It was raining over the sea

A very strong side wind with rain knocked us off the path. Imagine how strong the wind was, if my total live weight with boots and backpack, more than 100 kg, knocked me off the trail and I had to put out an impromptu trekking pole and return to the trail!

A story about the hike “Over the Sea” October 5-9, 2008.

I had been planning to go on this hike since last year, 2007, but something didn’t work out and decided to postpone it to 2008. I read reports about last year’s hikes on Kirill’s website, about the July hike along this route, and amused myself with dreams... These are the beauties we will be able to see from above, walking along the edge of the mountains! It was confusing that the hike was planned for October, but I reassured myself that it wouldn’t be as hot as the guys had in July, and there wouldn’t be any problems with water sources either!

The first doubts that the weather would treat us favorably crept in at the entrance to Vinogradny, from where the route was planned to begin. There were clouds hanging on Bear Mountain, and flakes of fog were visible along the Alushta-Yalta highway, and this was at 3 p.m.! Just like in the famous cartoon: “My premonitions did not deceive me”!

Day one - Chaotic acquaintance.

As soon as we climbed to the road leading from the highway to the trail, the fog was already at our sight level. We cheerfully began to walk along the road, cheerfully talking and adjusting to the pace set by our charming guide Andrey, then along the path and stopped for the first snack.

Here is an important digression. The group gathered from different cities (in alphabetical order: Jerusalem, Kyiv, Moscow, Kharkov).

The cry thrown by Andrei about the “dispensing” of certain products led to the “shedding of the shoulder weight”, which is usual in such situations. Everyone wanted to offer their own jar of pate, etc... I only managed to lighten my weight by a few dates! But the resting place turned out to be very good for making a trekking pole “a la beech”. The foresters cut a lot of branches and managed to select a very successful support stick. Considering the experience of the last trip with Kirill, I realized how important it is to have this item in my hands. Our experienced fellow hikers from Moscow had real “branded” trekking poles, which allowed them to feel noticeably more stable on slippery areas during the hike.

After having a quick lunch, we set out on the trail and began a long stretch that led to the next one. Half an hour before complete darkness, Andrei happily announced that we had reached the first parking lot. His voice was even more joyful when he was convinced that spring water was available, and we would have water!

We quickly set up camp, collected firewood in the dark, lit a fire, had dinner and gathered around the fire for a more detailed acquaintance. Here Andrey greatly cheered everyone up by trying to turn on the unit recommended by the lamp, but with a cunning ignition system. The tourists giggled at first, but when they managed to “light up” the lamp, the ironic remarks immediately subsided.

The acquaintance turned out to be chaotic because, warmed up by dinner and tea, the people had just begun to listen to stories about the biographies of fellow hikers, a couple of drops of rain fell on one of us and the order was announced: “To the tents”! You should have seen the speed with which the people scattered into the tents, and I, who did not understand anything and did not feel the torrential torrents from the open heavens, could only sit in bewilderment with a mug of tea, of course, by the fire... After about five minutes, people gradually began to pull themselves up to the fire and continued the interrupted acquaintance. The rain never started...

Day two - Wind power.

Stopping for a lunch snack, my fellow hikers began to warm up, my shorts were replaced by camouflage, we all pulled out raincoats and ponchos. The weather began to deteriorate, a strong cold wind from the sea and rain. Further, having risen higher and seeing the desired peak in the distance, we were already insulated “like adults,” but this did not help much... A very strong side wind with rain knocked us off the path. Imagine how strong the wind was, if my total live weight with boots and backpack, more than 100 kg, knocked me off the trail and I had to put out an impromptu trekking pole and return to the trail!

We reached the highest peak of Crimea, Roman-Kosh (1545 m), stretched out in a long chain and began taking photographs under the strongest gusts of wind. This added an incredible amount of sensations to everyone... Even talking to each other was not easy... After spending about 15 minutes at the top, we began to descend along the path to the parking lot.

Thanks to the fact that Andrei had been here several times, we checked the presence of water in the spring (thanks to the efforts of Vadim and his son Anton, they brought water to the camp and everyone was grateful to them), and went out to a cozy clearing in the pine trees. Along the way we collected firewood and the second camp was set up.

