The most beautiful places in the valley of the Beautiful Mecha river are located 160 kilometers South of Tula, near the border with the Lipetsk region. In the area of the city of Efremov, it winds among low limestone rocks, which make its banks very picturesque. In these places you can visit Ishutinskoe hillfort and the Valley of the Megaliths, which are a very interesting natural attraction in the Central region of Russia.
The Ishutinskoe hillfort and the valley of Megaliths are located at a distance of 20 kilometers from each other. However, the road between them is unpaved, so the travel time between them will take about an hour. If you plan to make a weekend trip, then you need to go early in the morning to have time to walk in the vicinity of both locations.
Ishutinskoe hillfort is located on the border of Tula and Lipetsk region. It is a rocky ridge with a height of 40 meters. On one side of the cliff flows the Beautiful Mecha river, and on the other runs a deep ravine. It is believed that there was a settlement of a Scythian or Sarmatian tribe on the top of the Ishutinskoe hillfort in ancient times, but there is no archaeological evidence for this.
At the foot of Ishutinskoe hillfort the river has a significant height difference. Here there is a small threshold of the river. In Soviet times, the Ishutinskaya mini-hydroelectric power station was built on them, but today only fragments of the foundation and part of the dam remain. The hills and ravines around the Ishutinskoe hillfort are very picturesque, so it will be nice to walk here for half a day.
The Valley of Megaliths is located on the high Bank of the Beautiful Mecha river near the village of Krasnogorskoye. Earlier this village was called Witch, and the stone megaliths called "Witch’s stones". They consist of quartz sandstone or granite. Due to weathering, most of the stones have a bizarre shape with niches. Because of the water, the stones have numerous depressions, similar to bowls or even deep holes.
3 kilometers from the Valley of Megaliths, near the village of Kozye, there is another famous attraction in the Tula region - the Horse-Stone megalith. This is a huge boulder weighing 20 tons, which stands on 3 small stones. This is similar to the numerous seids that can be found in the forests of Karelia or in Scandinavia. It is believed that the origin of seids is anthropogenic. The Sami tribe set large boulders on three small stones for religious purposes. Megalith Horse-stone appeared in these places during the glaciations and has a natural origin. However, it is likely that in ancient times it could also be used for religious purposes and pagan images.
116 kilometers North of the Krasivaya Mecha river Valley is another remarkable natural attraction-the Romantsev mountains (Kondukovsky quarries).
