Swan Lake, Chortorya

The village of Chortoryia is known among tourists for its architectural monuments and beautiful nature. Swan Lake is one of these wonderful places, which in the fall is almost entirely inhabited by beautiful white birds.

The small village in the Kitsman region is primarily known as the birthplace of Ukrainian film actor Ivan Mykolaychuk. He is associated with a story about swans on the lake that come here with the onset of cold weather. In the winter of 1987, the famous actor died, and the villagers claim that his soul reincarnated as a large bird and flew home.

Every year, more than 150 swans come to the lake in winter. The water of the lake hardly ever freezes, as hot springs bubble up from the bottom of the lake, preventing the reservoir from freezing completely. The birds gather here to warm up and feed, although they are not always lucky with the latter.

Swan Lake is a nature reserve. It has become the largest wintering place for swans in the country.

In 2011, an unpleasant incident occurred: the ambient temperature dropped to 20 degrees below zero and the water in the lake froze. The birds froze to death and had to be rescued. Thanks to the local residents and employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the swans were rescued. After that, the reservoir was monitored in winter.

The Swan Lake in Chortoryia is located on the outskirts of the village. If you drive your own car, you can go in the direction of Vashkivtsi. Before reaching the village, there will be a sign to Chortoryia.

If you take a minibus, you can get off at the bus stop here. Near the bus stop there is a right turn with a descent into the village. Do not turn anywhere along the way and reach a small church. Near it, turn right and walk along the village houses over the field. It's hard to get lost here, but if you do lose your way, you can ask the locals.

Chortorya is a village in the Kitsman district (Chernivtsi region). It is located on the right bank of the Cheremosh River, near the Chernivtsi-Vashkivtsi-Vyzhnytsia road. There is a lot to see here: a castle-palace, a wooden church, swan lakes...

It is the birthplace of Ivan Mykolaychuk, where the Ivan Mykolaychuk Art and Memorial Museum and Estate is located. Famous actors and directors, friends of Mykolaychuk, including Serhiy Parajanov, visited Chortoryia. Mykolaychuk was called the face and soul of Ukrainian poetic cinema. Not a single Ukrainian film of the 60s and 70s of the twentieth century could do without his participation. Here is what Serhiy Parajanov said about Mykolaychuk: "I do not know a more national folk genius... Before him, it was Dovzhenko."

Among the village's architectural monuments, it is known for one of the most beautiful palaces in Bukovyna, the Manesku Palace (Rutkovsky Palace), which now houses a psychoneurological boarding school. No one knows the exact date of the palace's construction. The list of local architectural monuments in the Chernivtsi region dates the palace to the nineteenth century. However, other sources indicate a different date of its construction: the end of the seventeenth or beginning of the eighteenth century. A park was built around the palace in the late nineteenth century. The park is dominated by old trees of various species, which grow in individual specimens, alleys, and small groups. The trees and shrubs include 11 species of valuable trees. The most famous "exhibit" of the park is the oldest tulip tree in Bukovyna, which is over 200 years old. The park also has birch trees 150-170 years old, European larch, acacia, ailanthus, gladicia, sedge, and variegated linden. An alley of horse chestnut was planted to mark the 50th anniversary of Taras Shevchenko's birth.

The village also has an old wooden "hut" church with a characteristic side extension to the Babynets, which, according to legend, was transported by the Cheremosh from the Carpathians. It was built in 1749-1750 and consecrated in honor of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The walls of the church are covered with relatively new timber, and the roof is traditionally covered with tin.

Every year on June 15, on the birthday of actor Ivan Mykolaychuk, the village hosts a large-scale festival "To visit Ivan" with a commemoration of the artist near his bust, along with a museum estate, a concert of folk and folklore groups, a theater, and a fair with visitors from all over the Chernivtsi region.

Chortoryi Park is located in the village, and the Chortoryi Ornithological Reserve is not far from the village.