Lena Pillars is a geological formation and natural park of the same name in Russia, on the banks of the Lena River. It is located in the Khangalassky ulus of Yakutia, 104 km from the city of Pokrovsk. The Lena Pillars are a complex of vertically elongated rocks stretching for many kilometers, intricately piled up along the bank of the Lena, cutting through the Lena Plateau with a deep valley. The pillars reach their greatest density between the villages of Petrovskoye and Tit-Ary.
The rock formations, whose height reaches 220 meters above the river level, are composed of Cambrian limestones. Tectonically, the Lena Pillars lie within the Siberian Platform. The beginning of the formation of the rocks that formed this natural monument is usually dated to the Early Cambrian - 560-540 million years ago. The formation of the Lena Pillars as a relief form is dated to a much later period - about 400 thousand years ago, that is, relatively recent geological time. The territory of the Siberian platform was subjected to gradual uplift, which resulted in the occurrence of faults and the formation of deep river valleys. This led to the activation of karst processes, which, along with ongoing erosional weathering, gave rise to such bizarre and diverse forms of rocks composed of carbonate rocks.
In ancient times, this place was considered sacred. Mere mortals were not allowed to approach the Pillars, otherwise heavenly punishment could fall on them. Visit sacred place Only elders and shamans had the right to talk with the spirits of the rocks. The reverence evoked in people by this place is explained by the visual feature of the rock formations - from a distance they resemble petrified people standing at full height. Many legends have been associated with this illusion.
Legend
It was a long time ago. Once upon a time, in the place where tourist ships now stop, on the Lobuya River there lived a terrible dragon. Every day he flew around his castles, which at that time were golden, and he built not only castles, but also minarets, loopholes, and bridges with his magical command. On a sunny day they sparkled so much that it was even scary to look at them. This light blinded my eyes, and therefore local residents We tried not to go to these places. In the evening, when the sun hid behind the huge rocks, the golden color turned into marble-violet, and then the rocks became so gloomy that they inspired fear and horror in those who finally ended up in these castles.
The dragon kept all the inhabitants of Prilenye in fear, and no one had the courage to chop it down. Everyone knew that he lived in a cave located at an altitude of about 70 meters, and therefore inaccessible. Every year, at the time of the large flood of the Lena River, when the sun's rays heated the ice rocks, the dragon woke up and demanded cattle, birds, deer, and horses as tribute from the inhabitants of Prilenye. For the Yakuts this was a painful burden. But they could not do anything, and they had to collect this tribute and please the insatiable womb of the dragon.
But one day the dragon found out that he lived in one of the distant villages beautiful girl Kare Kyys, daughter of the famous Yakut shaman. The dragon demanded that the Yakuts give him a young girl as his wife. The residents offered him a large ransom for the girl in exchange, but he refused. Then the shaman went out to the people and asked for advice. Everyone was silent for a long time. The people understood very well that it was very bitter for the shaman to part with his beloved daughter. Everyone completely forgot about the parents of the young man Khorsun Wal. An elderly man came out through the crowd of people and told everyone that his son had gone hunting a month ago with several of the same young men and in two suns they should return and that Kere Kyys was his bride. After a long separation, they were supposed to get married. No one expected the dragon's choice to be so cruel.
It was deep, clear night. In the summer, in these places it is night and day. The last minutes of the shaman's prayer were approaching. A high fire burned in front of him, and people stood around. Suddenly, a human figure appeared in the flames and smoke. It was clear that it was a young man. In his hand he held a large dagger. At this time, the exhausted shaman fell. His prayer ended. The image of a young man that appeared foreshadowed the release of the shaman’s daughter.
The next day, Kare Kyys was dressed in the most beautiful Yakut dress. It was decorated with shiny pieces of glass, beads, and the sable trim gave the girl the appearance of a squirrel. She really was like a squirrel. Graceful, fragile and very mobile.
The time has come for the dragon to arrive. The sun has dimmed. A strong wind rose. The waves on the river immediately became so high that God forbid any fisherman should end up on the river at that time. A whistle and roar was heard, so loud that the residents could hardly stand it, but love and respect for their beloved girl did not give them the strength to run away from this terrible place.
