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We continue our walk along the Big Boxwood Ring.

We have already covered half the route. We walked through a very beautiful and unusual forest. But the most picturesque views are ahead, in the gorge.

Khosta fortress and the Khosta river

After Beech Glade we came to the ancient Khosta fortress, which existed here in the early Middle Ages, in the 8th-10th centuries AD.

Its ruins are nestled on a rock near a cliff. Fragments of the wall and the remains of the towers are covered with ivy and trees grow right on them. Access to the fortress is prohibited. Yes, he is unsafe. It is inaccessible on three sides due to cliffs and steep cliffs.

The location of the fortress raises many questions, since these areas were previously unsafe. In the valleys of the mountain rivers of the Black Sea there were mosquitoes, because of them people got fever and died. How the defenders of the fortress lived in such conditions is a mystery...

Well, for me, the mystery is the different dating of the fortress in different sources. Wikipedia, of course, is not such a reliable source. But even on the shield near the fortress itself, different things are written: sometimes the 7th-10th, sometimes the 8th-10th centuries. Although just think, a century earlier, a century later. It’s still poorly preserved... You can only see what it was like before in the picture on the information board. Admire!

After the fortress, the descent begins along a 100-meter cliff to the Khosta River. It is half a kilometer from the fortress.

The descent is a steep serpentine road and is fenced with chains.

Short rest

And again - on the road...

The river is visible through the trees below.

Here she is, Khosta - down there

Hosta is very beautiful.

The water is an amazing turquoise color, and there are white stones along the banks.

After a short walk along the bank of Khosta, we moved on. There are still 800 meters left to the spring.

Some rocks seem to be made of bricks.

The rocks seem to be made of bricks...

I especially liked this part of the route. Very picturesque views. I stopped and took pictures all the time. Views of the gorge, the turquoise river below, strange trees hanging over the path.

In the most difficult places - hanging balconies, metal decking.

It's not at all scary to go. Everything is fenced. Feeling completely safe.

Although, you know, at the top we often saw signs: “Dear visitors! Do not throw stones or foreign objects! There are people below!

And below we saw warnings: “Possible rockfall!”

Well, this is how they would write: “Perhaps stones and foreign objects can still be thrown from above!” 🙂

Spring and cave

Surprisingly, the Spring turned out to be quite large.

Next to it, a small waterfall, modest in autumn time, falls down from the cliff.

Waterfall

The same waterfall from above

The cave is a separate issue.

Passage to the cave. Everything is securely fenced

A beautiful sign at the entrance, such an equipped approach with a steep staircase...

Eh, we’re already dreaming about stalactites and stalagmites...

And the climb doesn’t seem so steep anymore...

You go up - and there is another sign: “Entry into the cave is prohibited!” Both of us!.. Why did we climb here?

Cave in the Yew-boxwood grove

While going down, I suddenly heard a stone flying after me. Apparently, he fell from the arch at the entrance to the cave. Hmmm... And maybe it’s not for nothing that entry is prohibited?

And then we met a couple of tourists. They asked:

- How's the cave?

We said we didn't go inside.

Already near the entrance to the Small Ring we met these tourists again. It turned out that they had entered the cave. You can walk there about 10 meters, no more. And then - a collapse. There is nothing interesting in the cave. No stalactites, no stalagmites, not even bats...

And here is the staircase up several flights.

The wood was not interfered with during the construction of the stairs

Nearby is a tree swallowing a stone.

Tree swallowing a stone

Look, this forest giant has clearly visible eyes and mouth. And in the mouth there is a huge stone. This is probably how legends about forest monsters were born...

Forest giant with a stone in his mouth

And here is the Labyrinth Beam. The same one along which streams flow from Mount Bolshoi Akhun in the spring.

Labyrinth beam

It is a continuation of the rock Labyrinth that we saw at the beginning of the route. The end of the route is coming soon.

