Devil`s Gate Canyon in Sochi
Devil`s Gate Canyon is located on the Khosta River on the north side of the famous Yew-Boxwood Grove. Most visitors come here after a walk through the Yew-Boxwood grove, but it is also possible to come by car to the village of Rassvet and from there go straight to the canyon.
Most of the natural attractions in the vicinity of Sochi are part of the Sochi National Park, however, the unique relict forest of the Yew-Boxwood Grove was decided to be included in the Caucasian Nature Reserve with a stricter environmental regime. The beginning of the Devil`s Gate Canyon is located at the very border of the Yew-Boxwood grove, and then it passes already inside the grove, that is, inside the Caucasian Reserve.
The Devil`s Gate Canyon is the deepest canyon in the vicinity of Sochi. In most other canyons, swimming is possible only in single backwaters, and here for more than three hundred meters the Canyon is very full-flowing. Many people come here to swim, as well as jump from the rocks into the water.
Usually people enter the canyon from the village of Rassvet. You can walk about 50 meters along the canyon, the depth gradually increases and you can only swim further. The water in the river is quite cool, but you gradually get used to it.
The width of the Devil`s Gate Canyon, on average, is 5 meters, and the height of the rocks above it reaches 50 meters. On the territory of the Yew-Boxwood grove, a suspension bridge has been laid over the canyon. You can see the entire gorge and the green waters of the Khosta River, which flow among the rocks.
The rocks, as in other canyons in the vicinity of Sochi, consist of layered slabs of marl. Marl slabs consist of clay and carbonate (calcite or dolomite). Depending on the impurities, they can be of different colors. Here the marl slabs have a beautiful wavy shape.
If you decide to visit the Devil`s Gate Canyon while walking through a Yew-Boxwood grove, the distance from the entrance to the grove to the canyon will be 3 kilometers. Alternatively, you can come to the village of Rassvet, which is located directly at the canyon. There is a recreation center "At the Devil`s Gate". It is equipped with picnic areas; there is a small beach on the river bank.
