Wade the river, a convenient place for a ford - for today's resident of the metropolis or just a city dweller, these words do not respond with anything special. Bridges, underpasses, subways - in our age there are enough ways to comfortably cross the river. And a couple of centuries ago in Russia, a good and convenient ford across the river was extremely important for trade.
Why do we need a ford at all
Despite the fact that most of the trade routes passed through rivers and seas (for example, the famous route "from the Varangians to the Greeks"), overland trade also existed from time immemorial and occupied a local, one might say, regional niche. Take vegetables from village to town or from one village to another. Buying cheap at the fair and selling it in the surrounding villages was quite a common business at that time.
Let's imagine an ordinary trading caravan - several dozen clumsy wagons, twice as many horses, a dozen people. As a rule, even a full-flowing stream made the crossing almost impossible. Of course, bridges were built somewhere, in some places people were transported on antediluvian ferries, but their number wasimmeasurably less than required for a safe transition. That is why the ford is the best ancient way of crossing without material investments.
Wade is both good and bad
What is a ford? This is the place where the river becomes shallow, allowing a person, animal or vehicle to cross to the other side of the river without using additional buildings or vehicles.
Of course, not only merchants, travelers and warriors understood that the ford is a busy and important place. Robbers of various stripes very often ambushed and robbed people passing by. They already knew that this ford is the only place for crossing the river for the next 50-100 versts.
Interesting ways of crossing without a ford
Of course, human thought is inventive, and many simple and elegant solutions have been invented for crossing water obstacles:
- Rafts. A few logs knocked together or tied together - and voila! The antediluvian ferry is ready. Strengthen a strong rope on both sides, and the raft will not even be carried away by the current. Pros - you can transport goods and livestock, no need to get wet. Cons - requires labor and materials.
- Puffed up or stuffed with hay skins. A very curious way of individual crossing. Goat or sheep skin was stuffed with something light or simply inflated, sewn tightly and smeared with fat for tightness. Such an "inflatable mattress" made it possible to cross even wide rivers. Pros: You can bring your ownspeed of use, minimum labor costs, ideal for covert crossings. Cons - only suitable for a person with a small load.
- Pole vaulting. The ford is too boring, some resourceful guys thought, after which they took a fairly long pole, ran up, and stuck its far end into the middle of the channel. Then everything happened in the same way as in modern pole vault competitions - either the champion, or fell into the river. Pros - you only need a long and strong stick, plus a certain amount of adventurism. Cons - most likely, the crossing will not work the first time.
