home » Autumn clothes » The Ai River is the “Moon Beauty” of the Southern Urals. River Ai - “lunar beauty” of the southern Urals

The Ai River is the “Moon Beauty” of the Southern Urals. River Ai - “lunar beauty” of the southern Urals

K: Rivers in alphabetical order K: Water bodies in alphabetical order K: Rivers up to 1000 km in length Ai (river) Ai (river)

Ay(Bashk. Әй) - a river in the Southern Urals, the left and most major influx Ufa river.

Etymology

According to some scientists, the hydronym could have arisen from the name of the Bashkir tribal association Aile (Ay), living in the river valley, which had a crescent-shaped tamga.

Geography

Karst landforms are widespread in the area. Along the Aya there are little-studied and inaccessible Aylin caves (near the village of Ailino, north of Suleya) and the extensive Laklin cave near the village of Lakly. On the left bank of the Ay, 2 km above Lakla, there is a curious natural phenomenon - the “Stone Gate”, formed in the Lower Carboniferous limestones.

Below Lakla the nature of the relief changes. The river opens into the hilly area of the Mesyagutovo forest-steppe - an area of grain and meat and dairy farming centered in Mesyagutovo. This area is much more populated. There are few forests along the water's edge dense thickets willow; Sandy beaches appear and there are excellent fishing spots. From the village of Lagerevo, Ai flows on low banks. There are many oxbow lakes throughout the vast swampy valley. The flow of the river slows down, rocky rifts disappear, giving way to reaches and shoals. A small rapid occurs at Azangulovo (passage along the left bank).

Approximately 330 km from the beginning of the route, near the village of Alegazovo, the river approaches the Ufa Plateau - the banks rise, forests appear. However, the mountains here are lower and less severe than at the beginning of the route. There are few populated areas. Near Alegazovo the mill dam is run out along the left bank. 1 km from the dam is the central estate of the Mesyagutovsky state farm.

Gallery

Kurgazak cave off the coast of the Ai River.jpg

Kurgazak cave near the bank of the Ai River

Ai River, July 2014..jpg

Rocky ledge near the Ai River

Zanozinskaya bend (Bolshaya Krivulya) on the Ai River.jpg

Zanozinskaya bend (Bolshaya Krivulya)

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Excerpt characterizing Ai (river)

