Have you ever dreamed to visit the most terrible and gloomy underground cave? Feel like a pioneer, cave explorer? If so, then it's time to go on an excursion to Sablino.
In fact, these are artificial adits, which were formed as a result of the extraction of quartz sand. More than 150 years ago, pure crystal was made from the natural material mined here. It is these famous developments that will make it possible today to travel to the underworld, to descend into caves. Sablino is a small railway station in the village of Ulyanovka, Leningrad Region.
Location
If you live in the Leningrad region, you can easily visit these caves. Sablino is conveniently located, it can be reached by highway or rail. The distance from St. Petersburg is only 40 km. This makes the route a popular weekend tour. It should be noted that there is a whole network of caves. One of them is used for excursions, entrance to it is paid. Everyone else is open to access, but there are no security guarantees.
How to get there
So, we are going to explore the caves. It’s easy to find Sablino, the main thing is to consult in advance whether the train will stop at the desired station. After getting off at the stop, you will have to go back a little, cross the railway tracks and go out to the square of the Ulyanovka settlement. From here to the goal - only 3.5 km, you can take a bus or walk.
From the stop "LSB Sportbaza" you need to go towards the bridge. From here you can already see the cliff and the entrances to some caves. Sablino is rich in catacombs, here you will see this.
Sablino Underground Grottoes
Walking down along the left bank of the river you will see the famous three entrances that frame the entrance to the Three-Eye Cave. Here you can explore everything yourself, if you are not afraid to go underground without a guide. Returning back along the shore, you will see the cave "Coastal" (or "Trash"). Entrance to it is paid, excursions are scheduled, at regular intervals. If you arrived earlier, you can sign up and take a walk around the neighborhood. Having come out into the sunlight, you can cross the river over the bridge - here, on the right bank, there are a dozen magnificent underground labyrinths.
Immediately in order along the cliff are the "Pearl", "Santa Maria", "Pants" and "Dream" grottoes. The series of underground passages ends with the "Beach" cave. At a considerable distance is the "Rope". Entrance to them is free, but keep in mind that you will have to rely only on yourself. In addition to them, there are plenty of unexplored underground passages that you should not climb into without reliable insurance and equipment.
By the way, on the office building where the excursion is being recorded, there is a detailed plan of Sablino (cave). The map of each of them is detailed and supplemented by comments. If you want to visit one of the free grottos yourself, this information is very useful.
Caves and waterfalls: a romantic combination
In addition to the mysterious grottoes, there is still something to see in Sablino. Caves, excursions to which you can sometimes wait for several hours, are just an excuse to come here. Next to the office building, which has a plan for access to the waterfalls, is a small "museum of antiquities" in the open. Here you can see various fossils, huge shells of fossil mollusks. Inspect, take pictures, and go.
The road will not take ten minutes, if you follow the map exactly. Do not expect to see a huge rattling Niagara: here the dimensions are much more modest. Nevertheless, it is very interesting to visit two beautiful waterfalls on the Sablinka and Tosna rivers. Their height is 2 and 4 meters, respectively. Nearby, on a steep cliff, pines grow, clinging almost to the air with their roots. Next to them, travelers like to be photographed. The main thing is not to slip down into the sticky mud, remotely resembling dry clay.
Last preparations
In pleasant hikes time flies by, and you are ready to explore the Sablinsky caves. The card provided by the administration is only useful if you decide to fall behind the conductor, but this is the safety precaution. Be sure to take care of your uniform. There can be unbearable heat on the surface, but below is always a stable temperature of +8 degrees. Add to this dampness, sand and clay under your feet, on the walls and ceiling, and you will understand that a sundress and sandals are not at all the clothes you need. Bright sneakers and an expensive Olympic sweatshirt too. Consider getting dirty, getting wet, freezing and getting sick.
An ideal option would be reliable, warm sweatpants, hiking shoes, a sweater and preferably a helmet. By the way, the latter, along with a worn jacket, are rented. It would be nice to get a flashlight and a camera in advance.
First underground, and then, it seems, to Venus
The largest and most interesting “Coastal” cave is carefully prepared for receiving tourists. A complex labyrinth of moves has been studied, a detailed plan has been drawn up, the vaults are strengthened. To warm up the interest of the excursionists, the expositions “Parking of an Ancient Man” and others were exhibited inside. For plausibility, even cave paintings are depicted, although these artificial caves are too young for Cro-Magnon creations to really be on their walls.
A small remark for those who came to study Sablino on their own. The caves on the map provided by the local administration are drawn in much more detail than the familiarization counterparts posted on the network.
If you did not have such an experience, then the descent into the cave will make an indelible impression. The duration of the tour is about an hour, during which time you need to go a distance of 5 km. This has its own special atmosphere, which cannot be expressed in words: you need to go through it and feel it. As in many famous natural caverns, there is a curious underground lake. It looks especially beautiful in the directional light of several lamps. Depth is about 2 meters. Do not forget to capture the Sablino caves, you can take a photo without a flash (closer to the conductor's lantern), it will turn out more natural.
On the way, the group will visit the "monument to the caver". This wooden cross is set in memory of the merits of many heroic people, scientists who discovered the rarest deposits, healing springs and simply beautiful places in dangerous catacombs. After a long winding labyrinth with beautiful bends, puffins, lakes and streams, caves and corridors full of bats, tourists go out into the fresh air. A complete feeling that they were on another planet, much hotter than the Earth. The sun is blinding, and the heat seems incredible.
If you have not visited both waterfalls before the excursion, it's time to catch up. A visit to one of them is included in the program. This is followed by swimming in a river and a picnic with barbecue on the shore.
Borschevsky grottoes
Caves of the Leningrad Region are not limited to Sablinsky only. Not far from the village of Oredezh are very similar catacombs that arose as a result of the extraction of quartz sand. These large beautiful caves today are quite badly destroyed. Only a small part of the labyrinth is left, suitable for passing. The shape of the aisles here is very unusual: they resemble arches made in the Gothic style. This is due to the high risk of collapses. Thus, the arch was given the greatest strength. But despite this, every year a decrease in beautiful rooms is recorded. Perhaps soon these caves will completely disappear.
Rebrovskie caves
They are located between the villages of Rebrovo and Kolchanovo. Their origin is the same as in the previous ones. The caves "Petrovskaya" and "Comb" are quite simple, it is difficult to get lost in them, but do not forget about the basic safety rules. You can move around here in full growth, and calcite streaks from the ceiling miraculously phosphoresce with a flash.
Zhikharev karst cave
This is a natural formation near the village of Gorodishche, 3 km from Zhikharevo station. The entrance is one of the many cracks. The cave floor is covered with grass and leaves, and the walls are decorated with numerous streaks of calcium carbonate in the form of icicles and various patterns.
This is one of the most interesting, but also inaccessible cavities. Entrance here is possible only for trained tourists with an experienced guide.
To summarize
To visit another dimension, you need so little - just visit the caves of the Leningrad region. You are sure to love the underground silence and coolness, some solitude and estrangement from the world. Here, like nowhere else, fantasy is played out and the desire to create wakes up: to convey your feelings in painting, song, poetry. Many tourists, having visited for the first time on a paid excursion, next time gather loyal friends, stock up on a map and go to conquer the underworld on their own. A picnic in a cave with a guitar and a thermos of hot tea you will never forget.