Footnotes: (applicable only where specifically marked above)
** Arrival dates earlier than the online-reservation-window may also be available at the campground.
Some sites may be available only from the campground on a first-come-first-served basis.
Young Pioneer Tours
On our recent Chechnya and North Caucasus tour, YPT naturally spent a lot of time in the revitalised city of Grozny, which is rapidly becoming the centre of the North Caucasus. Gleaming and flashing, this city had a far worse reputation a few years ago. It was labelled as the most destroyed city on earth by the UN and Chechnya was branded the most dangerous place on the planet, where kidnapping and death was almost guaranteed. Luckily, that’s in the past and today, you can enjoy a cappuccino or a pizza on the main street, called Putin Prospekt, worry free.
We were impressed with Grozny Chechnya so we decided to list our five favourite attractions in this amazing city.
Ramzan Kadyrov, the ruler of Chechnya, is infamous around the world for many reasons — but mainly due to his online presence. The Instagram of Ramzan Kadyrov is littered with his adoration of President Putin, his MMA skills and his love of holding dangerous animals such as wolves, lions and bears. Under his reign he has rebuilt Grozny with Russian money, building impressive football stadiums, one of the biggest mosques in Europe and gleaming business centres.
It’s no secret, however, that he is nowhere near as popular as his murdered father Akhmat Kadyrov. In the centre of Grozny is the Akhmat Kadyrov museum, which is the definition of dictator chic. Upon entering you are greeted with sheer marble and stunning chandeliers. The museum is overwhelmingly a shrine to Akhmat and Ramzan. You can see the clothes Akhmat was wearing on the day he died, original photographs of the explosion that ripped him apart, gifts from tribal leaders and heads of other Russian republics as well as books he and Ramzan have written about themselves. Upstairs is an art gallery of various paintings people have donated including some fetching portraits of Ramzan, Akhmat and their grandfather in tribal clothes with an intimidating glare.
Labelled ‘’the most destroyed city on earth’’ by the UN in 2000, Grozny is now a reborn and refurbished city. At the end of Putin Prospekt is the Grozny business plaza where for a few Rubles you can take an elevator to the helipad of one of the buildings, enjoy a few (non-alcoholic) drinks and look down upon Grozny below. Bear in mind that there are warnings not to photograph from one angle as it faces the president’s palace. This rule is serious and not meant to be broken under any circumstances.
The pride of modern Grozny is the Akhmat kadyrov mosque also known as ‘’the heart of Chechnya’’. One of the largest in Russia, it is of typical Ottoman style with a set of 62-metre (203 ft)-tall minarets. It was opened in 2008 in a ceremony in which Ramzan Kadyrov appeared and spoke with Vladimir Putin. The area of the mosque is 5000 square meters and has a capacity of more than ten thousand people. The same number of faithful can pray in the mosque adjacent to the gallery and the area of summer. The interior is stunning and well worth a visit inside.
If you’re lucky, your trip will coincide with a football match. Our YPT group tour did and I wasn’t sure what to expect but Chechen football is a great atmosphere and you’ll likely see president Kadyrov sitting in his executive suite balcony watching the match. The stadium is very high-tech as the team is owned by Ramzan Kadyrov himself; expect high security on entry and to be thoroughly searched. Unlike at British or American football matches, where a beer and pie or hotdog is a staple on the menu, at football matches in Chechnya you will be given Pepsi and Russian pancakes. No alcohol is for sale anywhere in or around the arena.
Whilst not, strictly speaking, in Grozny, this museum is located on the outskirts of the city and is absolutely unmissable. The curator, Adam, is a close friend of the president and a former wrestling champion with the nickname ‘’The George Clooney of the Caucasus’’ due to his handsome looks. Easily in his mid-60s, Adam will still challenge the strongest looking men he meets to an arm wrestle. Do not resist or be fooled by his age, because he will win! More famous than his wrestling antics is his personal museum. During the Chechen conflicts, Adam drove a Lada Niva into downtown Grozny during heavy Russian bombing and rescued artifacts of the history of the Chechen people before they were destroyed. Today, he displays them in his compound home. The display features everything from T-Rex eggs and military cannons to Civil War relics and the hide of an infamous sheep-killing wolf that Adam himself hunted down and killed as a favour to a local Chechen tribe. After his tour his wife will cook you some traditional Chechen food (don’t miss the cheese bread with sour cream!) while Adam takes a series of alpha-male photos with everybody, likely featuring cannons and swords.
