Gelendzhik or Gelenjik is a resort town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the Gelendzhik Bay of the Black Sea, between Novorossiysk and Tuapse. Greater Gelendzhik sprawls for along the coastline and covers an area of, although only fall within the boundaries of Gelendzhik proper. Population:
History
In antiquity, the Gelendzhik Bay was the site of a minor Greek outpost, mentioned as Torikos in the Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax. It is unknown to Hellenistic sources, but reappears in Roman ones under the name of Pagrae in 64 BC. The colony was wiped out by the invading Huns, which were succeeded by the Zygii soon after. During the Middle Ages, the bay was of some mercantile importance to the Genoese traders who referred to the seaside village as Maurolaca. Before Russia secured the coast by the Treaty of Adrianople, a brisk slave trade had been carried on between the mountaineers and the Ottoman Empire. Since the Circassian beauties were usually traded for gold and other commodities before being taken to Turkish seraglios, the market place became known as "Gelendzhik", literally, "little bride" in Turkish Language. In 1831, one of the first forts of the Black Sea Coastal Line was set up at Gelendzhik. At the outbreak of the Crimean War the fort had to be blown up and abandoned, but it was resettled by the Cossacks in 1864, at the conclusion of the Russian-Circassian War, and became known as the stanitsa of Gelendzhiksaya. Town status was granted to Gelendzhik in 1915.
Description
During the Soviet period, Gelendzhik was developed as a resorttown. It possesses sand beaches, three waterparks, two chairlift lines, and two Orthodox churches. The environs of Gelendzhik are noted for a chain of waterfalls, an outcrop of dolmens, two extremely ancient pine and juniper groves, and the Sail Rock, located from the town's central area. The coastal village of Arkhipo-Osipovka, administrated from Gelendzhik, contains the terminus of the Blue Streamgas pipeline. An annual hydroaviasalon is held in Gelendzhik since 1996.
The climate of Gelendzhik is a cooler humid subtropical closely bordering the semi-arid climate. Winters are mild and snowfall is light. Summers are hot with warm evenings. Sometimes Gelendzhik has experienced big floods as it happened in 2012.
