Why this ride
From Shushary it runs 105 km to Shushary; allow about 2 h 15 of riding. The stops in between: Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk, Dudergofskaya Elevation and back through Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Pulkovskaya Observatory and Dudergofskaya Elevation
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 105 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 15
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Pulkovskaya Observatory
On the Pulkovo heights, the low ridge south of St Petersburg, an observatory has been watching the sky since 1839. It was founded by Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve, the German-born astronomer who became its first director, and it quickly became one of the leading observatories in the world, with the largest refracting telescope of its day. The Pulkovo meridian, running through the observatory's main building, served as the reference for Russian maps for many years. Struve also led the measurement of the Struve Geodetic Arc, a chain of survey triangulations stretching from the Arctic Ocean to the Black Sea, which helped determine the size and shape of the earth and is now a UNESCO site.
Read the complete Pulkovskaya Observatory write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Pulkovskaya Observatory is where the day begins. Next is Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk.
2. Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk
Pavlovsk was a gift. In 1777 Catherine the Great gave her son Paul, the future emperor, a stretch of forest and meadow south of Saint Petersburg, and he and his wife Maria Feodorovna turned it into one of the most elegant country residences in Russia. The Scottish architect Charles Cameron designed the palace, a pale yellow building with a shallow dome and a colonnade, and the park, which spreads over some six hundred hectares, was laid out in the English landscape manner, with winding paths, little bridges and pavilions half hidden among the trees. It is among the largest landscape parks in Europe, and walking in it on a quiet morning is a joy.
Read the complete Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk comes up about 22 km into the recorded legs. Next is Dudergofskaya Elevation.
3. Dudergofskaya Elevation
The land around St Petersburg is almost perfectly flat, so any hill gets noticed. The Duderhof Heights, a pair of wooded hills rising south of the city near Krasnoye Selo, are the highest ground for many kilometres around, with the higher one, Voronya Gora or Crow Hill, reaching a little under two hundred metres above sea level. From the top, on a clear day, you can see the gilded domes of the city and the waters of the Gulf of Finland.
Read the complete Dudergofskaya Elevation write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 54 km into the recorded legs you reach Dudergofskaya Elevation. Next is back through Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk.
4. back through Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk, late in the day. Next is Pulkovskaya Observatory.
5. Pulkovskaya Observatory
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Pulkovskaya Observatory write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Pulkovskaya Observatory. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Pulkovskaya Observatory to Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk
Pulkovskaya Observatory → Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk to Dudergofskaya Elevation
Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk → Dudergofskaya Elevation is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Dudergofskaya Elevation to back through Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk
Dudergofskaya Elevation → back through Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk to Pulkovskaya Observatory
back through Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk → Pulkovskaya Observatory is 19 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.