The monster landed not far from the crowd. Everyone was trembling with fear, and only Kere Kyys proudly raised her head and slowly walked towards the dragon. The beauty of this beautiful girl excited even the dragon. He usually emitted flames from his terrible mouth, but this time he froze. He forgot to perform his intimidating gesture. Kare Kyys turned to the people and her father, and everyone understood from her calm look that she was saying goodbye to them, but not forever. She remembered her lover every minute, and the hope of meeting him soon gave her unimaginable strength. She walked closer to the dragon and sat on his huge paw. The paw was so scary, covered with some kind of cold scales, that only at that moment the thought of fear flashed through the girl’s mind. But at that moment the dragon let out a loud whistle - his gratitude to the people for such a gift - and soared upward. After some time he was in his domain. And Kere Kyys, in an unconscious state, was lowered by the dragon's servants onto a golden stretcher and carried to a beautiful castle. From that moment on, the girl’s life began in fear and anticipation. In fear - when a dragon appears. Waiting for when her beloved Khorsun Wal will appear. When the dragon appeared, the girl hid in the farthest corner of the castle. He himself brought her food and drink. But she did not touch them until the dragon flew away. For the dragon these were the most wonderful moments of pleasure. He even forgot the daily raids on the naslegs of the Yakuts and did this only when food supplies ran out.
After some time, Khorsun Wal returned from hunting with his peers. He immediately rushed to the shaman’s yurt, but sad news awaited him. His great love for the beautiful Kara Kyys gave birth to such rage and contempt for the dragon that he began to prepare for a mortal fight. Life without his beloved was impossible for him. He told the shaman his intentions, and he agreed with the young man. One night, the shaman, having gathered the elders together, read a prayer, sprinkled the young man with holy water, giving him so much strength that he could defeat the dragon. Khorsun Wal was ready for a mortal fight.
Meanwhile, Kere Kyys became comfortable in the castle and began to greet the dragon more tenderly. She realized that she needed to pretend to be tender and loved, and then she could solve the mystery eternal life and the amazing magic of the dragon. She began to talk to him, talked about her childhood, games with children, and gradually began to talk about the prayers of her shaman father. But the dragon accepted her stories with a grin, especially when the girl talked about her father. The dragon considered himself an unsurpassed sorcerer.
And then one day Kere Kyys asked the dragon a question: “How can you cast a spell, create such castles, raise the surface of the water high into the sky?” The dragon had no idea that this was a treacherous question. It never occurred to him that anyone would dare to fight him. And he told the girl that the magical power was in his tail. If he loses his tail, he will lose his magical power and then die.
Khorsun Wal was approaching the Lena castles. When he found himself in the ravine of the Lobuya River, he began to call for the dragon. He did not fly out of his cave for a long time. He was about to appear in the castle of his slave. But the loud cry of some young man made him curious, who dared to come into his domain and disturb his peace? Kere Kyys also heard the voice of Khorsun Wal. She began to prepare to leave the castle with great excitement, but was afraid that a dragon was about to appear. When she realized that the dragon had no time for her, she descended on the veins of the beads, which she had been preparing for a long time in order to someday escape from the monster. The girl ran as fast as she could to the river. At this time, the dragon flew up to the young man. Flames sparkled from his mouth. All the foliage of the trees caught fire. There was smoke all around, it was impossible to breathe. Khorsun Wal began to swing his sword and try to strike the dragon. But the forces were unequal. After the first blow of a sword hit the body of a giant beast, Khorsun Wal felt heaviness in his legs. It turned out that he went into the ground up to his knees and, in fact, was chained to the place where he stood. At this very moment, a gentle and familiar voice was heard nearby. He recognized his beloved. “Be sure to hit the tail. This is the magical place of the dragon,” the girl managed to shout, and then some forces threw her to the other side of the river. She was petrified in the place where she found herself. She couldn't even utter a word. But Khorsun Wal heard what his beloved shouted to him and, contrivingly, dealt a fatal blow to the dragon’s tail. The dragon flew up in excruciating pain, but could not even flap its huge wings and collapsed to the ground.
