The Babinov Road (Бабиновская дорога) was for a long time the shortest path across the Urals. It led from Solikamsk to Verkhoturye and thence to Tobolsk in Siberia. It was discovered by Artemy Babinov in 1597 and hacked out of the forests several years later, replacing a complicated river route that had been used in the 16th century. In the 17th century, Russian travellers to Siberia passed through a chain of small forts protecting the road from raids by native tribes. Verkhoturye, the first of these forts, was built at its eastern end in 1598.