A specific cultural connection to Shara is the spring awakening ritual. A theatrical performance called “Ritual to Welcome Spring” was scheduled to take place in Shara, in Laksky District, in March 2018. This date is tied to 2018 and should not be understood as a notice of a current event. The spring awakening ritual in Shara involved gunpowder and wooden stakes; a large, flat stone with three indentations served as the ignition point. These material details give the subject a concrete character: alongside the name of the spring custom are specific objects and a clearly described ignition point.
Cultural Sites in the Republic of Dagestan
In the wider travel destination of the Republic of Dagestan, further cultural themes can be found in their own locations. The citadel of Derbent contains archaeological remains of a bathhouse, several underground water cisterns, a Christian church dating from the 5th century, and a mosque dating from the 8th century. The fortifications are also remarkable: the mountain wall runs 40 kilometres westward across the range and completely blocks the pass between the sea and the mountains.
The mountain wall should be distinguished from the stone walls around the citadel. Steep slopes surround the citadel on three sides; its massive walls are 2.5 to 3.2 metres thick, more than 700 metres long, and 10 to 15 metres high. Nine of the original 14 gates remain. Together with the medieval buildings of the old town, known as the Magalims, the fortifications form a cultural landscape. In Derbent, archaeological remains, the extent of the fortifications, and the architecture of the old town thus stand side by side as different aspects of the same cultural heritage.
Gunib also offers specific historical points of interest. A fortress wall with a round tower and two gates has survived there: the lower one is called the Baryatinsky Gate, and the upper one the Shamil Gate. A path leads from the Shamil Gates along the three-kilometre-long fortress wall to a tower. The 107-metre-long Gunib Tunnel was carved through the rock in the 1860s. The wall, gates, path, and tunnel each provide a distinct spatial reference point for the history of the place.
Landscapes and Trails in the Republic of Dagestan
Tobot Waterfall lies at an elevation of 1,690 metres at the head of the Tsolotl Canyon on the Khunzakh Plateau. It is one of the highest waterfalls in the North Caucasus; its exact height is unknown, with estimates ranging from 50 to 100 metres. The waterfall carries the most water from May to July; in winter, it freezes and turns into a large icicle. The shift from the high-water season to its winter form makes the season an important factor when considering this landscape. The Upper Gunib Nature Park is also home to the Mountain Botanical Garden of the Russian Academy of Sciences. It contains rare and endemic plant species of the Caucasus and Dagestan, offering a different perspective on the landscape from the waterfall.
At the Sarykum Dune, metal walkways lead onto the dune; the walking trail is called the “Path of the Wise Turtle.” The area is part of the Dagestan Nature Reserve, and only part of the dune is accessible to visitors. Check the current rules before visiting. Another option described is a walk through the unusual rock corridor of the Karadakh Gorge. On an excursion to the Chirkey Hydroelectric Power Plant, visitors can stand at the foot of the dam; if you are considering this excursion, check in advance whether it is being offered. The examples are quite different: from marked paths and an explicit access restriction to a described excursion and a rock corridor to walk through.
Discover more destinations: Makhachkala, Sovetskoye, Derbent, Kurla, Khasavyurt, Bryansk, Izberbash, Kizlyar.
Return to the main travel overview: Republic of Dagestan.