One minute, when everything was quiet on stage, waiting for the start of the aria, she creaked Entrance door the stalls, on the side where the Rostovs' box was, and the steps of a belated man sounded. “Here he is Kuragin!” Shinshin whispered. Countess Bezukhova turned to the newcomer, smiling. Natasha looked in the direction of Countess Bezukhova’s eyes and saw an unusually handsome adjutant, with a self-confident and at the same time courteous appearance approaching their bed. It was Anatol Kuragin, whom she had seen for a long time and noticed at the St. Petersburg ball. He was now in an adjutant uniform with one epaulette and a bracelet. He walked with a restrained, dashing gait, which would have been funny if he had not been so handsome and if there had not been such an expression of good-natured contentment and joy on his beautiful face. Despite the fact that the action was going on, he, slowly and slightly rattling his spurs and saber, smoothly and high holding his perfumed beautiful head, walked along the carpet of the corridor. Looking at Natasha, he walked up to his sister, put his gloved hand on the edge of her box, shook her head and leaned over and asked something, pointing at Natasha.
- Mais charmante! [Very sweet!] - he said, obviously about Natasha, as she not so much heard as understood from the movement of his lips. Then he walked to the front row and sat down next to Dolokhov, giving a friendly and casual elbow to Dolokhov, whom the others were treating so ingratiatingly. He smiled at him with a cheerful wink and rested his foot on the ramp.
– How similar brother and sister are! - said the count. - And how good they are both!
Shinshin began to tell the count in a low voice some story of Kuragin's intrigue in Moscow, to which Natasha listened precisely because he said charmante about it.
The first act ended, everyone in the stalls stood up, got confused and began to walk in and out.
Boris came to the Rostovs' box, very simply accepted congratulations and, raising his eyebrows, with an absent-minded smile, conveyed to Natasha and Sonya his bride's request that they be at her wedding, and left. Natasha talked to him with a cheerful and flirtatious smile and congratulated the same Boris with whom she had been in love before on his marriage. In the state of intoxication in which she was, everything seemed simple and natural.
Naked Helen sat next to her and smiled equally at everyone; and Natasha smiled at Boris in the same way.
Helen's box was filled and surrounded from the stalls by the most distinguished and intelligent men, who seemed to be vying to show everyone that they knew her.
Throughout this intermission, Kuragin stood with Dolokhov in front of the ramp, looking at the Rostovs’ box. Natasha knew that he was talking about her, and it gave her pleasure. She even turned around so that he could see her profile, in her opinion, in the most advantageous position. Before the start of the second act, the figure of Pierre appeared in the stalls, whom the Rostovs had not seen since their arrival. His face was sad, and he had gained weight since Natasha last saw him. Without noticing anyone, he walked into the front rows. Anatole approached him and began to say something to him, looking and pointing at the Rostovs’ box. Pierre, seeing Natasha, perked up and hurriedly, along the rows, went to their bed. Approaching them, he leaned on his elbow and, smiling, spoke to Natasha for a long time. During her conversation with Pierre, Natasha heard a man’s voice in Countess Bezukhova’s box and for some reason learned that it was Kuragin. She looked back and met his eyes. Almost smiling, he looked straight into her eyes with such an admiring, affectionate look that it seemed strange to be so close to him, to look at him like that, to be so sure that he liked you, and not be familiar with him.
In the second act there were paintings depicting monuments and there was a hole in the canvas depicting the moon, and the lampshades on the ramp were raised, and trumpets and double basses began to play, and many people in black robes came out to the right and left. People began to wave their arms, and in their hands they had something like daggers; then some other people came running and began to drag away that girl who had previously been in a white, and now in a blue dress. They didn’t drag her away right away, but sang with her for a long time, and then they dragged her away, and behind the scenes they hit something metal three times, and everyone knelt down and sang a prayer. Several times all these actions were interrupted by enthusiastic screams from the audience.
During this act, every time Natasha glanced at the stalls, she saw Anatoly Kuragin, throwing his arm over the back of the chair and looking at her. She was pleased to see that he was so captivated by her, and it did not occur to her that there was anything bad in this.
When the second act ended, Countess Bezukhova stood up, turned to the Rostovs' box (her chest was completely bare), beckoned the old count to her with a gloved finger, and, not paying attention to those who entered her box, began to speak kindly to him, smiling.
“Well, introduce me to your lovely daughters,” she said, “the whole city is shouting about them, but I don’t know them.”
Natasha stood up and sat down to the magnificent countess. Natasha was so pleased by the praise of this brilliant beauty that she blushed with pleasure.
“Now I also want to become a Muscovite,” said Helen. - And aren’t you ashamed to bury such pearls in the village!
Countess Bezukhaya, rightly, had a reputation as a charming woman. She could say what she did not think, and especially flatter, completely simply and naturally.
- No, dear Count, let me take care of your daughters. At least I won't be here for long now. And you too. I will try to amuse yours. “I heard a lot about you back in St. Petersburg, and I wanted to get to know you,” she told Natasha with her uniformly beautiful smile. “I heard about you from my page, Drubetsky. Did you hear he's getting married? And from my husband’s friend Bolkonsky, Prince Andrei Bolkonsky,” she said with special emphasis, thereby hinting that she knew his relationship to Natasha. “She asked, in order to get to know each other better, to allow one of the young ladies to sit in her box for the rest of the performance, and Natasha went over to her.
In the third act, a palace was presented on stage, in which many candles were burning and paintings depicting knights with beards were hung. In the middle stood probably the king and queen. The king waved right hand, and, apparently timid, sang something badly and sat down on the crimson throne. The girl, who was first in white, then in blue, was now wearing only a shirt with her hair down and stood near the throne. She sang sadly about something, turning to the queen; but the king sternly waved his hand, and men came out from the sides with bare feet and women with bare legs, and they all began to dance together. Then the violins began to play very subtly and cheerfully, one of the girls with bare thick legs and thin arms, separated from the others, went backstage, straightened her bodice, went out to the middle and began to jump and quickly beat one leg against the other. Everyone on the ground clapped their hands and shouted “Bravo”. Then one man stood in the corner. The orchestra started playing cymbals and trumpets louder, and this one man with bare legs began to jump very high and mince his feet. (This man was Duport, who received 60 thousand a year for this art.) Everyone in the stalls, in the boxes and in the rai began to clap and shout with all their might, and the man stopped and began to smile and bow in all directions. Then others danced, with bare legs, men and women, then again one of the kings shouted something to the music, and everyone began to sing. But suddenly there was a storm, chromatic scales and diminished seventh chords were heard in the orchestra, and everyone ran and again dragged one of those present backstage, and the curtain fell. Again a terrible noise and crackling arose between the spectators, and everyone with delighted faces began to shout: Dupora! Dupora! Dupora! Natasha no longer found this strange. She looked around her with pleasure, smiling joyfully.

