Mount Cat - a miracle of the Crimea

Just 20 km from Yalta, between the villages of Simeiz and Katsiveli, there is an amazing mountain Cat. It can be seen by driving along the highway "Yalta - Sevastopol". This is a young geological formation, whose age is about one million years, which is not so much. The height of the mountain is 254 meters.

Strangely enough, but originally the mountain was called Sokolinoy, which in the Tatar language sounded like "Kosh-kaya". The Russians interpreted this in their own way and named Mount Koshka. This is a very good name, because if you look closely, its outlines actually remind the beast that is preparing to jump. The mountain can not be confused with anything, since the muzzle lying on the shore, the curved back and the tail of the boulders are clearly visible.

The mountain range consists of limestone, due to which it is all in the hollows and hollows, it is they that create the impression of piled up wool, complementing the image of the insidious predator. For a very long time the mountain Cat was united with the mountain Yaila, creating an insurmountable barrier separating the southern coast of the Crimea. Settlements living on the top, it was profitable, since they had an excellent view from the observation posts, and they could see the enemy in time and repel the attack. The three sides of the mountain massif were not at all approachable, one could climb it on only one path, which was reliably guarded.

Today, you can still find the remains of a 3 m high wall, 2 m wide and about 100 m long, which the Cat Mountain reliably preserved. In the Crimea, about 7 centuries ago, Taurians lived in these places - a very impregnable and proud people. In memory of them remained the fortress of Lyman-Kale, in translation denoting "fortress on the shore of the gulf".

Although the Tauris and fortified their fortification, but still the wall - this is not their handiwork, because it refers to buildings dating from the second half of the first millennium BC. Also, pit pits, neatly laid out with a stone, were found. They preserved the remains of people, ornaments, objects of everyday life. This find speaks only of the fact that in those distant times there were settlements here.

Today Mount Koshka is a unique natural complex with an amazing relief. Inside the mountain massif there is a large number of voids and splits. In winter, out of the cracks, warm air emerges, which makes the mountain look like an extinct volcano, recently erupting a burning lava.

Mount Cat is completely covered with dense vegetation, which gives it a certain charm. Basically here grow evergreen shrubbery and trees with large chic crowns. There are also such plants that are found only on this massif and nowhere else in the world. To such rare specimens is the fumana thyme, which is a herbaceous plant blooming with yellow flowers. Also in these places you can find a strawberry tree, called by the people shameless. Its fruits are somewhat similar to strawberries.

Many travelers go to the Crimea to look at such a miracle of nature as Mount Cat. Ukraine is rich in various very interesting sights, and this mountain range serves as a vivid confirmation of this.