Lake Chebarkul (the map is shown in the photo below) is located in the Southern Urals, in the eastern part of the Ural Mountains, and administratively - in the Chelyabinsk region.
Title
The name of the lake comes from a mixture of two languages - Bashkir and Tatar.
- In Bashkir, “sibur” means “beautiful”, “cool” - “lake”.
- In the Tatar language “chybar” - “motley”, “kul”, as well as in the first case, “lake”.
So it turned out "beautiful colorful lake." And indeed, Lake Chebarkul (Chelyabinsk region) is one of the most beautiful reservoirs in Ural Switzerland. Aquatic plants, many of which grow along its winding shores, give it diversity. The lake gave its name to the city, located on its eastern shore.
History
Primitive people inhabited the vicinity of the lake 40,000 years ago. On the southern and southwestern shores there are more than forty archaeological sites from the Neolithic to the early Iron Age.
In the Middle Ages, the territory adjacent to the lake was settled and developed by the tribes of Tatars and Bashkirs. In the XVII century, the development of this land by the Cossack freemen, "artisans" and free peasants began. In 1736, the Chebarkul fortress was founded on the eastern shore of the lake. She performed the task of a transshipment point for delivering food to the capital of the province - Orenburg. But, despite the appearance of the fortress, Lake Chebarkul and its environs remained a refuge for robbers and other “dashing people” for a long time. In memory of that time, one of the islands is called the "Robber".
Pugachev’s uprising did not pass by these places. In 1774, the fortress was taken by rebels, on its territory and along the shores of the lake was their camp. Retreating after the defeat from the government forces, the “Pugachevites” burned down the building. Subsequently, the restoration of the fortress took two years. Subsequently, it turned into one of the largest cities in the Southern Urals - the city of Chebarkul (Chelyabinsk region).
Origin and geology
Chebarkul is a lake of tectonic origin. Scientists determine his age at about 10 thousand years. The shores of the lake are mostly rocky, but there are also low-lying, swampy areas. Rocks - gneiss, quartzite and pyroxenite. The coastline is uneven, often steep.
Lake Chebarkul has several islands. In the northern part - Kopeyka, Two Brothers, Ship, Robbery, Golets island is located on the eastern shore and Grachev is the largest on the southern shore. The coastline forms far protruding into the lake, covered with cliffs of the Krutik, Nazarysh, Kosa, Lipovy, Koroviy capes and others. Its unevenness contributed to the emergence of many large and small bays and backwaters, called locals “curies”.
Description and hydrology
The height above sea level on which Lake Chebarkul is located is 320 m. Its area is 19.8 square meters. km The maximum depth of the reservoir is 12 m, the average - 6 m. In Chebarkul contains - 154 million cubic meters. m of water. Fluctuations in its level are insignificant - 1.25 m. The highest water level is in June. The lake freezes in November, and ice melting ends in early May. Fresh water, the mineral content in it is 0.3679 g per liter.
Nutrition of the lake occurs in a mixed way. Precipitation prevails in the water supply. But small rivers also play a significant role. Elovka flows into the lake, the channel from the lake. Fir, watercourses Kudryashevka and Kundurusha. In Chebarkul originates the river. Koelga, part of the river basin. Obi. There are also spring sources in the lake.
The water level in the reservoir under the influence of natural factors (dry or, conversely, snowy years) fluctuated slightly. But in the 1970s, he began to fall critically. By 1990, it reached 318 m above sea level with a norm of 320 m. This was caused not so much by a series of particularly dry years, but by too intense consumption of lake water for the needs of the Chebarkul district (Chelyabinsk region). The fence should not exceed 3.6 million cubic meters per year. However, the city then consumed about 8 million cubic meters. m of lake water. Measures were taken to saturate the reservoir - the channels of the rivers flowing into it were expanded, a water conduit from the Kambulatovsky pond was built, artesian springs were explored near the city. All this gave its results - since 2000, the water in the lake began to rise gradually, and by 2007 its level returned to normal.
Nature and wildlife
On the western coast of Chebarkul there is a dense coniferous forest. There are also rare for the South Ural plantations linden groves. They also grow on almost all islands of the lake. On the eastern shore, forest-steppe vegetation predominates - fields with a rare birch forest and thickets of wild sea buckthorn. Willow, alder, and bushes grow in abundance near the water itself.
Lake Chebarkul is rich in sedge, reeds, reeds, pond and cattail. Especially a lot of this vegetation is on the low coast of the bays and backwaters. Thickets of these plants are a favorite place for wintering and spawning of fish. In the middle of summer, water often blooms, especially in the same kuryas.
The fauna of the lake is traditional for the Ural lakes. This is primarily fish - carp, crucian carp, chebak, bream, pike, perch, ruff and some others. Such a variety is supported by the Chebarkul fishery. He carries out fishing. The lake is open to all fishing enthusiasts who can fish on it all year round.
Roe deer, hares, foxes are found in its environs, mainly in the western part, and moose sometimes appear. In swampy kuryas, lizards and snakes feel at ease. Poisonous vipers are frequent guests on Lake Chebarkul. Rest here can be arranged all year round, but you need to be careful and avoid wetlands.
Interesting fact - meteorite
Today Lake Chebarkul is known to the whole world. Such a popularity was a significant event. February 15, 2013 over the territory of the Chelyabinsk region at an altitude of about 50 km, a meteorite explosion occurred. Lake Chebarkul became the site of the fall of a fragment weighing about 600 kg. In September of the same year, part of it (4.8 kg) was lifted from the bottom. Now she is in the
Chelyabinsk Museum of Local Lore.