South Demerdgi

Group gathering in Simferopol at the station (11:00). Transfer to the Angarsk Pass. From here we will go east - through the Elkh-Kaya ridge overgrown with beech forest, to the famous MAN clearing. There we will take a short break, if the weather permits, explore the MAN cave and begin the climb to the Crown of Northern Demerdzhi (aka Kozyrek). From the steep cliff there is an excellent view of the Alushta Valley.

A little more and we are finally at the plateau. We will spend the night in the picturesque Dzhurla gorge, hidden between South and North Demerdzhi. Not far from the parking lot there is a small mountain lake where you can refresh yourself after a hard day.

Early in the morning, even before gathering the camp, we run to the top of South Demerdzhi (one of us will have to stay with our things). The bizarre stone figures on it are the upper edge of the so-called Valley of Ghosts, spread out on the slope under our feet.

It's time to pack our backpacks and move on. We have to return to Northern Demerdzhi. If yesterday we walked along its slope and Demerdzhi seemed like a mountain to us, today we will walk along the plateau, and the mountain will suddenly turn out to be a huge plain strewn with rocky outcrops and craters of karst sinkholes. In a few hours we will cross this plateau and reach the steep rocky cliffs in the upper reaches of the titanic Khapkhal gorge. Somewhere down there there is a river and a waterfall, but we will only get there tomorrow. And now we will continue our path along the edge of the plateau and will soon find ourselves on Tyrka-yayla. From its highest point you can see Simferopol, Belogorsk rocks and endless partisan forests. We will spend the night in this forest.

If yesterday we spent most of the day walking along an open plateau, today our path will pass under the canopy of the forest. Along an abandoned road, overcoming fallen trees and incredible piles of last year's leaves, we will reach the outskirts of the village of Generalskoye. Here we will leave our backpacks and head to the radial exit to the Jur-Jur waterfall (visit is paid). If time permits, we will rise above the waterfall, where the Khapkhal Gorge begins - a difficult and mysterious place. Here, huge, fabulous trees are scattered along the steep mountainside among fern thickets and many small waterfalls and baths. At approximately 15:00 we will descend to the village of Generalskoye, where our hike will end.

You can get out of Generalskoye by minibus (1 hour to Alushta or 2.5 hours to Simferopol) or taxi (10 minutes to Solnechnogorskoye, where there are direct minibuses to Simferopol). Most likely you will be in Simferopol no earlier than 18:00.