Gulkevichsky District: Discover Churches and History

• Churches: The tour developed by the local history and regional museum starts at the Holy Trinity Church in Gulkevichi and passes through nearby parts of villages and hamlets in the district.
• Battles of 1942: One tour visits memorials to the battles in July and August, in which cadets from the Uryupinsk Infantry School fought against units of the motorized SS Division “Wiking.”
• Military history: Another tour visits sites in Gulkevichi and the settlement of VNIISS. Its topics include the founding of Gulkevichi railway station in 1875 and the occupation of the district from 1942 to 1943.
• Memorial sites: A walking route includes memorial plaques, monuments, the “Rodina-mat’” complex with its Eternal Flame, and the Alley of Heroes of the Soviet Union. The stops are linked to commemorative dates in the district’s military history from 1941 to 1945.

The church tour links a specific starting point in Gulkevichi with a route through nearby parts of villages and hamlets in Gulkevichsky District. The museum describes it as being for groups of ten or more. Confirm the current arrangements directly with the museum before planning your visit.

The military history tours focus on different subjects. One covers the battles of July and August 1942 and the cadets from the Uryupinsk Infantry School and units of the motorized SS Division “Wiking” involved in them. Another visits military history sites in Gulkevichi and the settlement of VNIISS. Topics there include the founding of Gulkevichi railway station on July 15, 1875, on the Rostov–Vladikavkaz railway line, and the occupation of Gulkevichsky District by German troops from 1942 to 1943. This gives the historical scope a range from 19th-century railway history to events of the Second World War.

The walking route visits memorial plaques and monuments, the “Rodina-mat’” complex with its Eternal Flame, and the Alley of Heroes of the Soviet Union. The museum describes this route as being for groups of ten or more; confirm arrangements directly with the museum before planning. The stops relate to commemorative dates in the district’s military history from 1941 to 1945. The route therefore focuses on remembering a longer period, while the tour of the 1942 battles covers a narrower historical topic.

A visit to an individual memorial site is also documented with a specific date: on November 16, 2022, schoolchildren from Gulkevichsky District visited a memorial complex in the village of Novomikhailovskoye with a museum research associate. The schoolchildren were from School No. 21 in the village of Pushkinskoye.

As a broader travel destination, Krasnodar Krai offers other perspectives. In the «Azovskie kosy» nature park, sea waves and currents shape spits and islands from sand and shells. Shallow coastal waters, the ends of the spits, and sandy islands host colonies of various gull, tern, and cormorant species throughout the year; their presence varies seasonally.

Another theme in Krasnodar Krai is the «Vinnye dorogi Krasnodarskogo kraya» route. It presents more than 2,500 years of winegrowing and winemaking history, from antiquity to the present, including through interactive exhibitions and installations. If you plan to take this route, check the current itinerary in advance.

Discover more destinations: Shcherbinovskiy rayon, Krasnodar, Novopokrovskiy rayon, Krymsky District, Seversky District, Abinsky District, Kalininskiy rayon, Pavlovskiy Rayon.

Where does the tour of Orthodox churches start?

It starts at the Holy Trinity Church in Gulkevichi and passes through nearby parts of villages and hamlets in the district. The museum describes it as being for groups of ten or more; confirm the current arrangements directly with the museum.

What periods do the historical tours cover?

The topics range from the founding of Gulkevichi railway station on July 15, 1875, through the battles of July and August 1942, to the occupation of the district from 1942 to 1943. The memorial route relates to commemorative dates in military history from 1941 to 1945.

What nature-related themes can you find across Krasnodar Krai?

In the «Azovskie kosy» nature park, spits and islands made of sand and shells shape the coastal landscape. Bird colonies are present there throughout the year; their presence varies seasonally. This perspective belongs to Krasnodar Krai as a broader travel destination.

For the broader travel overview: Krasnodar Krai.