Heading to the Russian Altai

golden mountains of altai

This summer I had the feeling of being expelled from my hikers’ paradise. Once more the pandemic impacted so many peoples plans including mine. Hiking in Norway in the summer of 2021 was not going to happen. So we asked our Russian colleagues and acquaintances which mountains we could explore here in Russia. ‘Altai! Go there’, ‘No question, Altai, you’ll love it,’ where frequent answers. 

Fast forward to August 2021. While I sketch the content for this article, I listen to the deep guttural sounds mysteriously produced by the Altaian throat singer up on the stage and let my thoughts wander to the adventures that followed from this advice. The Altai Mountains, a far away cousin of the Himalayas, have been our home these last few weeks. If I am brutally honest, initially we decided to go simply so we could say that we did. Yet my doubts and hesitation turned first into wonder then delight. Tomorrow I will leave enchanted and wanting to come back. Enchanted by what the UNESCO world heritage organisation calls the ‘most complete sequence of altitudinal vegetation zones in central Siberia’. Seeing this abstract concept turn into the steppes and taiga, the forests and meadows, the peaks and glaciers, the lakes, rivers and waterfalls around any and every corner of the Altai Republic left me awestruck.

Located firmly in Central Asia, almost equidistantly from three large oceans, this part of Russia is a gem waiting to be discovered. It is definitely rough around the edges - Mt Belukha, at 4506 m the highest peak in Siberia and at the border between Russia, Kazakhstan and China, is mountaineer territory. Many of its neighbouring peaks go unnamed on the map, in fact finding a map is a challenge in itself. Tourism is nascent, but growing, therefore a sense of adventure and patience will be needed to discover Altais’ many different facets and landscapes. Yet, humanity goes back a long way here, Neanderthals, Homo Sapiens and the Denizon Man made this part of the world their own. And so not only did we find natural wonders, but wondered too at human ingenuity and imagination as we explored the many archeological sites, petroglyphs and standing stones.

If you are tempted to learn more, this article has four sections. I give a bit of background on the Altai and its tourism infrastructure, followed by a description of the main sights we discovered on our travels this summer — one part guided multi-day hiking and one part unguided car camping. The third section offers a personal perspective while the last gives practical and hopefully useful information on how we organised and went about getting there and moving around.

outdoor wilderness versus outdoor paradise

pick your adventure

I wake up warm, finding the sleeping bag too hot and uncomfortable. As I zip open the tent to let in a bit of cooler air, a warm breeze is blowing outside. I am not an expert, but the last times when this happened, a few hours later rain, thunder and wind followed in its wake. Nothing much I can do now about it, it’s the middle of the night and the Milky Way can be seen brightly in the night sky above. I marvel at the starry spectacle before heading back into the tent to catch another few hours of sleep. Sure enough, in the early morning we frantically race against the nearing thunderstorm, getting dressed inside the tent and packing up as fast as we can. Not fast enough though, the rain manages to soak our tent in minutes. Luckily, all the rest is packed away in dry bags and backpacks. As we walk along a forest path in the morning our guide points out fresh paw prints the size of a big man’s hand - a bear walked by not too long ago. I am fast getting to appreciate the differences between hiking in Norway and here in Altai! 

As the author of Cicerone’s hiking guide to Norway I would say, that if Norway is an outdoor paradise, Altai is an outdoor wilderness. You can hike, trek, mountaineer, kayak, raft, cycle and mountain bike in the Altai, just as you can in Norway. The big difference is in the infrastructure, the wildlife and the weather. 

In the mountains of Southern Norway to some extent you can choose your level of adventure. In most areas you are a day hike away from shelter, provided by a hut where you can cook and find a warm bed for the night, dry your clothes if need be. In serviced huts you can sign up to full board and self-service huts let you pick and choose from supplies in the pantry so you can prepare a meal in the comfort of a well-stocked kitchen. You can of course also go camping and bring everything you need along with you.

