Zheleznovodsk: Trails, Park and History

• Kurortny Park is part of the large Beshtau forest massif.
• The Pushkin Terrenkur is around 800 meters long; the Hospitalny Terrenkur is around 400 meters long.
• The ecological route up Mount Zheleznaya is about three kilometers long; allow approximately two hours for the round trip, including breaks.
• Terrenkur No. 3 runs for just over eight kilometers to the foot of Mount Razvalka.
• Mineral water drinking pavilions are located in Kurortny Park and at the Cascade Staircase.

Two shorter terrenkur trails in Kurortny Park differ both in length and theme. The approximately 800-meter-long Pushkin Terrenkur is dedicated to Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin and was created in 2020. Sculptures depict characters from his works; steles display his poems and drawings. There is also a “Pushkin roulette” with five rotating drums. The approximately 400-meter-long Hospitalny Terrenkur recalls the wartime period, when Zheleznovodsk was transformed from a spa town into a hospital town. The park trails therefore offer different historical and literary associations.

Longer routes offer further options. The ecological route leads to the summit of Mount Zheleznaya and is about three kilometers long. The estimate of approximately two hours explicitly includes the round trip and breaks. Terrenkur No. 3 is just over eight kilometers long and leads to the foot of Mount Razvalka. The two mountain destinations therefore differ not only in their stated trail lengths: one route ends at a summit, the other at the foot of a mountain.

Zheleznovodsk’s Kurortny Park is part of the large Beshtau forest massif. Mineral water drinking pavilions are located in the park and at the Cascade Staircase. One named pavilion is the Slavyanovsky Spring Drinking Pavilion, located in Kurortny Park on the eastern side of Mount Zheleznaya. This allows the park’s trail themes and the named places to drink mineral water to be considered separately, without grouping them together as a single stop.

In addition to the terrenkur trails, the Ostrovsky Baths complex is part of the city’s history. It was built in 1893 and named after Mikhail Nikolayevich Ostrovsky, the brother of the famous playwright. This is a different namesake connection from that of the Pushkin Terrenkur: the trail is dedicated to the poet and features characters, poems and drawings from his works. Travelers looking to compare cultural themes when planning their trip will find both a historic building complex and a trail designed around literature.

For a regional comparison, it is worth looking at Stavropol Krai. In Kislovodsk, the Narzan Gallery is in the city center at the entrance to the spa park. It is a 19th-century architectural monument and a cultural heritage site of federal significance. Also in Kislovodsk, Lermontov Rock is on the southern outskirts of the city, in the Olkhovka Gorge near the settlement of Narzanny. Since 1961, it has been a natural monument of regional significance and part of the Mikhail Lermontov State Museum-Reserve. The gallery and the rock are in Kislovodsk; the terrenkur trails mentioned here and the Ostrovsky Baths complex are in Zheleznovodsk.

Discover more destinations: Svistukha, Donskoye, Divnoye, Budennovsk, Kislovodsk, Vorovskoy, Yessentuki and Arbali.

How long are the two terrenkur trails in Kurortny Park?

The Pushkin Terrenkur is around 800 meters long, and the Hospitalny Terrenkur is around 400 meters long.

How long does the ecological route up Mount Zheleznaya take?

Allow approximately two hours for the round trip, including breaks. The route is about three kilometers long.

Where are the mineral water drinking pavilions located?

They are located in Kurortny Park and at the Cascade Staircase. The Slavyanovsky Spring Drinking Pavilion is in Kurortny Park on the eastern side of Mount Zheleznaya.

Back to the main travel overview: Stavropol Krai.