| Cycling and Mountain Biking in Crimea | | | | Chufut-Kale cave town. Camp by Beshik-Tau Mt. (10 |
| Crimea can be a mountain biker's dream come | | | | km) |
| through. A large number of roads make the mountains | | | | Day 2 Tepe-Kermen cave town. Visit Kyz-Kermen |
| easily accessible, and trails and dirt roads crisscross | | | | ruins. Descent into the Kacha River valley. |
| the peninsula suitable for biking. | | | | Kachi-Kalyon Monastery. Camp by the river. (14 km) |
| Since bikers deal with many of the same issues as | | | | Day 3 Hike through Crimean oak forest to the |
| hikers, read the article about hiking in Crimea for | | | | Chelter-Koba Monastery. Belbek River crossing. |
| information on water, climate, transportation, and | | | | Syuiren Fortress. (16 km) |
| regulations that may apply to you. | | | | Day 4 Climb to Mangup-Kale plateau. Mangup cave |
| The main starting points for cyclists are Simferopol, | | | | town, capital of the Feodoro princedom. Camp next to |
| Bakhchisaray, Sevastopol, and Feodosiya - all | | | | the ruins of the city walls. (12 km) |
| connected to other major Ukrainian cities (Lviv, Kiev, | | | | Day 5 Descent to Adim-Chokrak Valley. Shuldan cave |
| Kharkov, Donetsk) by train. South Shore towns like | | | | monastery. Eski-Kermen cave town. (12 km) |
| Yalta, Alushta, and Sudak are not accessible by train, | | | | Day 6 Descent to the coast near Inkerman. Kalamita |
| so bikers rarely start there unless they are traveling as | | | | tower. Arrival in Balaklava. Camp by the sea cost next |
| a large group and get a van to carry their bikes to | | | | to the Golden Beach. (15 km) |
| their starting point. Read about transporting bikes on | | | | Day 7 Chembalo fortress. Tour of underground |
| Ukrainian trains. | | | | submarine factory. Transfer to Sevastopol. (5 km) |
| All Crimean automobile roads are suitable for road | | | | Canyons of Crimea, a classic hike through Crimea's |
| cycling, however, some are best avoided during the | | | | picturesque canyons and mountains. |
| tourist season. For example, traffic is quite heavy on | | | | Day 1 Arrival in Simferopol. Transfer to Sevastopol. |
| highway M18 from Sevastopol to Yalta, Alushta, and | | | | City overview. Transfer to Morozovka village. Camp |
| Simferopol during summer months, and moderate at | | | | by the Black River. (5 km) |
| other times of year. The views of the sea and | | | | Day 2 River crossing. Chernorechenskiy Canyon. Hike |
| mountains are beautiful. Between Foros and Alupka | | | | upstream through the canyon floor. Camp in the |
| (25 km) there is an older highway that runs parallel to | | | | canyon. (6 km) |
| the M18 higher up the slope with very little traffic, but | | | | Day 3 Leaving the canyon. Baidar valley crossing. Visit |
| there are more ups and downs and in places damage | | | | Skelska Cave. (16 km) |
| from landslides (the road is no longer maintained). In | | | | Day 4 Ascent to Uzundzha canyon. Hike through |
| one location west of Parkovoe there is a sudden | | | | beech forest to the Te?house camp. (15 km) |
| half-meter drop-off in the road-an unpleasant surprise | | | | Day 5 Descent to Silver Waterfall. Camp by the |
| if you're cruising down the road at 30 km/hr. | | | | entrance to Crimea's Grand Canyon. (12 km) |
| A beautiful route that is unfortunately closed to the | | | | Day 6 Hike through the Grand Canyon. Tthe Bath of |
| public is the paved road from Yalta to Alushta over | | | | Youth. Climb to the northern edge of Ay-Petri Plateau. |
| the highest part of the Crimean mountains through the | | | | (15 km) |
| Crimean Nature Reserve. It is 77 km long and rises to | | | | Day 7 Ay-Petri Plateau crossing. Descent to the |
| 1448 m at Nikitskyy pass, making it the highest paved | | | | Uchan-Su waterfall through Taraktash Gorge. Transfer |
| road in Ukraine. Ride at your own risk, as there is a | | | | to Yalta. Return to Simferopol. (12 km) |
| minor chance of being caught and fined, or made to | | | | Above the Sea, a hike along the rim of Crimea's |
| turn around. Supposedly the forest patrollers watch the | | | | highest mountains with the Black Sea ever in view |
