Scientists are still arguing about in which part of the huge Kulikovo field in the southeast of the Tula region the famous battle of the Russian army with the Golden Horde took place. However, there are also generally accepted “official” coordinates. For many centuries this area had no historical significance. The field was crushed into small pieces, villages were built, rye and wheat were sown, and orchards were grown. Until one day they discovered the remains of people, horses, and ancient weapons. Today a modern museum has been built here, whose employees restore the historical appearance of the field, turning the arable land into the Russian steppe. Getting here is not easy; it is best to go by car, since transport accessibility in the area is poor. You can also stop by to see several other attractions along the way.
Day 1
Moscow – Romantsevskie Mountains – Epifan – Kimovsk – Novomoskovsk
The road from Moscow to the first stop takes more than four hours, although you can reduce the travel time by an hour if you follow the toll sections of the M4 Don highway.
If you don’t have a personal car, you can rent one: renting a car with an automatic transmission in Moscow for two days costs about 4,000 rubles on OneTwoTrip.
Romantsevskie Mountains
Photo: Vasilisa Tarunova
Wrinkled dunes and blue transparent lakes are a fantastic landscape for the Tula region. Here travelers relax and take pictures on high observation platforms. This area has several names: Romantsevskie mountains, Ushakovskie quarries or Konduki, like the nearest village. The attraction was formed in the 1980-1990s on the site of abandoned Soviet coal mines, which were flooded by rain, melted snow and groundwater. For many years, only local residents admired the “cosmic” beaches. The lakes gained tourist popularity when journalist Yuri Dud spoke about them on his blog. Now people come here from different regions of Russia. A broken dirt road leads from the highway to the mountains, so dry weather is more suitable for visiting. Otherwise you will have to walk for a long time. A walk through the quarries without stopping and swimming takes about one hour.
Epifan
Photo: Vasilisa Tarunova
From the village of Romantsev to Epifani it’s a little less than 20 kilometers by car along a straight road. Once upon a time, rich merchants lived in this provincial town, which stood at the intersection of trade routes. Today, the small Museum of Merchant Life reminds of this time. Inside the old log house there is an exhibition that shows how members of the venerable family of the merchant of the 2nd guild Anton Evgrafovich Baibakov worked and rested. In the basement, visitors get acquainted with objects for weighing and storing edible goods. In the shop next door you can see the most popular orders from residents of the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, look through clothing catalogs, and find out how much a bed, saddle or baby carriage cost a century and a half ago. In advance at the museum you can order an interactive atmospheric tea party with a samovar and pastries according to ancient recipes.
Entrance costs 100 rubles, accompanied by a guide – 130 rubles. Inspection of the exhibition takes about forty minutes. In addition to the museum in Epifani there is an ancient temple on the main square, and not far from the city there is a park of animals and birds.
Kimovsk
Photo: Vasilisa Tarunova
Twenty kilometers from Epifani, on the way to Novomoskovsk, you can make a stop at the station of the small town of Kimovsk, which was named in honor of the communist youth international. The station was first mentioned in 1874 as the Epifan railway station. Here on the platform, in the company of plaster pioneers, an old huge locomotive-monument stood forever. The steam locomotive Er-787-57 was built in 1952 and restored in 2017. In the same year, the Museum of the Centenary of the October Revolution was opened next to the waiting room. Here visitors can see the role railways played in the historical events of the 20th century.
Novomoskovsk
Photo: Vasilisa Tarunova
From Kimovsk to Novomoskovsk there are still about 20 kilometers. By car the journey will take half an hour, and by bus No. 107 – 1 hour 20 minutes (from the bus station). Novomoskovsk is the closest city to Kulikovo Field with a fairly large selection of apartments and hotels for an overnight stay and restaurants for dinner.