At Kama's main river Western Urals, among 73,718 tributaries there is the Belaya River, which, in turn, has the Ufa River as its right tributary, but one of its left tributaries is the Ai River. It flows through the Southern Urals.

Origin of the name and length of the river

The origin of the name has two versions, but both one and the other are associated with the month and the moon. The first version of the hydronym (toponym relating to water bodies) owes its origin to the translation of the word from the Turkic languages, in which “ai” means “month”. The second hydronym refers to the Ayla, a tribal group that once lived in the valley of this river and had a family sign (tamga) in the form of a crescent. Ai River Chelyabinsk region It originates 40 km from the city of Zlatoust, from the Great Cranberry Swamp, and runs 271 km to the border. Then it continues its journey of 278 km through the territory of the Republic of Bashkortostan, where it flows into the Ufa River. The total length of this river is 549 kilometers.

Two parts of the Ai River

As can be seen from the above data, the regions border almost in the middle of the river. This water flow has another conventional division - into mountainous and flat parts. The Ai River flows through the rocky terrain of the Southern Urals from its source to the Salavat region.

The border is the village of Lakly. Before it, the river is mountainous, after and before its confluence with Ufa it is flat. The source is located at an altitude of more than 800 meters above sea level, between two mountain ranges - Avalyak and Urenga.

Great attraction

The Ai River is very popular among outdoor enthusiasts. It attracts with its part, which rushes among unusually beautiful rocks and hills, most of which contain many caves. Its second part, gently sloping, runs along the Yuryuzano-Ai plain, the Ufa plateau and is surrounded by forests. What is extremely attractive for tourists is that there are more than a dozen unique natural monuments on its banks. They are located mainly in the Chelyabinsk region. This entire waterway is the most beautiful in the Southern Urals.

Beginning of the rafting

Rafting on the Ai River is known throughout the country. Nowadays this activity is mainly for tourists. However, earlier, before laying in these places railway, the products of several South Ural factories were rafted along the Ai and Chusovaya rivers.

The Kusinsky Zavod station, which belongs to the Mikhailovsky Zavod - Berdyaush railway line, is the starting point of the rafting section of this tributary of the Ufa. It is in this place that the Ai River receives the waters of one of its main tributaries - the Kusa River. Despite the fact that Aya has enough tributaries, its average depth is 60 cm, and there are plenty of riffles and shoals on it. This does not make rafting along the Ai River more difficult, but makes it more interesting, being unique, but completely surmountable difficulties of traveling on boats and catamarans along it.

Visiting attractions

The entire rafting area is divided into certain sections, each of which is famous for its attractions. So, in the section from the confluence of the Kusa to the New Pier, it is the Devil’s Finger rock, which is located immediately beyond the village of Petropavlovsky, 20 km from the start of the journey.

If desired, tourists can stop near each interesting object and either climb a rock to admire the stunning views, or visit a grotto or cave. All this is provided for by the route, which is chosen at will. There are 9 of them on the Ai River.

Unique attractions

Then the Ai River in the Chelyabinsk Region receives the waters of the Bolshaya Satka River, which is famous both for the fact that it flows from the legendary high-mountain lake Zyuratkul, and for the fact that 7 km from its mouth there is the Porogi dam, on which there is an ancient power station built over a century back and still running successfully. In the third quarter of the last century, such attractions as Vanyashkinskaya and Mezhevskaya pisanitsa appeared on this route. The first is located on the Korotkovsky stone, the second is not far from the village of Ayskaya Group. These are ancient petroglyphs (images on stone of various themes) written in ocher.

