After an abundant breakfast you will leave Grodno for the village of Krasnoselsky.
Krasnoselsky, which population is a little more than six and a half thousand people, was established in 1914 after the construction of the cement plant, which became the city-forming enterprise.
Today it is one of the largest enterprises in Belarus, engaged in the production of a range of building materials, including cement, lime and others.
Shortly after the construction of the plant, the First World War broke out and the plant had to close. At that time, it was almost dismantled, and soon the idea of blowing up the building came up. But fortunately, these plans did not come to fruition, and the plant was saved.
By the end of the 1980s, however, the plant was considered obsolete and unpromising, and in 1988 it was decided to build a new cement plant.
Today, as then, lime is mined in quarries to produce cement. The used quarries filled with water. However, since there is chalk at the bottom of such an object, the water acquired a turquoise color. This is how the famous chalk quarries were created, popularly called “Belarusian Maldives”, which we will visit with a local guide.
After that we will visit the museum that tells about the history of the company and this region, where you can also see amazing exhibits from the Cretaceous period of the Mesozoic era, discovered during the extraction of limestone in the local quarries. At the end of our tour we will go through the area of the first cement plant, which is being dismantled at this time, but still retains elements of an advanced Soviet company.
After getting quite hungry, we will drive from dusty Krasnoselsky to a small village right in the Belovezha virgin forest, where you will be welcomed by the hostess of a country estate and her friend. They will treat you with a delicious lunch. The Belovezhskaya Pushcha is one of the most valuable protected areas in Belarus and the last preserved deep virgin forest in Europe.
After lunch you will have time to walk around the village, which is very picturesque. Another option would be to go into the forest accompanied by the hostess to pick mushrooms.
In the late afternoon you will leave one forest village and will go to another one, where you will be welcomed by Alexander Pakach.
Alexander is the son of the forester. He spent his childhood in the Belovezha virgin forest and knows all its secrets. Today Alexander is a park ranger and nature photographer. For his guests Alexander offers accommodation in a wooden house, which he has equipped very cozy and with all necessary comforts.
You will spend the evening around a camp fire to share your impressions. Alexander will prepare a delicious barbecue and treat you with real Belovezha forest moonshine. All this will be accompanied by the roar of the reindeer, which will be heard from the forest, as the end of August and beginning of September is the rutting season.
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Accommodation: wooden house at the edge of the forest (2 bedrooms, a kitchen and a toilet + shower)
Meals: breakfast at “Semashko”, lunch at the estate “Belowezhye”, dinner at Alexander’s
Transfer: minibus