Chukhloma, Russia

Chukhloma

Description of Chukhloma

Chukhloma is an ancient town in the north of the Kostroma region, which fully justifies its funny name. It is located on the shore of a picturesque lake, and is interesting not so much in itself as for its surroundings, where, in addition to old temples, two carved wooden towers, lost in the dense Kostroma forests, have been preserved. Chukhloma is an intermediate point on the road to Soligalich.

The name Chukhloma comes from the word “chud”, and therefore the emphasis in it is placed on the first syllable, although the further, the more the version of Chukhloma with the emphasis on the last comes into use. The city stands on the high shore of the lake of the same name Chukhloma. It was first mentioned in documents in 1381 as part of the Principality of Galicia. From the height of past centuries, this principality seems like something small and insignificant, but in the 15th century it played an important role in Russian history, when local princes - Yuri Dmitrievich and his son Dmitry Shemyaka - laid claim to the Moscow throne, staging a long internecine war with Vasily Dark. Chukhloma was one of the outposts of the Galician principality, so a fortress was built on a hill above the lake: either in the middle of the 15th century to protect against the Moscow prince, or at the beginning of the 16th century, already to protect the Moscow prince and the principality from the raids of the Kazan Tatars.

Until the 18th century the city remained wooden. Stone construction began after the devastating fire of 1727, and the oldest surviving Chukhloma building, the Assumption Church, dates back to this time. Then Chukhloma developed as an ordinary county town with a rectangular plan, stone buildings in the central square and mostly wooden buildings outside it, but, unlike neighboring Galich or, say, merchant Sudislavl, there was nothing outstanding here. Then Chukhloma was unlucky during Soviet times: the destruction of churches and the lack of industry turned the city into a large, run-down village, which it remains to this day. A beautiful lake, the historical Assumption Church and a couple of streets of old houses are, perhaps, all that can and is worth seeing here.

Nevertheless, Chukhloma is known and increasingly popular among independent travelers. At first, the TAM automobile club began organizing off-road expeditions “Full Chukhloma”, fortunately, there is plenty of off-road in these parts. Then enthusiasts from Moscow reconstructed the historical tower in Astashovo, turning it into a one-of-a-kind country hotel, and tourists flocked to the Chukhloma district. There really are a lot of interesting places around the city, although most of them still fall into the category of not the most accessible, requiring the traveler to invest a lot of time and participate in an organized excursion or some preparation. Chukhloma itself, although it is a regional center, still cannot offer guests any intelligible infrastructure except a couple of canteens and chain supermarkets, and you will most likely even spend the night not in the city, but in the Astashovsky tower, Galich or Soligalich.

A couple of hours is more than enough to explore Chukhloma. The surrounding attractions will require much more time: budget for at least a full day and prepare for some autonomy.

 

