Walking through the shallow floodplains (before the destruction of the Kakhovka Kakhovka Dam)

The floodplains in my city of Zaporizhzhia have become my favorite place to spend time since I discovered them in 2014. Back then, I bought a new bike and rode off into the unknown, suddenly discovering a piece of untouched nature just a few kilometers from my home. Here, in the remains of the Great Meadow, once flooded during the construction of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station, I can spend hours enjoying the birdsong and the refreshing coolness of the shade of the trees from the scorching steppe sun, at the water’s edge.

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Rakovets Castle, of which only the tower remains

Rakovets Castle in the Ivano-Frankivsk region is a case in point where I realized how important it is to read reviews on Google Maps when looking for interesting places to visit on your travels. Otherwise, you might end up driving for several hours on a terrible road just to catch a glimpse of the remains of a wall.

Let me show you his photo and tell you the story, and you decide whether you want to go there or not.

The road leading to it is simply disgusting. If you decide to visit this place, you should consider whether it is worth the trouble. After turning off the highway, you will spend a long time driving along the remains of a road covered with white dust and mud, which is frequently blocked by scattered boulders. Let me show you a photo and tell you the story, and you can decide whether you want to go there or not.

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The Carpathian Tram – an incredible narrow-gauge railway route

The Carpathian tram is one of the many attractions of the Ivano-Frankivsk region. And while I usually oppose anything that forces you to be part of organized tourist groups, in this case, I confidently recommend it as an experience you will want to repeat more than once! It is one of the most beautiful narrow-gauge railways not only in Ukraine but also in Europe.

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New landscape of Khortytsya after the explosion of the Kakhovskaya HPP and what can be found at the former bottom of the Dnieper River

I left my native Zaporozhye in April to recover from the loss of my loved ones. When I came back in July, a different landscape was waiting for me in places familiar from my childhood. There were new territories, tons of garbage and the famous lands of the Great Meadow, which few living citizens have seen. I managed to make a report on how Khortytskyi Plavniye now looks like, and at the same time to help clean up the new territories.

In the distant 1950, the USSR began construction of another hydroelectric power plant in what was then Soviet Ukraine. It was one of the greatest constructions of that time. 12 thousand people, 1100 vehicles, 30 excavators, 75 cranes, 100 bulldozers, 14 steam locomotives were involved.

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Bukhtivetsky and Krapelkovy waterfalls

One of the most memorable places in Ivano-Frankivsk region for me were Buchtivetsky and Krapelkovy waterfalls. I visited them when I first came to the Carpathian region and since then I have not only traveled there many times myself, but also took all my friends there, who asked me to show them something interesting.

Today I want to show you how I saw them and give you some basic tourist information for those who want to visit them.

I really love waterfalls. It’s my passion. Perhaps the reason for this is that I was born in a flat area and had never seen them before I started actively traveling by car. I even managed to find a small waterfall near the town of Volnyansk in Zaporozhye region, but it is man-made and very small.

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