In Altai you have much less choice when trekking in the mountains. Generally you will have to take your shelter with you, find wood and make an outdoor fire for warmth. Fast weather changes in Altai in summer are the norm, it can rain, snow, thunder, be scorching hot, sunny and humid on any given day, and often all of it within a 24 hour period. Being prepared is key to enjoyment here. 

There are often basic campsites along tracks, providing a few relatively flat tent sites, an outdoor drop toilet and some fire places that other people have build up over the years. These may have some logs for sitting close to the fire, often under trees that lend themselves to secure a tarp, if you happen to have carried one along. Some campsites can be reached on horseback, so a few local horseman run a food and luggage drop service. To light a fire you’ll have to first gather the wood, then chop it with an ax or saw that you need to bring along. Yet most Russians we met, did exactly that, then cooked their evening meal over the open fire. It left us wondering at the weight of their backpacks: ax, saw, cooking pot, fishing gear…

our trip

We had explored going alone as we usually do in Norway, but we were discouraged by a lack of information resources about available tracks, maps and guidebooks plus the need to secure special access permits. Therefore we chose to explore the area around the Multinskye Lakes near Ust-Koksa with a guide along with fellow Russian hikers. We were not disappointed for the sense of adventure and cultural insights this brought us. During our 8-day trek, we went up valleys, hiked along rivers and waterfalls into thick woods and across some hairy mountain passes. We were rewarded with the intoxicating smell of glorious mountain meadows, swam in many glacial lakes, marvelled at rugged mountains and enjoyed the camaraderie around an open fire with freshly brewed tea of mountain herbs and flowers.

Travyanoi Chai, our guide Alexei calls that tea, and every night it would be different. As we hiked during the day, we would see him pick up leaves from bushes and plants for the evening brew. From some plants he’d pick the flowery stems, from others the dried-out dead leaves, and the fresh green ones from a third. We grew to love that time of day, hot mug in hand, cookies as desert after dinner and evening conversation that sometimes made for short nights. 

Accommodation was in tents, but we had some days where a bed in a cabin could have been rented and a Russian banja was available (A banja is something between a Turkish hamam and Finnish sauna - cooler, but more humid than a sauna). Our group was supported one day by pack horses that moved our camp supplies from one base to the next, meaning we had a more ‘luxurious’ experience without having to carry backpacks of more then 10-15kg along. The daily hikes ranged between 8-16 km, and elevation changes were up to 1000 m. We moved camp four times during the trek, meaning there was no need to break up camp every morning.

multinsky lakes and katunsky reserve

The Multinskye Lakes area is a sub-alpine and alpine area with serrated peaks, glaciers and glacial lakes as well as beautiful meadows and woods at lower altitude. The Katunsky Reserve is home to bears, just as many, many areas of Eastern Russia and Siberia. Our purely anecdotal evidence from conversations with other hikers suggest that currently bears don’t pose a major threat to hikers, and no special precautions were taken around our camps. Food was generally stored away in trees to discourage mice getting into it. Squirrels are abundant, but again they did not seem too interested in human food. Our highest camp was at 2300m, well above the tree line. The highest scalable peak at the Multinskye Lakes accessible to hikers is Mt Kolban at 3150m. Our  trek took us over the Kuiguk pass at 2490m, which according to the Russian Grading system is (for a short section) a Category 1A climb. No ropes were necessary, but careful and conscious placement of feet and hands.

After our trekking trip, our car camping holiday took us along the Chuysky Tract, an ancient trade route that connects the Altai with Mongolia, and now a main artery through the Republic and one of the few fully tarmac roads. We traveled from Gorno-Altaysk to Kosh-Agach and back covering around 1100 km. The road is of very good quality, being upgraded even, but nonetheless the photo stops, villages, and unpredictable cattle, horses, sheep and goats on the road make for slow travel.