Sights

1  Assumption Church, st. Sverdlova, 1 (central square). Built shortly after the great fire of 1727, the church is surprisingly modern for its time. Typically, architectural styles came to the Kostroma region with a great delay; throughout the 18th century, five-domed churches were built here, more reminiscent of traditional Russian ones, but the Chukhloma church is a completely self-sufficient monument of the Baroque, albeit in its most simple, provincial design. The church was closed in the late 1930s, but reopened immediately after the war and has remained active ever since. This made it possible to preserve the original interior, including the remarkable iconostasis of the last quarter of the 18th century. It’s a rare case when the inside of a church is more interesting than the outside, so be sure to try to stop by.
2  Ruins of the Transfiguration Cathedral, pl. Revolutions. The second Chukhloma temple did not reach us in the best condition. It was built in 1747 and, much more than the Assumption Church, gravitates towards the traditions of Russian architecture: stone architraves, runners, a spectacular entrance portal, once there were even kokoshniks, but in Soviet times the cathedral lost its chapters, vaults - in general everything; Only the lower floor has been preserved, looking more like a garage or workshop, which is what it is. Nearby are the remains of the earthen rampart of the old Chukhloma fortress, now turned into a city park. The gazebo standing here has a good view of the lake; a wooden staircase leads to the shore.
3  Public offices building, st. October 14. A mansion in the style of classicism is a rare occurrence in the vastness of the Kostroma region. This is one of the oldest city buildings that have come down to us (1808-1810), built, as they would now say, “according to a standard design” simultaneously in several county towns. In Chukhloma it looks the most representative, once again emphasizing the unsightliness of the surrounding wooden buildings.
4  Bolshakov House, st. Ovchinnikova, 14. Classicism in wood is a rare case when a one-story house completely reproduces the features of capital stone mansions, including arched windows. But the most interesting thing is inside: a magnificent tiled stove, presumably from the second half of the 18th century, transported from some nearby estate. The house is known by the name of the mayor F.F. Bolshakov and built in the middle of the 19th century.
Old stone buildings are concentrated in the center on Sovetskaya Street, as well as at the beginning of Lenin Street: pay attention to the stylish wrought iron balconies that brighten up the rather ordinary architecture of the late 19th century. The rest of the building is almost entirely wooden. The local code of monuments notes many houses as “built in the traditions of late classicism,” which in fact means only geometric shapes and the absence of any decoration: this could equally well have been designed in the 19th century or in the late 1990s. Those who have already been to Soligalich are unlikely to be interested in Chukhloma architecture.
5  Agricultural College named after. Chizhova, village Anfimovo (3.5 km southeast of the center). The complex of brick-style buildings was erected at the end of the 19th century with the money of industrialist Fyodor Chizhov (1811-1877), who bequeathed the construction of several technical schools in the Kostroma province. The idea of creating educational institutions in a campus format, with a separate territory and a full complex of buildings down to small auxiliary buildings, was completely revolutionary at that time, and even now such a solid, well-thought-out ensemble looks something incredible in the Chukhloma wilderness. After the revolution, the school turned into a forestry technical school and is still functioning. The main buildings are in good condition, some of the residential buildings are distorted by later additions. The area is not fenced and is accessible at any time. Other Chizhov vocational schools can be seen in Kostroma, Makaryev and near Kologriv.

 

Things to do

1  Museum of Local Lore  , Sovetskaya st. 6. Mon–Thu 9:00–18:00, Sat–Sun 9:00–17:00. An ordinary regional museum. Along with standard exhibitions telling about local nature and peasant life, items from the surrounding noble estates are shown.
2  Cinema “Ekran”  , pl. Revolutions, 4. ☎ +7 (910) 958-78-10. Residents of big cities will find this cinema modest, but in fact everything you need is there: renovations have been done, the seats are comfortable, the sound is good.

 

How to get there

You can only get to Chukhloma by bus or car. Buses run from Kostroma (3.5 hours) through Galich (1 hour) heading to Soligalich and Sudai or Viga only 5 times a day.

The only passable road comes to Chukhloma from Galich (50 km), and then diverges into several smaller paths, which all end in dead ends and get lost somewhere in the forests. The main direction is Soligalich, which is another 50 km away. The northern exit from the city (Kalinina Street) that looks great on the maps is actually a demo version of the off-roading in the surrounding area; In the direction of Soligalich it is better to go along the street. Freedom.

1  Bus stop, pl. Revolutions (shop "Chukhloma crucian carp"). Buses depart from a stop in the city center, the bus station is on the street. Freedom is closed.
2  TNK gas station, intersection of st. Freedom and bypass. Around the clock. Network gas station with a shop, tea and coffee and hot food to be heated.

 

Transport around the city

There is no public transport, everything in the center can be explored on foot. Look for taxi drivers' phone numbers in the VKontakte group or ask the administrators of the Astashovsky tower.

 

Buy

1  Supermarket “Perekrestok”, st. Lenina, 19. This is not a chain “Perekrestok”, but a local store with the usual assortment for the regional center.
2  Supermarket “Magnit”, st. Svobody, 29A. 8:00–22:00. On the contrary, it is a chain supermarket. There is parking and a ramp, no queues, but the doors are narrow and uncomfortable.
3  Bakery “White Elephants”, st. October 1, 8:00–20:00. Chain Kostroma bakery with a large selection of salty and sweet pastries. Not a bad option if all catering establishments are closed.

