!!!Iturup Island. The Southern Kurils, Russia

Text by Sergey Semenov.
Photos by Sergey Semenov and Stas Sedov,
members of the [AirPano Team|Geography/About/Consortium/AirPano,_Team] that is a member of the [global-geography Consortium|Geography/About/Consortium]. \\

16 July 2021

with kind permission of [AirPano|http://www.AirPano.com]

Having done a good job on Sakhalin, the AirPano team went to the
Southern Kuriles. The flight from Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk to Iturup takes only
an hour and a half, and there is also a ferry going to this place: quite
comfortable and all-weather means of transport, so getting there is not
a problem.

[{Image src='01_Iturup.jpg' caption='White cliffs of Iturup\\© [AirPano|https://www.AirPano.com]' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='365'}]

Iturup is the largest island of the Great Kuril Ridge. It stretches from
the northeast to the southwest for 200 kilometres, the maximum width is
27 kilometres, the length of the coastline is more than 580 kilometres,
and the total area is 3,174.71 km².

The island is known for its volcanoes, fumaroles and other objects that
nature has created. Its picturesque coastal landscape, represented by
bays, rock formations, capes and cliffs of the most incredible shapes,
is best viewed from the water. And therefore the Kuriles cannot do
without the help of local travel agencies: you can't take a boat with
you from Moscow! In addition, it is difficult to get to many interesting
points on land as there are simply no roads!

[{Image src='02_Iturup.jpg' caption='Iturup Island. The Southern Kurils, Russia\\© [AirPano|https://www.AirPano.com]' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='506'}]

When planning the expedition, we wanted to see and take pictures of one
of the most famous sights and the landmark of Iturup, White Rocks on the
Sea of Okhotsk coast, and we succeeded! Bizarre ridges cut by canyons
consist of pumice and porous volcanic glass, and the strip near the
water is covered with mixed sand: white quartz and black
titanium-magnetite. This dark grey sand looks very unusual against the
background of light rocks. The hills rising up to 185 meters stretch for
28 kilometres and their beauty can in many respects be compared
favourably with the world's most famous natural attractions.

[{Image src='03_Iturup.jpg' caption='White cliffs of Iturup\\© [AirPano|https://www.AirPano.com]' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='600'}]

Nearby there is Tornaya Bay: it's where the seals have settled. Another
beautiful bay is named Golden: its shores are covered with yellow clay,
and it shines brightly in the sun. Wind, water and time have created sea
stacks here — unusual volcanic sculptures of various shapes. Bear's paw,
Comb, Camel — these are the names given by people to some of them for
having familiar outlines. And the genuine landmark is a huge arch.

[{Image src='04_Iturup.jpg' caption='Golden Bay. Iturup Island. The Southern Kurils, Russia\\© [AirPano|https://www.AirPano.com]' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='359'}]

And another beautiful bay in this part of the island is Parusnaya, where
you can see an amazing stone grotto, as well as a local "celebrity": a
waterfall called Maiden's Tears. You can go behind its water stream and
admire the ocean from there.

[{Image src='05_Iturup.jpg' caption='Waterfall in Parusnaya Bay\\© [AirPano|https://www.AirPano.com]' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='515'}]

Iceland is famous for scenes like this, but it turns out that in Russia
the similar places can be found: they are not well known, but this
virtual tour by AirPano should fill the gap.

But Iturup is just interesting for being very diverse! One of the most
incredible places is the Yankito lava plateau, where time seems to have
stopped millennia ago. Piles of bizarre peaked rocks were formed from
multi-coloured volcanic lava and solidified when touched by the sea.

[{Image src='06_Iturup.jpg' caption='Iturup Island. The Southern Kurils, Russia\\© [AirPano|https://www.AirPano.com]' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='600'}]

Iturup also has active volcanoes: Baransky volcano, for example, being
1,125 meters high. The last eruption took place in 1951, but the thermal
activity has not stopped, and at its foot, there is a river with the
self-explanatory name Kipyaschaya (Russian for "boiling"). Its water is
so hot that you can boil eggs in it! The river flows out of the small
and boiling lake called Blue Eyes. Its water contains sulfuric acid in
high concentrations, so this beauty is deceiving: swimming is dangerous.

No wonder that this unusual warmth has created its own microclimate and
its own ecosystem. Strange and flattened pines grow around the volcano:
the shape of the crown resembles one of the trees of the African
savannah.

[{Image src='07_Iturup.jpg' caption='Iturup Island. The Southern Kurils, Russia\\© [AirPano|https://www.AirPano.com]' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='487'}]

And of course, this natural activity can be used for the benefit of
humans! In the area of Baransky volcano, hot thermal springs gush from
fumarole fields, and the AirPano team was pleased to visit the thermal
complex where you can take hot baths. But the fact is that you will not
be offered a guaranteed temperature regime here: the water heats up and
cools down depending on the "mood" of the volcano: it can be both +40 °C
and +60 °C! There are also thermal complexes "Baths" and "Hot Waters"
where visitors themselves can regulate the water temperature in the
baths.

[{Image src='08_Iturup.jpg' caption='White cliffs of Iturup\\© [AirPano|https://www.AirPano.com]' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='240'}]

All landscapes of Iturup are beautiful at any time of the day, but
especially at sunrise and sunset. We were lucky to capture them at the
most advantageous time thanks to the Adrenaline Tour company and the
photographer Victoria Rogotneva. And this journey with AirPano is
intended to illustrate how beautiful the nature of this part of Russia
is: you should definitely visit this place on your own!

\\ \\
[19 panoramas of Southern Kuril Islands|Geography/Asia/Russia/Pictures/Southern_Kurils]

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