Everything in the sky immediately turned black. Golden castles, loopholes, minarets, hanging bridges turned into huge basalt rocks. Khorsun Wal himself turned into a huge rock, embedded in the ground. People, having heard a terrible explosion, realized that the time had come to free them from the magical powers of the dragon, and quickly headed to the place where the terrible battle took place. But they saw exactly the same picture that we can see now. A lonely rock on the right bank of the Lobuya river and a prominent rock in the image of a young man on the left bank of the river. People took off their hats and bowed low to these rocks in memory of the brave Khorsun Wal and his beloved Kara Kyys. The memory of them, of their impartial love will live in the hearts of the Yakut people forever.
The people stood in this ruin for a long time. In the silence and silence, no one noticed how a tall tree covered with dense foliage appeared near them. This tree appeared in the place where Kere Kyys’s father, the great shaman, stood. And people called him Tree Shaman. And when they began to leave, everyone hung either a piece of cloth or the skin of an animal on a tree branch. Since then in treasured places The Shaman tree must grow, and the Yakuts hang it with all sorts of decorations so as not to provoke the anger of the spirits. Legends say that a hunter who does not leave a memorial sign on a tree will not have luck in the hunt and may even get lost, or even die.
You can admire the Pillars from the river - this is a wall of slender, tall remains of a rare shape, they stretch out like something growing out of the ground. View from above and on foot a tourist route also quite impressive. The closer you get to the Pillars, the more bizarre shapes they protrude from the total mass of the stone wall. Some formations resemble ancient Gothic castles, others resemble tall medieval towers without windows, others resemble rows of stone trees or elongated faces of people. Silence, calmness and smooth water surface create a special mood. When the sun sets, the shadows lengthen and begin to move - this creates the illusion of mobility of the rock pillars.
Lena Pillars is a unique monument of archeology and history. The remains of animal organisms were ideally preserved in their deposits. The fauna here was extremely diverse: various representatives of groups with bone and mineral skeletons, buffalos, mammoths, rhinoceroses, horses. Some samples preserved soft tissue and even embryos. That is why the protected area has such high scientific value. Stone formations are not the only landscapes of the Lena Nature Reserve that evoke admiration. Tuculan sands are located in the same territory. This loose, migrating mass of light color develops across the territory, creating bizarre wavy dunes. Within the sands there are areas of cold northern desert.
The Lena Pillars Nature Reserve is located entirely on undeveloped lands, and therefore any economic work is prohibited here. In addition, several waterways of the region flow through the park: the Lena, the second longest river in Russia, and its tributaries - Buotama (sites of primitive people were found along its banks) and Sinaya.
In the territory national park There are many lakes with a depth of two to three meters, formed both in natural relief depressions and on flat watersheds. These lakes are filled with water thanks to rainfall (and therefore during drought, large reservoirs become shallow and small ones dry up completely), their shores are flat and almost always swampy.
The diversity of the flora and fauna of the national park cannot but amaze: there are about 500 species of plants (about twenty of which are listed in the Red Book of Russia), 42 species of mammals, more than a hundred species of nesting birds, a huge number of fish and quite a few reptiles.
Currently, this unique geological formation is included in the list of wonders of Russia and is a natural monument of world significance. Several years ago, UNESCO took the territory where the Lena Pillars are located under its protection.
The Lena Pillars, also known as the Stone Forest on the Lena River, are a natural mountain formation. They are located approximately 60 kilometers upstream from the city of Yakutsk in Russia. Amazing stone towers more than 150 meters high stretch along the river for approximately 80 kilometers. These pillars were discovered in the 17th century, but getting here was not an easy task. The journey will take at least three days if you are heading here from Moscow. First of all, you need to get to Yakutsk through all of Siberia; in Yakutsk you need to take a boat and spend another half a day to get to the stone forest along the Lena River. Finally, upon arriving at your final destination, the locals will easily arrange excursions for you, which will also take several days. We won’t even talk about the cost of such a trip.
The pillars on the Lena River are amazing evidence of the development of the Earth over millions of years. Numerous fossils of ancient organisms were found here - unique preserved evidence of a very important stage in the history of the development of the organic world and many biological species during the Cambrian era. The remains of mammoths, bison, rhinoceroses and many other animals were found here. 
The Lena Pillars were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2006 as one of the most amazing places on our planet with an ideal ecosystem untouched by man.
It is worth adding that there is a similar place in China - this
The reserve is located on the territory of the Khangalassky and Olekminsky districts (uluses) and consists of two isolated areas: the Stolby Site (located on the right bank of the Lena River and along the Buotama River basin) and the Sinsky Site (located on the left bank of the Lena River above the mouth Sinyaya River).
