Expedition "Step over the Volga": go back to the origins to find the right path
You are separated from the main campaign of this summer by only one inspiring text and time to pack a backpack. This short, but the most impressive trip can be realized in one weekend, or you can schedule it for a week. The points of the route include places where you will definitely take epic pictures, get a lot of impressions and relax from civilization. Means of transportation: car, bicycle, kayak — and there will also be a walking stage of the route. A 260-kilometer tour of the Tver Region was tested by a team of experienced travelers and journalists.
Day 1. Step over the Volga. Bike stage
To be in a place where one of the largest rivers in Europe is still a trickle is already an adventure worth telling the world about. In the village of Volgoverkhovye, Tver region, at the source of the Volga, you can step over it and simultaneously find yourself on two banks of the great river. By the way, here you can also take a photo on the first bridge over the Volga.
The cycling stage of the expedition lasts 34 kilometers. To make pedaling more fun, two-thirds of the way is laid along the lake Rod, in the mirror surface of which cyclists will be reflected. Sunset can be found near the Tver wooden miracle — the 45-meter church of Shirkov Pogost, built without a single nail.
"... then, with bicycles on their shoulders, they waded together through the stream of the Wrinkle. At first, the head of the expedition, Vasily Orlov, encouraged everyone from the shore. When the water rose above his knee, he began to cheer the guys even louder, and he himself slipped a rubber boat into his backpack. Just in case."
Day 2. Road trip
All roads are open from Shirkov pogost: you can make stops in Ostashkov, Selizharov, Rzhev, Zubtsov and get to the parking lot in the village of Molokovo. The team of the expedition "Step over the Volga" made the main adventure of the stage ablution in the Okovetsky spring, the temperature of which is +4 degrees all year round. Everyone can change the route depending on their wishes, this is the beauty of an active tour.
"... the head of the expedition is a romantic. He roused everyone at 4:00 to greet the dawn. The one who stayed to watch the sunrise outside the tent was surprised to find a wish list for breakfast."
Day 3. Rafting through Staritsa Switzerland
Water is always the most impressive stage of any journey. Five kilometers surrounded by the high banks of the Volga and the passage through the Staritsky Gate is something that will be remembered forever. On this segment, the current becomes fast, and the river cuts through a multi-meter thick limestone, for which the place was called Staritsky Switzerland.
Here you can make a stop near the Chukavinsky caves, where there are newborn stalactites, see bats, calcite druses and literally lose track of time. The rafting can be completed in the village of Kozlovo on the bank of the Volga.
"... a light frost struck at night. The head of the expedition, Vasily Orlov, woke up slightly frosted. They drank tea in silence and quickly. "It's good that the mugs are not made of iron," someone said. Wool socks were divided courageously — everything was distributed to the girls."
Day 4. Walking stage and return to civilization
From the village of Kozlovo along the Volga coast, you can walk to the village of Voevodino — 12 kilometers along a dirt road. We warn you that stops will be frequent — the local landscapes are too mind-blowing. It is best to complete the expedition long in Tver at the monument to the traveler Afanasy Nikitin, who from these shores of the Volga made his famous journey to India and wrote "Walking across Three Seas".
The uniqueness of the tour is that you can arrange it according to your pace of movement, level of training and sphere of interests: you can see all the sights along the route on the interactive map on the portal welcometver.ru .
Start the summer right and get a lot of impressions. Travelers who repeat the route #step over long and share their emotions with this hashtag on social networks will not be left without gifts from #WelcomeTver.
Keywords: Volga | Partner post | River | Rafting | Expedition