| section between Besedka Vetrov and Chuchelskyy | | | | below. |
| pass and go home after 6:00 p.m. | | | | Day 1 Arrival in Simferopol. Transfer to Angarskiy |
| Southeastern Crimea also has tons of roads fit for | | | | Pass. Climb upper plateau of Chatyrdag. Rest at the |
| cycling. The Kerch Peninsula is almost completely flat, | | | | top of Eklizi-Burun Mt. Descent to Saurgan Meadow. (5 |
| but there are many roads and relatively little traffic. As | | | | km) |
| strong winds can be an issue, check wind direction | | | | Day 2 Cross the Safun-Uzen River valley. Ascent to |
| before finalizing the direction of travel. West of | | | | Babugan Plateau. Camp next to forbidden deer-forest. |
| Feodosiya begin the Crimean Mountains with their | | | | (10 km) |
| great and varied scenery. In the eastern section of the | | | | Day 3 Hike along edge of Babugan Plateau. |
| mountains there are numerous paved roads up these | | | | Roman-Kosh Mt. (highest in Crimea at 1545 m). Gurzuf |
| long valleys to remote small towns and villages, as well | | | | Pass and Arbour of the Winds. Camp at treeline. (12 |
| as endless kilometers of dirt and rocky roads suitable | | | | km) |
| for mountain biking. | | | | Day 4 Hike along plateau above Yalta. Taraktash |
| NICE ROADS FOR CYCLING by yourself. | | | | Gorge. (12 km) |
| Bakhchisaray to Yalta (86 km), Beautiful ride with few | | | | Day 5 Ascent to the Ay-Petri Mt. Visit oriental bazaar. |
| cars through foothills and mountains with a strenuous | | | | Tour of Three Eye Cave. Descent to Besh-Tekne |
| 1000 m climb up switchbacks (over 12 km) to the | | | | Hollow. (12 km) |
| stunning Ay-Petri plateau, then a steep descent into | | | | Day 6 Walk through the Guerrilla Forest. Climb old |
| Yalta with switchbacks and more traffic. Descend into | | | | Roman road to Shaytan-Merdven Pass. (15 km) |
| Yalta either early morning or late in the day when | | | | Day 7 Hiking along Foros mountain ridge. Tour of |
| people are returning from Ay-Petri to Yalta and there | | | | Foros church. Baidarskiy Pass. Descent to Laspi Bay. |
| is no oncoming traffic. | | | | Rest at the seashore. Transfer to Sevastopol. (40 km) |
| Orlinoe to Golubinka (25 km), Kholmovka to | | | | Crimea Mountain Bike Tour, see the Cave Towns and |
| Shturmovoe (25 km), Bakhchisaray to Aromat through | | | | South Shore of Crimea. This is a non-technical |
| Schastlivoe (50 km), and Skalistoe to Nauchnyy (14 | | | | mountain bike tour around some of southwest |
| km) | | | | Crimea's most interesting sights. |
| These roads all run through the foothills (up to 500 m in | | | | Day 1 Arrival in Simferopol. Transfer to Crimean |
| elevation) southwest of Simferopol and have great | | | | Observatory. Lunch. Briefing, safety equipment. Uphill |
| views, varied scenery, and light automobile traffic. | | | | and downhill training. Bike trip in vicinity of observatory. |
| These routes can easily be connected to make a loop | | | | Dinner. Tour of observatory and telescope viewing. |
| or set of loops. | | | | Camp. (8km) |
| Crimea's terrain is hilly and mountainous and covered | | | | Day 2 Breakfast. Trip across Sel-Buhra to |
| with trails and dirt roads. Grades range from flat to | | | | Tepe-Kermen cave town. Visit Kyz-Kermen cave |
| very steep. Once during a ride I met a Ukrainian guy | | | | town. Set up camp. Dinner. (18km) |
| from Donetsk who had marked on his topographical | | | | Day 3 Breakfast. Transfer to Bakhchisaray. Tour of |
| map all the places he had ridden; the map was literally | | | | Bahchisaray Palace and Uspenskiy Monastery. |
| covered in ink. He traveled alone and took a sleeping | | | | Journey to the Kacha River valley and Tash-Air - an |
| bag with him just in case night caught him on the road. | | | | ancient campground with rock paintings (4000 B.C.). |
| I won't list routes here because there are hundreds of | | | | Set up camp. Dinner. (25 km) |
| them. Any trail or dirt road can be biked if it's not | | | | Day 4 Breakfast. Journey to the Belbek valley. Lunch. |
| fenced off! The high-detail topographical maps show | | | | Ride to Khodzhi-Sala village. Rest at lake. Climb to |
| most of these trails. The easier rides, of course, are in | | | | Mangup-Kale plateau. Visit the capital of Feodoro |
