In autumn and winter, when the weather rarely pleases the inhabitants of the European part of Russia, I want to dream about the generous sun, green leaves and the uselessness of bulky winter clothes. Who are the lucky people who get sunny days all year round, and in which cities of the Russian Federation do they live?
Which city of Russia is the southernmost
The southernmost city in Russia is Derbent. And, according to Forbes magazine, he is one of the most underrated tourist cities in the country.
Geographical position
Derbent is located in a small space between the mountains of the Greater Caucasus and the Caspian Sea. In the narrowest place, this distance does not exceed three to four kilometers, and it is there that the city is located. The sea has a strong influence on the climate - the winters are warm there (there are no subzero temperatures at all), spring and autumn are long and humid, and summers are hot (up to 26-30 degrees).
History of the city
The southernmost city on the map of the Russian Federation is also considered the oldest - the history of Derbent dates back more than two thousand years. Still the ancient historian Herodotus in the fifth century BC. e. wrote about the fortress on the site of the current city.
Since then, Derbent has been part of many empires: from the ancient kingdom of the Seleucids, the early medieval Albanian kingdom to the Arab Caliphate and the Persian kingdom. Derbent stormed Stepan Razin, and Peter I complained about the Derbent "great heat" during his anti-Persian campaign. Since the beginning of the XIX century, Derbent has been a part of Russia.
Population
Currently, a little more than 123 thousand inhabitants live in the city. Most residents are Lezghins or Azerbaijanis (33.7% and 32.3%, respectively), followed by Tabasarans (15.8%), then Dargins (5.6%) and Russians (3.7%). The maximum peak of the Russian population occurred in 1970, when more than a quarter of the total number of citizens (26%) lived in Derbent.
Sights
In the southernmost city of Russia there is something to see. The pearl of the architectural heritage of Derbent is the fortress that guarded the Caspian passage for more than one and a half millennia. And at the beginning of the century of the present, UNESCO entered the entire ancient part of Derbent into the World Heritage Register, especially highlighting the only surviving monument of Persian architecture - the Derbent Wall.
Derbent is the oldest mosque in Russia, built in the seventh century, ancient water tanks and fountains, old khan baths and cemeteries with tombstones dating back to the fifth century.
It is amazing that despite the favorable climate and the rich historical heritage of the city, there are very few tourists.
The southernmost cities of Russia
In addition to Derbent, there are other cities blessed with a generous southern sun.
9. Volgograd
Sometimes the sun is too much. The southernmost millionaire city in Russia, Volgograd, is rightfully considered one of the hottest cities in the country. In summer, the sun is more than forty degrees. The air in Volgograd is dry and hot, which may not be too comfortable for everyday life, but is great for the beach, because in the summer the Volga warms up to 26 degrees.
8. Maykop
But Maykop pleases its residents and visitors with a mild climate without suffocating heat and sudden changes in temperature. The city attracts many tourists, and even gourmets have something to take for granted: the local cheese is known far beyond the borders of the republic, and beer is considered one of the best in Russia.
7. Kaspiysk
A small southern city with a population of just over one hundred thousand inhabitants is located on the seashore. Winter as such does not exist there - the temperature practically does not drop below zero. Summer is long and very hot.
6. Makhachkala
The satellite city of Kaspiysk, Makhachkala, is located very close to it - literally within twenty kilometers, so they have a common climate and the number of sunny days a year. Both cities enjoy a long southern summer - the calendar summer of the capital of Dagestan lasts five months.
5. Terrible
As befits a city in southern Russia, in Grozny there is a mild winter (rarely, rarely, the temperature drops below -7) and hot summers. The peculiarity of the city is strong winds, especially in winter.
4. Dombay
Resort and alpine (above 1600 m above the sea surface), Dombai is famous for its sun - the number of sunny days in a year is over 300! No wonder that he became the center of ski tourism in Russia.
3. Krasnodar
In third place in the "southern" rating is the center of the Krasnodar Territory. The climate there is excellent, since Krasnodar lies just on the 45th parallel, which is considered the most favorable for human life. Krasnodar has short and mild winters and long hot summers.
2. Sochi
As a rule, the southern cities of Russia suffer from high temperatures in the summer, but the “resort capital” is a happy exception. The proximity of the sea makes summer not so hot, and winter is not at all cold, but very humid.
1. Astrakhan
The climate in Astrakhan is sharply continental - this means that it is cold in winter and hot in summer. Although the city is located on a chain of islands in the Volga Delta, there is little rainfall, and from the middle of spring to the end of summer there are dry winds.
The southernmost city in the world
The southernmost city in the world is Ushuaia, a city in Argentina, located on one of the islands of Tierra del Fuego archipelago. Although no more than 60 thousand inhabitants live in it, it is still more than in the southernmost village in the world - Puerto Toro (Chile), where only a hundred people live, and Orcadas, the naval base of the Argentinean fleet in Orkney, where there are no more than fifty employees on an ongoing basis. Although it is located almost 600 km south of Ushuaia.
Geographical position
Ushuaia is located on the shore of the bay bordering the southern coast of Tierra del Fuego. From the north-west, the city is guarded by the Martial mountain range, and in the south of Ushuaia, the Beagle Channel separates from a number of small islands of the archipelago.
The climate here can hardly be called "southern" - in the warm season (and in the southern hemisphere it is the Russian winter months), the temperature rarely rises above ten degrees.
Interesting Facts
For many years, the main source of income for local residents was tree felling and ... prison. The city itself was founded in 1884 by British missionaries, and already in 1896 a prison was built there. By 1920, the institution was finally completed and included five buildings and 380 single cells (sometimes more than 600 prisoners were in prison).
Moreover, in the city there were no more than forty houses. The prisoners had the opportunity to receive primary education, and they also had paid jobs. The prison worked until 1947.
By the way, the railway connecting the city and the prison was recently opened, and now a real steam train carries tourists on excursions.
Sights
Here's what you can admire if you decide to visit Ushuaia:
- Avenida San Martin: the main street of the city. Here you will find souvenir shops, restaurants and a tourist information center. The name of the street was in honor of the Argentine hero, General José Francisco de San Martin. In the 19th century, he was one of the leaders in the struggle for independence of the Spanish colonies based in Latin America.
- Sea voyage: this is what a trip to Ushuaia would be incomplete without. The view of the local bay, to say the least, is impressive. And the first destination is a rock island, just teeming with penguins. Thousands of birds sit, waddle, swim and look at you in complete disinterest. After visiting the penguins, you will see another rock island - Isla de los Lobos, on which there is a rookery of fur seals.
- Forest-Eclerers Lighthouse: Jules Verne once wrote a novel called Lighthouse at the End of the World. Many people believe that it was Les Eklerers who inspired the writer to create this book. However, the real name of this lighthouse was San Juan del Salvamento. He worked from 1884 to 1902, after which a new lighthouse appeared on a nearby island. However, since Ushuaia is officially the end of the world, why should not the local lighthouse have the same title?
Of course, the southernmost city in the world is trying to capitalize on its location. In addition to geography, Ushuaia has other lures for tourists - from the nearby Terra Del Fuego National Park and boat trips in the footsteps of Darwin to excellent fishing. And tourists who have visited Ushuaia can boast of a special mark in their passport - the stamp “Fin del Mundo” (“End of the World”).
