Traveling to the Carpathians from Kharkov by car
To my great regret, I have never been to the Carpathians.
In the winter, in the January frosts, we decided to go to the Carpathians in the summer and conquer Hoverla.
Summer is here and it's time to exercise!
It was the beginning of August 2021, it was hot in Kharkiv, for more than a month, one anticyclone after another. But I looked at the weather forecast in Yaremche and thought about it - it's cold and rainy. If only the children did not catch a cold there! I got some warm clothes and off we went. Departure scheduled for 19.00 to be in place, in Yaremche, at 12-13 o'clock the next day. The nights, however, became longer than in June, when we went to Greece (then it got brighter after 4 hours), and it took quite a long time to drive at night.
We have “our own” ATB store in Boryspil, where we drink coffee so that we don’t feel like sleeping. And of course we decided to go there at night. We drive up, we see - lightning flashes somewhere in the distance... We thought we would have time to get away from the rain. We took coffee, paid, went out - and on the street there was a heavy downpour. Can't even get to the car. Water flows even from light bulbs, the sliding door at the entrance is broken and blocked. Quiet horror! We stood for about 10 minutes, my husband drove right up to the entrance and we jumped into the car. It rained all the way through Kiev. As soon as we left, the rain stopped, but it became cool. The rest of the journey went smoothly, but for a long time. Without rest, one day to go from Kharkov to the Carpathians is hard. Sometimes I really want to sleep. Especially sleep starved us when half an hour or an hour was left to the destination. It was decided to go through Ivano-Frankivsk, at the same time they looked at the new city...
The house where we rented a house turned out to be high on a mountain.
But, thank our typewriter, it will take us everywhere. )) The top view of the whole Yaremche and the mountains is very beautiful. A horse was walking in a clearing, a church could be seen in the distance. A wooden house was waiting for us.
Both outside and inside. Big, spacious. Ours was on the 2nd floor with a separate entrance from the owners. There is a large wooden swing in the yard, a brazier nearby, and a gazebo a little to the side.
In principle, we liked everything. True, there was practically no kitchen. Only an electric stove, a cabinet for all utensils and a washbasin. This upset me, since I cook for my family myself, and I do not like bad conditions. Okay, that's not the point. We brought in our suitcases and fell asleep…
And the main thing was ahead. In the evening, the hostess brought another guest to our housing!! ! We just precipitated, there is no other way to call it. How much we travel, this has never happened before in our lives. With strangers, we have not yet lived in the same apartment! This fact crippled me morally so much that I shortened our already small vacation by 1 day.
In general, on this day we just walked around Yaremche, looked at what, how much, went to the store and fried barbecue in the evening.
On the second day we went to the Probiy waterfall. . .
. . . we tasted cheeses, liqueurs (very tasty! ), bought banosh on the path and went to see Bukovel. On the way we pass the charming villages of Mykulychyn, Tatariv, which are located at the foot of the mountains: small wooden houses are buried in greenery, and around the mountains...
Bukovel is a beautiful, expensive place. This is immediately visible to the naked eye. Expensive modern hotels, lawns, shops. There are 3 lifts. Two are next to each other (the one that is 2 people older and lower, and the one that is 4 people newer and taller), and the third is near the Lake of Youth. Price 150 UAH. per person for the way there and back. We chose the blue lift for 4 people. It's very beautiful to see Bukovel from above!
There is an observation deck, cafes and other entertainment on the mountain. For example, you can go down on a zipline for 400 UAH, on a go-kart for 300 UAH, and also on a rodelbahn (sledge along a metal track). The cost of rodelbana is 500 UAH. per person, but you can move out together on 1 sleigh for 800 UAH. from two.
There are a lot of foreigners here, in particular, Arabs. Probably as many as ours. Because of this, there are queues for all rides.
We decided to take a ride on the rodelbahn, as we had already ridden on such an attraction in Slovakia 2 years ago. It was interesting to compare. The kids enjoyed it so much that they rode 2 times in a row. True, the price in Slovakia is UAH 90, not 500. I can say that it’s also cool here, the road is long, the turns are sharp, however, in some places there is no protective net and it’s scary. The sleigh accelerates to 45 km/h.
Then we went to the Lake of Youth.
This is an artificial lake, the water in it is warmer than in natural lakes. But no one swam, as it was cool. Entrance to the territory with sunbeds through the barrier, for a fee. The place is pleasant, the lake is beautiful, there are various entertainments, music plays.