And there we have it – a dangerous, ‘destroyed’ city no longer, Grozny is well worth a visit if you happen to be in Chechnya or the North Caucasus!
Joel Vostok is YPT’s Soviet Europe manager and resident military history buff. He can usually be found striking a manly pose in front of tanks or hunting Soviet relics in the former Eastern Bloc.
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How the tiny region shaped post-Soviet Russia on the 20th anniversary of the start of first Chechnya war.
Moscow, Russia – Twenty years ago on Thursday, Moscow started what it thought would be a “blitzkrieg” against secular separatists in Chechnya, a tiny, oil-rich province in Russia’s North Caucasus region that had declared its independence.
But the first Chechen war became Russia’s Vietnam; the second war was declared a victory only in 2009. The two conflicts have reshaped Russia, Chechnya, their rulers – and those who oppose them.
In 1994, s hortly after Moscow invaded Chechnya in an effort to restore its territorial integrity, Akhmad Kadyrov, a bearded, barrel-chested Muslim scholar turned guerrilla commander, declared jihad on all Russians and said each Chechen should kill at least 150 of them.
That was the proportion of the populations on each side of the conflict: some 150 million Russians and less than a million Chechens in a small, landlocked province, which the separatists wanted to carve out of Russia.
Western media and politicians dubbed the Chechens “freedom fighters” – an army of Davids fighting the Russian Goliath.
Moscow was lambasted internationally for disproportionate use of force and rolling back on the democratic freedoms that former leader Boris Yeltsin was so eager to introduce after the 1991 Soviet Union collapse.
Tens of thousands died amid atrocities committed by both sides – and many more were displaced before 1996, when the Russians retreated, leaving Chechnya essentially independent.
Retreating was a humiliation for Russia’s military machine that less than a decade earlier had presented a seemingly formidable threat to the entire Western world.
Chechen against Chechen
Independence did not quite work out for the Chechens. The separatist government based in the ruined capital, Grozny, lost control over the rest of Chechnya.
Feuding field commanders and foreign jihadists, such as the Saudi known as Emir al-Khattab, ruled small districts with their own little armies. Kidnappings for ransom – along with primitive extraction of oil – were their main sources of income.
Many of the foreigners adhered to a puritanical Muslim ideology known as Wahhabism that ran counter to Chechnya’s Sufi traditions.
Akhmad Kadyrov, who was appointed as top Mufti of Chechnya, came into opposition with the puritans and their Chechen supporters, because he saw their extremist views as a threat to the separatist movement. In 1998, Kadyrov openly renounced the Wahhabis – and barely survived the first of many assassination attempts.
Kadyrov soon switched alliances, siding with the people upon whom he had once declared war – the Russians.
A virtually unknown ex-KBG officer, Vladimir Putin became Russia’s new prime minister i n August 1999 and w ithin weeks led a military operation against the Chechen fighters.
RELATED: Timeline: Attacks in Russia
When a series of explosions in apartment buildings in Moscow and two Russian towns killed more than 300 Russians, Moscow blamed Chechen rebels and embarked on an epic “anti-terrorist operation,” which became the second Chechen war.
Putin’s approval ratings skyrocketed, paving the way for his first presidency. A ided by Kadyrov and other Chechen clans who had pledged allegiance to the Kremlin, t he Russian military quickly returned most of Chechnya to Moscow’s control. In 2003, Kadyrov was elected Chechen president.
Russian targets
Cornered in Chechnya, the separatists took the war to Russia.
Attacks throughout the country became a grim reality of the new war and involved explosions in cities and towns, on planes and public transport.
At least two dozen attacks were carried out by female suicide bombers. Dubbed “black widows”, they became a sinister image imprinted on Russia’s collective psyche.
One such attack killed Akhmad Kadyrov in May 2004. His son, 27-year-old Ramzan Kadyrov, was too young to run for president at the time, but as head of his father’s security service, he quickly became Chechnya’s de facto ruler. I n 2007, soon after he turned 30, the younger Kadyrov was elected president.
