Karelia is a region popular with active tourists. In addition to rafting on fast mountain rivers, fishing and skiing, this region offers to see many hidden natural attractions. These are ancient petroglyphs, and Paanajärvi National Park, seasonal waterfalls and the ancient Girvas volcano. Karelia welcomes guests all year round. In this article we will talk about only one attraction of the region - Girvas volcano. It may seem strange, but it was discovered only in the sixties of the last century. How is this possible? Really it was impossible to “notice” the volcano before? We will also tell about the history of the discovery of this sight of Karelia in the article. About how to get, where to stay and when it is better to go to the edge of rivers and lakes, read below.
Strange volcano
Girvas (Karelia) showed its activity three billion years ago. Then, after nine hundred million years, he woke up again, after which he completely died out. Natural factors - wind, rain, glaciation - almost completely destroyed the vent and crater. In the renewed relief, rivers flowed along the top of the once powerful fire-breathing mountain. And in the sixties of the twentieth century, people decided to build a hydroelectric power station on one of the streams. The water level in the Suna River has declined. So the ancient volcano was exposed. He was called Girvas in the village of the same name, which is nearby, on the other side of the river. And the village takes its name from the Karelian word hirvas - moose.
Girvas (Karelia): how to get
The nearest railway station to the volcano and the village - Kondopoga - is located fifty kilometers away. Therefore, it is more convenient to get to this natural attraction of Karelia by road. You should start your journey from the capital of the region, the city of Petrozavodsk. You need to move along the P21 Autobahn, which is popularly called the Kola highway, towards Murmansk. When you see a pointer to the village of Girvas, you should turn off the road. The most difficult to navigate in the village itself. So, we call in the village of Girvas (Karelia), get to its not-so-busy center (there are shops) and turn left. When the houses of the village are behind, a bridge across the Suna River and the notorious Paleozersky hydroelectric power station will appear, thanks to which a volcano was discovered. We are moving to the other side. Parking on the left and right is our attraction.
What does Girvas (Karelia) look like?
The photo presents us with a picture that is fundamentally different from the one that the imagination draws at the word “volcano”. There is no mountain, no crater, much less smoke from the vent. But scientists have determined that Girvas belongs to the Icelandic type of volcanic activity. Over its long history (more than three billion years), the mountain has repeatedly spewed out flames, threw "bombs" and flooded the surroundings with lava flows. Nature pretty much tried to wipe any reminder of the volcano from the face of the earth. But, thanks to the shallow bed of the Suna, a meter and a half magmatic “language” is still visible. And the lava field, according to research, extends over a thousand square kilometers. The bank of the Suna consists of several terraces created by frozen magma. In the depths lurk “unexploded bombs” - volcano emissions at the time of its activity. These stone balls are hollow.
Other attractions
Not far from the village of Girvas (Karelia), the Poor River Rapid is located. This is also an object of tourism. In the village itself, you can see the recently opened Orthodox church of the martyr Panteleimon. Forests near Girvas are unusually rich in mushrooms. All reviews say that the best time to go to see the attraction is golden autumn. Firstly, on the rivers of Karelia at this time low water is the lowest seasonal water level. And secondly, you can see how the dam is opened in order to empty the reservoir at the head of the Suna. The resulting waterfall, although of technogenic origin, is very beautiful.
Girvas through the eyes of a specialist
Numerous excursions are sent to the volcano and the artificial stream at the hydroelectric power station. And while ordinary tourists admire the pine forest and jump on the exposed lava terraces, the specialist can discover a lot of interesting things. After all, Girvas (Karelia) is the oldest paleovolcano found on earth. Its area is truly huge (about a thousand square kilometers). It extends from the village of Girvas to Swatnavolok. Volcanic rocks of various eruptions moved with sedimentary strata. Near the Paleozersk hydroelectric station you can see the mouth and the explosion tube of one of the side cones. Lava flows reach a thickness of several hundred meters. Volcanic bombs can often be found in their texture . Their shell consists of solidified lava, and gas is inside. Scientists know that a crater measuring twenty by fifty meters is stretched to the northeast. The oldest of the paleovolcanoes found (its visible part) is located in a very beautiful area, where the picturesque river Suna flows among pine forests.
Travel Tips
Even if you are indifferent to volcanology, you should still visit Girvas (Karelia). It should be borne in mind that people from the village of the same name are trying to cash in on natural attractions. They may claim that parking is paid or (if you left the car in the distance and came on foot) that crossing the bridge costs money. Believe it is not necessary. Tourists urge to stop attempts to cash in on the credulity of people. After all, the nature of Russia is the heritage of its people.