Podgorenskiy

• The District Local History Museum in Podgorenskiy has four halls: a historical hall, a pre-war hall, a Hall of Battle Glory, and a modern hall.
• The museum opened on January 16, 1983, on the 40th anniversary of the liberation of Podgorenskiy District from the German occupiers.
• The collection in the historical hall includes a model of a peasant house, archaeological finds, a working loom, and historical everyday objects and clothing.
• The program on the second day of the “Kazachye bratstvo” festival includes a gala concert and an awards ceremony for festival participants in Melodiya Park in the center of Podgorenskiy.

The four halls focus on different periods and themes: history, the pre-war period, battle glory, and modern times. The opening date links the museum to a specific anniversary in the district’s history. The historical hall brings together different kinds of evidence: the model of a peasant house offers a glimpse of domestic life, while the loom represents weaving; archaeological finds, clothing, and other historical everyday objects complement the collection. Together, the exhibits illustrate different aspects of everyday life in the past.

The museum also preserves personal belongings and photographs of soldiers who liberated Podgorenskiy District from the German occupiers. The collection also includes personal belongings and photographs of people from the region who died in Afghanistan and the Chechen Republic. Alongside material evidence of everyday life, the museum therefore also highlights individual life stories. As you explore, you can distinguish between the themes: on the one hand, domestic life, crafts, and clothing; on the other, personal belongings and photographs connected with the events and people mentioned.

On the second day of “Kazachye bratstvo,” the program includes a gala concert and an awards ceremony for festival participants. The event takes place in Melodiya Park in the center of Podgorenskiy.

Within the wider destination of Voronezh Oblast, the territory of the Khopyor Nature Reserve extends across the administrative districts of Novokhopersky, Povorinsky, and Gribanovsky. Two tours there differ considerably in how you get around and how long they take: the five-kilometer “Legendy Khopra” walking tour takes three hours and is closed during the spring floods. The “Tur de Khopyor” cycling tour covers 26 kilometers and takes four hours. Two halls in the reserve’s natural history museum showcase wildlife and its habitats. Exhibits cover beavers, Russian desmans, waterfowl and birds of prey, wild boar, elk, fallow deer, and red deer; there is also a large relief map of the reserve. Check the museum’s visitor arrangements before your trip.

The Divnogorye Museum-Reserve represents a different landscape in Voronezh Oblast: chalk cliffs on steep slopes and large, ridge-like chalk ravines define the scenery. Divnogorsky Canyon is about one kilometer long and up to 200 meters wide. Six ritual caves and cave complexes are carved into the chalk massif on the right bank of the Tikhaya Sosna and Don rivers and extend for about 8.5 kilometers. The reserve’s cultural heritage also includes Stone Age settlements, the ruins of the medieval Mayatskaya Fortress, and the cave complexes. The Stone Age is recreated at the “Paleoliticheskiye masterskiye,” where workshops are held on making stone tools.

Another distinctive destination in the region is the Khrenovskoy Stud Farm in the southeast. It is considered the birthplace of the Orlov trotter and Russia’s oldest stud farm. Count Alexei Grigoryevich Orlov-Chesmensky founded it on October 24, 1776. A visit includes the old stables and modern horse stalls, and you may also see Orlov trotters. The Horse Breeding Museum displays old breeding books and the breed’s family tree, as well as horse blankets and the cups and medals won by the stud farm’s horses at racetracks in Russia and abroad. Tours are held daily but must be arranged in advance; check the arrangements with the operator before your trip.

Discover more destinations: Solnechnyy, Kuchugury, Medovka, Divnogorye, Sloboda, Ostrogozhsk, Novoaleksandrovka, Zaoserednye sady.

What restriction applies to the “Legendy Khopra” walking tour?

The walking tour in the Khopyor Nature Reserve is closed during the spring floods.

How long does it take to walk to the cave church in Malyye Divy?

The walk to the Cave Church of the Nativity of John the Baptist crosses the grounds of the Divnogorye Museum-Reserve and takes 30 to 40 minutes. Access to the church must be arranged with the monastery’s pilgrimage service.

Do tours at the Khrenovskoy Stud Farm need to be arranged in advance?

Yes. Tours are held daily but must be arranged in advance. Check the visitor arrangements with the operator before your trip.

Back to the regional travel guide: Voronezh Oblast.