Four months after his father’s assassination, Chechen separatists seized a public school in the town of Beslan taking more than 1,000 hostages, mostly children. Almost 200 kids died when Russian forces stormed the school. The incident changed the world’s attitude towards the Chechen cause – “freedom fighters” became “Islamic insurgents” in the Western media.
Meanwhile, the media in Russia came under attack.
“The saying was that it was journalists who won the first Chechen war,” says Tatyana Lokshina, deputy director of the Moscow branch of Human Rights Watch, an international rights watchdog.
Moscow used unfavourable media coverage of the war as an excuse to curtail press freedoms. The Kremlin took over all national television networks and most major newspapers.
[AP] |
“For years, Vladimir Putin saw the pacification of Chechnya as his main achievement,” says Stanislav Belkovsky, a Moscow-based political analyst . “In that respect, Putin has a colossal psychological dependency on Chechnya and Ramzan Kadyrov who ensured the pacification.”
The Beslan crisis also served as a pretext to tighten political screws in Russia. Putin eliminated regional gubernatorial elections, complicated participation of opposition parties in elections, and limited democratic freedoms.
The public hailed Putin for bringing stability and pacifying Chechnya. The victory revived Moscow’s imperial ambitions – at least in the area of the former Soviet Union.
Shaping today’s Russia
Moscow won the brief 2008 Russo-Georgian war over the breakaway Georgian province of South Ossetia . In March 2014, Russia took over Crimea from Ukraine and helped unleash a civil war between pro-Russian separatists and the central Ukrainian government just a month later.
Both Chechen wars became systemic factors in shaping today's Russia. Instead of peaceful development inside the country we moved to the priority of external expansion by - Stanislav Belkovsky, political analyst
“Both Chechen wars became systemic factors in shaping today’s Russia,” says Belkovsky . “Instead of peaceful development inside the country, we moved to the priority of external expansion.”
Putin declared “the counter-terrorism operation” in Chechnya over in 2009 – just when things in North Caucasus took a turn for the worse.
Dagestan and several other provinces in the region became the new hotbeds of radical Islamism. A new generation of Moscow’s foes did not want secular separation – instead they are fighting to establish a “Caucasus Emirate” that includes adjacent Russian regions with sizable Muslim populations.
At least 529 people were killed and 457 wounded in North Caucasus in 2013, according to Kavkazsky Uzel, a Russian web portal that monitors the situation in the region. The confrontation has turned into “Europe’s most active armed conflict ” , according to the International Crisis Group, a conflict-monitoring organisation.
The insurgency became self-sustaining because of a vicious circle perpetuated by corruption and brutality.
Federal forces and police trigger the violence with extra-judicial killings, arrests, kidnappings and other abuses, according to rights groups and critics. They claim young men have no other options but to join the rebels because corrupt officials blacklist their families to extort bribes.
The fighters, in turn, blackmail corrupt officials who embezzle lavish funds from Moscow. The practise involves “sending a flash card” containing a video message in which bearded men demand a “jihad tax”.
Storming Grozny again
Ramzan Kadyrov was, perhaps, the least attentive man in the crowd of about 1,100 officials in an opulent Kremlin hall on December 4 during Putin’s annual address. The stocky 38-year-old Chechen leader fidgeted in his seat and constantly checked his phone.
Just hours before the Kremlin ceremony, a dozen Islamist fighters attacked Grozny, Chechnya’s newly-rebuilt capital. Shootouts in a publishing house, an empty school, and an office building killed 11 insurgents and 14 law enforcement officers.
A day after the attack, Kadyrov said the attackers’ families should be thrown out of Chechnya, their houses destroyed. At least six houses that belonged to relatives of the Grozny attackers have been burned down by masked men, Lokshina of Human Rights Watch said.
Kadyrov’s threats were not new to Chechens. During the second Chechen war, he led paramilitary squads known as kadyrovtsy that soon gained notoriety for abducting, torturing and killing separatists and civilians suspected of aiding them, according to human rights groups and survivors.
that soon gained notoriety for abducting, torturing and killing separatists and civilians [AFP] |
A string of his political enemies and critics, including a former bodyguard, an investigative reporter, and a human rights activist have been gunned down in Chechnya, Moscow, Austria, and Dubai.
Kadyrov denied involvement in the contract-style killings.
Over the years, Kadyrov developed a penchant for luxury – he has a private zoo, race horses, and numerous sports cars. Pop stars, Hollywood actors and sportsmen show up at concerts held on his birthday.
