- Cultural and natural attractions
- Eco-paths of the Leningrad region
- Two-day routes to military fortifications
- Multi-day route through the Vepsian forest
- On a note
St. Petersburg is known to be the cultural capital of Russia, and the Leningrad region is the focus of a huge number of attractions. These are old estates - abandoned and revived, and churches - lying in ruins and being repaired, and ceremonial suburbs, and half-forgotten villages. There are a lot of interesting places here, you can study these places for more than one year. In addition to cultural heritage sites, there are also natural attractions: waterfalls, and caves, and mineral springs.
Cultural and natural attractions
Of course, the most popular walks in the Leningrad Region are through the palace suburbs of St. Petersburg. It is impossible not to mention them. Peterhof and Alexandria, Gatchina, Pavlovsk, Oranienbaum are huge park complexes that you can walk along for more than one day, the length of paths and alleys in each of them is several tens of kilometers. But in addition to these, the most obvious, routes, there are many more interesting and less popular places.
- The Alexander Nevsky Trail is a legendary route that Prince Alexander Nevsky walked with his retinue in 1242 to the war against the Livonian Order. It passes through the Luzhitsky district. This road combines a walk and a pilgrimage: after all, Alexander Nevsky is considered a saint. It starts from the chapel named after him in the Voloshevsky rural settlement, goes through the chapel of Paraskeva Pyatnitsa over the holy springs to the Church of the Savior in the village of Syabero (1670). The length of the route is 8 km.
- Not far from Vyborg is the island of Krutoyar (you can get there only by water), and on the island there is a unique megalithic structure, a circle of stones, a labyrinth. It lies at the highest point of the island, and its diameter is about 9 meters. In addition, there are ruins of a Finnish village on the island, and you can simply walk along it - this is the largest island in the archipelago. The length of the route is 3-5 km.
- Radon lakes - sources containing radon near the village. Lopukhinka, not far from Peterhof. Once upon a time there was a hospital here - the local water is excellent for rheumatism. And now there are two small artificial lakes of unusual turquoise color. Radon is a radioactive element that is safe for people, but destructive for fish and plants, the shores of the lakes are deserted. However, swimming is prohibited here - mainly because the lakes are not yet equipped for this and have not been cleaned for a long time. The length of the route is 3-5 km.
- The Bogoslovka Estate is an ethnopark in the vicinity of St. Petersburg with a unique concept. Here are collected the restored masterpieces of wooden architecture of the Russian North. Once in the park there was one of the most beautiful and richest estates near the capital - Zinovyevo, but its buildings did not survive the twists and turns of the 20th century. Now the wooden church of the Intercession from near Vologda, which burned down in 1963, has been restored here; there is a copy of the wooden Spasskaya chapel from Kizhi and several peasant houses. The length of the route is 3-5 km.
Eco-paths of the Leningrad region
Ecological paths as a way of communicating with nature are widespread throughout the world, and in Russia they are becoming more and more popular.
- Komarovsky Bereg is the most famous resort town on the shores of the Gulf of Finland, which has its own small eco-trail. The trail goes in a circle, past the remains of an old park dating back to the beginning of the last century and along the shores of the Gulf of Finland. It is a wooden walkway with information posters, so you can walk along it, for example, with a stroller. The length of the route is 3.5 km.
- "Sestroretskoe swamp". Bog landscapes and walks along them always arouse interest - after all, it is dangerous to walk outside of special eco-trails in a real bog. And here is a whole hydraulic system on the coast of the Gulf of Finland, which is many centuries old: several lakes, rivers and swamps. Above these bogs there are routes of migratory birds, and healing mud is extracted here. The eco-trail is a wooden deck, along which you can go from one swamp island to another. The length of the route is 1.5 km.
- In Gatchina, there is not only a huge park complex associated with Emperor Paul I! There is also an ecological trail that tells about the nature of these places. The trail starts from the purest river Teplaya and reaches the ruins of the mill on the Ivanovka manor. The length of the trail is 2.5 km.
Two-day routes to military fortifications
At the beginning of the 20th century, a whole system of fortifications was built along the shores for the defense of the Gulf of Finland and the capital. Their remains have survived to our time, and now tourists are happy to visit them to spend the night on the shores of the Gulf of Finland, and at the same time to see the sights. The route starts from the railway. station 68 km., goes to the Krasnaya Gorka fort, which is now turned into a small museum. The last time he took part in hostilities during the Second World War, and after the war, it was abandoned for a long time. It is planned to spend the night on the coast of the bay, and the next day to examine the second surviving object, the coastal battery Seraya Horse (after the name of the cape on which it was built). The length of the route is 30 km.
The Mannerheim Line is a system of Finnish fortifications on the border with the USSR, erected in 1929-30, its remnants have survived in the Leningrad Region and in Karelia, and are now a tourist attraction. Pillboxes, fortifications, training grounds, and burial sites from the war period have survived. The route starts from the village of Kamenka, through the Summakyla fortification, to the small forest lake Zhelannoye, on the banks of which you can camp. The next day, you can inspect the place where during the war the line of defense was broken by Soviet troops - this is Fort Poppius. The route ends at the railway. Leipyasuo station. The length of the route is 26 km.
Multi-day route through the Vepsian forest
The Vepsian Forest is a vast natural park, which aims to preserve the natural complexes of these places: old spruce forests, fish spawning grounds, and besides this, the preservation and revival of the culture of the Vepsians - a small Finno-Ugric people who have lived here since ancient times. There are several guest houses, rafting, snowmobile safaris in winter, horseback riding, etc. are possible. In addition, almost at the borders of the reserve there is a large Orthodox shrine - the Tikhvin Monastery, which houses the miraculous icon of the Mother of God.
One of the popular multi-day routes starts exactly from the monastery, through the village of Korbenichi along the shores of Lake Kapshozero, next to which you can spend the night. The route goes through the half-abandoned villages of Bereg and Nyurgovichi, and the completely abandoned village of Naidala. The place is mysterious - it is believed that it was a village of Vepsian sorcerers, but no one has lived here for a long time. Further through lakes Khozero, Murmozero and Pupozero, the village of Korvala, where indigenous Vepsians still live, and there is even electricity with a telephone, and the road ends with the village of Lukino, near which there are as many as 12 healing springs. The length of the route is 66 km.
On a note
The nature of the Leningrad region differs from that of the Moscow region, except in great dampness and coolness. Here, mosquito repellents are definitely needed - they are blown away only along the shores of the Gulf of Finland, and from ticks - there are quite a few of them in these forests. The forests are damp and swampy - you need strong and waterproof shoes, it is advisable to have a raincoat or a waterproof jacket. On Ladoga and the Gulf of Finland it can be very cold even in August.
