Derman-Ostroh National Nature Park


Derman-Ostroh National Nature Park sits in a river valley that separates the southern edge of the Polesian Lowland, and the northern edge of the Podolian Upland in northwestern Ukraine. The terrain is a mixture of pine-oak forest and marshy river lowlands. The park is in the administrative districts of Zdolbuniv Raion and Ostroh Raion, in the southernmost region of Rivne Oblast.

Topography

The park is scattered in 22 sections along the Zbytynka River valley, which runs west-to-east between the Mizotsky Ridge and the Kremenets mountains. The park is only a few kilometers northeast of Kremenets Mountains National Nature Park, and about 5 km west of the town of Ostroh. The valley is only 3–8 km wide, and the immediately surrounding high ground is only a few hundred meters above the valley floor. The valley floor itself is mostly an alluvial patchwork of waterlogged floodplain, first terrace, and sandy dunes.
Individual sectors of the park include:

Climate and ecoregion

The climate of Derman-Ostroh is Humid continental climate, warm summer. This climate is characterized by large swings in temperature, both diurnally and seasonally, with mild summers and cold, snowy winters.
All areas of the park are in the deciduous forest band of the Central European mixed forests ecoregion.

Flora and fauna

About 50% of the region is forested, predominantly in pine and oak; there are also patches of beech and spruce. The Bashchansky bog in the park has the vegetation of lowland marsh, and is one of the Easternmost Middle European carbonate marshes.

Public use

A 6.5 km educational ecological trail runs from the town of Busha on the northern ridge, south through the valley and up to a rocky prominence. There is also a 38 km ecotrail that runs along the Zbytinka river, and a 65 km bicycle trail that encircles the park. There are hotels and resorts nearby for overnight stays.