Kurgazak Cave

Between these evidences of ancient civilizations there is an amazing miracle of nature - the 15-meter Karst Arch. In the same area there is another attraction - Averkiev Yama, which is a cave with a steep entrance 16 meters deep. As you approach the village of Novaya Pristan, the surrounding rocks become especially beautiful. And the number of caves in them is in the dozens. The longest (357 m), quite deep (18 m) and famous is located on the left bank of the Aya, below the village of Pokrovka with the name “Kurgazak cave”. It was famous for its extraordinary beauty, which was ensured by numerous calcite deposits. They were mercilessly stolen away for souvenirs.

Further on, the Ai River in the Chelyabinsk region has on its banks first the Small Prites, and downstream the Bolshie Prites, which are rocks 90 meters high and 2 km long. In the middle of this rock wall at a height of 70 meters there is the Yunoshesky grotto, or, on local dialect, "black hole". They get into it only by descending on ropes from the top of the cliff. Further along the course follows the Robber stone, the Golubinaya cave and the village of Sikiyaz-Tamak. Not so long ago, just 115 years ago, archaeologists found here a real, once inhabited cave city, which was named after the name of the village. The number of caves and arches in one rock mass is amazing - there are 40 of them! Perhaps such a phenomenon does not exist anywhere else.

Not a river, but a storehouse of miracles

It should be noted that the number of interesting objects on this river is surprisingly large, and detailed information about each is widely available, since the route along the Ai River is very well studied, interestingly presented and described in detail. Further downstream there is a Dance Grotto - its floor is absolutely flat and the ceiling is oval. Located 2 kilometers from the cave city, the Skvoznaya cave, like the Pigeon and the “black hole,” is located above the river at an altitude of 70 meters. Then the last few rocks follow and the river becomes flat. But another amazing attraction awaits tourists in these places - an artesian fountain located on the right bank of the river. Its height reaches 5.5 meters. The temperature of the artesian water leaving it does not exceed 5 degrees. This miracle is not entirely natural and not entirely man-made. Geologists were looking for minerals and accidentally drilled a well. This happened in 1960, and the fountain has been flowing ever since.

Routes for every taste

Very soon the village of Lakly appears, and amazing trip ends. There are several other noteworthy caves in the area that you can visit. From the village itself, tourists take a bus to the Suleya railway station, and then wherever they go - to Chelyabinsk or Ufa. A wide variety of rafting trips on this river are offered, both for the whole family and for corporate recreation. The shortest is rafting No. 1-2 days and one night. The ninth route along the Ai River is the longest - 7 days and 6 nights.

Great fishing

As in any river of the Southern Urals, this one is home to fish characteristic of these places - dace and perch, roach and pike, chub and minnow, bleak and gudgeon. But fishing on the Ai River has one distinctive feature- only here you can catch grayling. However, poor ecology and last year's drought made his catch a rare success. Most people catch here, both from the shore and from a boat, are chub. The fish does not exceed 1 kilogram. Fishing in these areas is unpredictable as the fish migrate.

Wonderful places to stay

You can also spend your holidays on the Ai River at the beautiful “Porogi” camp site. It is located in a gorge between two ridges - Chulkovsky and Uary, on the shore of the Porozhsky pond. They offer a choice of family, children's, active or corporate recreation. Some routes start from the village of the same name. From here you can go down not only the Ai River, but also the Bolshaya Satka and Yurozan. You can take mountain tours. In addition to the “Porogi” camp site near Mount Iremel, in the village of Tyulyuk, there are guest houses under the cute name “Ladybirds”. From the place in which they are located, it opens amazing view to 6 mountain peaks at once. These are Iremel and Zigalga, Bakty and Nurgush, Uvan and Big Bitch. Mount Iremel is the second highest in the Southern Urals, its height reaches 1582 meters. Particularly popular at the Porogi tourist center and in ladybugs» enjoy May holidays. The name of the river “lunar, bright, beautiful” is quite justified. On numerous photos you can see how good she is. In the attached photo you can see what the Ai River looks like on the map.