Here the Labyrinth Beam opens to the river

We walked the Big Boxwood Ring route in about three hours. With children and stops to take photographs.

But that is not all. After all, after the Big Ring we went along the Small Ring. But more about him next time.

Well, how do you like a walk along the Great Ring of the Yew and Boxwood Grove?

© Galina Shefer, “Roads of the World” website, 2014. Copying text and photos is prohibited. All rights reserved.

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Second tower

Third tower

Fourth inner tower

Khosta fortress(the name Genoese fortress is also found) - the remains of an ancient structure, presumably a defensive fortress, in the northeastern part of the Yew-Boxwood Grove reserve, above the river on the right bank of Khost, 6 km from the Black Sea. The right bank of the Khosta River here goes down in a 100-meter cascade of cliffs. The top of the cliff above the Khosta shore is also the top of a rather significant downward slope in the other direction. Along the river, perpendicular to it, the lower and upper boundaries of the structure do not have steep cliffs, but movement is hampered by the downward slope in the other direction from the river.

By 2010, the remains of 4 towers and several fragments of the wall, made of limestone with lime mortar, had been preserved. Old boxwoods and hornbeams grow right on the fragments of the walls, high above the ground.

It is located in a hard-to-reach part of the park due to cliffs and rock falls and rock fragments. On the road to the remains of the structure, the park administration posted signs prohibiting passage and requiring people to return to a safe part. It is not recommended to visit the site alone - the road to it is dangerous.

History of the building

Modern bibliography on Sochi from books published in large print runs either does not mention this attraction at all, or provides dubious information, without references to original publications or research by reputable scientists. One of the most common versions, according to which this structure received the name of the Genoese fortress, is associated with traders from Genoa who had somewhere in this area, according to Italian maps of the 13th-15th centuries. a Genoese trading post called Costa, and identifying the trading post and this fortress. The disadvantages of this version include the fact that the fortress is located far from the sea, in a remote place, reaching which by river is difficult and dangerous, since Khosta is not a wide, shallow river, easily blocked by jams of tree trunks and stones, and along the banks it is surrounded by dense thickets in which it is easy to set up an ambush, since the width of the river between the rocks is small, and in almost any place even a stone can be easily thrown to the opposite bank. After the rains, due to the abundance of rapids, the river hardly allowed boats to move along it. According to one version, the fortress was built by order of the Byzantine emperor Heraclius the First in 624 during the Byzantine-Iranian War to block one of the mountain tribes allied with Persia living above the river, which intercepted military and robbed Byzantine merchant ships stopping in Khosta Bay for recruiting fresh water.

Authoritative scientists are invited to refute or confirm another version of the purpose of the fortress. In those days, there were no settlements in the river valleys and coastal strip of the Black Sea for two reasons. In the swampy deltas of rivers flowing into the sea, mosquitoes multiplied well and people suffered from fever. In addition, the sea was a road not only for Genoese merchants, but also for travelers for other purposes. Therefore, people settled in the coastal mountains. It's safer there and the pastures are better. The natural route to them was river beds. Most of the year, these mountain streams can be forded anywhere. The fortress was built at the exit of a deep river canyon at a height of 80-90 meters from the river bed. The fortress is impregnable on three sides due to cliffs and steep cliffs. From the loopholes of the fortress, all the approaches to the fortress and the entire riverbed were clearly visible - the only place through which guests could pass. The construction site of the fortress was chosen impeccably from the point of view of fortification as a guard and defensive structure.

Archeology

All the walls of the Khosta fortress were built from roughly processed limestone blocks, cemented with lime mortar containing an admixture of sea sand and small river pebbles. The recovered material from the territory of the fortress includes fragments of molded ceramic dishes with porous walls, in particular, pot-shaped flat-bottomed vessels.

Current state of the building

Fragments of the wall and the remains of the towers, fastened with lime mortar, which have stood in the open air for centuries, are still strong. But several excavations made under the towers, apparently in the last decade, led to the appearance of a significant crack.

