Stone Graves, orchids amid Granite

By Iryna Pustynnikova PANORAMA
“This is the place where history comes to life”, a phrase acquires a new meaning here, in an area of 400 hectares called the Stone Graves nature reserve. The history of this place, perched on the edge of the grassland steppe between the Donetsk and Zaporozhye regions, goes back not decades, not even centuries but millions of years

In fact, the Stone Graves reserve is not a steppe at all: the monumental Eastern and Western Ridges tower over the plain, with some peaks reaching a height of 100 metres – a considerable height for the plains of Eastern Ukraine. According to geologists, a long time ago, these hills used to be real mountains: 3,000 metres high!

Almost half of the territory of the nature reserve is covered with two billion-years-old granite. A powerful Ukrainian crystalline formation rose to the surface while the sun, wind and water continue to do the work started by magma. For centuries, they have been molding fantastic figures out of the local boulders. When the sun sets over the grassland, and the evening fog spreads its fingers through the nature reserve, these amazing sculptures begin their own mysterious lives.

Each of the local peaks has a name, while some of the cliffs, rocks and boulders have their own story to tell. The old name for Stone Graves is “Besh-tash” (in Turkic it means “Five stones”) named after five mountain peaks: the Knight, the Panorama (yes, our namesake!), the Sharp, the Frog and the Southern. Smaller hills also have names: next to the Frog is the Bear with the Bear Cub, between the Knight and the Panorama, there is the Sun Gate, and the Dinosaur is “crawling” towards the foot of the Sharp.

There is an amazing pink stone at the top of the Sharp, with its western side engraved with mysterious characters and a symmetrical trident as a centrepiece of the composition. The stone awaits extensive research that will decipher its message covered in ancient moss. Romantic researchers believe that this boulder was an altar of Ares, the Scythian god of war.

A 19^th century Ukrainian historian, Y. Novitskiy wrote once that there used to be a Tatar town here that was later destroyed by the Cossacks from Zaporizhia. The locals will show you the remains of the ancient mosques still visible on the ground. Another legend tells the tale of an ancient kingdom, standing amidst the tall mountains a thousand years ago, upon which an evil sorcerer cast an eternal spell. To break the spell, someone just needs to find a fern that blooms at night. But where to find it? All we can do now is preserve this unique part of Ukraine and hope that one day the wind will blow away the spell from the Stone Graves.

Though the reserve had been under the protection of the state since 1927, it is about to be turned into a kind of a tourist Mecca: people come for the spectacular mountain scenery, the aroma of herbs, and the view of the pristine grassland full of fossil plants. The Azov Sea is just a stone’s throw away: about 40 kilometres. The nature reserve welcomes visitors from early spring until late fall. The best time to visit is the beginning of May, when the grassland is in bloom. Tens of thousands of tourists come to wander among the boulders every year. For biologists, the reserve is the place where they can study 500 species of plants, eighteen of which are listed as endangered, while archaeologists regard it as a place with a unique mix of various civilisations.

Local burial mounds that witnessed ritual ceremonies became tombs for the contemporary pharaohs and the Scythians, Polovets and warriors who took part in the ten-day battle on Kalka River, in May 1223. Back then, the bodyguards of Prince Mstislav discovered, for the first time, how devastating the Tatar-Mongol Horde could be. One in four warriors found death on this grassland. To honour those long gone, a memorial cross and a chapel were erected here in the year 2000. The last weekend of May is when Ukrainian Cossacks and residents traditionally organise a memorial ceremony in honour of the people who died in the battle, with a Cossack initiation following it. The celebration culminates with a display of military skills by Cossacks and a feast where everyone is welcome to taste traditional Cossack porridge.

Nowhere else, apart from Stone Graves will you be able see wild yarrow; only here can you still stumble upon whole meadows of wild orchids and gladiolas. The stone women that are lining the popular tourist routes, however, do not share the history of the Stone Graves: they were brought here in Soviet times.

The tourists can travel within the reserve only along specially designated paths. Visitors who plan to visit the reserve should remember that it is home to a variety of wild animals such as foxes and hedgehogs, hares and lizards, weasels and ermines. Wild boars and roe deer; steppe grass-snakes, larks, partridges and pheasants also can be seen. This is their home, while we are just their guests.

USEFUL INFORMATION

Address, phone: The Stone Graves nature reserve is located close to Nazarivka village, in the Volodarskiy region of Donetsk.
The Reserve’s managing director’s contact: +38 0621 693 688.
Guided tours: A guide organising tours can always be found at the reserve. Admission fee UAH3. Tours on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, from April to October. Reserve two days in advance.
How to get there: From Kyiv to Mariupol or Zaporizhia by train. From Zaporizhia there is a train service to Nazarivka village (get off at Rozivka station, located within 12 km. of the reserve), or take a Mariupol-Kalchinivka bus (busses leave at 6:00, 10:00 and 14:00, from the bus station in Mariupol).

GETTING THERE

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