| the hills below about 500 m. Most of the "extreme" | | | | princedom - Mangup cave town. Set up camp near |
| routes are above this altitude. | | | | the ruins of the city walls. Dinner. (35 km) |
| A good idea is to pick a destination, say, Bakhchisaray, | | | | Day 5 Breakfast. Passage to Ternovka village. Cave |
| buy topographical maps when you get there, and begin | | | | monastery Shuldan and Cholter-Marmara lookout. |
| exploring areas you find interesting. Or, you can take | | | | Passage to Black River. Visit 16th century fortress. |
| the maps to the local Mountain Rescue Service post | | | | Lunch. Black River Canyon. Swimming in lake. Set up |
| and get their advice on the routes you have chosen (if | | | | camp near the river. Dinner. (35 km) |
| you speak at least some Russian/Ukrainian). See the | | | | Day 6 Breakfast. Passage to Morozovka village. |
| "lodgings" section on our hiking page for tips on finding | | | | Lunch. Journey to Cape Aya. Descent to the Black |
| a place to stay. | | | | Sea. Set up camp by the shore. Dinner. (30 km) |
| Guided tours | | | | Day 7 Breakfast. Pass above Golden Beach to |
| Kirill Yasko, an experienced mountain guide living in | | | | Chembalo fortress. Descent into Balaklava. Lunch. |
| Kyiv. He speaks English, German, Russian, and | | | | Transfer to Sevastopol. End of tour. (6km) |
| Ukrainian and has led a large number of hiking groups | | | | All tours cost around 220 Euros apart from the last |
| in the mountains of Ukraine, including several groups of | | | | one, which costs around 290 Euros with rental of bike |
| foreigners. Each trek is 7 days long. Participants will | | | | and around 250 Euros without. |
| need to arrange travel to Simferopol themselves (train | | | | Payment is at the end of each tour. Prices are |
| is most convenient), where they will be picked up at | | | | indicated in each trek description below. You will see |
| the train station and taken into the mountains. In the | | | | that they are very reasonable, as they include all |
| trek itineraries below, each day's hiking mileage is | | | | meals, transfers, and guide services. For the bike tour, |
| indicated in parentheses. | | | | a car escort is also included in the cost. Prices can |
| Valley of the Ghosts, a hike through some of the most | | | | change depending on changes made to itineraries and |
| mysterious mountains of Crimea. | | | | any additional services or activities participants choose |
| Day 1 Arrival in Simferopol. Transfer to Perevalnoe | | | | to add to the tour. |
| village. Ascent to Chatyr-Dag Plateau. Visit equipped | | | | All hikes are intended for normal people in good |
| caves - Marble Cave and Emine-Bair-Hosar. | | | | condition without special training. Average walking time |
| Day 2 Climb Mt. Eklizi-Burun. Descent to Kutuzov Lake. | | | | per day is 6 hours. Participants live in tents and are |
| Day 3 Angarskyy Pass, Funa fortress. | | | | expected to bring all necessary gear with them. |
| Day 4 Ascent to South Demerdzhi through Valley of | | | | However, equipment rental can be arranged if given |
| the Ghosts. | | | | prior notice. Meals are cooked on a fire. Food for three |
| Day 5 Dzhurla and Dzhur-Dzhur waterfalls. Haphal | | | | meals a day is included in the cost of each tour. Tour |
| Gorge. | | | | members carry their own belongings, carry water, and |
| Day 6 Tyrke plateau. Karabi plateau. | | | | are expected to help gather firewood and tend the |
| Day 7 Descent to Black Sea at Rybachye village. | | | | fire. Conveniences such as toilets and showers will be |
| Return to Simferopol. | | | | nonexistent. When you order a tour Kirill will take into |
| Cave Towns, a hike through the ancient cave | | | | account your preferences for routes, food, and |
| settlements of Crimea's hilly inland with a descent to | | | | service. You may go alone, with family (including |
| the coast. | | | | children), or with friends. You can also take pets along. |
| Day 1 Arrival in Simferopol. Transfer to Bahchisaray. | | | | The usual group size is 6 to 15 people. |
| Tour of Bahchisaray Palace and Uspensky Monastery. | | | | |