time is at least an hour.

Lake Chokrak in numbers

Surface area - 8.5 square meters. km;
Length coastline- 16 km;
The greatest depth is 1.4 m;
Average depth - 0.8 m;
Water intake area - 74 sq. km;
Mineralization level - 27.8%;

A bit of history

The first mention of Lake Chokrak (translated from Turkic - "spring") dates back to the past era. The Byzantines, Greeks, ancient Romans and even the heirs of the Egyptian pharaohs knew about the healing properties of water and especially the local healing mud. Chokrak gifts of nature healed wounds, strengthened the immune system, and also gave the skin a second youth.

For many years, local mud and salt were exported and were no small source of income for the Crimean Khanate. There was a time when a sanatorium functioned on the shore of the lake, and calling card his was a mountain of crutches at the front door. They were left by patients who were helped by Chokrak mud. And they came here in the hope of getting rid of such ailments as:

Gynecological diseases;
Disorders of the nervous system;
Diseases of the musculoskeletal system;
Digestive problems.

Little studied today, but quite interesting is the fact that local residents who use salt from Lake Chokrak, there are practically no known diseases of the thyroid gland. In addition, they rarely visit the dentist's office.

Leisure conditions

We admit that rest on the shores of Lake Chokrak today will be a joy only for those who are ready to oppose natural beauty, oppose well-maintained beaches and comfortable hotels. Campgrounds and express car campsites are the only choice for vacationers today. Shops, rest houses, a first-aid post, cozy cafes - all this in the nearby village of Kurortnoye.

From the leisure industry, these places are ready to offer their guests boat trips, rentals, water attractions. Fishing enthusiasts are guaranteed not to be left without a catch, and this is a reason to take a couple of spinning rods with you in your luggage.

The main asset of the lake is undoubtedly healing mud. According to the level of mineralization, it is the undisputed leader in the entire territory of the Crimea.

It is the high degree of mineralization of water and the healing properties of mud that are the main reason for consultation with doctors for those who go on vacation to Lake Chokrak.

This is nowhere

The uniqueness of the lake is also in the fact that it is located within walking distance from the shore of the Sea of Azov. So the distance between lake mud sources and sea beaches ranges from 300 to 500 meters. The relief of the shores of the lake is hills. Most of the beaches are sandy.

Every year, Chokrak Lake is visited by thousands of guests of the Crimea. When leaving, many, in addition to a good mood and feeling absolutely healthy, take away with them - a small container with Chokrak mud. As a gift from the Crimea, as a memory of kind, warm and healing lake as will take to come back here again.

Most people know that mud treatment contributes to a surprisingly fast recovery of the human body after various operations, having a positive effect on the resorption of cicatricial sutures. The physiotherapeutic properties of mud very well contribute to the production of antibodies responsible for the normalization of the body's immunity, which has a better effect on the process of stopping the body's allergic reactions. First of all, mud treatment is carried out for people who have problems in the digestive tract, musculoskeletal system, in the peripheral nervous system, in women with gynecological diseases (not acute), and so on.

As a rule, treatment with the use of mud is carried out on various resorts and health resorts. The sources of therapeutic mud can often be located near such health resorts, but there are also medical institutions that provide physiotherapy services with mud treatment procedures, where therapeutic mud is brought from other places, often even from other countries. The health resorts of our country most often use silt mud, which is based on hydrogen sulfide, for treatment. There are also muds that include: clay, salt licks, mineralized peat and other mineral substances that have a beneficial effect on the human body.

However, one should not forget that mud therapy can by no means be called a panacea for all diseases. Treatment with mud also has a negative side. Therefore, mud procedures should never be used without the supervision of a specialist in this field. Self use mud therapy can lead to negative results. Contraindications when using mud procedures are presented below.

