The Manpupuner Plateau is an amazing miracle, a natural monument of Russia. This name can be translated from the Mansi language as "Small Mountain of Idols."
Where is the plateau located?
It is located in the Northern Urals, in the inaccessible region of the Komi Republic. This territory belongs to the Pechoro-Ilychsky reserve. It is located on the slope (western) of the Ural Range, between the rivers Ichotlyaga and Pechora.
Description
Numerous legends are associated with this place. The slope where the Pillars of Weathering rise is an object of worship of the local Mansi peoples. This is an amazing place, covered in secrets and riddles, a place with an incomprehensible but very powerful energy.
The pillars of weathering on the Manpupuner plateau are all called miracles. The remnants, as these stone statues located on the plateau are also called, is a visiting card of the Urals.
Despite the fact that the plateau is far from inhabited places, it is very popular among fans of sports tourism. To get to him on foot can only well-trained tourists.
To visit the Manpupuner plateau, you must obtain a special pass in the administration of the reserve.
The opinion of scientists
According to scientists, stone pillars are the result of weathering of soft rocks. More than two hundred million years ago there were high Ural mountains. Rain and wind, snow and frost, heat over time inexorably destroyed the mountains. Today the Ural Mountains are one of the lowest in the world.
However, in the Urals there were places where nature could not defeat the stone. Sericite-quartzite schists, which form the basis of the outliers, were much less destroyed, and therefore exist today, and soft rocks were weathered, destroyed and carried down by the wind and water to the foot of the mountain.
Weathering pillars
According to scientists, these stone giants are the result of selective weathering of rocks. All of them have an unusual shape - some of them are narrowed at the base and resemble an inverted bottle. And their height reaches from 30 to 42 meters. Manpupuner Plateau is a mystical place. The remnants are so ancient that the Mansi peoples worshiped them even in the period of paganism. Sometimes it seems that the Mansi peoples, unlike the scientists who make assumptions, know exactly what the true origin of these stone giants ...
Legends and myths
Until now, the Mansi, wandering in these places with herds of deer, tell all tourists that in ancient times these stone statues were the seven giants that kept their way to Siberia. They wanted to destroy the ancient Mansi people. But having risen to the top, which is now called Manpupuner, the shaman of the giants saw the sacred mountain Yalping-Ner. In horror, he threw the drum. He fell to a conical peak, which rises south of Manpupuner and is called Koip. The shaman and his companions were petrified with terror.
There is another version. For the Younger Brothers (i.e., Mansi), six Samoyed giants chased. They chased the unfortunate when they tried to leave the pass. At the head of the Pechora River, the giants almost managed to overtake the fugitives, but unexpectedly Yalpingner stood in front of them. He raised his hand up and cast only one spell, but it was enough for the giants to petrify. But probably Yalpingner did something wrong, because he himself turned into stone. Since then, they have been standing opposite each other.
And the last legend that we will tell you. Seven giants followed Riphean to exterminate the Mansi. Climbing to Koip, they saw Mount Yalpingner - the Mansi sanctuary. At this moment, they realized the greatness and power of the Mansi gods. They were petrified with horror, and only their leader raised his hand, protecting his eyes from Yalpingner. But this did not help him - he also became a stone.
Manpupuner Plateau (Northern Urals)
Everything seen on the plateau is impressive. Not a single photo or video plot conveys the living power of these giants. Once on the plateau Manpupuner, you begin to believe in their strength, you feel the energy coming from this earth. It is no coincidence that he is called one of the places of the Force.
After a series of television programs about this amazing place, many want to get on the Manpupuner plateau. How to get there (by car, plane, train), not everyone knows. But we will talk about this a little later. And now I would like to say about what time of the year it is better to visit the plateau. There is no consensus on this issue.
Some believe that such a trip is best done in winter, skiing. They motivate by the fact that at this time there are no midges, mosquitoes and gadflies, the swamps completely freeze, and the pillars covered with hoarfrost look unusually beautiful. True, these people do not take into account that in the Ural mountains the thermometer column often drops in January to -40 degrees. The administration of the reserve believes that visiting this place is better in the summer, having arrived here by helicopter.
Dyatlov Pass (Manpupuner Plateau)
Each self-respecting shaman from the Mansi tribe came to the plateau and drew magical power here. Ordinary mortals were categorically forbidden to climb the Manpupuner plateau - this was considered the greatest sin.
Manpupuner has always been sacred to the Mansi peoples, though his energy was clearly negative. Not far from the plateau there are several more sanctuaries - Kholat-Chakhl (Dead Mountain) and Tore-Porre-Iz. According to legend, nine Mansi hunters died on unclear circumstances on Dead Mountain. The legendary group of UPI students, which was led by Igor Dyatlov in February 1959, suffered the same fate. This group also consisted of nine people. Since that terrible tragedy, this place is often called the Dyatlov Pass.
How to get there
A train runs from Syktyvkar to Troitsk-Pechorsk. The fare is about 900 rubles. From Moscow to Syktyvkar the plane will deliver you for 9900 rubles, and from St. Petersburg for 13600.
You can get to the Weathered Pillars by the Vorkuta train, which will take you to Ukhta station. From here, a bus will take you to the right place.
The Manpupuner Plateau is said to be magical and magical. It’s hard for an ordinary person to talk about magic and sorcery, but the fact that this place is unusually beautiful is a fact confirmed by many.