Ay, river. Left tributary of the river Ufa (basin of the Kama river). Flows through the territory. Zlatoust, Kusinsky and Satkinsky districts, Republic of Bashkortostan. Dl. 549 km (within the borders of the Chel. Region 271 km); Bass area 15,000 km2 (in the Chel. Region 5,580 km2). Within Pers. region the river valley lies between the ridge. B. Taganay, Zhukatau, Suleya, Uraltau, Uralsky, Urenga, etc. The flow is regulated by 9 ponds and reservoirs with a total water surface area of 21.9 km2 and a volume of 66.4 million m3.

The Ai River flows from the Cranberry Swamp, located. between ridges Yagodny (in the south) and Urenga (in the north) at altitude. OK. 880 m along the BS, 70 km to the south-west. from the center of Zlatoust. The general direction of the current is north-west. Flows into the river. Ufa in the Ust-Aisk tract at a height. OK. 160 m according to BS. Within Pers. region accepts 54 tributaries long. more than 10 km each; most, the largest of them: B. Arsha, B. Satka, Kusa.

Of all the rivers of the Chelyabinsk region. Ai is the 4th longest and has the highest water consumption: at the exit from the region near the village. Lakly (Bashkiria) its value reaches 48.2 m3/s (in the Zlatoust area - 8.5 m3/s, near the village of Novaya Pristan - 43.7 m3/s). Key Features rivers in the Zlatoust area: Wed. freeze-up date - November 31, ice break-up - April 17; Wed freeze-up duration 169 days; maximum ice thickness 90 cm (March); max. the high-water month is May (38% of the annual runoff), the lowest is February. (1.4% of annual flow); max water temperature 19.5 °C (June). Most of the bass. located on the Yuryuzan-Ai Plain and Ufim. plateau, notch river valleys. Below Zlatoust bass. karst in places. The soils are loamy and sandy. The soils are mountain forest, light and dark gray forest. Bass. b. h. covered with conifers and foliage. forests. In the upstream, in the area from the source to Zlatoust, the river valley is well defined, wide. its 1.3 km. Asymmetrical banks: lion. above rights. The top, parts of the coastal slopes are rocky, the bottom. covered with conifers and mixed forests. Floodplain 2-sided, wide. 40-200 m, cut by oxbow lakes, covered mixed forest and meadows; there are numerous exits groundwater. The riverbed is moderately indented. On the shoals the width rivers 8-10 m, depth. 0.3-0.4 m, current speed 0.4-0.6 m/s; on the reaches of the wide up to 20-30 m, depth. 1-2 m, current speed 0.1-0.2 m/s. The bottom is sandy-gravelly on the rifts, silty-peaty on the reaches, overgrown with aquatic vegetation. Shores high 0.6-1.5 m, steep. On the section from Zlatoust to the Chel border. region with the Republic of Bashkortostan the structure of the valley and river bed is several. others. The valley is prime here. U-shaped, wide. 1-1.4 km. High slopes decreases, width. the floodplain increases to 300-600 m. The channel is winding, moderately branched, wide. it varies from 20-40 m on the rifts to 50-60 m on the reaches. Current speed is 0.5-2.0 m/s. The banks are steep and often merge with the slopes of the river valley. There are 19 islands in this area. The river bottom is pebbly and gravel, and on the rifts it is often composed of large fragments of stones. The mineralization of river water varies from 70 mg/l in the upper reaches to 200 mg/l in the middle. flow. The water is hydro-carbonate-calcium, moderately hard, in the area from the source to Zlatoust it has good drinking qualities, and below that it is polluted. The river valley in the area between the tributaries Beida and Sikiyaz (Satk district) was declared a natural monument in 1987. There are numerous here. prites are limestone coastal cliffs rising vertically above the river. Naib. the most famous of them are the Small and Large Prites. Grows in a variety of ways. river valley world. The left bank forests are pine, the right bank are birch. Honeysuckle, raspberry, broom, rowan, bird cherry, and rose hips grow in the undergrowth. Rare plants- Prince Sib. and curly lily; medicines—golden cape, snakeweed, burnet, lungwort, etc. Large-scale household use. the development of A. began in the 2nd half. 18th century with the construction of Zlatoust. w-yes. In prom. For this purpose, river hydropower was used (water wheels drove machine tools through complex transmission systems). Along the A. (hereinafter referred to as Ufa - Belaya - Kama - Volga), during the spring flood, finished products from the Zlatoust plant, and later from the Zlatoust factories, the mountain district were floated on barges (until the completion of the Samara-Zlatoust railway. in 1888-92). The following figures indicate the scale of transportation: in 1870 from Zlatoust. 