Ural is located in Russia. The territory of the Urals is formed
by the East European and West Siberian plains and the Ural Mountains
separating them.
In the east, the Urals border on Siberia, on
the west side, on the Volga region and north-west of Russia. In the
north, the shores of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug are washed
by the waters of the Arctic Ocean, and the Kurgan and Chelyabinsk
regions in the south have a federal border with Kazakhstan.
The Ural extends across the territory of Russia and Kazakhstan.
Geographically, the Urals borders in the east - with Siberia, in the
west - with the Volga region and the North-West of Russia, in the
north it is washed by the waters of the Arctic Ocean, and in the
south the border reaches the Caspian lowland and the coast of the
Aral Sea.
Chelyabinsk
Arkaim
Magnitogorsk
Miass
Satka
Taganai National Park
Troitsk
Zlatoust
Zyuratkul National Park
Salekhard
Gubkinsky
Gydan Nature Reserve
Kharp
Labytnangi
Muravlenko
Nadym
Novy Urengoy
Noyabrsk
Tarko-Sale
Upper-Taz Nature Reserve
Ural is a region located in the Ural Mountains. The Ural Mountains
are a chain of mountain ranges and massifs of ancient folding,
stretching from the Arctic Ocean to the semi-deserts of Kazakhstan. The
Ural region we have identified includes the Southern Urals, the Middle
Urals, part of the Northern Urals, as well as part of the Cis-Urals and
Trans-Urals.
The Ural Mountains divide our country into the
European part and the Asian part, and this division is not only
conditional. Mountains are a kind of dividing barrier that prevents the
penetration of air currents from west to east. Throughout Europe, the
climate is strongly dependent on the air masses formed in the Atlantic
and the warm current of the Gulf Stream. To the east of the Ural
Mountains, the climate is completely different, as it is formed by
arctic air currents and Pacific cyclones.
The highest peaks of
the Urals reach 1500-1700 m, while the lion's share of the territory
belonging to the Middle Urals is generally a chain of hills and
elevations with rare mountains no higher than 600 m. A common joke that
you can cross the Urals and not notice that you have been in the
mountains is like times about the Middle Urals.
On the other
hand, the region is rich in salt and fresh lakes and many rivers that
feed the waters of the Ob, Pechora and the Caspian Sea. The nature of
the Urals is typical for central Russia. Taiga in the north of the
region is replaced to the south by deciduous forests, which in turn turn
into forest-steppes and steppes. Altitude zonation is manifested in
mountainous regions. The Urals is a zone of risky agriculture, which,
however, does not prevent the placement in the Urals of almost 8% of
Russia's sown areas, including fields of wheat, sunflower and flax,
although this applies to a greater extent to the Southern Urals and the
Cis-Urals, because. fodder crops and potatoes already predominate in the
Middle.
Mineral resources are the most important wealth of the
region. At various times, the Urals were in demand as a supplier of
resources for the needs of the state. In the 16th century copper was
mined in the mountains, from the 17th century the richest deposits of
high-quality iron ore began to be developed, in the 18th century gold
was found in the Urals, and the production of precious and semi-precious
stones was expanded. In the future, the Urals supplied and continues to
supply bauxites, platinum, salts, asbestos, oil, gas, coal, and rare
non-ferrous metals. From the 18th century the region is a key industrial
center, where, in addition to the mining industry, enterprises of
non-ferrous and ferrous metallurgy, timber processing and mechanical
engineering are concentrated. Therefore, the metaphorical name of the
Ural Mountains - "The Range of Russia" - carries a double meaning: the
Urals are an important economic hub of the country, a guarantee of its
stability and stability.
The most complete portal for a traveler
in the Urals is the Nash Ural site. It is difficult to find somewhere
more comprehensive information about the natural objects of the Ural
Mountains. In addition, overview information is given on all significant
cities and towns in the region, all articles are accompanied by
photographic materials. Separately, the site uralgeo.net is dedicated to
the geography and geology of the Southern Urals (Chelyabinsk, Kurgan,
Orenburg regions and the Republic of Bashkortostan). It may not have the
most successful design, but the information is well structured and also
provided with photographic materials. For lovers of outdoor activities,
there is a special guide to the Southern Urals, which contains tips for
tourists and reports on trips. A real storehouse of ideas for forest
travelers.
A permanent population in the Urals appeared in the Neolithic era
(VI-IV thousand years BC), there were cities in the Bronze Age (III-II
thousand years BC), but this is still a little-studied page of history.
