Today, Stolby, the initiative to create which belongs primarily to the residents, is the true brand of Krasnoyarsk and the entire region, its calling card. Syenite rocks, narrow, up to 600 meters high, with individual rocks up to 600 million years old, and the most bizarre shape, gave the nature reserve its name. The tributaries of the Yenisei River became the borders of the Krasnoyarsk pillars.
And with what apt names the people dubbed the extraordinary rocks, names with a capital letter: Grandfather and Manskaya Baba, Chinese Wall and Fortress, Golden Eagle and Feathers, Mittens and Carpets… Each of them means an image that is recognizable almost at first glance at the pillars. More than half of the names were given by "stolbists" – brave people, members of the social movement "stolbism", formed over the many years of the reserve's existence.
The Pillars are called the heart of Krasnoyarsk, its lungs, and its soul. This means that after visiting Krasnoyarsk and not seeing this natural wonder with your own eyes, you will not learn something important about the city.
Siberian mountaineering
They have long been a favorite place for recreation and sports for local residents. This is a great place for mountain climbers, rock climbers and just physical education enthusiasts. There are routes of various complexity, both for experienced climbers and for people without any training who do not seek to conquer peaks and risk their lives. The reserve welcomes visitors at any time of the year.
For many generations of rock climbers, the Krasnoyarsk Pillars have become an excellent skill school, a venue for competitions and championships, including international ones.
Reserve infrastructure
By the way, only 4% of the reserve's territory is open to tourists. And yet, every weekend, more than one thousand people walk up to 14 km, reaching the coveted Pillars, feeling the care of the reserve staff in the form of asphalt roads, pedestrian bridges, marked hiking trails, detailed signs, specially equipped places for recreation, even garbage cans.
Old people come here to breathe the cleanest air and keep their bodies in shape. And it doesn't matter if a person will overcome the path to only one pillar, or to several, or even all. Many of them meet on hiking trails like old acquaintances every weekend, while others say they come here every day, regardless of weather conditions.
Whole families come here, with the youngest children. It is simply incredible how such kids master such long routes, all of them running uphill.
What you should definitely watch
The reserve's roads often resemble a busy city street, noisy and crowded. There are desperate people who try to storm the cliffs without any equipment. Sometimes they get lucky: they manage to climb without incident and descend without damage or injury. But it also happens in another way - then the daredevil is taken away by an ambulance.
The first pillar is a towering mountain, literally made of smooth, naturally polished stones from the very base to the top. It's incredible how it doesn't collapse from hurricane-force winds.
And the so–called Lion's Gate, a stone trapped between two rocks, hangs over another large stone. You can take a chance and touch the bottom one in the hope that the top one, which is clamped, will not fall on your head. I still haven't fallen.
If you come across a rock that resembles an old man in profile, it's a Grandfather. It is said to be 10 million years old.
There are in the reserve and
The Krasnoyarsk pillars have their own chapel and a memorial next to it. The names of the dead "stolbists" are on the plaques. The plaque with the name of the very first victim dates back to 1897.
How to get there
The Pillars are very easy to reach. Regular buses run there from Krasnoyarsk. From the final stop, the traveler will find a road to the rocks, up into the taiga.
A rare Redneck has never tried to storm any rock or pebbles. He climbed, often fell, sometimes crashed, then he was treated, but he always came back again. It doesn't matter if it's a man or a woman, an old man or a teenager. The "pillars" attract. If you happen to visit here at least once, this visit will be remembered for a long time.