At all times this nature education it left people in awe. This place has long been sacred for the Yakuts and Evenks. Ordinary people were not allowed to go there. They feared the wrath of the spirits of the rocks. Many believed that the pillars were frozen statues of people created by unknown otherworldly forces. Only a select few, elders or almighty shamans, dared to approach these mysterious rocks.
It has been established that these rocks are Early Paleozoic sedimentary rocks, and the age of the limestones is at least 530-570 million years. Once upon a time there was a shallow, warm sea that washed the shores of the ancient Siberian continent. For millions of years, the dead remains of various small shell organisms settled at its bottom, forming multi-meter strata. Over time, the sea became dry land. Hundreds of millions of years passed, only in the Anthropocene period, under the influence of tectonic processes, the continental Siberian platform slowly rose by 200 m, which led to a deep incision of the Lena River valley. Faults and deep river valleys arose, karst processes intensified, which, along with ongoing erosive weathering, gave rise to such intricate and diverse forms of rocks composed of carbonate rocks. This is how a geological and landscape phenomenon called the Lena Pillars arose. It should be noted that, unlike the northwestern regions of Russia, here during the glaciation era there was a very dry climate, which prevented the formation of glaciers. Even when the temperature dropped as much as possible in the Northern Hemisphere, there was apparently no ice shell here - there are no traces of its influence on the local landscapes.
Russian paleontologists in local sedimentary deposits found 350 Early Cambrian genera of organisms out of 2000 now known to science. The overall diversity of creatures in this region was the highest for the Early Cambrian anywhere in the world. These genera include the first archaeocyaths (primitive sponges), radiocii, corallomorphs, brachiopods, and several other groups of fossil animals with mineral skeletons. In addition, extinct organisms have been found here in exceptionally complete preservation (such as mammoths, woolly rhinoceros, etc.). They form the fossil Sin ecosystem, which includes a number of unique specimens with preserved soft tissues and cells, and even their embryos. The rocks that make up the Lena Pillars are a true treasure trove for science.
In addition to the stone pillars, the park contains such notable objects as blowing sand-tuculans with separate areas of the cold northern sandy desert and a parking lot ancient man at the mouth of the Diring-Yuryakh stream, during excavations of which stone tools were found.
Tuculans:
Numerous petroglyphs were discovered on the rocks along the banks of the Lena and Sinaya rivers - rock paintings made with yellow mineral paint by the ancient inhabitants of these places. These are stylized images of animals preserved to varying degrees, fragments of inscriptions of ancient Turkic runic writing, rock compositions depicting a person.
The number of travelers visiting these places increased noticeably towards the end of the 19th century, but even in the dynamic 20th century, due to the remoteness and sparse population of these places, not many people visited here. In Yakutsk, they began to organize special tourist trips to the Lena Pillars by boat. By the end of the century, the leadership of the Republic of Sakha became concerned with the development international tourism in the region. To do this, it was necessary to preserve not only the stone forest itself in its pristine beauty, but also the surrounding areas. It is very important that local authorities did not wait for guidelines from the capital, but on their own initiative, with the support of the general public of Yakutia, in 1994 they decided to organize the Lena Pillars natural park.
National Park Office:
Since then, unique landscapes have become increasingly famous. Stolby today is a popular holiday destination for tourists and Yakut residents (from Yakutsk to Stolby is about 180 km). In summer, river workers organize boat excursions here. You can't do without a camera, video camera or binoculars here! If you sail upstream of the mighty Lena River, then in the southwest of Yakutia a grandiose panorama of bizarre rocky cliffs appears before the eyes of travelers. This is a unique natural formation in the form of a very extended series of outcrops, stretching in a continuous chain for tens of kilometers along the slopes of the right bank. In some places they look like a colossal, monolithic wall, which is occasionally interrupted by gorges of tributaries of the Lena. But as soon as you approach the pillars, the wall begins to divide into independent, dissimilar sculptures, reminiscent of fairy-tale medieval castles, Gothic temples, or bell towers Orthodox churches. Among the cliffs you can see other creations of the sorceress nature: figures of unknown animals and fairy-tale characters. If you swim for a long time along a ridge of rocks, at times it seems that they come to life and are about to move. This visual effect is especially strong before sunset.
