One of the most beautiful places in Opukskij Nature Reserve is considered to be Uzunlar Salt Lake. The natural pictures that open to the eye here are impressive and inspiring, and the healing properties of the Uzunlar brine and mud attract everyone who wants to improve their health.
Uzunlar Lake is located in the south of the Kerch Peninsula, it is separated from the sea only by a small narrow strip of land — the scarp, so here you can see a really inspiring panorama: behind the brown lake can be seen a small sandy spit, and further just a few kilometers vast blue smooth glisten under the sunlight sea water. On the northern and eastern sides, the shoreline of the lake is steep and reaches from 2 to 5 meters in height, and not far from the overflow between the sea and the lake rises Konček Mountain, which enhances the picturesque nature of the whole picture.
Uzunlar is one of only twenty unique Crimean salt lakes-limans (former sea bays separated from the land), although the water in it contains 10 times more salts than in the sea. Among these lakes stand out the Kerch group, in which Uzunlar is the second largest by area. The water mirror extends to 21.2 square kilometers, the length of the lake is about 10 km, and the maximum width reaches 5.5 km, the depth is very shallow — up to 1.2 meters. Thanks to this, rest on Uzunlar is popular among all those wishing to enjoy the magnificent views and recover.
Black and gray silt covering the bottom of the lake is considered curative, its healing properties are scientifically confirmed. It reaches a depth of 10 meters, and the total reserves of therapeutic mud in Uzunlar are estimated at 9.145 million cubic meters. The sulfide salts contained in the mud of the lake penetrate deep into tissues and organs through the skin, improving their metabolism, which is useful in arthritis and other joint inflammations, diseases of tendons, muscles and bones, sciatica and neuritis, prostatitis, weakness of ovaries and inflammation of uterine appendages, as well as poorly healed fractures. Mud treatment is considered the oldest method of treatment and for many centuries of practice has confirmed its effectiveness in the therapy of the widest range of diseases. Bathing (limanotherapy) in the salt waters of Uzunlar (rapa) is considered particularly useful for diseases of the musculoskeletal system, chronic inflammatory processes, improves the heart and blood vessels, metabolic processes, increases muscle tone and has an analgesic effect.
Needlessly Kerch salt lakes are very popular among all tourists choosing rest in Kerch and its surroundings — it is an opportunity not only to admire the beautiful nature, unusual views, but also to recover, improve health and even get rid of chronic diseases with periodic (2-3 times a year) mud treatment and limanotherapy.
Being the second largest among the Kerch lakes, Uzunlar has earned the fame of a popular attraction of the Crimea, and everyone who has been here would like to visit it again. Stunning panorama of the brown water surface, the pass, mountain peaks and the Black Sea, therapeutic muds and beautiful nature around — Uzunlar Lake has everything you need for the most pleasant and useful vacation.