Before going “to the mainland”, we decided to get to the edge of the spit not by foot, but on wheels. If we are already here, then just to leave and leave a white spot on the map – well, at least the pain will press on the conscience for a long time)))
First of all, we stopped at the old pier, where we filmed cormorants.

The building itself looks well-groomed, albeit old. There is a small rescue station nearby, where fishermen are gathering. And there are nasty and unpleasant grandfathers “rescuers”, who are more like the elderly chess players – sitting on the shore in caps and either don’t answer questions (because they are busy with their leisurely conversation), or make stupid fat jokes with the appearance of oriental sages, who have learned life. But on the ruined pier quite calm and friendly people were fishing)))

We decided to go to the edge of the spit on the south coast – there is a road, but it is with very deep sand for some places. Along the entire spit there are small campsites with water and electricity, one of which we will definitely choose next time instead of the noisy children’s camp in Rymbovsky.
While we were slowly but surely paddling on mud tires through sand dunes, there was plenty of time to explore the surrounding landscapes. And we even stopped at one place to admire the nesting of birds in the salt marsh.

It is not so easy to get close to birds – the salt marsh has a very viscous surface. Most likely, these birds have already understood this and are not afraid at all when people roam the periphery of their territory.
Looking at the birds, we calmly moved forward. At the end of the spit there is a berth ”Nibulon” for boats from the “mainland”, a fence and a beach with several cafes.
A berth as a berth – hydrofoil boats come to it from Mykolayiv, Kherson, Nova Kakhovka and possibly from Ochakov (or maybe from Ochakov they go to the berth near Pokrovka).

The road stops by a fence, and then – only on foot.
There is an information stand with fantastic realistic coordinates of monuments. We even found some of them)))

At first we tried to walk on the road, but it is extremely problematic – quite deep and very hot sand and scorching sun. Exhaling, we depicted saigas, jumping thorns in the direction of the surf. It is much easier to walk in the surf zone: the cool sea cools your feet, the wind is fresh and the sand is dense. It takes approximately half an hour walking from the berth to the edge of the spit. Probably because it was the middle of the day, we met almost no one.
At the edge of the spit is a sunken ship (it seems to be a barge).

And a little further is the tail of the spit, near which the warmest water in the district))) And it’s very good, because during our stay the water was either cold (despite the terrible heat), or resembled jelly because of the number of jellyfish (well, I do not like them on touch) and was also not very hot. And here – beauty)))

After swimming to our heart’s content, we went back. At first we decided to try to go from the bay on the surf, but it turned out to be difficult to walk there. The whole surf line is covered with a crushed shell of not too small fraction and at the same time it is difficult to walk, as well as on the sand, only sharp. So we again depicted saigas in the thickets of thorns and walked along the beach towards the cars. We decided to try local food, but later regretted it.

To be fair, no one expects anything from such places, but we are surprised every time, although you could get used to it. In one of the two cafes we were able to buy crackers and kvass (mojito, lemonade), and in the second we have to “eat well”. The menu includes potatoes, chops, sausages, fried fish, salad and more. The people who arrived on a hydrofoil boat and passed through the cafe, in uniform and sparse rows were lying on the beach around. There are almost no people on the beach on both sides of the food outlets. By and large, it is worth going here if you want to quickly get to a fairly deserted beach, but not too far from people. At the same time do not count on attractions, “active recreation” (in any sense) or good service. If you do not count on sunbeds near cafes (I have no idea whether they are paid or not), then be sure to bring an awning / umbrella / something to create shade.
We decided to go back on the north side of the spit and we were right. The road is much easier, deep sand pits are much smaller. On the way we got a little lost, found the locals and asked them how it would be easier for us to get to the “mainland”. The secret was simple – you need to go along the transmission line. The road does not always go exactly along the line – it turns, meanders, but returns to the transmission line. In one place we met a lanos or a sens (I don’t remember anymore) sticking its head in deep enough sand – the man was clearly flying for a long time in a straight line, and he was not able to pass a 90-degree turn. All is well with the people, they were already waiting for help (Niva came exactly at that time). You should not drive on such cars on the Kinburn Spit beyond the Heroic – even if the first twenty kilometers can be skipped, be sure to find a pit, turn or something else that will stop your unrestrained flight before the arrival of locals on more passable vehicles. And locals grumble that people go to the sand without a normal connection (there on the spit is not the best still coverage on the network), without navigation and then a long time trying to explain where to look for them, if they will be able to call.