His portraits are seen on billboards, government buildings and schoolchildren’s lapel pins; while streets, schools, mosques and military units are named after his father and mother.
Whatever he does is breaking news on Chechen television – he is shown threatening rebels and corrupt officials, boxing with his ministers, welcoming foreign dignitaries,and bestowing money, apartments and cars upon average Chechens.
Some say Kadyrov’s lifestyle and political ways make him look like an eccentric sovereign, not a public official on the Kremlin payroll.
“Today, Chechnya is a de facto independent state,” says Belkovsky. “Although formally [Kadyrov] shows loyalty to Putin and formally Chechnya is part of Russia.”
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Along the banks of Deer Creek Reservoir in Deer Creek State Park, Sailboat Beach and Day Use Area offers visitors and campers a summer getaway and launch point for water sports on a 3,000 surface acre reservoir a half hour from Provo and an hour from Salt Lake City. Under the looming presence of Mount Timpanogos, incredible views abound.The beach itself, although it consists of large-grain ...
April 27, 2023. DEER CREEK STATE PARK — The Sailboat Beach Day-Use Area at Deer Creek State Park will be closed to all public access beginning May 1, 2023, for construction as part of the Deer Creek Intake Project.The closure is expected to last until spring 2026. The project is a critical part of the Provo River Water Users Association's work to continue maintaining the infrastructure at ...
Current Conditions. Last Updated: 09/13/2024. NOTICE: The Sailboat Beach Day-Use Area will be closed to all public access beginning May 1, 2023 through Spring 2026 for construction as part of the Deer Creek Intake Project. Read our announcement for additional details.. NOTICE: Launch ramps are open. Courtesy docks are in. Use the ramp and reservoir at your own risk.
The Deer Creek Dam & Reservoir is an essential infrastructural feature for Utahns living on the Wasatch Front for many reasons: ... Sailboat Beach Closed for the Deer Creek Intake Project. The Sailboat Beach Day-Use Area at Deer Creek State Park will be closed to all public access beginning May 1, 2023, for construction as part of the Deer ...
The Sailboat Beach Day-Use Area at Deer Creek State Park in Heber City is pictured on Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023. The area is closed to all public access as part of the Deer Creek Intake Project. The closure is expected to last until spring 2026. | Laura Seitz, Deseret News .
via Facebook. There are six hiking trails at the park. They are all easy-to-moderate hikes, taking you through rolling hills, meadows, ridge lines, and more. You can see the hiking-only trails below. Adena Ridge Trail - 0.8 mile - easy. Hawkview Meadow Trail - 0.6 mile - easy. Marsh Walk Trail - 0.7 mile - moderate.
Deer Creek State Park, Utah - GROUP DAY USE. Site SAIL01, Loop Group Day Use. GROUP DAY USE. ... F O X DEN Entrance Sailboat Beach Great Horned Owl Campground Chokecherry Campground Rainbow Bay Area Chalet Foot Path Decker Bay W allsburg Group Area Chokecherry Campground Great Horned Owl Campground T o Day-Use Area & Boat Ramp Day-Use Area ...
Unlimited horsepower boating is permitted on the 1,277-acre Deer Creek reservoir. Two boat launch ramps provide access to the lake. A fully-equipped marina offers fuel, boat rental, and seasonal dock rentals. For information, call (740) 869-2100. ... A 1,700-foot swimming beach with picnic tables and grills is available at the park. Pets are ...
WASATCH COUNTY, Utah (ABC4 News) - Part of Sailboat Beach and the Sailboat Beach boat launch at Deer Creek Reservoir will be closed this summer. Beginning Monday throughout the remainder of the summer visitors at Deer Creek Reservoir should be aware of drilling operations at the park. Visitors can expect to see a barge, drilling equipment ...
Located at Deer Creek State Park - Island Beach Day Use Area. See Island Resort Rentals. CALL US: (435) 654-2155. DC COVE MARINA WaveRunners® & Paddle Craft Only. ... "The boat and equipment was awesome. We wake boarded, surfed and tubed our butts off. The staff was amazing. They are extremely friendly, helpful and made the whole experience ...
