It’s hard to believe, but millions of years ago, where today the forest rustles and birds sing, a completely different force of nature raged. It was here that an ancient volcano rose, forever changing this region. Did you know that our Park is the only one in Ukraine situated on extinct volcanoes? The Vygorlat-Hutyn Volcanic Range stretches across the territory of three countries: Romania, Slovakia and Ukraine. The territory of the Zacharovanyi Krai National Park lies at its centre. Mount Buzhora is situated on the Velykyi Dil massif and is the highest peak both in the national park and in the entire Volcanic Range of the Ukrainian Carpathians. The mountain rises to a height of 1,081 metres above sea level.
Look around you; take a look at the stones beneath your feet. Almost every stone you see is a fragment of solidified volcanic rock, preserving the memory of those distant times. Look closely and you will notice that volcanic rocks vary in colour, density and texture. It is these very features that make this landscape so unique. The bedrock of this range consists of extrusive rocks (primarily andesites, basalts and tuffs), formed by lava flows and eruptions that took place 7-15 million years ago, during the Miocene and Pliocene geological periods.
Over time, the Synyavka River eroded the inner part of the volcanic crater, forming the valley we see today. The water completed the work that the volcano had once begun.
But the volcano left behind another natural gem – the Chorne Bagno marsh. It formed in the crater of the extinct volcano, where impermeable volcanic rocks trap the water. This is precisely why a unique high-altitude bog has formed here, with peat deposits up to 7 metres thick, which have preserved the natural history of the Carpathians for millennia. A striking confirmation of this ecological chronicle came in the form of a unique discovery: whilst work was being carried out to restore the bog’s water regime, beautifully preserved trunks of ancient fallen trees were found here. The peat, deprived of oxygen, acted as a natural preservative, preserving these relics of the forest and capturing the memory of bygone eras.
Take another look. Today, this landscape seems peaceful, but it was ancient volcanic activity that laid the foundations for the forests, rivers and marshes that make the ‘Zacharovanyi Krai’ so unique.
But the story of Synyavka doesn’t end there. The water will take us further along the route and reveal a new story – about the life of mountain streams and their marvellous inhabitants.