According to the original plan, we wanted to visit the steppe lighthouse that day, but we didn’t have time for daylight. So we went straight to Odessa. There we set up a base at our friends and the next day we spent on putting ourselves in order. And in the evening tried to find a place to eat with a big company with a dog. It turned out to be very difficult: in the city center the water was turned off and the restaurants were not accepting people, in other places it was not possible to sit with a dog, or no more than four people (anti-epidemic restrictions), or “takeaway”. We went to the Chernomorsk to the already known place “Piano”, because there is a terrace and it is quite tasty, although not cheap. It turned out that it’s not so tasty now … not cheap yet. While we were sitting there, it rained and the next day the forecast was also rainy. On this occasion, we decided to dedicate the next day to a walk through Odessa, and only then go to explore the estuaries.
We had a great walk, the weather was sunny and the evening was warm and pleasant!

Of course, met with locals)))

The first place to solve tactical tasks this evening we had in the “Italian Quarter”:

Good, tasty food for reasonable money.
The second point of strategic planning, which seduced us with soft drinks, was created in “Gogol Mogol“.

The next morning we went to the Tuzly estuaries. On the way we stopped at the Sanjay lighthouse

Found it not immediately, but the locals told us which bushes to enter to get to the lighthouse)))

There is nothing particularly remarkable in this place, because the lighthouse is currently under restoration and you can not get behind the fence.

Our next point is Lebedivka. This is the eastern edge of the Tuzly estuaries. From here we hoped to find out a little about what and howe is here and to decide whether to go here for the night to film the birds at sunrise.
At first glance, there is nothing special – sandy beach, tents, hordes of filth … But if you go a little deeper, you can find very beautiful landscapes)))

And many, many birds!

But you need to approach them very carefully – although they are busy with their feeding, they notice people and loud sounds well and immediately fly to another place. Here you can find several species of seagulls, a couple of species of pelicans, some birds that look like waders or herons.

I found a bump very close to the birds and lay behind it until I filled out the card on the camera.

During this time, everyone else got bored, tired of disgust and hid in cars. But here is me, I came back and we went on))) I must say that there is just an incredible amount of disgust. Rather, it is not an abomination, but a bell mosquito. A creature with a peculiar life cycle – he can’t even bite / sting – he has nothing to do this. But this does not prevent these clouds from clogging the nose, mouth, ears and eyes … This little thing solved for us the question of spending the night in this place.
Since there was still a lot of time, we decided to go to the northern side of this region of estuaries – in the village of Tuzly.
The ”Chateau Saffron” food outlet was found along the way.

Apparently, not only people who rent housing here eat here, but also from the neighboring bases – a large number of tables, people, waiters. The food is good, tasty and not expensive, but the water there is desalinated.

However, we obviously got to lunch time, because there were a lot of people and we waited for our food for a long time.
We drove through Tuzly and chose the first-best place on the shore. On the salt marshes and estuaries you can always find beautiful colors)))

However, there are no birds – they are all on the south side, by the sea (and I understand them)))) But there is no bell mosquitos here, too, and just very nice)))

When we got tired of admiring and flew off all the batteries, we went back to Odessa in the favorite ramen bar “MoMoYaMa“.
The next day, some of the group had a working day, and the rest went to try to get to the Botanical Garden. Unfortunately, we arrived at a closed gate with a sign “quarantine”. After wandering around, found nothing interesting, went to eat at the “Three Lambs”.

It turned out to be a very showy and expensive place, but at least it was delicious))))
Before returning home we went to sit at sea in the evening.

The road home turned out to be more fun than we expected))) When we were choosing which route to go, one of our friends told us that the road through Kryvyi Rih was fixed. Well, fixed… it remains to finish twenty kilometers. These roads did not actually exist for more than forty years – no one dared to drive there. And we decided to take a risk and repeat the feat of our friend. He honestly warned us that these twenty kilometers are hell on Earth. And he was completely right. The next time we went there, it was fully fixed. But it was next time))) And now – dust clubs, an endless stream of trucks at a speed of 10 – 20 km/h and a convulsive search for a turn to the fields. In the fields the road is dirt, with large differences, but smooth. From the fields the road goes directly to the sign “Dnipropetrovsk region”, from which the normal road begins. It was a very exhausting twenty kilometers. Fortunately, it was all fun, that was prepared for us on the road home)))

First part.