Chemal
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Chemal
Чемал
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Chemal ( Russian Чемал , südaltaisch Чамал / Tschamal ) is a large village (Selo) in the north of the Russian autonomous Republic Altai in southwestern Siberia with 3602 inhabitants (14 October 2010).
geography
The place is located on the right bank of the Katun , the left and larger source river of the Ob , about 60 km south of the republic capital Gorno-Altaysk . The river emerges from its narrow high mountain valley here, so that the most important road connection in the Russian Altai , the R256, was led 30 km to the west through the valley of the tributary Sema via Cherga and Schebalino .
The Tschemal river of the same name flows into the Katun near Tschemal . The completely different coloration of the two rivers is unusual: while the Katun mainly carries glacier water (like its tributary Akkem ) and has a milky-light green color, the water of the Chemal is clear. At the mouth, this dividing line is very sharp and only a few decimeters wide.
The place is the administrative center of the Chemal Rajons of the same name .
history
After a Russian Orthodox missionary station had existed in the area since 1849 , the village was founded in 1885. At the turn of the century, Chemal developed into a climatic health resort and resort of regional importance due to the relatively mild climate due to its location in the narrow Katun valley. For example, the botanist and explorer Vasily Saposhnikov , the explorer Grigori Potanin and the writer Vyacheslav Shishkov stayed here .
In the 1930s, various spa facilities were added to the resort at the instigation of the wife of the formal Soviet head of state, Mikhail Kalinin , who lived in Chemal for ten years. In 1935, a reservoir with a small hydroelectric power station (output 400 kilowatts ) was built on the Tschemal near the estuary .
In the 1970s, Tschemal received the status of an urban-type settlement , but lost it again before 1989, especially since the construction of one or - depending on the project - two large hydropower plants planned since the 1970s on Katun above the town was initially withdrawn due to ecological concerns has been. The possible construction of the dams is still under discussion today.
In 1992 Chemal became the administrative center of a district that was spun off from the Shebalino district .
- Population development
| year | Residents |
|---|---|
| 1979 | 2640 |
| 2002 | 3266 |
| 2010 | 3602 |
Note: census data
Attractions
Tschemal is one of the most important tourist centers of the Altai as a starting point for trekking , mountain tours or rafting on Katun, but also because of its colorful panorama, which can be seen from several mountain climbs into the narrow valley and the estuary of the Tschemal. Tour groups often visit a Russian Orthodox nunnery with a hermitage on the rocky island of Patmos in Katun (named after the important Greek Orthodox monastery on the island of Patmos , the presumed place of the creation of the Revelation of John ).
Katun at Chemal
Hermitage of Patmos
The reservoir at Chemal
The Chemal flows into the Katun
Hydroelectric power station near Chemal
Infrastructure
Tschemal is connected to Ust-Sema on the R256 trunk road, the “Tschujatrakt”, via a 37 km long road a few kilometers north of the neighboring village of Elekmonar along the right bank of the Katun .
Web links
- Official Website of Chemal Raion (Russian)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Itogi Vserossijskoj perepisi naselenija 2010 goda. Tom 1. Čislennostʹ i razmeščenie naselenija (Results of the All-Russian Census 2010. Volume 1. Number and distribution of the population). Tables 5 , pp. 12-209; 11 , pp. 312–979 (download from the website of the Federal Service for State Statistics of the Russian Federation)
