Sleepless in Abrau: what to do at the famous lake out of season
The Krasnodar village of Abrau-Durso is inextricably linked with the history of Russian sparkling wine. It is not surprising that many people come here precisely for the sake of enotourism. Meanwhile, there is something to do here besides tasting brut, semi-dry, semi-sweet. For example, to improve your health in body and soul among the black pines, get acquainted with Gosha the swan, go to the spa and admire the unique lake. Izvestia, together with the Mediarazvedka project, found out what else to do for an out-of-season tourist.
The mystery of the name
The name "Abrau-Durso" seems to have something foreign, German-French. But in fact, this toponym is either of Adyghe, Circassian, or Abkhazian origin. Abrau means "failure," and Durso means "four waters."
According to legend, this was the name of two villages, rich and poor. One version tells of the tragic love of a rich shepherdess for a poor shepherdess, the other is about the inhabitants of a rich village who, out of pride, decided to pave the road to the sea with gold and silver coins. There is only one finale — a rich village was punished and fell into the ground, and in its place there was a wonderfully beautiful lake, the largest in the entire western Caucasus. Its length is 2.6 km, width is about 600 m, and depth reaches 10 m.
Scientific hypotheses about the origin of Lake Abrau are no less complex. For example, it is believed that it is a remnant of an ancient Cimmerian freshwater basin.
Abrau is a lake with a secret, a river of the same name flows into it, but none flows out. The incoming water either evaporates or seeps underground and probably flows to the sea. Therefore, the lake remains fresh and does not waterlog, and the marl and limestone contained in the soil give its waters a milky blue hue.
Interesting fact: the movie "Funny Guys" was originally supposed to be called "The Shepherd from Abrau-Durso". A monument has been erected to Leonid Utesov, the performer of the main role, on the embankment.
Swan, electric yacht and Geneva Fountain
Gosha Swan, a local landmark, swims along the shore like a white cruise ship among small boats, surrounded by ducks. Once he couldn't fly away from here because of a broken wing, and he stayed that way. Retro-style recreational river trams and a real American yacht from the 30s of the last century are moored in the distance. All vessels have been converted to electric traction for environmental reasons.
Trams run to the Art Park on the opposite shore, where a fountain rises directly from the surface of the lake - a scaled—down copy of the famous Swiss fountain-To, which nevertheless hits 40 m in height. Abrau-Durso is gradually turning into the "Russian Riviera", and this definition no longer causes a smile. There's a whole fountain show during the season, but there aren't many viewers right now.
And that's the beauty of a trip to Abrau Durso out of season - it's quiet and sparsely populated, but the resort itself doesn't fall asleep. There are restaurants, museums, souvenir shops, guided tours. A flock of sailing derrickboats is frozen on the surface of the lake — you can learn the science of controlling the wind here all year round. In winter, it is about +5 degrees here and the temperature rarely drops below zero.
This year-round occurrence is probably due to the fact that the sea is not close here and the local infrastructure does not depend much on the bathing season. However, during the season, vacationers swim in the lake, and the local hotel provides a shuttle service to its own beach by the sea.
Cellars full of wine
The Tsar Bottle fountain could only appear here. The Abrau-Durso winery was opened back in 1870 by decree of Emperor Alexander II. The production of wines, primarily sparkling wines, survived the German occupation during World War II, Gorbachev's prohibition and the dashing nineties. Winemaking seems to affect all areas of local life — the oldest and most luxurious buildings have been built for it. For example, the Villa Roz restaurant is really a villa where the estate manager lived before the revolution.
A separate tourist attraction is the wine cellars. The oldest were hollowed out of the rock during the reign of Prince Lev Golitsyn, who in 1891-1898 served as chief winemaker of the Appanage Department. During the Great Patriotic War, some of the basements were blown up, and in the 1980s the Moscow metro builders made new ones. Their walls are lined with white tiles, and in the abstract mosaic, if you look closely, you can distinguish the letters "Tanya" and "Edik". Tourists leave their names and initials on dusty bottles — there are thousands of them here. The cellars are still used by the current production, sparkling wine is maturing in them, made according to the classical method of champanization.
Winemaking also has an impact on local cuisine: escargot's grape snails are an important part of it. However, more than a dozen restaurants and cafes offer dishes in a wide variety of styles — Asian, Caucasian and even Black Sea — like chebureks with bananas. There is even a whole gastronomic school.
Don't get lost in the pines
In 1974, Lake Abrau was declared a natural monument, and it was forbidden to engage in any kind of agriculture on its shores. Therefore, the vineyards were moved higher, and the slopes around the lake were planted with black pines. Now these are ideal places for hiking. Several routes of varying complexity and very picturesque have been developed for tourists — forest, mountain trails, vineyards, vineyards again. The longest trip is around the lake, 15 km. One of the most beautiful points is the Yoga House, a two—story terrace located on a cliff above the sea. To understand the beauty of this place, you don't have to comprehend the eight steps of yoga.
You can not even go up there on foot, but rent SUVs — either a hardworking UAZ or a classic American Jeep Wrangler.
A real black sauna lurks in the middle of the forest. Here you will be steamed, salt and honey scrubs will be made, and even sung.
Where to stay and how to get there
The Abrau Light Hotel also has its own SPA, which is a modern building with a view of the lake. And there's no alternative place to stay, after the historic Stalinist Imperial Hotel closed for renovation this fall.
Abrau-Durso can be reached by car — there are even charging stations for electric vehicles in the village — or by plane. Then — by rented car or by transfer. You can also get from Krasnodar to Novorossiysk by Swallow, and from there by taxi or bus. So the road turns out to be long, but not "golden" either.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
