The best place to view the majestic snowy and amazingly beautiful peaks of Elbrus is a territory called Bermamyt. Here we will talk about this place created by nature itself - about the Bermamyt plateau: how to get there, about its surroundings, location.
Big and Small Bermamyt: height
These two huge stone blocks (massifs) - Big Bermamyt and Maly - seem to lie at the very foot of the giant Elbrus, although in reality the distance from them to the peaks is almost 30 kilometers. This is due to the fact that the very clear air of the mountains slightly hides (visually) the distance.
Greater Bermamyt is actually considered the main peak of the plateau. But this is also a visual illusion. The highest point of Bermamyt is 2592 meters, which is actually 50 meters below the Small (2643 meters above sea level). It turns out that in fact, Small Bermamyt is the highest point of the ridge. Small received its name in connection with the smaller area occupied by it. It is also the southern border of the
Caucasus Mineral Waters region.
Bermamyt Plateau: photo, description, location, climate
Bermamyt is a beautiful, unique and amazing creation of nature in the North Caucasus. Amazingly transparent and cold sunrises, bright and saturated sunsets, all this attracts an unimaginably large number of people to these wonderful romantic places.
The plateau itself is located in a place open to winds. It is a kind of mirror and the creator of the weather of all parts of this southern region. Not for nothing that a weather station functioned here in Soviet times.
The Bermamyt Plateau is located in a southwestern direction from Kislovodsk, approximately 40 kilometers.
The most popular in terms of visiting is Big Bermamyt. Small is located a little south.
Bermamyt plateau coordinates: 43 ° 42 ′ 19.3788 ′ N; 42 ° 26 ′ 34.2456 E.
The weather in these places is quite unpredictable. Snow falling in June is not uncommon for these places. The night temperature, even in the summer, can drop to +5. In the daytime, calm weather and heat are possible, instantly changing with the first blow of the wind to cool. Summer nights here are usually quite clear.
Landscapes
This place is perfect for landscape photography. The majestic cliffs, the slopes of the lowlands, covered with green grass, alpine flowers, lovely morning and evening mists, magnificent mountains, bizarre clouds of various shapes in the daytime and nightly low cloud cover fell in love with many travelers - lovers of a romantic getaway. The Bermamyt Plateau was also very fond of landscape painters. True, there are difficulties associated with the fact that it is difficult to get to it (more on this below).
What is remarkable for these amazing natural places?
1. Almost the entire western edge is suitable for viewing Elbrus.
2. Due to the high altitude and remoteness from cities, the sky here is very transparent, which contributes to the filming of the Milky Way, meteorites, etc.
3. From the center of the plateau, a good view of the Caucasian Mineral Waters, easily recognizable by the contours of Mount Beshtau, opens .
4. On this plateau is located the city of Shatzhatmaz (altitude 2140 meters above sea level). It has a weather station, a mining astronomical station and a scientific base of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
5. In the North-East of the Bermamytsky plateau there is the Pasture Range, which is divided into two parts by the Podkumok River (the Dzhinal Range and the Darinsky Heights - 1300 and 1500 meters above sea level). From the heights of the Darinsky in the north-eastern direction, the Borgustan plateau descends.
How to get to the Bermamyt plateau
Most roads go only to Big Bermamyt. Of greatest interest is the southern part of the plateau. From it opens the very amazing view of Elbrus. There are many interesting cliffs and picturesque “amphitheaters” on the western ridge. Visitors to the plateau have laid out slides of stone that fit perfectly into the landscape. In the northwest (walking along the cliff), you can see the cliffs with interesting names - “Two brothers” (or “Monks”). Very tempting Bermamyt plateau. How to get there by car ?
The gently sloping peak of Greater Bermamyt (almost flat) is accessible for visitors even by car.
However, it should be borne in mind that getting to these places is not very simple and pleasant. The entire road is approximately 40 kilometers long. The road can be said to be difficult, but quite passable for an SUV. She walks along the steep cliffs of the Berezovsky gorge, and then through subalpine meadows.
We have to drive along a dirt, broken road that crosses a not quite plain plateau. At the very beginning, if you drive from Kislovodsk, the road stretches over the Berezovka gorge. Usually, the conductors brighten up this monotonous path with stories and messages about interesting stories and about the interesting names of mountains and rocks encountered along this path. The latter are quite curious: Stone of Solitude, Alabaster Mountain, Watchtower, Wolf's Gate.
Hiking
There is another road to Greater Bermamyt. It is more interesting because it passes through the famous Narzanov Valley. True, part of it has to be walked, climbing a rather steep slope (to the top from the gorge of the Khasaut River). This slope is not suitable for vehicles.
The rocky cliffs of Small Bermamyt are difficult to climb, so it is less frequently visited.
Dawn on the plateau: ghosts
The most interesting sight on the Bermamyt plateau is an amazing sunrise. At the very first rays of the sun, Elbrus is covered in light air fog. As the sun rises, it thickens more and more on Elbrus, closing its snow-white peaks. This performance lasts for an hour, after which the top of the Caucasus Range recognizably looms against a blue sky background. At this moment, Elbrus shimmers with all the famous colors of the rainbow.
In addition, occasionally on Bermamyt you can see the so-called Brocken ghost. A rainbow circle appears in the clouds themselves, and inside it enlarged figures of tourists (excursionists) are visible. Moreover, their every movement is transmitted exactly. These circles often disappear quickly.
These "ghosts" are enlarged shadows of the figures of people against the background of clouds located on the opposite side of the sun rising from the horizon. All this occurs in connection with the refraction and decomposition into the spectrum of light rays by ice crystals in cirrus clouds.
Due to the weather conditions, it is convenient to visit the Bermamyt plateau from mid-May to the end of November. At other times, a deep cover of snow, which lingers in hollows for a long time, may interfere.