The Tsemes Bay is an ice-free bay

Bay

A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...

 located on the northern coast of the Black Sea

Black Sea

The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...

, in Krasnodar Krai

Krasnodar Krai

-External links:* **...

 of Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

. It takes its name from the Tsemes River which flows into the bay. The depth of the sea varies from 21 to 27 meters. The length of the bay is 15 kilometers; its maximum width is 9 kilometers. It is bordered by the Sudzhuk Spit and Cape Doob.

Although the navigation is affected by strong autumn and winter bora winds (up to 220 kilometers per hour), the bay was frequented by ancient Greek navigators who established the colony of Bata

Novorossiysk

Novorossiysk is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is the country's main port on the Black Sea and the leading Russian port for importing grain. It is one of the few cities honored with the title of the Hero City. Population: -History:...

 on the shore. Michael Rostovtzeff

Michael Rostovtzeff

Mikhail Ivanovich Rostovtzeff, or Rostovtsev was one of the 20th century's foremost authorities on ancient Greek, Iranian, and Roman history....

 explained this by the fact that there are no other decent harbours along the coastline all the way to Batumi

Batumi

Batumi is a seaside city on the Black Sea coast and capital of Adjara, an autonomous republic in southwest Georgia. Sometimes considered Georgia's second capital, with a population of 121,806 , Batumi serves as an important port and a commercial center. It is situated in a subtropical zone, rich in...

. During the Middle Ages, the coast was controlled by the Ghisolfi

Ghisolfi

De Ghisolfi was the name of a Genoese-Jewish family prominent in the late Middle Ages and the early Renaissance....

 merchant family of Genoa

Genoa

Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....

.

Novorossiysk

Novorossiysk

Novorossiysk is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is the country's main port on the Black Sea and the leading Russian port for importing grain. It is one of the few cities honored with the title of the Hero City. Population: -History:...

, founded by Russians as a military facility, is the chief port on the bay. Several ships of the Black Sea Fleet

Black Sea Fleet

The Black Sea Fleet is a large operational-strategic sub-unit of the Russian Navy, operating in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea since the late 18th century. It is based in various harbors of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov....

 were scuttled in the bay to avoid their capture by the Germans in 1918. It was also the scene of several notable shipwrecks, including that of SS Admiral Nakhimov in 1986. Following the establishment of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium

Caspian Pipeline Consortium

The Caspian Pipeline Consortium is a consortium and a pipeline to transport Caspian oil from Tengiz field to the Novorossiysk-2 Marine Terminal on Russia's Black Sea coast. It is also a major export route for oil from the Kashagan and Karachaganak fields...

, the Commercial Seaport of Novorossiysk has emerged as the busiest oil terminal in the Black Sea. The southern portion of the bay, with the minor resort of Kabardinka, is administered from Gelendzhik

Gelendzhik

Gelendzhik is a resort town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated on the Gelendzhik Bay of the Black Sea, between Novorossiysk and Tuapse . Greater Gelendzhik sprawls for along the coastline and covers an area of 122,754 ha...

 (see Gelendzhik Bay

Gelendzhik Bay

The Gelendzhik Bay is an ice-free bay located on the Russian coast of the Black Sea, immediately to the southeast of the Tsemes Bay. The entire 12-km coastline between the capes Tonkiy and Tolstyi falls within the boundaries of Gelendzhik. Beaches take up about two thirds of shoreline. Further...

).