Cretaceous lakes in Belarus: "Belorussian Maldives", Luban, Klimovichi

On the territory of the country there are several dozen quarries, some of which are flooded with water. These artificial chalk lakes in Belarus have turned into a tourist attraction, for the sake of which tourists from Ukraine, Russia, Latvia and Lithuania come here. Belarusians themselves do not deprive them of attention: thousands of people have time to rest in their careers every summer. For all that, the places are dangerous: the banks are high, the water is deep, the currents are unexpected.

"Belarusian Maldives"

It is the Volkovysk (Krasnoselsk) water reservoirs that have received such an enthusiastic name - and not for nothing, since the water here is gentle-turquoise. In combination with white beaches this creates an amazing ensemble - so beautiful that the Krasnoselsky Cretaceous lakes in Belarus can quite compete with the tropical "bounty". The depth in the quarries is 15 and more meters, the total area is 4 km (all these are two groups of 4-5 reservoirs each).

Not much can compare with the impression produced by the Cretaceous lakes in Belarus. The reviews of people resting there are full of emotions. They write about the beauty of the water, the charm of the wild beach, the fact that the color of the water varies depending on the lighting: one under the bright sun, the other - in the rain.

In 2015, the management of Krasnosel'stroimaterialy took serious measures against the "wild" rest: part of the asphalt road was broken, ditches were dug out, concrete blocks were installed on improvised parking lots. At the entrance and exit is the police. Admission to the lake only on passes. The territory is patrolled by the employees of the enterprise.

At the disposal of the police there is a tow truck, so that cars can be towed off to the parking lot. In addition, because of the reclamation, the water is no longer blue - dirty green, and the beaches are finally unfit for recreation.

Klimovichi

Just 10 km from the regional center in the Mogilev region is located the so-called Blue Quarry - an impressive size pond with uneven edges, overgrown with trees, beaches, islets and clear, blue-turquoise water. About it is well known fishermen - in the "pond" are found carp, bream, river catfish, which you can successfully fish.

By the customary "tradition" for such objects, the Blue Quarry is not alone. Klimovichi Cretaceous Lakes in Belarus (photos from satellites show a chain of larger and smaller ponds) - a complex of 13 "craters" of varying degrees of purity and suitability for swimming and fishing.

The blue quarry appeared after it was mined here 30 years ago. After the completion of work on the bottom, spring springs were clogged, and the reservoir gradually filled with water. Depth, as in other lakes, is not the same - the bottom drops to 15 meters in places.

Luban

Luban Cretaceous Lakes are no less known (at least among the citizens of the republic). In Belarus Luban is a small town located on the river of Oressa and surrounded on all sides by forest. It has a Museum of Popular Glory, with a rich collection of archeology, numismatics and bonistics, and in the area - filled with water "craters" of chalk development.

Closest to them, according to reviews visited in those places of tourists, the village of Urechye - about 10 km in a straight line. These are also chalky quarries, and just like in the case of the Krasnoselskie reservoirs, the water in them is gently turquoise. There are only two reservoirs, but large ones.

Here you can find other lakes:

• On the way from Slutsk to Luban near the villages of Kupnik and Mordvilovichi;
• 1 km to the south-east from the village of Khotinovo; In 12 km to the north-west from the district center Luban;
• Zagornyata, between the villages of Zagornyata and Koptevichi;
• Kamenka, Krichevsky district, Mogilev region.

Birch

Still man-made chalk lakes in Belarus - rest on them even better than in Krasnoselskie, they are more taken care of - they are near the city of Bereza, in the Brest region. Local residents say that the quarry began to be developed as far back as 1930. However, the flooded quarry that is there today is the result of the Novo-Berezovsky limestone plant, which worked from 1961 to 1990.

The peculiarity of the second of the lakes there is a calm, gentle beach, which makes it more like a natural formation than a place for chalking. The maximum depth is 18 meters. And the water is spring, but not the turquoise color that attracts people to Krasnoselsk.

These chalky lakes in Belarus are relatively old, with the exception of the third one. The reservoir appeared only 3-4 years ago, therefore still retained the typical features: blue-blue water and steep banks. The same and the most "extreme" - the depth in some places reaches 40 meters. Dangerous, but beautiful and exciting - so you can characterize this man-made miracle.

In fact, in the beginning, there were four "craters" - two of them merged into one in the past decade.

Grodno

Sinka and Zelenka are Cretaceous lakes (there are actually a lot of them in Belarus), located near Grodno. Another of the little-known sights of the Republic of Belarus.

In summer, the water in them is considerably warmed up, in addition, it has a higher density, in comparison with fresh lakes. Around pine-juniper forest grows.

Careers are very popular among local residents, but they are still on the balance of the Grodno KSM. Talk about what to do with them, gradually went into action: Sink began to fall asleep with sand. The management plan - to completely close the "crater" with land and land on top of the forest - will require many years of work and effort. This step causes indignation of local residents, but it is still better than pouring rubbish over the reservoir, as originally planned.

The fate of man-made "resorts"

What is the future of other lakes, remains a mystery. Almost every one of them, according to experts, is a technical object, bathing there is dangerous for life and health and is therefore forbidden. But people do not stop it, on the contrary - to jump into the water from a ten-meter bank-cliff is considered a special valor.

Authorities continue to look for a way out: the most desirable for visitors - turning into a tourist zone - is also the most expensive. We will have to do a great job: strengthen the shore, equip pedestrian roads around lakes and convenient access to quarries for cars.

But the difficulties are not only in the sum of money - all these works will take time, and the color of the water in the quarry will gradually change: from so exotic turquoise to quite familiar green.

There are also proposals to turn some of the quarries into hydrological monuments - but this also requires considerable sums. Therefore, the cheapest, simple (and undesirable for tourists) is the plan to fall asleep - and well if only sand, because the idea of garbage has its supporters among the authorities and bureaucrats.