Road trip route Kharkov - Zmiev - Koropovo

Road trip route Kharkov - Zmiev - Koropovo is designed for 1 day. During the trip, you will see the  various monuments and beautiful natural landscapes.

Starting point of the route: Kharkov
Distance of the trip: 60 km (one way)
Number of days: 1 day

The first point that we will visit is the city of Zmiev which is located 45 km from Kharkov.

Zmiev

The city's name dates back to the era of the Kievan Rus. In those days, the city stood at the confluence of the Seversky Donets and Mzha and was called - Zmiev castle which in reality was a fortress. Until now, on the territory adjacent to the city you can see surviving defensive earthworks and the remains of the fortress. For tourists will also be interesting the surviving fragments of caves and underground facilities, in which according to the legend, the Cossack stored treasures. At a distance of 2 km from the city, is located the Zmiev mountain landscape which is very similar to Switzerland.

Next stop is the Cossack mountain in the village Koropovo.

Koropovo

Village Koropovo is in the Zmiev district of the Kharkov region, 60 km from Kharkiv.

Leaving Zmiev you should turn left, cross the Seversky Donets River, move toward the village Zadonetskoe, then turn right along the river to Koropovo farms, there you should again move to the river. For further continuation of the route you will have to leave the car at the car parking. Proceed to the south of the village Koropovo (pass the store), turn right and walk along the road and then up the stairs.

To the south of the village Koropovo is a Cossack mountain – a very beautiful, quiet place, covered with many mysteries and legends.
Its height is about 60 meters, and its summit offers a wonderful landscape view. The fame acquired by the mount is from the sad events of the XIX century - the destruction of the Ukrainian Cossacks.

As you know, the Cossacks were not only brave and skillful warriors, but also protected the important objects (not having their own resources for protection), such as monasteries and churches. One of the protected object was the local St.Nicholas Monastery, which suffered and was destroyed. Near by the monastery and the Cossack mountain is located the White Lake, whose water is very rich in silver ions.

According to the legend, in order to protect the relics of the monastery the monks dumped them into the lake. At the foot of the mountain rises a 600 year old oak tree - which, according to legend, to brings luck in love, and Golshanskaya forests surrounding the mountain are a unique sanctuary for flora and fauna.

We return to Kharkov by the same route (first from Koropovo to Zmiev then straight to Kharkov).