(Source: http://kbrtime.ru/page/366)

The mysterious ancient Balkarian village of El-Tyubyu is the focus of the entire history of Balkaria. An ancient watchtower, the remnants of Greek temples and anomalous phenomena attract adventurers and connoisseurs to this place.

The ancient Balkarian village of El-Tyubyu in the upper reaches of the Chegemskoe Gorge on the left bank of the Chegem River is the birthplace of the great Balkarian poet and sage Kaisyn Kuliyev.

The tower of Balkarukovs in El-Tyubyu is also called the Tower of Love. The legend says it that it was built by Akhtugan Balkarukov in order to defend his place against the relatives of the beauty Kerime stolen by him in Dagestan. There are two ancient defensive Greek stairs leading up the rock wall not far from the village.

They rise to a height of about 30 meters and lead to a small site enclosed by the walls up to two meters high and about half a meter thick. According to legends, the way could be continued even further, along the narrow trail leading into a mysterious cave, where Christian relics - books and utensils – were hidden.

No one ever managed to find the hidden things. In ancient times the stairs served for people who went into the mountains to hide from their enemies, and the positions above the stairs were taken by the soldiers for defense. Slightly above the Greek stairs there are ancient Balkarian mausoleums where the local nobility were buried in VIII-XVIII centuries.