Why this ride
434 km from Ol’gino to Ol’gino, about 6 h 24 of riding. On the way it passes Lindulovskaya Roshcha, The Blocade Ring and back through Lindulovskaya Roshcha. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
The Water-bringing system of Peterhof and The Blocade Ring
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 434 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 6 h 24
- 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.
Scenic road chapters
Saint Petersburg Imperial Shore
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For about 107 km this is Saint Petersburg Imperial Shore, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 107 km
- Named road
- Saint Petersburg Imperial Shore
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. The Water-bringing system of Peterhof
The fountains of Peterhof run without a single pump, and that is the cleverest thing about them. When Peter the Great planned his gardens in the 1710s and 1720s, engineers led by Vasily Tuvolkov worked out that the water of the Ropsha hills, about twenty kilometres to the south, stood high enough above the Gulf of Finland to feed the fountains by gravity alone. They dug canals, built ponds and laid pipes, so that the water flows from the heights to the Upper Garden and down to the Great Cascade, where it shoots high into the air. The system, still essentially the same, is part of the UNESCO listing for Saint Petersburg.
Read the complete The Water-bringing system of Peterhof write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The Water-bringing system of Peterhof is where the day begins. Next is Lindulovskaya Roshcha.
2. Lindulovskaya Roshcha
Out on the Karelian Isthmus, in a landscape of pine, birch and sandy soil, stands a grove of larches that looks entirely out of place. The Lindulovskaya Grove was planted in 1738 by an admiral, Fyodor Soimonov, who wanted to grow shipbuilding timber for the Russian navy, and he chose Siberian larch, a durable and rot-resistant wood. Some of the trees are nearly three centuries old and very tall, and the grove is protected as a natural monument, the oldest planted larch forest in Russia. Walking among the trunks, with their orange-grey bark, and the soft light filtering through the needles, is surprisingly moving.
Read the complete Lindulovskaya Roshcha write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Lindulovskaya Roshcha comes up about 107 km into the recorded legs. Next is The Blocade Ring.
3. The Blocade Ring
The Blockade Ring stands on the south bank of the Neva, east of Saint Petersburg, close to where the Road of Life began its journey toward Lake Ladoga. It commemorates the siege of Leningrad, which lasted from September 1941 to January 1944, roughly 872 days, and the corridor that kept the city alive. When Shlisselburg fell in September 1941, the city was cut off by land, and the only lifeline ran across Ladoga, by boat in summer and over the ice in winter.
Read the complete The Blocade Ring write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 223 km into the recorded legs you reach The Blocade Ring. Next is back through Lindulovskaya Roshcha.
4. back through Lindulovskaya Roshcha
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Lindulovskaya Roshcha write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Lindulovskaya Roshcha, late in the day. Next is The Water-bringing system of Peterhof.
5. The Water-bringing system of Peterhof
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The Water-bringing system of Peterhof write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at The Water-bringing system of Peterhof. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
The Water-bringing system of Peterhof to Lindulovskaya Roshcha
The Water-bringing system of Peterhof → Lindulovskaya Roshcha is 107 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Lindulovskaya Roshcha to The Blocade Ring
Lindulovskaya Roshcha → The Blocade Ring is 116 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
The Blocade Ring to back through Lindulovskaya Roshcha
The Blocade Ring → back through Lindulovskaya Roshcha is 115 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Lindulovskaya Roshcha to The Water-bringing system of Peterhof
back through Lindulovskaya Roshcha → The Water-bringing system of Peterhof is 96 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.