Tower on the southeast corner

The south-eastern corner of the fortress is protected by a tower, preserved to a height of up to 4.5 m. A loophole window measuring 40 X 50 cm looks out from the tower to the west. At the south-eastern corner there is a narvy gate.

Second tower

The second tower, 45 m from the first, has an irregular rectangular plan. In its western and eastern walls, two tiers of grooves from the beams of the interfloor floors are noticeable. The height of each floor is 1.7-1.8 m. The tower was apparently three stories high.

Third tower

Only 11 m of wall separates the second and third gate towers. It was poorly preserved. Its massif, occupying an area of ​​14 by 8 meters, slopes at an acute angle to the southwest, forming a barrier to the fortress gates. The threshold of this gate is visible in the middle part of the corridor formed by the northern wall of the third tower, and a massive wall running parallel to it, which then stretches to the west. Above the threshold, at a height of more than 1 m, a groove is visible for securing the bolt bar.

Fourth inner tower

To the west of the gate, a tower-shaped buttress protrudes from the wall, protecting the gate. 10 m from it there is the last tower, which, unlike the others, also protrudes into the fortress. At the same time, its room is recessed into the thickness of the wall by more than 1 m. A doorway leads into the upper tier of the tower. Judging by the stone protruding from the wall here, on which the ceiling was supported, the height of this room reached 1.9 m. Taking into account the surviving fragments, one should think that the original height of the tower was at least 11 m. From its lower floor a wide loophole looks south.

The Khosta fortress is located in the northeastern part of the Yew-boxwood grove, 6 km from the sea, on the top of a rocky cliff. The right bank of the Khosta River here goes down in a 100-meter cascade of cliffs. Therefore, the need for artificial fortifications exists only in the southern part of the peak, where the defensive line was built.

The fortress belongs to the early medieval fortifications of the area and dates back to approximately the 7th - 10th centuries AD. (based on the book by Yu.N. Voronov “Antiquities of Sochi and its environs.” Chapter IV. “Medieval era”)

The Khosta fortress was built in such a way that its northern, western and eastern parts were protected by natural cliffs. In the southern part, a defensive line was built from a wall, three towers, a gate and a rampart. When constructing the walls, the soil was removed down to the rocky area. They were built gradually, in narrow tiers up to a height of 5-6 meters, with battlements at the top.

Today, the remains of 4 towers and fragments of walls have been preserved.

The south-eastern corner of the fortress is protected by a tower, preserved to a height of up to 4.5 m. A loophole window measuring 0.4 x 0.5 m looks out from the tower to the west. At the south-eastern corner, a wall with a groove for a log bolt is visible from the outside. These are the remains of a reserve gate, which served to lead troops out to the enemy’s flank. The second, 45 m from the first, has an irregularly rectangular plan. In its western and eastern walls, two tiers of grooves for interfloor beams are noticeable. The height of each floor was 1.7-1.8 m. It was apparently three stories high.

Only 11 m of wall separates the second and third gate towers. The latter was poorly preserved. Its massif, occupying an area of ​​14x8 m, pinches out at an acute angle to the southwest, forming a barrier to the fortress gates. The threshold of this gate is visible in the middle part of the corridor formed by the northern wall, which then extends to the west. Above the threshold, at a height of more than 1 m, a groove is visible for securing the bolt bar.

To the west of the gate, a tower-shaped buttress protrudes from the wall, protecting the gate. 10 m from it there is the last tower, which, unlike the others, also protrudes into the fortress. At the same time, its room is recessed into the thickness of the wall by more than 1 m. A doorway leads into the upper tier of the tower. Judging by the stone protruding from the wall here, on which the ceiling was supported, the height of this room reached 1.9 m. Taking into account the surviving fragments, one should think that the original height of the tower was at least 11 m. From its lower floor a wide loophole looks south.

