In 1773, being already in her old age, Catherine II made a trip to the Crimea. This voyage, as we know, was a very expensive venture and cost the treasury in 15 million rubles. But despite the fabulous costs, the main pearl of the Crimea — the South Coast, the queen did not see. The imperial cortege reached one of the passes, from where the blue sea surface opened in all its glory, the queen admired the picturesque surroundings from afar and went on her way back.
The very point from where Catherine was viewing the South Coast (or rather a tiny part of it) was Baidarsky Pass.
It should be said that modern tourists can admire the same views with much more comfort. They have a magnificent observation deck at their disposal. And back then, not that observation deck!
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There was no decent road! The paths connecting the rare mountain villages were so inconvenient and even unsafe that sometimes the locals preferred to get from village to village by sea, by boat. Of course, the elderly ruler could not afford such an extreme tour.
Even much later, traveling in these parts was not as pleasant and easy as it is today. The aristocrats who had estates here did not like this state of affairs very much, but it was not in their power to change anything. And then Count Vorontsov appears on the historical skyline, and the matter shifts from a dead point — the construction of the road connecting Sevastopol and the South Coast begins. Of course, the count pursued not only national, but also personal goals, as this road was used to export wines and agricultural products produced in his South Coast estates.
The Vorontsovskaya road, the construction of which was completed in 1843, served all travelers faithfully for many years, although in comparison with the modern autorassa was very inconvenient — narrow and winding.
To somehow mark the end of construction, it was decided to build a stone arch at the pass point where for the first time the sea expanse opened before travelers. The arch, known to all of us under the name of Baidar Gate, designed by architect K. I. Eshliman, was erected in 1848.
Having survived all the hardships, this building has been remarkably preserved and now serves as one of the main attractions of the Baidar Pass.
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Today, tourists make a brief stop here, climb up to the observation deck, take photos and go on their way. But in the beginning of the 20th century, almost all passing by stopped here for the night, because the way from Sevastopol to Yalta took much more time. Horses traveled to Yalta all day long — leaving early in the morning and arriving late in the evening. Since this way was considered tiring, many people preferred to stop at the Baidar Pass. There were two hotels here, which, published in 1913, G. Moskvich’s guidebook characterizes as expensive and, moreover, «very poor» and «extremely miserable». Even the very word «hotels» was taken by the author in quotation marks. At the same time, the price of a room was exorbitantly high. «Both hotels, — wrote the author — despite the high prices they charge for everything, not excluding small things, do not meet their purpose in terms of furnishings, are not characterized by cleanliness and good sanitary conditions». The local restaurant was also criticized by the author; the food there was «quite bad» and the prices were called outrageous.
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In post-revolutionary times there were no hotels on the pass, but the restaurant seems to have always existed and never lacked visitors. Literally until the early 70’s, when the South Coast Highway was laid, the way from Sevastopol to the South Coast passed through the Baidar Pass, and the line of the road largely coincided with the old Vorontsovskaya. And even today the pass is not empty. The picturesque road through Baidary is popular among motor tourists.
What you can see from the observation deck:
The sea, of course. Below — the domes of Foros Church, even lower — the houses of the village Foros. From the north — Baidarskaya valley with Chernorechenskoye-vodohranilishhe.html»>Chernorechenskoye reservoir. From the east — steep precipices of Mshatka mountain. From the west — the slope of Chelebi mountain.
The height of the Baidar Pass above sea level. — 527 м.