In the 9th-10th centuries, the region began to be inhabited by modern
peoples belonging to the Ugric (in the north) and Turkic (in the south)
groups. The Turkic people were the Bashkirs, who settled in the
territories of the modern Orenburg and Chelyabinsk regions and
Bashkiria. They gave the name to the region - the Urals. It is already
difficult to trace the exact origin of the word, but in the culture of
the Bashkirs, the Ural is a mighty batyr, the hero of the epic of the
same name. The peoples of the Northern and Middle Urals are the
Komi-Permyaks (the territory of the modern Perm Territory) and the
Mansi, or, as they were also called, the Voguls (the territory of the
modern Sverdlovsk Region), related to the Finno-Ugric tribes.
Accordingly, most of the place names of the Urals are Bashkir, Mansi and
Permyak names.
The first serious state entity that established
control over the Urals was the Golden Horde. Even then, the Urals made a
feasible contribution to the confrontation with the West, taking an
active part in the raids on Russia. But after a couple of centuries, the
Golden Horde broke up into separate khanates and principalities,
including the Kazan Khanate (the Bashkirs got there), the Pelym
principality (the Mansi got there), the Great Perm principality (with
the Komi-Permyaks) and the Siberian Khanate (they got there one way or
another all). All the principalities and khanates immediately began to
establish active foreign policy ties (in the form of mutual raids) with
each other and with other yesterday's "brothers" in the Horde, including
the Moscow principality. Strengthening the latter in the XV century.
sentenced all independent regimes from Novgorod to Kazan. Recalcitrant
to Moscow remained the Trans-Urals, which were in the zone of
responsibility of the Siberian Khanate. Over the Southern Urals, the
Nogai Horde still retained a semblance of control, but in the 16th
century. Cossacks from the Volga and Don are actively settled on these
lands and no one is asked. They begin to be called Yaik Cossacks - after
the name of the Yaik River, which had yet to be called the Urals.
In 1581, the legendary Yermak Timofeevich volunteered to go to the
lands of the Urals and Siberia as the plenipotentiary of Moscow,
although he represented not so much the interests of the government as
the interests of business - the merchants of the Stroganovs, who
controlled the Urals and planned expansion to the east. After 4 years,
he died in the waters of the Irtysh, fleeing from a sudden night raid,
but the victories of a small Cossack detachment inspired followers to
campaign. In the conquered Siberia (for the import of Western cultural
values and the export of furs), an overland route was established
through the fortress of Verkhoturye, where the Ural governor was
planted. From that moment on, the two main cities of the region -
Verkhoturye and Tobolsk - began to argue with each other for political
weight and significance. But after a hundred years, both lost their
bets: the country was now called Russia and the country needed guns. And
in the Urals they began to develop iron deposits - much south of the old
"fur" road.
Already in the XVII century. metallurgical plants of
the Urals began to appear, Tatars and other peoples of the Volga region
began to actively move here, and in the late 17th-early 18th centuries,
fleeing persecution, dissident Old Believers poured in. Illegal migrants
planted their culture, took away jobs, fished and beat the beast. The
indigenous people were happy to see the guests.
In the Middle
Urals, the Stroganovs are being replaced by the Demidovs - new
industrialists who, thanks to Peter, rose, as usual, from the mob. But
the state itself has already appreciated the role of the region and is
in no hurry to leave it at the mercy of the enterprising Demidovs and
other enterprising merchants and industrialists. The vertical of power
is being strengthened across the country, counties are united into
provinces and provinces. To control the industry and mining of the
Urals, a Mining Office was organized in Kungur, which later moved to
Yekaterinburg. In 1773-1775. the Pugachev uprising swept through the
Urals, actively supported by the Bashkirs and the Yaik Cossacks. Many
fortresses of the Urals sniffed gunpowder, many of them fell. And
although the most dramatic events took place in the Orenburg region, the
entire Urals felt the gravity of the consequences. The Cossacks were
abolished, the administrative center of the Middle Urals shifted to
Perm. Catherine II was the first to change geographical names just in
case: r. Yaik changed to r. Ural.
19th century - a century of
rapid progress and applied development of sciences. Despite the
increasing technological gap between Russia and Europe, the now demanded
mechanical engineering is actively developing in the Urals (and it will
remain the core industry of the Urals to this day), the first Russian
steam locomotive is born in Nizhny Tagil, and a few decades later the
region was entangled with a network of railways.
