Meshchersky Nature Park
Meshchersky Park is a unique natural complex of more than 465 hectares in Odintsovo City District of Moscow Region, slightly west of the Moscow Ring Road and partially within the boundaries of Moscow. A team of landscape designers worked on the improvement of the once neglected territory of the former Bakovsky Forest Park. Having preserved the pristine landscapes of the relic forest and laid sports routes and hiking trails, the specialists have created almost the best park of culture and recreation in the capital region.
Video: Meshchersky Park
Contents- Highlights
- History of Meshchersky Park
- Sports locations
Places for family recreation - Playgrounds and entertainment areas
- Cafes
- How to get there
Highlights
Meshchersky Park is a popular place for family and sports leisure. Here they organize mass races, collective sports, hold competitions. When organizing the infrastructure of the park space, the architects took into account the interests of amateur and professional athletes and provided zones for guests with children. Safe playgrounds and entertainment complexes are equipped for young visitors. And of course, Meshchersky Park is the territory of a nature reserve, where areas with unique flora and fauna typical for the capital region have been preserved.
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The territory is informally divided into zones of interest: sports grounds and places for active recreation, walking paths and alleys, eco-trails, playgrounds, a place for organizing picnics with barbecues and a zone for beach recreation.
.Entrance to Meshchersky Park is free, but you have to pay to visit some areas. You can enter the park at any time of the day, with limited hours of operation for some attractions.
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History of Meshcherskij Park
The first mentions of this area date back to the 13th century: in those years it was owned by Alexander Nevsky. In the days of Ivan the Terrible, falconry was organized here. A century later, the woodland passed into the ownership of the Princes Trubetskikh, and in the mid-19th century the land became part of the Moscow district.
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It is noteworthy that in 1812 the French army led by Napoleon retreated through the forest, where the park zone now spreads.
.The 20th century was a time of global change. In the summer of 1933, part of the area of the forest park began to be built up. So appeared the famous dacha massif Peredelkino, designed for the rest of the families of honored writers of the Soviet era. Along the forest paths walked legendary personalities: Korney Chukovsky, Bulat Okudzhava, Boris Pasternak. Now some of the dacha houses of the writer’s town have become museums.
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There is an interesting fact connected with Pasternak’s name: Quentin Tarantino, a great admirer of the Russian writer and poet, came to Peredelkino to visit the burial place of the outstanding creator.
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The historical date for Meshchersky Park was December 18, 2007. The Forestry Agency of Moscow and the Moscow region transferred under a lease agreement a part of the forest and park territory to the company “Eco West”, whose owner was Roman Abramovich. One should pay tribute to the oligarch – he did not cut down the forest and build up the natural zone with residential houses. The firm allocated funds for the improvement of the forest park with the preservation of natural landscapes. Extensive work was done to clean up the territory, remove fallen trees, and collect garbage, which took more than one year.
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The architect’s office prepared a project for the recreational area, which included sports facilities, areas for quiet recreation, playgrounds and amusement parks, catering outlets, parking lots and other facilities necessary in a park of culture and recreation.
.In 2008, the forest park area was named Meshchersky Park.
.Sports locations
Fans of active recreation will find in Meshchersky Park places for practicing numerous types of sports disciplines. There are rollerblading tracks and ParkRun running tracks, and a soccer field. The famous bicycle path of Meshchersky Park is a circular bicycle path with a length of about 4000 meters.
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Those who want to ride a bicycle do not need to bring two-wheeled transportation with them – the park has sporting equipment rental points. There are even fatbikes! Guests are offered to rent a bike seat for a child and a bike trailer. Of course, skiing equipment is also available for rent. There are places where it is possible to change clothes and leave things for storage.
.The length of the roller track – 2400 meters, width – 3 m. For comfortable skating, a special coating made of modern materials was laid. Those who didn’t bring roller skates with them, are offered to rent them.
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In winter, bicycle paths and routes for rollers turn into ski tracks. In addition to residents of the capital region, skiers from neighboring communities come here not only to simply run through the picturesque snow-covered forest, but also to take part in competitions. The total length of ski tracks is more than 25 km!
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The soccer field is a special location of Meshcherskiy Park. It is not just a ground for playing soccer – a full-fledged mini stadium with stands for spectators is arranged here. On the field of 60 × 40 meters artificial turf is laid out. The territory is fenced with a fence. Everyone can come to play soccer during the day, but in the afternoon the ground must be rented for a fee by appointment. People come here to organize soccer tournaments between amateur teams.
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An open-air gym has been set up on the vorkout area: there are tourniquets and bars, step platforms and climbing nets, buffet walls and other FOREMAN® brand outdoor fitness equipment for working on different muscle groups.
Places for family recreation
The beach at the pond opens in the summer with fishing spots and wooden bridges for sunbathers.