19 ships with 210,565 pounds of cargo (3,370 tons) left the pier. In the lower parts of Zlatoust, west - where A. turns sharply at the southwest. spur of Kosotur, - to the left. On the shore there were B. and M. Barochny and Pristanskaya streets, where the barges were equipped (now this is the site of the production building of the I. Bushuev Production Association). In the 18th-20th centuries. along the A. and its tributaries (the rivers Veselovka, Kuvash, Semibratka, Yurak) timber rafting was carried out for the needs of Zlatoust plant. In the upper reaches of A. (in the area of the villages of Verkhneaisky, Plotinki, Semibratki and St. Yurak) reservoirs were built, from where water was discharged during the rafting period and in case of congestion. Water was discharged using sluices. The last timber rafting in Zlatoust took place in 1960, subsequently, in connection with the construction of Novozlatoust. reservoirs, discontinued. Nowadays, A.'s time is not used for timber rafting; it participates in water supply, which means parts of the territory. Person region and the Republic of Bashkortostan. There are 60 settlements and localities in A. (13 of them are in the Chechen region: the cities of Zlatoust and Kusa, 11 villages and localities). Despite its relatively small size, A. is the cause of fairly large floods in Zlatoust. Naib, large of them were recorded in 1768 (June 7), 1862, 1896 (spring), 1909 (May 16, June 2), 1922, 1924 (Sept. 24), 1941 (April 24), 1943 (late July - beginning of August), 1964 (end of June). The center and north-west were subject to flooding in one step or another. parts of the city, located on the relatively low left bank (including factory buildings). The cause of the floods was either heavy floods (1941) or rain floods (most often in June - July). Yes, during spring flood 1941 the volume of water in A. exceeded the average. long-term values 2.1 times, highest high. the water rise per day reached barely 77, and for the entire period of the flood - 383 cm. Very large rain floods were observed in 1943 and 1964. During the flood of 1943 heavy rains took place July 21-25 and August 1-3. (the amount of precipitation reached 80 mm) at the highest altitude. The rise of water in the river per day barely reached 182, the largest volume being 18.3 million le3. Detailed hydrological research A. began in the first 10 years of the 20th century. In 1917, for energy needs, the Internal Administration. waterways A. was examined in the area from Zlatoust to the mouth: visual surveys, depth measurements, and longitudinal leveling were carried out. plots. All R. 1920s During the rectification of the Zlatoust Pond dam, it was even planned to install hydro-electric power here. turbines (the project was not implemented). In 1932-65 there was a water metering post in the Zlatoust area, from 1965 - in the area of the village. Veselovki. Name rivers has no unambiguous interpretation. In the lane from the head ay - “moon”. Probably, the image of the celestial body revered by the ancient Bashkirs was reflected in the name picturesque river: A. - “lunar” in the meaning of “beautiful”, “light”, like the moon. He was one of the first to express such a version in the 18th century. historian and geographer V.N. Tatishchev (“Ay the Tatar name is bright”). According to the head version. scientist R. G. Kuzeev, called. rivers comes from ethnic. naming ay or aide (ayle), belonging to the clan. group, once Russell. in the bass river, which had a generic sign (tamga) in the form of a crescent (ai). In the dictionary of toponyms Bashk. In the Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic the word ai is given in the meaning of “river”, “river branch”, “river tributary”. The word ai finds correspondences in the Finno-Ugric words oy, oy, ui - “stream”, “hollow”, “valley” and is found in the toponyms of other territories. Perhaps it was brought to our region by pre-Turkic people who came here in ancient times. tribes, and later used by the Bashkirs.

Of the many rivers of the Southern Urals, the Ai River stands out for its variability. Areas with incredibly beautiful rock gorges give way to flat areas. And so on all along the river.

The river is very, very popular among tourists.

