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Kivach Falls, Karelia

The Kivach waterfall is the most famous waterfall in Karelia and the second largest flat waterfall in Europe after the Rhine. The water here falls down four slopes from a height of 10.7 m. The waterfall owes much of its fame to Karelian governor Gavriil Romanovich Derzhavin. In 1785, circling the province, he stopped at a waterfall and later wrote in his “Daily Notes” the following: “Between the terrible steepness of black mountains water falls with a great noise... The blackness of the mountains and the gray of the beating with noise and foaming water bring a pleasant horror and present a beautiful sight. Later, he dedicated Kivach famous ode "Waterfall".

The very first mention of the Kivach waterfall is found in the scribal book for 1566: “On the Suna river under the Kivach threshold - the tony”. There are three versions of the origin of the name of the waterfall: Russian - from the word "nod", Finnish - from the word kivi (stone), Karelian - from the word kivas (snow mountain). The last interpretation is most likely - in the place of water fall a huge white padun from foam is formed.

The old Karelian legend tells how Kivach was formed. The sisters-rivers of the Sunna (“sleep”) and Shuya flowed alongside for a long time. Once, Sunna gave her sister a more comfortable course, and she lay down to rest and fell asleep. Waking up, she saw that Shuya had run far ahead, and rushed to catch up with her. She demolished all obstacles, turned and crushed stones and rocks. And then in the place where the Sunnah broke through the rocks, a waterfall arose.

At the waterfall was often the poet-Decembrist Fedor Glinka, even mentioned him in his poems. But the most eminent visitor to Kivach was Emperor Alexander II. On the occasion of his arrival in 1868, a good road was laid to the waterfall, a gazebo on the right bank and an overnight house on the left bank were built, and a bridge over the Suna below the waterfall.

Scuba divers say that large bream, perch, pike like standing near the sheer walls of the waterfall.

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