The masonry of the walls was carried out from roughly processed stone blocks of local limestone with rows in shell and backfilling of broken stone in lime mortar mixed with sea sand and small pebbles.

The Khosta fortress, located in the northeast of the yew-boxwood grove, on the right bank of the Khosta River, is one of the main attractions of the region.

The Khosta fortress, which can be seen today on the top of a rocky cliff, is the remains of an ancient defensive structure. The fortress belongs to the early medieval fortifications of the area. It was built around the 7th - 10th centuries. AD

The Khosta fortress was built so that its eastern, northern and western parts were protected by natural cliffs. The southern part was fortified with a defensive line consisting of a wall, a rampart, a gate and three towers. During the construction of the walls, the soil was removed down to the rocky area. They were erected gradually, in narrow tiers 5-6 m high. At the top, the walls were decorated with battlements. The walls were laid with stone blocks in rows in the shell, as well as backfilling with broken stone on a limestone mortar mixed with fine gravel and sea sand.

The towers consisted of two or three tiers with an upper combat platform and multi-story wooden floors. The height of the three-story tower was 11 m. The fortress gate had an arched ceiling, a stone threshold, a log fence and a massive plank. Fragments of walls and the remains of four towers have survived to this day.

The south-eastern corner of the Khosta fortress was protected by a tower, preserved to a height of 4.5 m. There is a loophole window on the western side of the tower. Outside, at the southeast corner, there is a wall with a groove intended for a log bolt. The second tower, shaped like an irregular rectangle at the base, is located 45 m from the first. Two tiers of grooves are visible in the eastern and western walls of the tower. Each floor has a height of 1.7-1.8 m. The second and third towers are separated by only 11 m. Unfortunately, the last tower is very poorly preserved. A little to the west of the gate, there was a buttress in the fortress wall that protected the gate. Just 10 m from it is the last tower, the height of which was originally at least 11 m.

• Last minute tours to Krasnodar region

Located in the northeast of the yew-boxwood grove, the Khosta fortress was built in the 7th-10th centuries. There is no clear answer yet as to who built it (Genoese or Byzantines). In any case, the medieval architects did their best: the citadel rises on an impregnable steep bank of the river, there is a defensive wall on only one side. Today, all that remains of the formidable fortress are the remains of walls and towers made of limestone. Old yews and hornbeams grow right on the stones covered with a thick layer of moss, further enhancing the feeling of abandonment.

The fortress, or rather, what remains of it, consists of 4 towers and a small fragment of a wall. The south-eastern section is protected by a 4.5 m high pillar with a loophole window, through which the defenders fought off attacking enemies. Near the tower there are the remains of a defensive rampart.

Posters placed on stands along the tourist trail will tell you what the Khosta fortress looked like during its heyday (very large-scale). Approaching the ruins is strictly prohibited - landslides are common.

The ruins of the second tower are located 45 m from the southeast. In the western and eastern walls, two tiers of grooves from the ceilings have been preserved: apparently, it was a three-story building with a height of 1.7 m at each level. The third tower has been preserved less than the others. It was the largest, measuring 14 by 8 m. The fourth was the stronghold of defense of the Khosta fortress. Its height reached 11 m, and the walls were dotted with large loopholes, several people fired from each at once.

Practical information

Address: Khosta, st. Boxwood. GPS coordinates: 43.539698, 39.879050. Web site .

The fortress is located on the territory of the Caucasus State Natural Biosphere Reserve named after. Kh. G. Shaposhnikova.

You can get to the yew-boxwood grove from Sochi or Adler by minibuses No. 122, 125, 134 and buses No. 4 and 4c (stop “Khosta-Most”). From the stop you need to walk 15 minutes along the river along the street. Samshitovaya to the visitor center with a ticket office. From the entrance to the fortress, 2 km along the “Big Ring” trail. Entrance 300 RUB, children from 7 to 14 years old - 150 RUB, under 7 years old - free. Prices on the page are as of October 2018.