During the Great Patriotic War, fierce battles of the large-scale Battle for the Caucasus raged in the mountains near the resort for 442 days. The heroic deeds of Soviet soldiers who prevented the enemy from reaching the Black Sea are immortalized in obelisks and military signs. Many of these were erected at different times by enthusiasts – veterans, search teams, and local historians – and are located in труднодоступных (hard-to-reach) places, remaining малоизвестными (little-known). Students from Sochi Gymnasium No. 44 decided to rectify this situation by creating an interactive map of the obelisks located in the city's vicinity. The students presented their project at the "Green Tourism in the Sochi Resort City" competition and received a special prize from the Rosa Khutor resort for its implementation. As part of this initiative, the schoolchildren spent six months collecting and systematizing information, consulting with employees of the Sochi History Museum, and communicating with local historians.
"For many years, I have been studying the history of Krasnaya Polyana. Working in archives and expeditions, I collected information about the events of the Great Patriotic War in these places. I was happy to share all the data with the children. I visited most of the monuments and obelisks located along tourist trails and mountain passes. This helped to more accurately indicate them on the interactive map. Now this information will be available to everyone, which will help preserve historical memory," shared local historian Dmitry Andreev.
The interactive map with the locations of military obelisks and memorial signs is published on the website обелискисочи.рф (obeliski-sochi.rf). Currently, information about 45 sites can be found here, including descriptions of the events to which the monuments are dedicated, their history of creation, and accessibility.
"The project initiated by the students of Gymnasium No. 44 in the year of the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory is not limited in time. Further search and publication of information about the events of the Great Patriotic War in our region will continue. The organization of summer hikes for schoolchildren to the obelisks and memorial signs is planned to assess their condition and carry out minor repairs accessible to the children. This good deed will serve to strengthen the connection between generations and revive the tourist and search movement, which was recently popular among mountain travel enthusiasts in Sochi," shared Dmitry Kolosov, Director of Sustainable Development at Rosa Khutor.
As part of the project support, the mountain resort will provide the schoolchildren with all the necessary hiking equipment. This summer, the children are already planning expeditions to the obelisks along two routes, including the famous "Thirtieth Route" (a popular hiking trail).
"Patriotic education plays an important role in the educational process. The project of the students of Gymnasium No. 44 will complement the large-scale map of military obelisks, which is presented on the website of the Sochi administration. We hope that this good initiative will serve as an example for other educational institutions in the city, whose students will join this movement," noted Tatyana Andreeva, Deputy Head of the Department of Education and Science of the city of Sochi.
Information about the events of the Great Patriotic War in the mountains of Sochi will be available not only from the interactive map. As part of the celebration of May 9th, Rosa Khutor will host open screenings of the film "Higher Than the Sky, Higher Than the Mountains. The Battle for the Passes," which was filmed on the initiative of the resort and tells about the battles for the Caucasus. They will take place at the "Prokat 1100" venue at 17:00 and in the lecture hall of the Sport-Marafon mountain club at 19:30.
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