 

Eat

1  Cafe “Cruise”, st. October 23rd Mon–Sat 9:00–17:00. Dining room with delicious home-baked pies.
2  Pizzeria “Bonjour”  , st. Sandeba. Mon–Fri 11:00–19:00, Sat 11:00–18:00, Sun 11:00–17:00. The most original of the few Chukhloma establishments offers, in addition to pizza, pancakes, pancakes and something sweet. Good feedback.
3  Restaurant, st. Svobody, 2. Mon–Fri 11:00–15:00. A former city restaurant, degraded to an ordinary dining room. Conflicting reviews.
Early in the morning and evening, the only place with tea and at least some food will be the gas station on the bypass.

 

Hotels

1  Hotel (“Beryozka”), Sovetskaya st. 8. ☎ +7 (49441) 2-11-41. The only Chukhloma hotel is located in the historical building of the Bolshakov teahouse with a nice corner turret. Cramped, smoky rooms and amenities in the hallway. If you believe the reviews, there is hot water.
2  Forest tower Astashovo   (30 km from Chukhloma). ☎ +7 (953) 654-62-20. Double room: from 5000 rub. A carved wooden tower, turned into a modern country hotel and part-time museum, where every piece of furniture, be it old magazines lying on the table or a historical cabinet, becomes a fascinating exhibit. History coexists peacefully with comfort - there is good plumbing, hot water, Wi-Fi, online booking and generally everything you can expect from a normal hotel. For the rooms inside the tower, the amenities are mainly in the corridor, but there is also a new building nearby, where the rooms already have a toilet and a bath. A local chef prepares made-to-order lunches and dinners, and you can also book a tour of the area or get advice. Prices are high for the Kostroma region, but guests unanimously agree that it is worth it: so far this is the only hotel of this type in Russia. There are few rooms, demand is high, so during the season and on weekends the hotel is booked weeks in advance.

 

Etymology

The name Chukhloma was first mentioned in chronicles in 1381. The city is located on Lake Chukhlomskoye, which in the Soligalich chronicle of the 14th century. called “Chudskoye”, this version of the name allows us to see the basis of the oikonym Chukhloma as an ethnonym from the series Chud, Chukhna, Chukhar, used by the Russians to name Finnish-speaking peoples. According to A.K. Matveev, this etymology (supported, in particular, by M. Vasmer) is folk, and the topological basis “chuhl(o)-” can be compared with the Proto-Ural root *ćukkз ('hill, peak'), which can be related to the topography of the city and its surroundings.

 

Geography

The city is located on the shores of Lake Chukhloma, 50 km from the Galich railway junction.

 

History of Chukhloma

Early history
The first mention of a settlement on Lake Chukhloma dates back to the 10th century. The exact time and place of its foundation are unknown. In the 10th century, the city supposedly existed, but not on the southern, but on the northern shore of Lake Chukhloma.

In the chronicle of the Soligalich Resurrection Monastery under 1335 it is mentioned that the Galich prince Fyodor Semyonovich, on the road from Galich to Soligalich, having passed the “great forest”, saw the “Chudskoe” (Chukhloma) lake and the Chud settlement near it.

In the 14th century, the Avramievo-Gorodetsky Monastery was built on the site of the Chud settlement.

The year of foundation of Chukhloma on the southern coast is considered to be 1381 (the year of the first mention of Chukhloma in literary sources - as a city within the Galich-Mer principality).

In 1381, Moscow Metropolitan Pimen was exiled to the city, having received the consecration of the Patriarch of Constantinople to the Moscow Metropolis using a forged letter.

Between 1434-1453, during the struggle for the grand ducal table, Prince Dmitry Shemyaka strengthened Chukhloma.

In the 16th century, the Chukhloma lands formed their own administrative-territorial unit - the Chukhloma siege, in the center of which was the city of Chukhloma. As a result of civil strife, the Principality of Galich, including Chukhloma, became part of the Moscow state.