So our long and full of impressions day came to an end. But my daughter remembered that there was an Upside Down House somewhere nearby. And, of course, we hurried there. Fortunately, it closed at 21.00, and we arrived at 20.00. Many take their children there. And we did the same. They paid for the entrance, it cost 150 UAH. from a person. Very cool location, funny photos turned out, it's interesting to go there.
...... When I studied the reviews about climbing Hoverla, people advised climbing on the sunniest and clearest day of their stay here, so as not to get caught in the rain and to have good visibility from the mountain. Our third day was the warmest and sunniest, followed by a cyclone. And we decided that we need to go to Hoverla today, on the third day.
We made a bunch of sandwiches, took a thermos of tea and 2 liters of water each, as well as raincoats just in case. We left instructions and food for the youngest (he didn’t want to get up), and let’s go.
I knew where to start climbing and which route to follow. I downloaded it to my phone and got into the car. But my husband said that he had already put up a route to Hoverla so that I could hide my phone. I was a little surprised, because I did not see him watching or reading something about climbing Hoverla, but I trusted him. And very in vain. The navigator, on the order of Hoverl, led us to the steepest climb. I can't even remember where it is. We paid for the entrance to the protected area and drove 4 km along a terrible road. We arrived at the mountain, but there was no market, no equipment rental. I began to understand that this is something not right, we are somewhere not there. There are no people anywhere. Realizing that we will not have another chance, we begin the ascent. The road goes up very steeply. I understand that this way I will not reach the top. We have a child with us! Soon we were overtaken by rising people who also did not know anything. Then we met strong guys who were already descending back. To our inquiries, they advised us to go down and go to another route, since this route is very steep, 10 km up, while the usual tourist route is 4 km uphill and more gentle.
I will not describe my despair and disappointment. The day was wasted, the moment was lost, there is no more chance to rise, it will rain from tomorrow. I got into the car in tears. My husband and I had a fight, of course. It was already too late to go to another route, somehow I don’t feel like climbing in the mountains in the dark... So many things were planned to be seen in the Carpathians! But the main thing - my dream: to climb Hoverla - was out of reach. Having calmed down, we decided to somehow save this day and go to the highest swing in the Carpathians. There are actually 3 of them. Two of them are far to go, and another one was nearby, in the village of Mykulychyn. Of course, we hurried there. They wanted to go home, in Yaremche, to pick up the youngest, but the traffic jam near the Probiy waterfall did not let us into Yaremche, and we went on our own. The swing is really huge.
They were built only last year. You can’t ride them on your own, you need someone to push. True, they are not located on the very edge of the mountain, but even so scary. Photos come out good. There are not many people, but there is a queue. Walk from the parking lot for about 1 kilometer through the forest, the road is rocky in places, but beautiful and short. In general, we had a little fun and hurried home to feed the youngest, who had been at home all day. By the way, he did not want to climb Hoverla initially, and we did not force him, everyone should have their own choice.
The husband said that we would get up tomorrow at 6.00 am and go again to Goverla. But I looked at the weather forecast and did not know which day of the 3 remaining days to prefer - it rains every day. In general, it was decided to get up tomorrow at 6.00 am.
It was impossible to go to bed early in the evening: our “roommates” with a small child did not want to go to bed and calm their child down, and this made it very difficult to sleep. At my request to lie down and let us sleep, they only snapped.
It's morning. I woke up at 5:00 to the sound of rain. So we climbed the mountain... We won't go anywhere, - I thought, burst into tears and fell asleep. Light rain continued until 8:00. We had breakfast, but did not understand whether we should go or not. The husband said that according to the forecast for Hoverla, there is no rain today. Phoned our hostess, and she said that of course to go. Then we gave up on everything and ran to get ready. It didn't come out as thoroughly as yesterday, but quickly. A few sandwiches, a thermos with tea were also not taken, as it turned out to be a heavy backpack. At 10.30 we left the house.
1.5 hours - and we are near the Zaroslyak base. Arrived right this time. We go through the market. We rented sticks - 50 UAH. for a couple, plus 100 UAH. pledge. I know that we are on the green route. There are a lot of people, everyone rises, the mood is upbeat. We walk through a green forest with tall pines, the river Prut flows nearby all the time.
Beauty! The green route is 4 km, the blue is steeper and 3.5 km. The beginning is the most pleasant - a gentle climb through the forest, taking pictures, filming... Gradually, the forest turns into thorny bushes, stones under your feet, sometimes quite large, sometimes moving, sometimes you climb on all fours.