In the 20th
century, in the Urals, traditionally considered a reliable rear, more
than 140 years after Pugachev's peasant war, active hostilities broke
out again. This time, a real front line ran through the mountains (the
Eastern Front of the Civil War), there were bloody battles for Perm,
Kungur, Yekaterinburg, Nizhny Tagil, Chelyabinsk, Zlatoust, Orenburg,
Ufa, Kurgan. The Czechoslovak Corps, the Siberian Army, the Ural Army
operated in the Urals, they were opposed by the forces of the Red Army.
But during the Great Patriotic War, the role of the Ural rear was
greater than ever. Many enterprises from Ukraine and Central Russia were
transferred here, the production of ammunition and military equipment
was launched, and the dormant mining industry is actively developing. It
is unlikely that the Urals would have been such an industrially
developed region in the second half of the 20th century without these
tragic events.
Heavily decimated by the crisis in the industry in
the 90s, the Urals lost the lion's share of its industrial potential,
however, the region's flagship enterprises retain their weight in the
country's economy and are actively developing. UMMC-Holding,
Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works, EVRAZ, Bashkir Fuel Company enjoy
unconditional influence in the region. Great hopes are pinned on the
"titanium valley" under construction in Verkhnyaya Salda.
Munpupynyer Plateau (Mansi boobies), Pechoro-Ilychsky Reserve. The Manpupuner Plateau is one of the most iconic and beautiful places in the Ural Range. "Mansiysk Bolvany" are included in the list of seven wonders of Russia. This mysterious plateau is located in the Northern Urals, on the territory of the Pechero-Ilychsky Reserve, in the upper reaches of the Pechora River. It is famous for its seven stone pillars, from 29 to 42 meters high. this place is "Ural Stonehenge", and tourists call it the Mountain of Stone Idols, or simply Navels.
By plane
There are international airports in each of the regional
centers and some major cities. The largest airports are Koltsovo
(Yekaterinburg), Ufa, Roschino (Tyumen).
By train
The
Trans-Siberian Railway passes through the Urals from west to east.
Yekaterinbug and Tyumen are the largest railway stations of the Trassib
in the Urals, Ufa and Chelyabinsk are the most important stations on the
historical part of the highway.
By bus
In the Urals, there is
a fairly well-established bus service, there are bus stations in almost
all cities. The largest transport centers: Ufa, Yekaterinburg,
Chelyabinsk.
By car
From Moscow on the federal highway M5
"Ural" or M7 "Volga".
Transport
The region has an extensive
network of roads and railways, some difficulties with transport may
arise only in the Northern and Polar Urals. The largest transport hubs
are Yekaterinburg (Northern Transsib) and Chelyabinsk (Southern
Transsib). From these cities you can directly get by car, bus or train
to almost any significant object on the map of the Urals. However, due
to the significant distances, the aircraft also remains an actual mode
of transport. Domestic airlines connect the airports of Yekaterinburg,
Chelyabinsk, Kurgan, Perm, Ufa, Magnitogorsk, Orenburg and Orsk.
Suburban rail transportation in the Urals and in the Tyumen region is
organized by Sverdlovsk Suburban Company OJSC (with the exception of the
Perm Territory, where the carrier is Perm Suburban Company OJSC, and
Bashkiria, where the carrier is Bashkortostan Suburban Passenger Company
OJSC). You can plan your trip using the timetable on the website. Ticket
control is not uncommon, therefore, in order to avoid unpleasant
situations, it is better to purchase tickets in advance - at ticket
offices or ticket sales terminals (green, stand at stations). Cashless
payments are available at major stations.
There are several large national parks in the Urals. Including, in
the Chelyabinsk region - Zyuratkul (the nearest city is Satka) and
Taganay (the nearest city is Zlatoust).
In the Perm Territory,
near the city of Kungur, there is the Kungur Ice Cave - a karst cave
with a length of more than 5 km - a popular place for speleologists and
ordinary tourists (1.5 km are available for excursions) due to
picturesque underground lakes and bizarre stalactites and stalagmites
formed in the cave in winter.
The Ural Mountains are the border
between Europe and Asia. Its conditionality does not mean invisibility:
"border signs" in the form of stelae are placed throughout the Urals
(for example, in the Merry Mountains or west of Yekaterinburg), and in
the Southern Urals the border runs along the channel of the Ural River.
The "original" idea to take a picture while standing with one foot in
Europe and with the other foot in Asia occurs to almost every second
tourist, but what's wrong with innocent fun if you don't care on the
way?