We admired Ayu-Dag below us, Partenit and Gurzuf. They were far below, every now and then covered with clouds... Irina from Jerusalem, found boletus, created a delicious dinner, but further communication was prevented by heavy rain. Everyone scattered to their tents, and it was only the beginning of eight. It rained all night and gusts of wind shook the tents.

Day three - Get down!

Plans are not always destined to come true...

To begin with, it started to rain and everyone dressed up in ponchos, jackets, and raincoats. The wind was less than yesterday, but the rain intensified to the point of downpour! The clouds passed above us, between us, just below us, and we saw only individual slopes...

Then there was communication with the guards of the Crimean Nature Reserve, but we leave this moment without attention...

In connection with the established “cloudless and clear weather”, gusts of “weak wind turning into hurricane”, Andrey made a wise decision. Looking around at the wet and frozen team, they made a wise decision: “Get down!”

The clearest picture of what the weather conditions were and our condition is given by the case “that took place”! On a steep climb, we were walking along the road in the rain, when, with our heads bowed from the wind, one of us (we will not differentiate by gender) as we walked, rested his head against the barrier of the border of the Crimean Nature Reserve. Both were buzzing. And the head and the barrier...

Having passed another peak with a broken pyramid of a triangulation point (Kemal-Egerek, 1529 m), the descent into warmer and quieter forest places began.

We walked along a washed out slippery forest road, assuming that someday the rain would stop and the road would lead to a convenient parking place... To say that we got wet would be an understatement! The legs are moving apart on the clay road, the speed is still high... Murmuring began among the “irresponsible”: “When will this end”? The places we walked were so uncomfortable and wet from the rain that the day passed without a midday snack, and I didn’t want the water that everyone was carrying with them... Why...

And then it’s like a fairy tale! And their hut appeared at the end of the forest path! Yes, it’s not easy, but about four wheels! And it was dry in it and there was a stove there! In short, we found a construction shed with a potbelly stove and two-story bunks, but there was absolutely no room in it for 14 people! No gymnastic bending of bodies or use of “sexual activity”, i.e. someone would sleep on the floor... This place is called the Kermen cordon parking lot. We lost about 700 meters in altitude, but it was worth it, there was no wind here and it was noticeably warmer...

Three tents were set up in a clearing, and six people in them decided to continue getting wet in the rain! Dinner was already prepared in the dark, and the leftover pasta was so sweet that when taking it out of the cauldron, they broke the wooden spoon! This is what people do out of hunger!

Day four - I got a shock!

And in the morning they woke up... For a long time I had a chance to look at the map, realizing that from here to civilization, in any direction, is at least 15 km along roads or paths. How and where we will have to “scavenge” was my first morning question to Andrey. But this is what “wise warrior” and “connections with the local population” mean...

Our guide phoned and was able to agree that a minibus would be waiting at the agreed place (we had to walk for an hour) to take everyone to Bakhchisarai. At this stage, everyone had to make a decision, finish the hike and travel around Crimea wherever they wanted or, at Andrey’s suggestion, move to the cave cities and spend the remaining two days there.

My wet boots and a dirty, wet tent wanted warmth and dryness, and therefore decided to move to Fiolent. Other Kiev residents rushed to Gurzuf, and representatives of Kharkov and friendly Jerusalem and Moscow heeded Andrei’s proposal to visit the cave cities. We safely reached the Kacha River, washed the visible parts of our equipment and bodies from dirt, and an hour later the driver of a minibus arrived, into which 14 people with backpacks could fit! Now, if somewhere I hear the remark: “I caught a shock!”, it means that this person and I were on a hike! This is the driver’s phrase about the road he took to get to us! Many thanks to Andrey and the driver for successfully resolving the issue of evacuating our team!

This is how the hike along the “Over the Sea” route turned out! There was a very good and pleasant team, but I didn’t have enough time to communicate and make friends...

Afterword.

This story also had a continuation, consisting of unexpected meetings! Quite by chance, in Sevastopol, on the Grafskaya pier, we met the residents of sunny Jerusalem. On the same day, at the “5th km” market, we ran into each other and talked with the people of Kiev. The next day, already in Balaklava, we met with the Moscow four! How pleasant and unexpected these meetings were; I was happy to see everyone! Write guys and girls who shared all the joys of this hike, how you spent the days after the main days of this route, tell us about your impressions on the hike and you will get collective creativity on Kirill’s website!

Sergey Kozubenko, Kyiv.