Ahead, on the mountain, you can see a stream of climbing people. Finally little Goverla!
We fell on the grass and lay there for several minutes. There is a rather strong cold wind here, and we are completely wet. Wouldn't catch a cold! From here it became clear how far it was still to rise, but there was no strength left. And this climb is steep! You walk for 3 minutes, you stand for 3 minutes, you rest. Some are lying. They laugh that we shouldn't rape ourselves, it's just an adventure.
My child walked ahead of his parents all the time. She gave her stick to her dad (who boasted, who needs these sticks? ) And climbed to the top, too, the very first! Poor thing, she really wanted to eat, and the food was in our backpacks, and we could hardly crawl already. This spurred me on, if not to go faster, then at least just to go, not to stand.
And then I raised my head and saw people sitting nearby, dangling their legs. What is it, I came?
Wow! I'm at the top! I have ascended! We conquered Goverla! We are over the whole of Ukraine now.
There is no limit to happiness and joy. We hug, take pictures, shoot videos, call friends. Then we sit down with a prettier view and have a snack, drink hot, sweet tea. I want to allow myself anything in order to reward myself for the victory.
Prices are high at the top. But it is understandable: the seller had to bring everything on himself (and so every day - they do not spend the night on the mountain), including water. In general, tea for 30 UAH, coffee from 40 UAH, medals "I conquered Hoverla" from 40 to 60 UAH, sneakers for 70 UAH, etc.
We spent an hour at the top. It is so beautiful here: you can see the mountains of neighboring states - Slovakia, Romania.
The clouds cast black shadows and the mountain below becomes mysterious. Everyone takes pictures and takes pictures of each other. A couple from Poltava gave us the flag of Ukraine for a photo, we photographed them in return. Vitalik pulled the ligament, the other guys gave him ointment. An atmosphere of happiness and mutual joy is up there.
We were very lucky with the weather - there was almost no wind, it never rained.
It was time to go down somehow from here, the child is alone at home!
The descent was no less difficult than the ascent. I will say that we were no less wet than when we got up. Other muscles are already working here. We did not stop even once, the breath is free, after all the descent.
I turned around and was horrified: what a high and distant mountain is behind... How did we climb it? Mom dear!
After 2 hours we were near the base "Zaroslyak", and after another 1.5 - at home, with barbecue for the younger one. The mood was beautiful and peaceful: I realized my dream! We could not walk up the stairs for another 3-4 days.
The next day should have been devoted to the youngest child.
We read on the Internet that there is a cheese factory in Verkhovyna, the children really wanted to see the process of making cheeses and taste them. We called there, we were invited to 14.00 and we quickly went, since it takes 1.5 hours to go to them. I love this road and these villages: Yaremche, Mykulychin, Tatariv, Vorokhta.
True, it turned out to be not a cheese factory, unfortunately, but a museum of cheese. A lot of people came, they were treated to cheese, but the cooking process was not shown. The kids didn't like it very much. We knew that there was also a cheese factory on Mount Makovitsa, but it takes 2 hours to climb it, and it is not known whether they will show something for 4 people. Therefore, we discarded this option.
Verkhovyna is a very large village. After the tour, we decided to stop by an old soda kiosk that has been operating since 1957, we thought it would be something unusual. But, forgive me the grandfathers who work there, we didn’t really like it - a kiosk from Soviet times, the same old apparatus with syrup, reusable glass cups (during a pandemic! ) And not very tasty. Now there are so many different tastes, and wild berries, and Pepsi, and merinda, in general, have not gone in.
The next number of our program was a visit to Vedmezha Gora and the zoo there.
It's great that all this was close to our house. And this is a really beautiful complex with an ennobled pond, in which not only swans swim, but also red otters (we fed them carrots, and they took it very funny with two paws and gnawed). There are many benches around the pond, all of them are occupied by relaxing vacationers. Just above the zoo. Symbolic entrance - 30 UAH. from an adult, 15 UAH. from a child. The zoo is small, there are only wild boars, deer, birds, goats, rabbits and guinea pigs. You can buy food, it costs, however, the same as the entrance almost. But the animals are so cool, so cute that we spent about 1.5 hours there. Boars ask for food, wag their tails, there are babies among them. Deer also come running, asking for food, giving pets. Rabbits have very cute offspring, and there are many of them. Then we fed the goats and guinea pigs. In general, we got a lot of pleasure from this small zoo. Its distinctive feature is that it has a huge territory. It is fenced only in front, from visitors, and then the animals go for a walk uphill, they don’t have a fence further.