In no case should mud applications be done during acute inflammatory processes in the body and during an exacerbation of chronic diseases. Mud treatment is also strictly contraindicated for patients with tumor diseases of muscle tissue and skin neoplasms. Cardiovascular diseases passing the stage of decompensation (heart disease), hypertension in the advanced stage, atherosclerosis, cardiac aneurysm and aortic aneurysm are incompatible with mud therapy. If a person is prone to rebleeding, he too should never be treated with mud applications. Infectious and other specific diseases, such as tuberculosis, cannot be combined with mud therapy. An unhealthy human urinary system (nephrosis, nephritis, etc.) is a mandatory contraindication to mud procedures.

Experts do not recommend carrying out mud applications simultaneously with other types of procedures that can contribute to overheating of the human body, as well as its hypothermia. You can’t, for example, engage in mud therapy and then immediately go to take a sunbath or water procedures. It is necessary to alternate this type of physiotherapy. Mud treatment is performed on patients who have neither local nor general contraindications to physiotherapeutic procedures that can be used in various resorts and health resorts, both in our country and in other countries.

Healing mud of Chokrak Lake

famous for its medicinal properties Chokrak mud, which is enriched with hydrogen sulfide, organic substances, saturated salt solution, is very famous for its healing properties among vacationers. Lake Chokrak was formed more than 2000 years ago and, along with the action of mud volcanoes, salt mineral springs, to this day attracts people who want to experience treatment with mud from the bottom of the lake. Not only the health resorts of Crimea are treated with this mud from Lake Chokrak. Many European resorts and medical institutions do mud therapy for people suffering from infertility, gynecological diseases, skin diseases and urological diseases in men.

Contraindications to the use of Chokrak mud

No matter how beautiful Chokrak mud is, it also has contraindications for use. According to the scientist medical advice Ukrprofzdravnitsy, treatment with Chokrak mud is contraindicated for people who suffer from epilepsy, psychosis, diabetes mellitus 2-3 degrees, glaucoma, nephritis, nephrosis, tuberculosis, stage 2-3 hypertension, blood diseases, hemorrhoids, varicose veins, have benign or malignant tumors or thyroid problems.

What should be done before applying the mud procedure

In order to find out whether Chokrak mud can be applied to a patient, a skin test is done before applying it to an allergic reaction of the body. Dirt in a small amount is applied to the wrist (inner part), or to the cervical region in the area of the earlobe. After a day, if no allergic visible irritations appear at these places of application, then the Chokrak mud is suitable for the patient for treatment.

General conclusions of contraindications for mud therapy

All acute inflammatory processes in the body and exacerbated chronic diseases- these are the main contraindications for mud therapy. And here it does not matter at all what therapeutic mud will be used in this case. Contraindications for mud procedures are also:

Skin diseases, venereal diseases and other infectious manifestations in the acute phase
Any therapeutic mud is contraindicated in malignant or benign neoplasms
Blood diseases
Nervous system disorder or mental disorder

All women need to remember factors that can become dangerous for them later. Women should not use mud for treatment in such cases:

After an abortion (until the first period has passed)

If there are polyps, uterine myoma or fibromyoma, erosion with bleeding or ovarian cyst on the cervix, mud treatment is contraindicated 100%

With other diseases associated with uterine bleeding
With functional ovarian failure (Cushing's disease, etc.)
If a woman is in the postoperative period after removal of a malignant tumor
At any stage of pregnancy

If we summarize all the contraindications for mud treatment, then they practically do not differ in any way from the contraindications that exist for all types of physiotherapy used in the resorts and health resorts of our country. In any case, you need to remember the main thing: never use mud for treatment without prevention and subsequent control by a specialist who can determine whether this type of treatment is suitable for the patient or not.

Before prescribing a mud application to a patient, a specialist must examine the human body, determine exactly what diseases the patient has suffered and whether he has any this moment exacerbations from previous diseases or an allergic reaction to the use of dirt. If, as a result of this examination, contraindications to mud therapy are found, the specialist will warn the patient about possible negative consequences this procedure and offer him alternative and gentle types medical procedures that will not harm the body.

Often, many patients begin to arbitrarily engage in mud therapy, and as a result they get a negative result, if not even worse. Remember - without the help of a competent specialist, you will only make your body worse! Before treating your ailment, it must be carefully studied. And of course, before starting treatment with mud, be sure to study all the contraindications to this species treatment.