Tunkinskaya valley. Location and attractions.

Tunkinskaya Valley is one of the most beautiful places in Buryatia. There were silk, bronze, tea and gold routes. Also along the valley stretches a road leading from Russia to Mongolia.

Location of the Tunkinskaya Valley

Tunkinsky Valley is geographicallycontinuation of the Baikal Basin. It is a hollow almost circular shape. The name of the valley comes from the Buryat word "tunekhe", which translates as "wander." The Tunkinsky valley is still obliged by its name to the meandering river Tunka flowing through it.

From all sides the valley is surrounded by mountains: from the north - the Tunkinsky Alps, from the west - the Yelotsky spur, from the east - the Yelovsky spur, from the south - the Khamar-Daban range. In its widest place, the Tunkinskaya valley has a distance of about 35 kilometers between the ridges. The surrounding mountains are largely covered with coniferous forests.

Tunkinsky Alps are difficult and steep,sharp rocks. The height of some mountains exceeds 3 km. Due to the considerable height of the summit, even in the second half of the summer they often remain snow-covered. The peaks of the Khamar-Dabansky range have a gently rounded shape.

From a geological point of view, the Tunkinskaya valley is the bottom of an ancient lake. As a result of a tectonic catastrophe, a powerful bridge was destroyed, and the water of the ancient reservoir went to Baikal.

Coymore

The northwestern part of the valley is calledCoimore. This is an area with many lakes, some areas are swamped. Favorable natural conditions, including an abundance of moisture, have made this area ideal for animal husbandry.

Locals have long grown on the floodplains Koymor cattle. Previously, this involved the collective farm, now - small livestock farms.

The Tunka River, which flows through the northwestern part of the valley, originates in the Tunkinsky Alps and flows into the Irkut River (left tributary).

Irkut

The Irkut River crosses the southern tip of the valley. The river got its name from the Buryat word “irhu”, which means “capricious”. And indeed, the flow of the river is extremely variable. In the places constrained by rocks, Irkut rages in a mighty stream, and when it comes out into the open, it is replaced by meanders.

This river begins on the highest glacier of the eastern part of the Sayan Mountains and flows into the Angara, being its left tributary.

There is a legend among the Buryats who speaks aboutthat Irkut wanted to marry Angara, but the bride ran off to the Yenisei. Since then, Irkut has to endlessly catch up with the water of her beloved in her eternal pursuit.

Mounds

The northeastern part of the valley is replete with tracesformer volcanic activity. Numerous mounds, many of which are covered with coniferous forest, are cooled volcanoes. These hills have the generalized name Bugry, and some of them, the most prominent, have their own names. Such are, for example, Khara-Baldok, Talskiy peak, Shandagatay.

In the immediate vicinity of the Tal summitscattered many spongy basalt blocks of volcanic origin. At the foot of this elevation, as well as in almost all the Hills, ice-free springs are beating out of the ground. Kunten Arshan is interesting in this respect - the natural water deposit at one of the extinct volcanoes. There are natural mineral springs with a high content of hydrogen sulfide, which are considered curative.

National Park

Tunkinsky National Park covers an area of ​​1.2million hectares. It includes the whole Tunkinskaya valley. The Siberian Cross Observatory studies the activity of the sun and owns one of the largest solar telescopes. This place was chosen to observe the luminary, because here the cleanest and clearest air is. Also in the park there are three museums - the Local Lore (p. Kyren), the ethnographic (p. Hoytogol) and the history of Buddhism (p. Pearl).

Tunkinskaya is very beautiful and visited by tourists.valley. Recreation centers presented here are of great interest. There are resorts with hot and cold mineral water, such as Arshan, Nilova Pustyn, Vyshka (p. Zhemchug), and Honors-Uul. Here you can also admire the landscapes that Tunkinskaya valley abounds in. Nilova Pustyn - resort with radon source with healing properties. It treats joints and skin diseases.

In the valley there is an ancient cult place -Buha-Noyon (can be translated as "leader, master, bull"). It represents a huge white marble rock at an altitude of 1050 m, which is shaped like a bull. Besides the fact that Buha-Noyon is a totem of local ethnic groups, the Buddhist joss-house stands on the top of this rock (in Buddhism it is revered as Rinchen Khan, the patron saint of wealth). According to traditional views, it is forbidden to visit this shrine to young girls (who, according to legends, are threatened in this case with infertility). A Buddhist monk performs a preparatory cleansing ritual before visiting.

Tunkinskaya Valley is one of those places where there are a lot of beautiful views and interesting sights.