To the lake Nesamovyte go 7 km one way, and drive another 1.5 hours one way, that is, this is a full day excursion. Therefore, we decided to get up early and go to Skeli Dovbush, and then go to the Guk waterfall. Well, of course, visit our markets in Yaremche and near the Probiy waterfall. There are a lot of fruits at inexpensive prices (a glass of blueberries costs 30 UAH, blackberries - 15 UAH), cream liqueurs - 70 UAH, there are various jams (from bananas, from pineapples, from raspberries, from fir cones, etc. ), homemade milk , raspberries, apples, dried and fresh mushrooms (white and chanterelles), etc.
That's what we did. Skeli Dovbush after Hoverla is a children's route, but also interesting. The rocks are beautiful, powerful, huge.
We took pictures everywhere with our daughter for a very long time, so it took 2 hours to go there - it took 2 hours to get back.
We had a bite to eat in the wonderful Kolomiyka cafe. Nice place, cheap prices, fast food, everything is delicious. Only because of the large number of visitors, there is often nothing to try. For example, we never managed to treat the children with Kiev cutlets, they were always gone. But we tried their potato pancakes (the most delicious Transcarpathian), chinakhi, banosh and bograch. Naturally, it began to rain (as without it), and we had to wait a bit, which delayed us, of course. And we hurried to the Guk waterfall. It is located behind the village of Mykulychyn, not far from us, 35 minutes by car. After the checkpoint, you can drive 3 km by car, then 2 km on foot. Walking is very interesting - small streams and waterfalls appear on the right, then on the left, you always want to touch them and take pictures.
The younger one began to resent that we were going far, but here he is - a miracle of nature - Guk waterfall.
It is wonderful, cool, I have never seen such powerful and beautiful waterfalls. It seemed to us that we were somewhere in the thickets of Vietnam...
We admired and photographed for a long time, I could not get away from this beauty of nature. But it was getting dark, and I still really wanted to visit the museum "Carpathians in Miniature".
We came to our car, sat down, started driving, once, although we drove into a small hole, but on a flat road we heard some kind of extraneous knock under the car. We stopped near the ATB in Tatariv. We ran to the store, and my husband crawled under the car to see what it was. I sort of screwed everything up, I thought that the gas equipment had fallen off, but no, everything was in order there.
We went to the spring, to collect wonderful mountain water with a bunch of useful mineral elements, including silver (and the taste is beyond praise). And then we hear that the knock is stronger and stronger. It became so strong that it became clear that it was no longer possible to go, it was urgent to stop! But cars were driving behind, there was no roadside, there was nowhere to move out.
Some kind of platform appeared on the left - we arrived at it, but we were late. Our wheel has fallen off! It pulled out the front fender, the car fell on the left side! NIGHTMARE! All frightened, we jump out - the driver's door does not open! It's raining outside, but you need to do something: go home tomorrow, more than 1000 km to Kharkov. And today we are very far from home. I sent the children to some store so that they would not get wet, put on raincoats for myself and my husband, and we began to raise the car on a jack, level the fender so that the door opened, and try to put the wheel back in place. Thank you to two wonderful men who came up to us seeing that we had an accident. They gave us another jack, a star screwdriver, which we didn't have, and helped to level the fender. In general, after an hour of torment, something happened. It was possible to ride, although the fender was completely bent and the turn signal flasher did not sit in place, I had to remove it. And we only bought this car 3 months ago and my husband was crazy about it!
Analyzing this situation, we could not understand how it happened that the wheel fell off? Looks like it's been unlocked! But we check the wheels every morning before leaving. And today, too, checked! It turns out, WHILE WE WERE AT THE WATERFALL, THE WHEEL WAS TURNED OFF TO US!
I just couldn't believe it - tourists should be loved, they bring money. And it seems that everyone around was polite. This is how it had to be done! For what and why?
We were all in shock, my husband was very upset. We lost the time we wanted to spend on an interesting place - it was already too late to go to the "Carpathians in Miniature" museum, we had to at least have time to get ready for tomorrow's trip.
Our guess, by the way, was confirmed the next morning, when my husband bought a couple of wheel bolts and screwed them near the market. The driver of the car standing next to him said that they TOOK THE WHEEL OFF! But he braked in time, the wheel was held on by one bolt. Eh, it was necessary for us not to pay attention to anyone, but to stop immediately. And while we chose a safe place, we got an accident!