At the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th centuries, the Chukhloma fortress was founded, on the territory of which there is now a city park. The fortress was located on a high hill at the confluence of the Sandeby River into the lake. On the southern side it was protected by a cliff of the river bank, on the west by steep slopes of a hill towards the lake, and on the north and east by embankments and ditches, the line of which included two ponds. Wooden walls with quadrangular towers were placed on the ramparts, four of which secured the corners, and two, on the northern and eastern sides, were passageways. The defense system was complemented by three more towers located inside the walls: a high pyramidal lookout with several tiers of bypass galleries and balconies and two lower ones, with one tier of bypasses. The powerful fortifications of the fortress made it possible to hold it during the siege by the Poles in 1609. A cathedral complex was located on the territory of the fortress. Next to the temples stood the voivode's courtyard, the official hut, the courtyard of the Avraamiev Monastery, and the siege houses of the boyars B.I. Morozova, G.I. Maykova, G.I. Gorikhvostova, I.Ya. Koltovsky. The Chukhloma fortress existed until 1727, when the “great fire” in its furious rampage destroyed all the buildings.

The time of construction of the Chukhloma fortress is unknown. Approximately this is the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th centuries. The fortress was located on a high hill at the confluence of the Saneba (Sandeby) river into the lake. On the southern side it was protected by a cliff of the river bank, on the west by steep slopes of a hill towards the lake, and on the north and east by embankments and ditches, the line of which included two ponds. The height of the ramparts on the floor sides reached 4 meters, and on the other sides no more than 1.5 m. The fortress had the shape of an irregular quadrangle. Wooden walls with quadrangular towers were placed on the ramparts, four of which secured the corners, and two, on the northern and eastern sides, were passageways. The defense system was complemented by three more towers located inside the walls: a high pyramidal lookout with several tiers of bypass galleries and balconies and two lower ones, with one tier of bypasses. The powerful fortifications of the fortress made it possible to hold it during the siege by the Poles in 1609. On the territory of the fortress there was a cathedral complex. Next to the temples stood the voivode's courtyard, the official hut, the courtyard of the Avraamiev Monastery, and the siege houses of the boyars B.I. Morozova, G.I. Maykova, G.I. Gorikhvostova, I.Ya. Koltovsky. The Chukhloma fortress existed until 1727, when the “great fire” in its furious rampage destroyed all the buildings. The battle towers and walls of the city of Chukhloma perished in the all-consuming flame, and government and private houses disappeared in the fiery fireworks. Only ashes and smoldering firebrands remained from the city Kremlin. On the territory of the ancient fortress there is now a city park.

“ALL AROUND THE CITY DITS, DIGES AND SHAFTS ARE FILLED, AND ON THE SHAFTS ARE WALLS WITH ANGLE TOWERS.” Almost nothing has survived from ancient Chukhloma to our time. Only the once formidable ramparts, which have subsided under the weight of centuries and encircled the hills on the shores of the former Lake Peipus, remind us that the small cozy town is more than six hundred years old. During the difficult years of princely civil strife and rapid Tatar raids, the Chukhlomy fortress was built. The insidious and power-hungry Prince Dmitry Shemyaka strengthens Chukhloma during the years of struggle for the grand-ducal throne (1434-1453). Hastily, the taxing people of Chukhloma and the men of the surrounding villages are digging a ditch, enclosing the city from the north and east, the most convenient places for organizing an assault on the fortress. Groaning and spitting on their calloused palms, the peasants throw earth out of the pit; they carry sand and clay for the embankment on stretchers, in sacks and matting. Earthen ramparts grew up to a two-plant height, tightly enclosing a small area of slightly more than two hectares. The longest side of the shaft, facing the lake, was 213 m, and the shortest, 113 m, faced north, towards the settlement. Only in two places did they cut through the thickness of the earth to enter the fortress. The gate connected the city with the settlement and the marketplace. On a tightly compacted earthen base, strong walls were erected from wood, and the corners were secured with chopped towers. It was as if a green hill on the shore of the lake bristled; through warily narrowed slits in the walls, the defenders of Chukhloma vigilantly watched the roads leading to the town.

