Somewhere between Volkhov and Svir Rivers

The photographs presented here were made during a trip with colleagues to the north of the Leningrad region.

To get to the Storozhno village located on the Ladoga shore, you should better take an off-road vehicle or someone’s else car, cause one cannot help feeling pity for one’s own car when driving such a road. Moreover, at the day of our visit mobile phones didn’t work regardless of the operator. However, the village has other points of interest – the highest European lighthouse and the remains of the “robbery” monastery.

The legend says that the monastery was founded in the 15th century by Cyprian, a repented pirate who used to attack merchant ships on the Ladoga Lake. Once he run into a strong gale and prayed fervently promising to give up his “job” and build a church. Cyprian kept his word and the Cypriano-Storozhensky monastery existed till 1764, when it was abolished in accordance with the decree of Catherine the Great. Today, one will find here just a small St. Nikolas church (16th century) and a contemporary belfry made of several gas cylinders.

Storozhenskiy Light, overlooking the picturesque shore at 71 meter high, was built in the early 20th century.

One more road peculiarity is a draw pontoon bridge over the Novoladozhsky (Svirsky) Channel. On our way back we were lucky enough to see it in action. The bridge is drawn both for small vessels according to the schedule and for larger ships upon request.

Our next destination was the Ponomarevo village with its two churches – a wooden Nikolskaya church (1799) and a stone Smolenskaya one (1826) built in the baroque style.

Multiple reconstructions resulted in the fact that today the roof of Nikolskaya church is crowned with a disproportional onion dome. Smolenskaya church, despite of the reconstruction works, rouses a feeling of touching desolation. The church is open around the clock and one can enter it anytime. Few notices on the walls urge visitors to behave properly and invite to make donations.

Later on we went to the Vvedeno-Oyatsky convent (14 century), though it had always been a monastery and became a convent only in 1993. The convent is situated on the Oyat river and at various times was destroyed by German, Lithuanian and Polish invaders. Having survived repressions and kolkhozes during the Soviet period, it is being renovated now and looks quite splendid. A saint spring is situated nearby. Its bath house and water taps attract believers and pilgrims.

The Akulova Gora village, the country estate of the Polenovs, is not far from the convent. In that very place Vasiliy Polenov painted his 37 pictures and there I. Repin, I. Shishkin, N. Rerikh stayed. Today, only several Siberian pines and an overgrown pond remind of those days. The pines are 150 years old and are said to be planted by the painter himself. Church of St. Basil the Great (2000) was erected on the place where the burned Polenov’s house once was.

A few kilometers away, on the opposite bank of the Oyat river, one can find a skete with St. Nikolas Church. A forest cemetery is arranged nearby.