The food, like all rivers of the Southern Urals, is predominantly snow-fed. The average annual water flow at the mouth of the Ai River is 84 m3/s.

Ai freezes in mid-November and opens at the end of April, beginning of May. The Ai River is conditionally divided into two parts. Mountain, from the source to the village of Lakly. Iravninnaya, from the village of Lakly, to the mouth. There are two cities on the Ai River, Zlatoust and Mezhevoy. Although the second can be considered a city conditionally and is more likely an urban-type settlement. The flow of the Ai River is regulated by three reservoirs. One of which is located at the source of the river, and two - in the city of Zlatoust. The main tributaries of the Ai River on the right: Kusa, Bolshaya Arsha, Kigi, Bol. Ik. On the left are Bolshaya Satka, Lemazy, Melekes.

The word "ay" in the Bashkir language means "moon". Those. Ay – moon river. Although it is quite possible that this is a common folk etymology and the name comes from some other source. After all, in the same area another river begins, which is called Uy. Ay and Uy are quite consonant with each other. There is still something for toponymists to think about here.

Ay, the river is floatable. High water is available for rafting in the upper reaches, but rafting on the Ai River is better to start from the city of Zlatoust. But this is in deep water. In summer, when the water level in the river is low, it is best to start rafting along the Ayu from the mouth of the Bolshaya Satka River. Or, as an option, along Bolshaya Satka, from the village of Porogi and further along the Ai River. This will allow you to see one of the most interesting engineering monuments of the Urals - a hydroelectric power station built on Bolshaya Satka back in 1910. By the way, the hydroelectric power station is still operating and the equipment on it dates back to 1909, as evidenced by the brass tags on the turbines and generators. And below the mouth of the Bolshaya Satka, the famous Ai cliffs begin, stretching to the village of Lakly. Rafting along the Ai River in this section will allow you to enjoy the picturesque rocks, caves and Ai petroglyphs. In addition, in front of the village of Lakly on the Ai River there is the famous cave city of Sikiyaz-Tamaka, but more on that later.

Rafting in the lower reaches of the Ai River, from the village of Bolsheustikinskoye, can be interesting if combined with rafting on the Ufa River. In these places there is good fishing both on the Ai River and on the Ufimka.

The Ai River differs from other rivers of the Southern Urals in one interesting property - the river is constantly muddy water. Apparently these are the rocks along the river banks. There are no rapids or rifts on the Ai River, which are usually characteristic of a mountain river. The river bottom is flat. In the mountainous part, the Ai River is meandering. Above the ancient village of Lakly, here and there along the banks there are picturesque rocks, called here prites. Almost everyone has their own name. The area along the banks of the Ay is heavily karst and there are many caves in the area. Laklinskaya, Kurgazak, Aylinsky caves and, of course, the very recently discovered and described Sikiyaztamak cave city, which includes 38 cave objects.

The places along the banks of the river are very interesting from the point of view of history and local history. Many legends are associated with these places. About the elder Averkiy, who lived in the Averkiev Yama cave. About the peasant war and the Pugachev treasure. The villages of Staraya and Novaya piers, standing on the banks of the Ai River, were indeed once piers where the products of the Satkinsky plant were loaded onto barges and sent into deep water down the river. About robbers, Old Believers and the head of the Zlatoust factories and scientist. A visit to the monastery in Istrut will also be interesting. A landmark on the banks of the Ai River is the Averkiev Yama cave. The cave is associated with a legend about the old man Averky who once lived there.

The Ai River is very beautiful, the Ai prites are especially beautiful. That is why the population of the neighboring cities of Zlatoust, and especially Satka, spends time on its banks in the summer with great pleasure. Music can be heard from everywhere according to the principle - whoever is louder is cooler. It is especially crowded in summer in front of the Sikiyaz-Tamaka rocks. In the summer, commercial tourism also flourishes on the banks of the Ai River. The rafting groups go one after another and the Ai River again turns into a toiler. Fishing on the Ai River is also popular.

