Mount Ring is located on the western outskirts of Kislovodsk. It rises near the road and is easily accessible to all tourists, including children. Tourists come here not only from Kislovodsk, but also from Yessentuki, Pyatigorsk and other Mineral Water resorts. The great Russian poet Lermontov mentioned the Ring Mountain more than once in his works.
Usually, an excursion to Mount Ring is combined with a visit to the Honey Waterfalls, which are located 17 kilometers to the south. Mount Ring consists of sandstone, like most other mountains in the vicinity of Kislovodsk. These mountains have flat tops. In the process of weathering and erosion, numerous caves, grottos, and depressions are formed in the mountain slopes.
In Mount Ring, under the influence of erosion, a through grotto similar to a ring was formed, and its upper part is very narrow. The hole measures 8 meters wide and 12 meters high. From various angles, it really looks like a ring. The height of the Ring Mountain reaches 871 meters and its edges are steep. The northern side of the mountain adjoins the Borgustan mountain range.
At the foot of the Mount Ring there is a large parking surrounded by stalls of street vendors. In summer, big buses from Mineral Water sanatoriums come here, so it can be very noisy here. There are paths from the parking to the "ring". Near the top, the path becomes steep, however, almost all tourists go up. Local authorities warn of the possibility of rockfalls. However, the slope of the mountain is quite gently sloping, so rockfalls are unlikely, although caution is always needed on the mountain path. From the top of the mountain, you can see the surroundings of Kislovodsk, and in good weather you can see the double-headed snowy peak of Mount Elbrus.
Mikhail Lermontov described the Mount Ring in his famous novel "The Hero of Our Time": "Three miles from Kislovodsk, in the gorge where the Podkumok flows, there is a rock called the Ring; this is a gate formed by nature; it rises on a high hill, and the setting sun takes its last, a fiery look through it. A large cavalcade went there to watch the sunset through a stone window..."