The fortress walls and towers of Chukhloma, which completed the hill, apparently looked quite impressive and were a reliable stronghold for the surrounding population. It is difficult for us - people of the atomic age - to understand the psychology of a person of the 15th century, unfamiliar even with a steam engine, to compare the scale of our hundred thousand settlements with cities where 200 - 500 souls lived, to evaluate the aesthetic impression of the pointed palisades and stocky fences rising on the earthen steeps. towers moving forward to meet the enemy. It is very difficult to introduce a coefficient for the historical difference in perception, but this is helped by ancient images that reveal the world seen by the artist several centuries ago - a world refracted through the prism of time.

An unknown artist depicted the city of Chukhloma on one of the ancient icons of the Chukhloma Avraamiev Monastery, which seemed to him, in comparison with the wretched villages, majestic and beautiful, with tall buildings and powerful fortifications. Through the specifics of worldview and iconographic traditions, real features emerge in the naive drawing, allowing us to complement the image of the ancient Russian city of Chukhloma. Squat towers, the same height as the walls, took places in the corners of the fortress; between the towers, under their protection, there were gates. Inside the citadel, the artist painted three different tower-like volumes. The left one obviously depicts the temple, which was located in the same place where the Transfiguration Cathedral, which has been converted beyond recognition, now stands; The middle tiered volume most likely represents a watchtower, so necessary with low towers, and the right one, presumably, depicts in figurative form one of the povalushas - high, multi-story cages that were part of the princely and boyar mansions.

The reliability of individual details of the drawing is confirmed by census books of the 17th century and archaeological data. During L. Kazarinov's excavations in 1922, the base of the southwestern tower was discovered under a layer of soil. The tower, square in plan, was built from three tall logs (about 6.5 m). To make the tower more stable, a number of piles were driven in from the side of the lake. Three crowns of charred logs and the remains of the floor are all that have survived from the Chukhloma stronghold, which stood until the 18th century.

The life of the Chukhlomych people was hectic in the 16th century. The end of the internecine war and the inclusion of the Galich principality into the Moscow state did not bring the long-awaited peace; more than ten times over the course of a century, the Tatar cavalry swept through like a hurricane, sowing death and grief along the way. The Chukhloma lands were not spared by the Polish-Lithuanian invaders. In 1609, a strong detachment of Lisovsky attacked Chukhloma, but was unable to take the fortress. The surrounding villages began to burn again, women began to scream, leaving their homes, and herds stretched out like a dusty ribbon, driven away by the invaders. The Trans-Volga region became impoverished, the villages were deserted, the arable land was overgrown with weeds, the men scattered throughout the world, and there were only more crosses on the graveyards. In Chukhloma itself, according to the watch book of 1615, there were thirty households with thirty male souls.

Only by the middle of the century did the city recover a little from the disaster. The newly built huts sparkled with gold, the number of households reached seventy, trading became livelier and the flotilla of fishing boats on the lake increased.

 

Time of Troubles

Chukhloma suffered greatly during the Time of Troubles.

In 1609, a strong detachment of Lisovsky attacked Chukhloma, but was unable to take the fortress, but ravaged the surrounding area. In Chukhloma itself, according to the watch book of 1615, there were thirty households with thirty male souls.

 

XVIII century

In 1719, according to the territorial division of Peter I, Chukhloma became the administrative center of the Chukhloma district and became part of the Galician province of the Arkhangelsk province.

The Chukhloma fortress existed until 1727, when the “great fire” destroyed all the buildings.

In 1778, by decree of Catherine II, Chukhloma became a district town of the Chukhloma district of the Kostroma governorate. Since 1796 - part of the Kostroma province.

 

19th century

Remote from the main transit routes, Chukhloma was not considered a trading town. Its population subsisted on crafts and small trade. A significant part of the residents were engaged in fishing and gardening. The lack of pasture land limited the possibilities for raising livestock and hampered the development of butter and cheese making. The only enterprise that existed in Chukhlom was the brewery of the tax farmer Nelidov, recorded in documents in 1844.

In 1890, ditches began to be filled in and a city garden was laid out on the territory of the remains of the city fortress (Kremlin).