You can get to the Ai River by the Ufa-Chelyabinsk railway, to the city of Zlatoust or to the Kusa station, the Bakal-Chusovskaya mining railway. By car you can travel along the M5 federal highway to the city of Zlatoust or through Satka to the village of Mezhevoy. Option to the village

Ai wasn't cloudy before. In my childhood, crayfish were found near the Kusinsky gardens. When the Zlatoust factories began to pollute the river, it became muddy and there were no more crayfish, and there were almost no fish left.

Among the numerous rivers of the Zlatoust Urals, the longest and most abundant is the Ai River. It originates on the Cranberry Swamp between the Yagodny Ridge (from the south) and Urenga (from the north) at an altitude of about 880 m, 70 km southwest of the center of Zlatoust and flows into the Ufa River (the right tributary of the Belaya River) in the tract Ust-Aisk at an altitude of about 160 m. Within the Chelyabinsk region, 54 tributaries more than 10 km long flow into Ai. In this territory, Ai is the fourth longest river in the region. It also has the highest water consumption. At the exit from the region at the Lakly point its value is 42.3 cubic meters per second, in the Zlatoust area - 8.5 cubic meters per second. Large-scale economic development of Aya began in the second half of the 18th century, in connection with the construction of the Zlatoust plant. The river's hydropower was used for industrial purposes. Along the Ayu (hereinafter referred to as Ufa-Belaya-Kama-Volga), during the spring flood, finished products of the Zlatoust plant, and later of the Zlatoust mountain district, were floated on barges (until the completion of the construction of the Samara-Zlatoust railway in 1888-92). The scale of transportation is indicated by the following figures: in 1870, 19 ships with 210,565 pounds of cargo (3,370 tons) left the Zlatoust pier. In the lower part of the Zlatoust plant, where Ai turns sharply at the southwestern spur of Kosotur, on the left bank there were Bolshaya and Malaya Baroque and Pristanskaya streets, where the barges were equipped. Nowadays, on the site of these streets there are production buildings of the Production Association named after. Bushueva. IN late XVIII-XIX For centuries, timber rafting was carried out along the Ayu and its tributaries. Last time this large-scale process, which took considerable time (preparations began in winter), took place in 1960. Today, the role of Ay as a transport artery has come to naught, but the river still plays important role in the water supply of a significant part of the territory of the Chelyabinsk region and the Republic of Bashkortostan. On the banks of the Ay there are 60 settlements, and the total number of people living near the river is about 250 thousand. The name of the river does not have a clear interpretation. From the Bashkir language, ay is translated as moon, month. Probably, this heavenly image, revered by the ancient Bashkirs, was reflected in the name of the picturesque river. Ai - “lunar”, meaning “beautiful”, “bright as the moon”. According to another version, the name of the river comes from the ethnic name Ay or Aide (ayle), belonging to a tribal group that was once settled in the river basin, which had a tribal sign (tamga) in the form of a crescent (ay). At the same time, in the dictionary of toponyms of the Republic of Bashkortostan the word “ai” is translated as “river”, “river branch”, “river tributary”. The word “ay” finds correspondence in the Finno-Ugric words “oy”, “oya”, “uy” - “stream”, “hollow”, “valley” and is found in other territories. Perhaps it was brought to our region by pre-Turkic tribes who came here in ancient times, and later used by the Bashkirs).

The Satka section of the Ai River valley was declared a state hydrological natural monument of regional significance in 1987. Flowing through the Satka region, the river makes its way through picturesque rocky banks covered with pine and spruce trees. Almost every new turn of the river gives tourists an encounter with another natural and historical monument. These are majestic cliffs, dry waterfalls, mysterious caves covered in legends, including a geological monument of regional significance - the Averkiev Pit, the most inaccessible in the Chelyabinsk region - the Yunoshesky Grotto, rock paintings of ancient people. The “fighter” type rock outcrops, which seem to have frozen on the banks of the fast-flowing Ai in the form of giant stone heroes, amaze with their magnificence and gigantic power. Rocks represented by limestones. They contain voluminous and visible waterless ravines (dry valleys), water-absorbing pores and a characteristic karst topography. It is characterized by numerous failures in flat areas of the terrain - plateaus, including on plowed lands - funnels of all sizes, wells and mines. This section of the Ai Valley, figuratively named back in the 50s. XX century "cave region", has long attracted lovers of rafting mountain rivers, climbers, rock climbers, speleologists, rescuers.

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