The Lena Pillars were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2006 as one of the amazing places our planet with an ideal ecosystem untouched by humans.
What kind of bizarre fantasies does nature present to us, creating landscape wonders! Here are the pointed rocks along the coast of the Lena River in Yakutia - either petrified trees with their tops directed upward, or ancient castles with towers propping up the heavens with their spiers!
Bizarre geological formations stretch along the right bank of the upper reaches of the river for more than 520 km from the city of Olekminsk to the village of Pavlovsk, but their density is especially high between the villages of Petrovsky and Tit-Ari. The height of most of the pillars exceeds the hundred-meter mark, some of them rise above the river level by almost 220 m.
It is believed that the rocks that make up this unique natural monument began to form in the early Cambrian period - approximately 550 million years ago. However, the formation of the Lena Pillars occurred much later, 150 million years later, when the processes of gradual uplift of the Siberian Platform began, leading to the appearance of faults and river valleys. The activation of karst destruction and erosive weathering contributed to the emergence of bizarre rock formations that excite the imagination of everyone who was lucky enough to see them with their own eyes.
Once upon a time, the Decembrist A. A. Besstuzhev-Marlinsky and the famous writer V. Korolenko admired the amazing creation of nature, but today not only nimble tourist craft, but also imposing passenger ships certainly stop at the Lena Pillars.
The pillars are beautiful in any season. In spring, their dark gray silence is embellished by snow-white clouds of flowering bird cherry trees, soft purple spots of lilac, and soft emerald mats of mosses. In summer, at the foothills there is a pink sea of fireweed, a variety of flowers, lilies and lilies. In autumn, the entire right bank of the Lena blazes with crimson, and the winter marble-snow outfit is majestic and festive in its own way.
There is a ringing silence among the rocks, only occasionally it is broken by the timid chirping of swallows and swifts that have built their burrows in the limestone walls, and sometimes you can hear the creaking of spruce, pine and rowan trees, clinging to their roots in the crevices between the stone blocks.
Natural Park "Lena Pillars"
In the 90s of the last century, in the vicinity of a unique natural monument, a natural park of the same name was founded, including two branches - “Sinsky” and “Stolby” and occupying a total area of 485 thousand hectares.
In the park, in addition to the Lena Pillars, there are many other valuable natural objects of interest for eco-tourism. The remains of ancient animals - bison, mammoth and woolly rhinoceros - were discovered in the natural park. Rare permafrost ecosystems are protected. More than 20 species of vegetation found in the park are listed in the Red Book of Russia, and protected species of fauna of world importance include the crane crane, small swan, golden eagle, peregrine falcon, osprey, and white-tailed eagle.
In 2012, the park added to the list World Heritage UNESCO according to natural criteria.
Attractions nearby Lena Pillars
Within the park there are many picturesque objects that many tourists seek to see.
In addition to the Lensky pillars, the Sinsky pillars are no less beautiful, which are not so impressive in size - no more than 50-100 m above water level and stretch in the lower reaches of the Sinaya River for 180 km. They are especially grandiose in the place where the seething stream is hidden under the rocks.
Downstream after the mouth of the Khariya-Yurekh River, the beautiful Buotama makes its way among the same rocks as the Lena Pillars. The Buotam rocks impress with the variety of rocks that come to the surface - dolomites, limestones, marls.
Natural Park It is also famous for a rare variety of landscape - the northern sandy desert, presented in the form of large blowing sand massifs - tukulans. There are two tukulans in the protected area - Kysyl Elesin, sand dune near the mouth of Buotama, and Saamys Kumaga, almost 5 km long, consisting of ridges, shafts and basins, overgrown with herbs, wild rose thickets, and sometimes tall pine trees.
Within the boundaries of the natural park, a site of primitive people was discovered at the mouth of the small river Diring-Yuryakh, during excavations of which stone tools and burials of the late Neolithic period were found.
Excursions to the Lena Pillars
Weekend tours to the Lena Pillars are very popular. Those who want to go on a trip along the Lena gather on Friday evenings at the Yakutsk river station and set off on one of the ships. By morning, the cruise ship docks at the foot of the cliffs. The group of tourists spends the whole day in nature, and in the evening returns to the ship. On the way back, a 6-hour stop is expected on Rassolod Island to search for pirate treasure. Arrival in Yakutsk late on Sunday evening.
