Everyone arriving in Nizhny Novgorod by river will notice the huge red and white «figure of eight» of the Chkalov Stairs leading down from the Kremlin to Nizhne-Volzhskaya Embankment.

The locals rarely use these stairs for their intended purpose, and the exact number of steps is a subject of perennial debate among the area studies experts. Many guidebooks put it at 560, yet anyone who has walked the stairs is sure that there are a lot more of them!

Located at the top of the stairs is a monument to Valery Chkalov, a native of the Nizhny Novgorod Region and one of the Soviet pioneer aviators. His non-stop flight from Moscow to Vancouver via the North Pole in 1937 made him a proper legend. Traces of the inscription «To Stalin’s Falcon» that has been removed are still visible on the pedestal right above the map of Chkalov’s two non-stop flights.

This is one of the best spots to enjoy the famous Nizhny Novgorod sunsets.