The territory stretching at the junction of Europe and Asia is called the Urals. This region is known for the Ural Mountains. But the lakes of the Urals deserve no less attention than the mountain peaks. The region is rich in beautiful and even healing reservoirs, where you can relax, fish and improve your health.
Geography of the Urals
The area along the ridge of the Ural Mountains at the border of Europe and Asia has long been inhabited by people. The origin of the name of the Urals still causes controversy among scientists. The most realistic version seems to be about its connection with a word from the ancient Turkic language, meaning "hill".
The region extends from the steppes of Kazakhstan to the Arctic Ocean, covering the hills adjacent to the mountain peaks. The Ural mountain range is low, its peaks lie in the range from 600 to 1500 meters above sea level. The Ural Range is the main element organizing the landscape and climate of the region. The Ural Mountains create a kind of barrier that divides the region into two climatic zones: the milder and wetter Western and the harsher, continental Zauralskaya. The climate of the region is typical mountain, in the Urals with a lot of rainfall, in Zauralie the climate is drier. The land is rich in diverse flora and fauna. In the numerous hollows and indentations of the mountains lie the beautiful and unique lakes of the Urals.
Water resources of the Urals
The Ural region is rich in various reservoirs and rivers. Streams descend from the mountains, the famous lakes of the Urals are formed. In total, there are 11 fairly large rivers in the region, including the most famous: Kama, Pechora, Chusovaya, Belaya. They feed three reservoirs with water: the Arctic Ocean, the Ob and Ural rivers. But the main wealth of the Ural region are lakes, there are more than 30 thousand of them!
Lake District
The Urals can rightfully be called the edge of the water. The lakes of the Urals are diverse in origin, each has a unique landscape. Many of the ponds are real natural attractions. Each lake has its own legend, its own unique look, its own story. In addition to incomparable beauty, many reservoirs have healing power. There are a number of salt lakes in the region, whose healing power is no less than that of the famous Dead Sea. The most famous salt lakes are: Moltaevo, Gorky, Muldakkul, Medvezhye and Podbornoe. Resting houses and sanatoriums are located on their shores. There is an amazing Sweet Lake in the Urals, the alkaline water of which has a sweetish flavor, it has a huge list of healing properties.
Another unusual drainless lake is Shantropay. Its water has a very high rate of mineralization, and mud from the bottom have truly miraculous properties. In addition to treatment and relaxation, the lakes of the Ural region are famous for their fish stocks - this is a great place for fishing. And, of course, lakes are a magnificent natural landscape, each object has its own, with unique features. It is not in vain that many reservoirs are protected, like natural monuments. The lakes of the Urals are still little studied, their depth is not fully known, the underwater landscape, flora and fauna are also studied occasionally. Let's talk about the six most notable Ural lakes.
Alpine Zyuratkul
The highest mountain lake in the South Urals - Zyuratkul (Chelyabinsk region) is located at an altitude of over 700 m above sea level. It feeds on a large number of streams that originate in the nearby swamps. In this regard, the water in the lake is tea-brown. Despite the shade, it is very clean, drinkable. Today the area of the lake is 12 square kilometers, but historically its area was half that. It increased due to the construction of the dam. Due to the increase in volume, the depth of the lake has grown, today it is about 12 meters, the historical form has changed. The pond is located in a picturesque place, it is surrounded by coniferous dense forests, and the mountain ranges of Nurgush are reliably hidden from the winds.
Lake Zyuratkul (Chelyabinsk region) from ancient times attracted people. Archaeologists find here traces of sites of the 8-5th millennium BC. The history of the appearance of the reservoir is described by the legends of local residents who poetize the lake, attach particular importance to its shape resembling a heart. Today, the pond and surrounding area are included in the Zyuratkul National Park.
Big fishing - Big Elanchik
90 km from Chelyabinsk, not far from Chebarkul, there is a small but very popular reservoir - Lake Elanchik. The name of the lake is translated from the Bashkir language as “snake”, “snake lake”. Big Elanchik, this is the official name of the reservoir, has small dimensions - about 6 square kilometers, a depth of 6-8 meters. It is located at an altitude of 363 meters above sea level. The shores of the lake are covered with pine and deciduous forests, the western shore is quite boggy. Today, Big Elanchik is becoming an increasingly popular holiday destination, there are three large recreation centers, several cottage villages, the presence of a person negatively affects the ecology of the lake. But it is still one of the five cleanest lakes in the Urals, water transparency here is 4 meters. The main reason for the popularity of the lake is a large number of fish. Here you can find perch, ruff, roach, tench, pike.
The Beauty of Uvilda
A natural monument of local importance - Lake Uvildy - is located 100 km from Chelyabinsk, at the foot of the Ural Mountains. The origin of Lake Uvildy is tectonic. Many millions of years ago, a fault formed here, which was subsequently filled with water. The area of the lake is almost 70 square meters. km, the deepest place is 35 meters, the average depth is about 14 meters. Due to its size, the lake does not warm up well and this leads to the fact that there is no stormy underwater life in it. True, today inhabited bream, chebak, pike, whitefish, burbot live there. The oligotrophic type of the lake, rare enough for the Urals, makes Uvildy an interesting object for scientific research. The reservoir is famous for its purest water, it is one of the five cleanest lakes in Russia. However, a strong recreational load threatens the ecology of the lake, which is exposed to severe pollution. The islands give a special charm to the lake: Elm, Spruce, Alder, Bukovy, in total there are 52 islands of various sizes on the reservoir. Lake Uvildy has long attracted people; they composed romantic legends and stories about the reservoir.
Deep lake
300 km from Yekaterinburg is the cleanest in the Urals Lake Terenkul. Translated from Bashkir, the name of the reservoir means "deep lake". The maximum depth of the Terenkul is 19 meters, the transparency is about a meter. Some researchers suggest that the pond has a “double bottom” effect in some places, where the depth reaches 30 m, but there is no real evidence for this. Lake Terenkul occurred as a result of a tectonic fault, it feeds on precipitation and groundwater. From all sides it is surrounded by dense forests, the water surface in places is heavily overgrown with reeds and water lilies. Despite the fact that there are few specially equipped places for recreation, they mainly belong to guest houses and pensions, the flow of tourists here is growing every year. Tourists are attracted by the silence and pristine nature, as well as fishing.
Alpine lake
On the main peak of the Northern Urals, Mount Telposis, in the crevice is a unique alpine lake Telpos. It is famous for its crystal clear water of emerald hue, the transparency of the water is about 10 meters. The area of the lake is only a quarter of a square kilometer, and the depth is about 50 meters. The origin of the lake is kar, that is, it retains the water of a recently (several thousand years) melted glacier. The lake is very little studied, it is not even known if there are any inhabitants in it. The water in the lake does not warm up, and swimming in it is impossible. Even the ancient inhabitants of the Urals revered Telpos as a shrine, they even wrapped the oars with rags to walk silently through the water. And today there are very few people around the reservoir, and it keeps its pristine beauty.
