Poltava region is usually soft.
Fields. Forests. Flat roads.
And that’s why the quarry here looks almost alien – like a big wound in the relief. But it’s worth getting closer – and everything changes. The water becomes turquoise. The rocks – light. Seagulls circle above the water. Lizards scurry on the stone.
And if you look from a drone – you can see that the quarry resembles a heart in shape.
General information
| What? | Description |
|---|---|
| Title | Chikaliv granite quarry |
| Location | Chikalivka Village, Kremenchuk District, Poltava Oblast |
| Coordinates | 48.985° N, 33.595° E |
| Official Name of the Company | LLC “Chikalivka Granite and Crushed Stone Quarry” |
| Distance from Horishni Plavni | ~3.1 miles (5 km) |
| Distance from Kremenchuk | ~9,3 miles (15 km) |
| Features | flooded, turquoise water, heart shape from a height, rocks for climbing |
| Entrance | free |
Heart-shaped and clean water
The quarry mined granite, one of the hard and ancient rocks of the Ukrainian Crystalline Shield, which lies at a shallow depth in the Poltava region. When mining was stopped, the pit filled with groundwater and atmospheric water.
Since granite does not turbidize or “color” the water, it became transparent and turquoise-blue – similar to a mountain lake.
From a height (clearly visible from a drone), the contours of the flooded quarry resemble the shape of a heart – hence the popular name “granite heart”.
What is here
The rocks rise straight out of the water – vertical granite walls with ledges. In some areas between the rocks and the water there are narrow forest patches where you can pitch a tent.
Fauna: lizards and snakes scurry along the rocks, large frogs bask by the water, seagulls circle in the sky – a typical colony for reservoirs with stone banks.
Climbing: local climbers have set up several routes here. Every year, the “Granite Cup” climbing festival is held on the Chikalyvka rocks – participants come from all over the country and are accommodated in a tent camp.
Swimming: the water is cold even in summer – as in most flooded quarries with underground power. But there are enough willing people.
How to combine into a route
Chikalyvka is located in the Kremenchuk district, near Horishni Plaveny (~5 km) and Kremenchuk (~15 km). This makes the quarry a convenient “landscape stop” on the route between Poltava, Kremenchuk and Lubny.
Nearby is the Gudym-Levkovych estate in Horoshyn (~20 km), located on the banks of the Sula River, where another cluster of estate and natural locations is located.
It fits into the route “Industrial Landscapes of Ukraine” and “Turquoise Quarries of Ukraine”.
Practical information
- Entry: free
- Climbing: several equipped routes; there is a responsible community – search for “Qar’er Emotsiy” on social networks
- Tents: there are places above the water and under the rocks
- Swimming: cold water, no outright prohibitions
- Exploration time: 1–2 hours; with a tent – weekends
- Safety: do not approach the edge of the ledges; water without a gradual entrance
How to get there
- From Kremenchuk: ~15 km through Horishni Plavni
- From Horishni Plaveny: ~5 km south/east
- Coordinates: 48.985° N, 33.595° E
- Road: asphalt to Chikalivka, then primer to the quarry
Little-known details
- From a height, the quarry resembles the shape of a heart – a detail that is visible only from a drone or on a satellite image.
- Every year, the “Granite Cup” is held on the rocks – a climbing festival with participants from all over Ukraine.
- Nature literally “returns its own”: lizards, snakes, frogs, seagulls – the quarry no longer looks industrial.
- The Chikalyvka granite is part of the Ukrainian Crystalline Shield, one of the oldest geological formations in Europe.
Conclusion
The Chikaliv quarry is a place that was supposed to be temporary. It was created to take the stone and leave. But the water remained. And now it exists no longer as a production facility, but as a landscape.
Heart from above. Turquoise water below. Seagulls above the quarry.
Sometimes time makes something unexpectedly peaceful out of technology.