.Dogs are allowed in the park. Moreover, for four-legged athletes there is an agility course, a complex with hurdles, slides, a tunnel and other obstacles.
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Collar and muzzle on the dog – a mandatory condition for visiting the training ground.
.Ecotropa
.Nature lovers are invited to the eco-trail, along which there are information stands with information about what trees, shrubs and grasses can be found on the territory of the forest park and what animals you will be lucky to see in the forest belt. And the fauna of Meshchersky Park is quite diverse: there are many feathered animals, including grouse and grouse, there are squirrels and hares, hedgehogs and beavers, deer and roe deer and, of course, moose and wild boars.
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Mangal zone
In Meshchersky Park, an area has been allocated for organizing picnics. Entrance is free, but there are no advance reservations – on a nice weekend day there may be no free places.
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Remember that drinking alcohol in the park, including in the picnic area, is prohibited!
.Playgrounds and entertainment areas
For children and teenagers in Meshchersky Park there are organized a lot of entertainment – these are special playgrounds and sports grounds designed for children of different ages, from the very young to high school students.
“Ant Farm”
The playground is an eco-space, where swings and merry-go-rounds are installed, an interesting obstacle course and other attractions are arranged. Special attention should be paid to the forest constructor, where you can assemble different structures from wooden parts, a complex for climbing with obstacles and a rotating disk that allows you to feel weightlessness.
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“Panda Park”
“Panda Park” is a large rope city, where in addition to routes of varying difficulty there is a nest of pterodactyls, a maze, swings. Both children and their parents will find it interesting here. Adults can test themselves by going through the route of the rope park, located at a height of more than 7 meters!
.Entrance to “Panda Park” is paid.
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Peredelkino
The eco-covered playground, originally designed by the design bureau, is intended for children from two years old and older. Slides, swings and trampolines will be interesting for kids, while older boys and girls are offered to do sports on tourniquets, bars and rings.
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“City of Birds”
Here a huge world of birds opens up for inquisitive children. Five areas are arranged in the form of habitats for different species of birds. Interesting stone and wooden objects are installed on the territory of the “City of Birds”, sandboxes for kids and play areas for teenagers are arranged.
Cafe
To have a tasty snack in nature, you don’t have to grill kebabs on the barbecue or bring food with you – two cafeterias are open on the territory of the forest park. Visitors highly appreciate the quality of food and drinks served in the cafes.
“Forest Tea House”
Walking through the forest, you may come across a picturesque hut surrounded by a terrace – this is the cafe “Forest Tea House”. Here you can bake delicious croissants, pancakes filled with chicken, meat, apples, condensed milk. Various drinks are offered – cold and hot tea, coffee, non-alcoholic tea cocktails. Fast food lovers enjoy hot dogs, and those wishing to eat a dense meal can order soups and salads.
The cafeteria is dog-friendly.
.Pear
The second café is a chain institution, where the own production of sweet dishes is organized and the supply of farmer’s Brazilian coffee is established. “Pear” is also located in a wooden house with panoramic windows and a cascading veranda, where comfortable deck chairs are arranged. Visitors gave this place a high mark: delicious hot chocolate, coffee, lemonade and ice cream with desserts are only a small part of dishes from the menu. You can try author’s drinks, order a full hearty lunch or have a tasty breakfast. On chilly days visitors are given warm plaids.
.Visitors with pets are also welcome here.
.How to get there
You can reach Meshchersky Park by car or public transportation.
Metro and buses:
.- from the station “Slavyansky Boulevard” take bus Sk to the stop “Nemchinovo”, then about 18 min. walk to entrance No. 1; .
- get off at metro station “Govorovo”, change to bus No. 883 and go to the stop “Meshchersky Pond”, from where you need to walk 10 min. to entrance No. 4; .
- you can also get to entrance No. 4 from the metro station “Ozernaya” by the same bus No. 883; .
- from the station “Solntsevo” to the park follow buses № 689, 695, 707, get off near the railway station “Solnechnaya”, then walk about 5 min. to the entrance number 8; .
- to entrance No. 9 from metro station “Yugo-Zapadnaya” go buses № 330, 374, 518, 752, 950 (get off at the stop “50 Let Oktyabrya”, then walk to the entrance to the park, a distance of about 1 km) and № 343 (get off at the railway station “Peredelkino” and then walk 10 minutes). .
Electric trains from Kievsky railway station to the following railway stations:
.- “Skolkovo” (“Meshcherskaya”) – walk 20 minutes to entrance No. 5;
- “Peredelkino” – 10 min. to entrance No. 9.
For visitors getting to Meshchersky Park by car, there are organized open parking lots: there are free parking lots, where it is very difficult to find a free place, and a paid one (called “Parking lot No. 9095”) at entrance No. 6: it is a large area for cars, there are allocated places for drivers with disabilities.
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