There is a rivulet with a funny name Lyuka in the vicinity of Yalta. It starts high in the mountains among high pine forests. Flowing down the steep slopes, the river has a significant slope, is full of many picturesque cascades and small waterfalls. There are real multi-meter waterfalls here. They can’t be called especially grandiose: the river is a little watery, but like any corner of the wilderness, Luke’s waterfalls have their own charm.
Fans of light recreational walks along cozy forest paths on the Luke have nothing to do. They will not get pleasure. On both sides of the river are steep mountain slopes, the bottom is piled with stones and crossed by ledges of all possible sizes. A normal trail will lead you to the riverbed, but further up you will have to scramble over rocks, jump from bank to bank repeatedly, risking wet boots, wade through bushy branches and thorny brambles of blackberries.
It is difficult to say exactly how many waterfalls there are on Luke. The question is what to consider a waterfall and what is just a ledge. There are plenty of picturesque compositions of stone blocks and water jets in the channel.
If you go up from the intersection of the channel with the dirt road, you can meet two nice small ledges along the way, but in the tourist environment for some reason the first is usually called a high waterfall, formed by the right tributary flowing into the Luka. Many people consider it to be the most picturesque one. Although you can argue with this statement. It is rather peculiar, not like all the others and has some unique mysterious «aura». Very beautiful place itself, unusual coloring of the rock, as if covered with strokes of black, gray and light brown paint. A strip of water lazily flows along it.
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From the first waterfall it is literally a 5 minute walk to the next waterfall. It’s a little lower and fuller water. While the waters of the first one flow thoughtfully down the surface of the stone wall, the second one is much more lively and playful.
From the second waterfall a narrow path runs down the right side of the valley. Having climbed up it, we will find ourselves at the foot of the third waterfall. It is a multicascade one. Its upper ledge is lost somewhere above, and the stream rushes down, jumping over stones and huge pine logs cluttering the channel.
The cascades of the third waterfall are formed by steep rocky steps crossing the riverbed. It is not safe to climb them. It is wet, slippery. It is better to go around the slope. Though this option is not pleasant either. There is no path, and there are nasty prickly blackberries all around.
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The reward for your labors will be the contemplation of the fourth waterfall. As they say: that’s it! There’s no further normal route. I do not advise you to prove your dashiness by climbing further up the rocks. Checked on my own stupid experience. First of all, the rock here is layered limestone. Very unreliable stuff. No matter how much you hope for the strength of your hands and the tenacity of your fingers, all this is completely useless when the stones you grab, simply fall out of the rock. Secondly, climbing up is not so difficult, even taking into account the falling rocks. But how do you get down? The rock is crumbling, there are no bushes or branches to hold on to! And at the bottom, on the slope, there is also a rash, and rarely unreliable. So it is better to admire the waterfall, enjoy the silence and solitude, and then head back!