Kronotsky Nature Reserve | |
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Location | Kamchatka |
Nearest city | Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky (230 km SW) |
Coordinates | 54°55′31″N 160°32′25″E / 54.92528°N 160.54028°E |
Area | 11,421 km² |
Established | 1882 / 1934 |
Kronotsky (Кроноцкий) Nature Reserve (also: Kronotsky Biosphere Zapovednik) is a Russian zapovednik (strict nature reserve) reserved for the study of natural sciences in the remote Russian Far East, on the coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula.[1] It was created in 1934 and its current boundary contains an area of 10,990 km2 (4,240 sq mi).[1] The largest lake in the reserve is Lake Kronotskoye, which covers an area of 246 square kilometres (95 sq mi).[2] It also has Russia's only geyser basin, plus several mountain ranges with numerous volcanoes, both active and extinct. Due to its often-harsh climate and its mix of volcanoes and geysers, it is frequently described as the Land of Fire and Ice.[3]
Kronotsky is mainly accessible only to scientists, plus approximately 3,000 tourists annually who pay a fee equivalent to US$700 to travel by helicopter for a single day's visit.[3] It is part of Volcanoes of Kamchatka, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[4]