Sail Rock, Russia

The natural tall Sail Rock, is also famous as Parus Rock, is a natural sandstone monolith located on the shore of the Black Sea, in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, approximately 17 kilometers from the resort city of Gelendzhik. The rock is unquestionably flat and narrow, similar as the sail of a ship, and henceforth its name. It is approximately 30 meters tall and 20 meters long but only a meter thick. Contributing to its image lies the fact that this rock is upright to the coastline. If you look it from some distance, it looks like a boat with a huge sail has come ashore.

Adjacent to the base of the monolith is an unusual hole of unidentified origin. Some people have faith in that the rock was used as defense during the Caucasian War and the hole was formed to shoot through at the enemy. Though, this is unsure because Sail Rock is thin, and it is still not easy to puncture. Therefore this observation is well supported by an incident described by the Russian writer, essayist and journalist S.Vasyukov, where he saw a Russian battleship shoot four projectiles at the monolith. Though the traces of the cannonballs were observable, but the cliff was nowhere to be destroyed.

He wrote; why a battleship shot at such a remarkable natural wonder is something one will surprise. Appreciatively in 1971, the Sail Rock was declared a natural monument and is now protected, at least, from human’s harm, though as far as sea continues to erode the stack away. Aerial photographs of Sail Rock displays submerged rock extending as much as 90 meters away from the monolith indicating the "sail" was much longer at earlier times.