Excursions to the Lena Pillars are also carried out by small 12 or 15-seater boats from Yakutsk or along a combined route: by road to the villages of Verkhny Bestyakh, Bulgunnyakhtakh or Elanka, and then along the river. The cost of the trip is approximately 6-8 thousand rubles for one person.
A visit to the Lena Pillars Natural Park is possible by purchasing a ticket at the office of the environmental institution in the city of Pokrovsk. Its cost ranges from 250-350 rubles for a one-day stay and 650-850 rubles for three-day accommodation in guest houses of tourist centers. The park offers interesting eco-trails for tourists:
- Tuculan,
- The feathered world of Buotama,
as well as rafting routes along the Sinaya and Buotama rivers. Relaxation in the park is also possible in winter time– traveling on snowmobiles across the ice crossing “Batamay – Lena Pillars” is no less exciting than a cruise on a motor ship along the Lena.
Where to stay
The easiest way to see the Lena Pillars is to stay at one of the hotels in Yakutsk and go on a one-day tour along the river to explore the attraction. The cost of accommodation in hotels in the capital of the Republic of Sakha - Siberia, Sterkh, Landysh, Lena, Tygyn Darkhan and others from 800 to 5000 rubles. In Pokrovsk there is the possibility of temporary accommodation at the Buotama recreation center. On the territory of the Lena Pillars Natural Park there are several options for accommodating tourists - in guest houses in the Labydya area, in the hunter's house and at the Lena Pillars recreation center in the village of Verkhny Bestyakh, at the Ust Buotama tourist center in the Buotama section of the natural park.
How to get to Lena Pillars
Russia, Republic of Sakha, Khangalassky ulus, Pokrovsk
From Moscow to Yakutsk, air travel is more rational than other options. Airplane tickets will cost from 7,800 rubles for one passenger. If you need to go to Pokrovsk, you should use bus route No. 202, the fare starts from 200 rubles.
"Lena Pillars". Yakutia, Russia
Lena Pillars- a unique geological formation and national natural park of the same name in Russia, on the banks of the Lena River. Located in Yakutia, 104 km. from the city of Pokrovsk. The Lena Pillars are a complex of vertically elongated rocks stretching for many kilometers, intricately piled up along the bank of the Lena, cutting through the Prilenskoye Plateau with a deep valley.
Tectonically, the Lena Pillars lie within the Siberian Platform. These are rock formations up to 100 m high, composed of Cambrian limestones. The rocks themselves that make up these amazing landforms usually date back to the Early Cambrian (560-540 million years), while the formation of the Lena Pillars as landforms dates back to about 400 thousand years ago, that is, relatively recent geological time. The territory of the Siberian Platform was subject to gradual uplift, which resulted in the occurrence of faults and the formation of deep river valleys. This led to the activation of karst processes, which, along with ongoing erosional weathering, gave rise to such intricate and diverse forms of rocks composed of carbonate rocks.
Park territory Lena Pillars located on the southwestern edge of the vast Central Yakut Lowland, which gradually west of the Erge-Echite stream passes to the dissected Prilensky plateau. The border between these geomorphological structures passes along watersheds with absolute heights of about 300 m. At the present stage, a number of researchers have noted the vigorous reworking and rejuvenation of the relief of the Lena Plateau, apparently associated with the latest movements earth's crust. The available facts clearly indicate a fairly significant young concept of the plateau, which caused its significant dismemberment. The territory of the Lena Pillars natural park is located at the junction of three landscape provinces: Leno-Amginskaya alas, Leno-Amginskaya sandstone and Leno-Aldan karst. This circumstance determines a fairly wide range of conditions for the functioning and development of natural-territorial complexes of various genesis and structure. The lithogenic basis of the landscapes involves alternating horizons of rocks (limestones, marls, dolomites, shales), in the eastern part of the park - Middle Cambrian, in the western - Lower Cambrian, which have different resistance to weathering processes. In addition, in the Buotamsky part of the park there are landscapes, the lithogenic basis of which involves non-carbonate Neogene and Jurassic rocks. Quaternary deposits are represented by a complex of alluvial, undivided polygenetic strata, slope,