A day-use entry fee is required, purchase in-person or online. The Annual Utah State Park Pass is accepted for park entry. At an elevation of 5,420 feet, Deer Creek State Park offers a reprieve from the valley's high heats while still being warm enough to enjoy boating, swimming and watersports. Average Daily High and Low Temperatures.
Fun things to do at Deer Creek State Park: The Lakehouse Restaurant is located at The Island area of Deer Creek State Park. OPEN. 5317 S HIGHWAY 189 HEBER, UT 84032 TEXT/CALL: 435.210.7474, thelakehousedeercreek.com. To book a zipline tour at Zipline Utah please call 866-923-1063 or go to ziplineutah.com to make reservations.
There are two paved boat launch ramps and one gravel for smaller vessels. Two marinas offer boat rentals and gasoline. One campground, accommodating tents and trailers, is available for those wanting to spend more than a day at Deer Creek. Deer Creek Reservoir, located in the southwest corner of Heber Valley, offers some of Utah's finest fishing.
Deer Creek State Park is an outdoor enthusiast's dream. Its major attractions are water-based, including boating, water skiing, sailing, windsurfing, swimming, and fishing. It is also a great place for kids, as most of the activities are kid-friendly, and there is plenty of space to run around. Some of the most popular activities in Deer Creek ...
With access to nearly 3,000 surface acres at Deer Creek State Park, Island Beach Day Use Area offers prime access to some of the broadest waters and best wind sports in the Wasatch Front. Just 30 minutes from Provo and an hour from Salt Lake City, Deer Creek Reservoir offers reliable winds, a big surface area, and convenient access to amenities that include boat rentals, kiteboarding lessons ...
Deer Creek is a great place to spearfish. Visibility can vary, but it is good for the most part. Temps are similar to other lakes in the area. There are some rocks and other things to see. Training Programs. Courses & Events. Centers & Resorts. Dive & Travel. Partner with SSI. Beginner. Scuba Diving; Freediving; Mermaid;
500 Deer Creek Rd Unit D, Surfside Beach, SC 29575 is for sale. View 30 photos of this 2 bed, 1 bath, 1092 sqft. condo with a list price of $189000.
The 1999-2000 battle of Grozny was the siege and assault of the Chechen capital Grozny by Russian forces, lasting from late 1999 to early 2000. This siege and assault of the Chechen capital resulted in the widespread devastation of Grozny. In 2003, the United Nations designated Grozny as the most destroyed city on Earth due to the extensive damage it suffered.
Deer Creek State Park, Utah - STANDARD-FULL HOOKUP. Site CC14, Loop Chokecherry. STANDARD-FULL HOOKUP ... F O X DEN Entrance Sailboat Beach Great Horned Owl Campground Chokecherry Campground Rainbow Bay Area Chalet Foot Path Decker Bay W allsburg Group Area Chokecherry Campground Great Horned Owl Campground T o Day-Use Area & Boat Ramp Day-Use ...
The pride of modern Grozny is the Akhmat kadyrov mosque also known as ''the heart of Chechnya''. One of the largest in Russia, it is of typical Ottoman style with a set of 62-metre (203 ft)-tall minarets. It was opened in 2008 in a ceremony in which Ramzan Kadyrov appeared and spoke with Vladimir Putin. The area of the mosque is 5000 ...
May 20, 2021. WALLSBURG, Utah — Management at Deer Creek State Park is announcing a temporary closure of the boat ramp at the main state park entrance on June 2; along with the temporary closure of the Sailboat Beach and dry storage areas for the day on June 1. These temporary closures will allow maintenance crews to apply asphalt slurry seal and striping to the areas.
The first one, fought between 1994 and 1996, had resulted in a humiliating defeat for Russia. But the carnage was far worse when the conflict resumed under Putin in 1999. Arriving in Chechnya that ...
11 Dec 2014. Moscow, Russia - Twenty years ago on Thursday, Moscow started what it thought would be a "blitzkrieg" against secular separatists in Chechnya, a tiny, oil-rich province in ...
Island Group Pavilion can be rented through Deer Creek Island Resort. (CLOSED SUMMER 2023-2026)Sailboat Beach Group Day Use Area: $250 flat rate (50 people max) Group Overnight Use: Wallsburg Group Camping Area: $500 per night, Monday-Wednesday. No camping Thursday-Sunday. Maximum of 100 people and 20 vehicles.