The Bukovyna Falls Landscape Reserve

Colourful chain of falls up to two kilometres long stretches along the river Smugariv in Bukovyna region, in the Carpathian Mountains. It is a place where you can observe the waters of the Smugariv Falls sometimes slowly flowing through the quaint stone-forest slopes, and sometimes rapidly descending series of rock steps. This chain of falls is also called the Bukovyna Falls. The small stream Smugariv flows into the full-flowing river Cheremosh. Downstream of the Smugariv and its tributaries, massive sandstones, limestone and shale form a cascade of seven falls of different power and height, so their waters fall from the steep ledges or, like a cat, deftly run through stony-clay tracks.

This is a great place not only to enjoy wonderful nature, but also for those preferring active rest. A tour of the Bukovyna Falls is often included in rafting trips on the river Cheremosh. Depending on the time of a year the falls can turn into quiet brooks or noisy streams of water. It is so overwhelming to feel the power of mountain rivers, to skip their waves, and to stay in the evening around the campfire with a guitar observing millions of stars forming the Milky Way high above. In the night-lit cities, you won’t see such sky ... it's a delightful spectacle of the Big and Little Dipper, as well as many other constellations, and even the Moon seems to be coming closer to overhear whispers of the Smugariv Falls.

The first waterfall of this cascade is the Kovber, height and width of 4 meters. It is named in honour of a Romanian town owner, who has built a concrete wall to keep water for a mill. The next waterfall you will recognize by a particular hiss and its height of more than ten meters, known as the Sych. The Nyzhniy Guk, an example of a plunge waterfall, is the next one you can see, and a mile away, the waterfalls Vorota and Seredniy Guk are located. The Vyshchiy Gug of 19 meters is the most impressive of them all and next to it there is the Vysokyi Guk completing this beautiful chain. The banks are overgrown with ferns – everything is buried in verdure! The local nature is unique.

The Bukovyna Falls are a part of the landscape reserve, which is subordinate to Roztoky Forestry of Carpathian region. They are located near the village of Roztoky, which has a very interesting past and was visited by many famous people. It is a place where an eminent composer Volodymyr Ivasiuk has written his famous song "Chervona Ruta".

You’ll be impressed, energized and inspired with majestic and picturesque sceneries of Bukovyna and its Smugariv Falls.