 

XX century

In 1928, zoning was carried out in the Kostroma province. The territorial unit, the administrative center of which is Chukhloma, is now called not a county, but a district.

In 1929, the Kostroma province was transformed into the Kostroma district of the Ivanovo-Voznesensk (Ivanovo) Industrial Region. In 1930, the districts were abolished, and the district became directly subordinate to the region.

In 1936, the Ivanovo Industrial Region was divided into Ivanovo and Yaroslavl regions. Chukhloma ends up in Yaroslavskaya.

In 1944, the Kostroma region was formed, which included Chukhloma and the region.

 

Around the city

If you find yourself in Chukhloma, then, most likely, you are going to Soligalich or planning to see something in the surrounding area, where the more interesting the object, the more difficult it is to access: this is Complete Chukhloma. Some of the places listed below cannot be reached either by taxi or by your own car: you will need a prepared SUV or, at a minimum, stamina and rubber boots. Another option is excursions organized by the Astashovsky tower, which take place using all available modes of transport, including tractors, snowmobiles and UAZs.

 

Towards Soligalich

1 Abraham Gorodetsky Monastery (13 km from Chukhloma - on the shore of Lake Chukhloma near the village of Nozhkino). Founded around 1375 by Abraham of Galich, a student of Sergius of Radonezh, sent to the north to create new monasteries. Chukhloma appeared on the map around the same time, so the monastery either preceded or accompanied the city. It is arranged in an unusual way, located on a narrow hilltop, which is why the path from the entrance to the temple goes steeply and symbolically upward, leading to the Cathedral of the Icon of the Mother of God “Tenderness” - a large five-domed “Tonovsky” temple (1857-1867), behind which it hides the smaller Church of the Intercession (1608-1632), standing close to the large cathedral. This church itself was once a good five-domed church in the traditional Russian style, but if the reconstruction of the 18th-19th centuries was largely leveled out by the restoration of the 1970s, then nothing can be done with the cathedral standing next to it, and now the church seems only a pathetic extension to it, and it is painted an unnaturally gray color, as if it was recently molded from cement. The gateway St. Nicholas Church (1650) is somewhat better preserved; the rest of the monastery buildings, including the walls and the huge 60-meter bell tower, date back to the 19th century. The monastery stands on a hill and looks good from the water - it is perfectly visible even from Chukhloma. Up close, this architectural “vinaigrette” is rather depressing, although all the buildings, which were pretty much destroyed during the Soviet era, have been completely restored. The monastery is active, but the regime for visiting it is not very strict: there is no guard, you can just go in and walk around the territory, as well as go outside it and go down to the lake, where the bathhouse is located and the cell of the Monk Abraham once stood.
2  Church of the Intercession in Nozhkino (next to the monastery). The slender rural church in the classicist style (1826-1831) looks much more harmonious than the entire monastery combined. It is clearly visible from the road to Soligalich.
3  Neronovo estate (26 km from Chukhloma, the last 6 km beyond the village of Fedorovskoye are passable only for a tractor or a prepared SUV). The noble estate in the Chukhloma wilderness belonged to the Cherevins, an old family with good connections in the capitals, for more than 300 years. Stone construction began here quite early, at the end of the 18th century, so the estate sometimes resembles the Baltic states or the outskirts of St. Petersburg: a baroque manor house, the original Resurrection Church at the junction of baroque and classicism (1790), numerous auxiliary buildings of the first half of the 19th century. Portrait artist Grigory Ostrovsky worked in the estate, whose paintings now adorn the Soligalich Museum. After the revolution, the estate was abandoned, then for a long time it was used as a home for the mentally ill and was empty again in the 1990s. The remote location and bad roads saved it from looting: the iconostasis and burials of the Cherevins were preserved in the church, and stucco moldings and old doors were preserved in the manor house. Now the territory is in private hands, it is planned to open a rehabilitation center here (the TIL monastery), but for now both the church and the manor house are simply “mothballed,” that is, locked. Those who came here at random usually did not manage to get inside, so make arrangements in advance - for example, through the Astashovsky tower.