A large menu and pleasant interior are offered by the DROVA grill bar or the Tomato pizzeria; there is also a McDonald’s in the city. Rooms of varying levels of comfort can be found in the Atlas Inn and Rossiya hotels or rent private apartments with fresh renovations. There are more options for spending the night in Tula, but Novomoskovsk is interesting not only from a domestic point of view. You can start the next morning with a visit to the architectural and natural complex “Istok Don”, which is located on the territory of the Children’s Park named after. D. G. Oniki. From under the memorial stone flows the Urvanka stream, which is considered to be the beginning of the great Don River. Nearby is a sculptural group of two horsemen, illustrating the legend of the brothers Shat and Don. A thin stream expands into the depths of the park, where there is a children’s railway and a beautiful pond with ducks, from which the Knights and Chernomor emerge. A walk through the park will take about one hour.
Day 2
Red Hill Memorial — Museum of the Battle of Kulikovo — Equestrian yard — Monastyrshchino
The second day is devoted to getting to know the ancient battle. All objects are included in the complex of the Kulikovo Field museum-reserve.
Red Hill Memorial
Photo: shutterstock.com
To get to the Memorial, drive 70 kilometers towards the village of Monastyrshchino. The route goes through Kimovsk and Epifan again, but there will be no time to stop here. Red Hill is the oldest and most remote point of the museum-reserve. Here, on a hill, according to legend, on September 7, 1380, Khan Mamai’s headquarters was located, and from here the Horde’s attack on the army of Dmitry Donskoy began. Today the memorial complex consists of several objects and a small park. In the center there is a black obelisk in honor of the prince, which Karl Bryullov worked on. Several alleys branch off from it. One is towards the active temple of St. Sergius of Radonezh, and the other is towards the observation deck and bas-relief exhibition of the battle. From the site you can see the entire field at a glance. And if a traveler rubs the figurine of Khan Mamai on the bronze panel, then perhaps he will have good luck.
The complex can be visited independently or as part of an excursion. It will take you about half an hour to explore without a guide.
Museum of the Battle of Kulikovo
Photo: Vasilisa Tarunova
The new museum building is located two kilometers from the Memorial towards Moscow. The museum has two exhibitions: for adults and children. Both of them are interactive. Visitors not only look at the exhibits under glass, but also feel like participants in the battle. To bring history to life, the exhibition’s authors used the capabilities of modern lighting, audio and video technologies, created thousands of small models of people and horses, and restored clothing and personal items of that time. At the exhibition, you can weigh the armor of a 14th-century warrior, walk next to a horse in an army, and even find yourself between two armies advancing on each other. For children, an introduction to the history of the Battle of Kulikovo will take place in an exciting quest-adventure with prizes, and a toy horse awaits the youngest guests in the playroom. There is another observation deck on the roof of the museum.
Entrance to the museum without a guided tour costs 250 rubles. It will take about three hours to view the exhibition. In the adjacent dining room, visitors are offered three options for lunch: Horde, Russian and Genoese. You shouldn’t refuse: this is the only cafe for many kilometers around.
Horse yard
Photo: shutterstock.com
After viewing the battle site from the top of the Red Hill and immersing yourself in history in the museum, it is interesting to visit the field of military glory itself. You can get to the Green Oak Forest, where the victorious march of the Russian Ambush Regiment began, on horseback, just like the ancient warriors. Sleek, hot trotters await experienced riders. And those who have never sat in the saddle will enjoy a breeze on a chaise. An accompanying instructor will guide guests through key battle areas.
The horse yard is located in the village of Monastyrshchino, which is 8 kilometers from the Museum of the Battle of Kulikovo. It is better to sign up for an excursion in advance; the cost depends on the time and type of route. The average duration of the walk is one and a half hours.
Monasteryshchino
Photo: Vasilisa Tarunova
In the same village, one kilometer from the horse yard, the historical adventure ends. There is a memorial dedicated to heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo. On a hill above the confluence of the Don and Nepryadva rivers stands the statue of Dmitry Donskoy. An alley leads to its foot, along which there are small monuments – modern gifts from the victorious cities of the Golden Horde. So honored is the memory of all the participating localities, which lost many noble warriors on the day of the battle, and even more ordinary residents could not be counted.