That's it! Guests of Yaremche, who arrive in their cars, be vigilant, check the car every time you leave it unattended! Here, apparently, some scammers (maybe even political ones) are operating.
In general, having bought a bunch of goodies and fruits from grandmothers in the market, as well as a bunch of gifts for friends, we set off (belatedly as always))) on the way back! Farewell, Yaremche! Despite what happened, I did not think that I would miss the Carpathians so much...
We decided to dedicate this day to a long-distance excursion, since we cut it off from our rest.
We have already visited Palanok Castle in Mukachevo, Uzhhorod Castle and Khotyn Fortress. But in the beautiful Kamianets-Podilskyi fortress they never were. I wanted to go here from Yaremche, but my husband said that it would be far and tiring - 3.5 hours only one way. Therefore, it is very convenient to visit this castle on the way home.
How beautiful this Polish-Lithuanian castle is! I would not call it a fortress, but a castle, with its most beautiful entrance.
The entry price is higher than it was everywhere in the Carpathians, here 60 UAH for an adult, 40 UAH for a child. child ticket.
Especially beautiful view from afar, that is, the entrance to the castle itself. It is paved with paving stones, and in the distance you can see a beautiful castle with towers. Entry by car costs 10 UAH. There is parking under the castle wall. There are a lot of cars and people. The territory inside is small, it is very interesting inside the towers, there is an underground passage and a staircase 3 floors up.
There are tables in the yard and food is being prepared for those who want to have a bite to eat. There is an interesting bakery where a girl bakes large rolls right in the oven (with cottage cheese and poppy seeds), then she takes them out and sells them. The rolls are huge and hot, with a crispy crust. There is a queue. The price of rolls is 50 UAH. a piece. Of course, we decided to try such a miracle, and in the car we had homemade milk from Yaremche... It was great!
Here you can also shoot a bow at a target, the price is 30 UAH for 6 shots. Shoot - I don't want to!...
At about 17.00 it was time to go home after all. I'm already used to the fact that we travel through all of Ukraine in 1 day, and forever at night. Therefore, when it is 17 pm, and we are 1000 km from home, there is nowhere to spend the night - I don’t care anymore. The car is our home! We keep our way to Khmelnitsky, then to Zhytomyr. Everything would have been fine and fast, if not for road repairs. Before Zhytomyr, the road is blocked and a detour to some villages is proposed, but how do we know where these villages are located? The navigator lost us and was silent. We drove along some potholes in Ukraine, in an unknown direction... We only dreamed of Zhytomyr... It began to get dark and it became quite fun. We decided to stop the oncoming car and clarify the road to Zhytomyr, and this helped us move on.
Finally, Zhytomyr! Shop on the outskirts! We immediately ran to refresh ourselves with provisions and delicious moccachino coffee (so that we didn’t feel like sleeping). Satisfied, they continued on their way. We passed the most beautiful evening Kyiv (now I know why sweets are called that), it's a pity that in the dark, during the day it is even more beautiful. From Kyiv we go 6 hours...
Here is "our" ATB in Boryspil - we certainly go there. The fact is that on the last day in Yaremche I really wanted to buy their cream liqueur, but I did not find it in the market. I decided to make my own at home. I needed to buy ingredients for it. ATB just arrived. In addition, moccachino..... )). At about 2.30 am, my husband said that we were moving off the road, he would sleep. But after 2 coffees in a row I didn’t want to sleep at all. Changed places, he sleeps, I steer. Well-lit sections of the road, where visibility is good, you can drive more than 100 km / h. But they alternate with unlit areas, when it’s dark, you can’t turn on the high beam so as not to blind other drivers, so you crawl slowly and carefully.
On the outskirts of Poltava, there are a number of kiosks where you can have an inexpensive snack or coffee if you need it. It was worth driving twice back and forth across the whole of Ukraine - and we already have “our own” places where we want to stop for rest and warm-up.
It was 5.30 am when we drove through Poltava. My husband woke up, drank coffee, cheered him up, and I said that now it's my turn to sleep. When we sleep in turns, it’s easier to ride (we’ve already learned). I woke up at 7.00 at the entrance to Kharkov. The Pesochinsky bridge was closed again, and we had to travel through the entire city, which was long and inconvenient. We were at home around 8:00 am. Thus ended our first and, I hope, not the last trip to the Carpathians.
Good weather to all, interesting trips and pleasant meetings!