 

East of Chukhloma

4  Terem in Astashov (30 km of unpaved, but passable road for any car). The phenomenon of the Chukhloma outback is two luxurious wooden towers from the late 19th century. Astashovsky was built by local peasant Martyan Sazonov, who left his native village to work in St. Petersburg. There he not only made a fortune, but also spied a project by the famous architect Ivan Ropet, made for some international exhibition. Returning to his homeland and getting married for the second time, Sazonov decided to build a tower according to that very design - as a gift to his young wife and just to make it beautiful. When, by the early 2000s, there was not a trace left of the village of Astashovo, and the tower stood empty and abandoned in the middle of the forest, not even having the status of a cultural heritage site, there were enthusiasts in Moscow who were ready to get involved in another adventure: to restore the practically doomed building as close as possible to to the original. Now it is a modern country hotel and at the same time a museum, where they show recreated interiors and ancient objects collected from the surrounding villages, tell local stories and the history of the tower. It’s best to come here with an overnight stay (and, to be honest, there are other options in the vicinity), but you can just go on an excursion, which costs 300 rubles. per person and is held daily by prior arrangement. In the tower they can also serve you lunch or dinner, for about 800 rubles. per person.
5  Terem in Pogorelovo (35 km to the village of Krasnaya Niva, then 3 km is a very bad road with a ford). This tower was built by Ivan Polyashov, whose story is similar to the previous one: a local peasant got rich in St. Petersburg, returned to his homeland and built a wooden house more beautiful than Astashov’s - no longer according to the capital’s popular print, but according to some original design that is a little more reminiscent of a peasant house, only very ornate. Then the fates of the two towers diverged. In the 1970s, Pogorelovsky was bought by the artist Anatoly Zhigalov, who still lives in this wilderness and does not allow the building to fall apart, so everything here is not as neat as in Astashov, but entirely authentic: delightful carved decor, multi-colored glass, wall paintings in some rooms. In the summer, Zhigalov visits the mansion and shows it to those who wish. The rest of the time, negotiate through the Astashovsky tower, and in the summer, their help with transport may be useful to you. Any car can get to Krasnaya Niva in dry weather, although one bridge along the way regularly falls apart. Just before the tower there is a ford through the Viga - knee-deep in a good situation.
6  Vvedenskaya Church on Viga (22 km from Chukhloma). The five-domed church was built in 1800 in the most common forms for the Kostroma region, and the interesting thing about it is that it is the only completely restored church of this type for many kilometers around: due to its light blue color, it looks bright and festive. Nearby is the small church of Dmitry Solunsky in the style of classicism (1837), also in excellent condition. The village of Vvedenskoye is located at the fork in the roads to Astashovo and Pogorelovo.

 

Road to Sudai

7  Resurrection Church in Valuevo (20 km from Chukhloma, near the village of Povalikhino). A rotunda church (1803-1808) with a rare triangular layout, first used near Moscow in Dolgoprudny (Vinogradovo estate), and then copied in several places in the Yaroslavl and Kostroma regions. Now it is abandoned, overgrown with trees, and there is not even a road to it - you need to follow the azimuth. The bell tower was added in the 1860s.
8  Chapel in Ploskov (36 km from Chukhloma, turn left before reaching Sudai, then another 2 km along the forest road). Another example of unusual wooden architecture, which the Chukhloma land also owes to a local otkhodnik peasant who became rich in Moscow and decided to build something in his homeland - though not a tower, but just a chapel. Just as the Astashovsky and Pogorelovsky towers are not very similar to ordinary peasant dwellings, so the building in Ploskov bears little resemblance to a rural chapel: it has five domes and echoes of Art Nouveau are felt. It was erected in 1909-1910, now abandoned, but still completely intact.
Sudai is an ancient village, founded in 1542 and even managed to serve as a regional center. Now there is complete wilderness and many carved wooden houses that are more interesting than those in Chukhloma. In the center is a complex of two stone churches - the Annunciation Church in the style of classicism (1830) and the Resurrection Church, gravitating towards provincial baroque (1792). The most interesting wooden houses are located in the north of the village, in the former village of Bubolino, where a museum has even been created, but it is unclear when and how it operates.