The Urals is a zone of active archaeological research. The
main object of excavations is the sites of prehistoric tribes and cities
of the Bronze Age. One of the important sights of this kind is the
Country of Cities (the so-called Sintasht culture). This is a complex of
ancient cities and fortresses dating back to the III-II millennium BC. -
i.e. peers of the Egyptian pyramids. It is located on the territory of
the Chelyabinsk and Orenburg regions and Bashkortostan, spread over 350
km. The main tourist attraction is the remains of the city of Arkaim.
Another well-known object of research is the site of the caveman
Sikiyaz-Tamak, in the Chelyabinsk region, the region of the city of
Satka. The cave complex is open to tourists.
One of the Russian
pioneers of the Urals is the legendary Yermak. And although he was not
the only one wandering through the surrounding forests, any camp found
during excavations dating back to the 16th century (+/- 100 years) is
immediately attributed to Yermak and his squad. There are many such
places in the Urals, you should not completely trust the guides who
wishful thinking. What kind of Cossack detachment belonged to the
parking lot - now it’s still impossible to establish anyway.
The height of the ancient Ural Mountains often becomes an object of
irony - most often these are hills a little over 200 m high. But despite
this circumstance, there are many ski resorts in the Urals that attract
athletes from neighboring regions. The largest ski resorts of regional
significance are Solnechnaya Dolina (Chelyabinsk region, near the city
of Miass), Abzakovo, Bannoe (Bashkiria, near the city of Magnitogorsk),
Gubakha (Perm Territory, near the city of Kungur), Belaya and Ezhovaya
(Sverdlovsk region, Merry Mountains).
In addition, the ancient
mountains have become a popular object of tourist and sport climbing, as
well as caving.
Sanatorium treatment in the Urals is widespread.
About a hundred sanatoriums offer recreation on the banks of lakes and
rivers, mud therapy, mineral waters, etc. However, one must be prepared
for high prices for tours - restoring health in the Urals is not a cheap
pleasure. The most famous sanatoriums are Obukhovsky, Zeleny Mys, Rush,
Nizhnie Sergi (Sverdlovsk region), Kisegach, Sinegorye, Uvildy, Sungul
(Chelyabinsk region), Ust-Kachka (Perm Territory), Pearl of the
Trans-Urals (Shadrinsk, Kurgan region), Karagay (Bashkiria) ).
One of the most popular tourist routes in the Urals is rafting on the Chusovaya River. Chusovaya - the left tributary of the Kama, a river 592 km long, flowing through the territory of the Chelyabinsk, Sverdlovsk regions and the Perm Territory. On the river there are sections of varying degrees of difficulty, organized rafting is carried out for both family tourists and extreme sportsmen.
The Urals gained world fame thanks to its subsoil rich in minerals.
Despite the fact that all the main deposits had already been developed
by the end of the 20th century, precious metals and semi-precious stones
are still mined in the region. Accordingly, local jewelry will come down
as Ural souvenirs, although it must be taken into account that if the
Ural emerald can still be found, then almost all the malachite that is
sold in souvenir departments is from the Congo, although it is locally
processed (malachite is no longer mined in the Urals).
Of the
other local crafts, the Urals exclusive will be the Nizhny Tagil painted
trays, the elder brothers of the Zhostovo, the Kasli casting and the
Zlatoust edged weapons, as well as the Orenburg downy shawls, famous far
beyond the borders of Russia.
If you drive a car through the Ural
Mountains, then along the road you can see quite decent market
formations, where tourists are sold "goods of the Ural Mountains", "Ural
souvenirs". All sorts of things are sold: cleavers of all sizes,
smokehouses, moonshine stills, samovars, stainless steel boxes, fur
boots, felt boots, stone chips paintings and many other interesting
things (as well as Chinese consumer goods and goods for car travelers).
By the way, some products are very worthless and deserve some attention,
since you won’t buy anything like this in other places of our vast
Motherland (in any case, in terms of price-quality ratio).
There are a large number of ticks in the forests of the Urals. Their
activity begins early - the first ticks are removed in May. Precautions
in the summer in the forest and even in city parks are required, and it
is better not to climb into dense thickets. Encountering large animals
is unlikely near hiking trails. But on the other hand, a meeting with a
viper is quite possible.
An important rule for walking through
the forest is to be equipped with navigational devices, a guide, or very
good orientation skills. Do not underestimate the Ural taiga: you can
get lost by moving only a few tens of meters from the path, and the
settlements and roads are not very dense. Travelers lost in the forest
(even local residents) are by no means uncommon.
Avalanches in
the Urals are very rare. However, a number of avalanche-prone areas have
been noted in the Polar Urals, where careless tourists periodically
become victims of avalanches. The Polar Ural is a test for professional
travelers.