On the way we crossed two mountain passes, visited petroglyphs and standing stones, hiked the Blue Lake and Mt Semlyuk, explored ‘Luna and Mars’ and stopped at innumerable sites to simply take in the views, smell the meadows or buy some local produce. This exploration of a wider area of Altai unlocked the many different, diverse and varied landscapes. Some of the highlights en-route:

blue lake and aktru glacier

The day hike to the Blue Lake (Goluboy Ozera) is fantastic, but not an easy one. It takes two adventurous hours with a serious 4x4 with good clearance to get to the trailhead from the village of Kyrai (km 824 on the Chuysky Tract; 10k Rbl for a jeep, there and back).  The hike itself is around 3 hours up and 3 hours down again, in good weather making for a long day out in the mountains. You’ll be going up from 2000m towards the 3000m line, so be prepared for all weather. Snow in August is absolutely a possibility. Although the trail is not marked, it’s clear and a steady stream of hikers will be going up (bring hiking poles if you can, they are helpful on some steep sections). The trail first follows the river upstream and then after a steep ascent it continues along the side moraine of the Larger Aktru glacier. Absolutely spectacular icy views await you along the way and on the ridge at the lake.

mt sarlyuk mountain top

By comparison the hike up to Mt Sarlyuk (2502 m) is easy, although long. There and back from the Seminsky pass (km 580) will be about 23 km, and some 800m of elevation up and down again. The mountain pass itself is a busy place with many market stands selling honey, dried meat and fish as well as souvenirs. Traditional cafes and stolovayas will not have you go hungry. Easy to buy and pack a picnic of your favourite pirogi (Russian pies) or blinis (Russian pancakes) and head out for a lunch on the mountain. In itself, the hike seems not spectacular, but it is absolutely worth your while in days with good weather. You can see as far as Mt Belukha (Siberia’s roof) in the Katunsky Range, over 150 km away. All of Altai is at your feet and the 360 degree views are amazing.

spacewalk to ‘Luna and Mars’

Getting to the otherworldly volcanic landscapes of ‘Luna and Mars’ is an easy 6-10 km drive for a 4x4 (or, a walk if you like) from the village of Chagan-Uzun far south on the Chuysky Tract (km 860). There is a small entry fee (we paid 100 Rbl pp). You can very easily spend a day or two here exploring the colourful valleys, ridges and views. And the village of Chagan-Uzun has some pleasant cafes with a tasty traditional fare of borsch (soup) and manti or pelmini (dumplings filled with meat/vegetables, served with broth and sour cream).

geyser lake

The simply sublime, mesmerising Geyser Lake is a mere 15min walk from the parking at km 796 of the Tract. Also here there is a small entry fee (200 Rbl pp). Close to the road and popular, so time your visit for an early morning or later in the afternoon if you don’t want to share with too many Instagrammers!

confluence of the Katun and Chuya

The confluence of the Katun and Chuya Rivers (km 712) is a spot not to be missed, breathtakingly beautiful particularly at dusk. While there are no designated tracks it is possible to spend a couple of hours enjoying the views, walking around or driving to different viewing points. If you have a 4x4 you can take a spectacular road across the Katun bridge and up towards Inegen. There is a tucked away valley on the other side that looks enticing with a camping ground and cabins by the river.

chuysky tract

And finally, all along the Chuysky Tract you will find signs to archaeological sites. They are worth exploring, we liked the Karakol Valley, off the 618 km mark, as well as Chuy-Oozy and Yalbak Tash, km 714 and 721 respectively.

this is personal - the best bits

You need to travel to discover the charm of the Altai. Explore the ‘sequence of altitudinal vegetation zones’. Any one of these you will find in different parts of the world, some further away than others. Yet to experience the surprise of not knowing what you will see around the next turn or a few kilometres down the path is magic. It is this astounding diversity of landscapes in the Altai, that rightly grant parts of the republic UNESO world heritage status. We found the combination of multi-day trekking and travel along the Chuysky Tract a wonderfully complimentary combination.

Our experience was highly enhanced by our ability to interact, communicate and find out more about our fellow Russians hikers and their love for the outdoors. They mostly valued the off-grid experience, being self-sufficient in natural surroundings and away from mobile networks. Sometimes we wondered at how much their equipment reflected that need. We learned they ‘life-hack’ a lot, they improvise a lot and they wake up in the morning with the idea that the day will be a wonderful adventure regardless of the goal they set themselves. If the weather or equipment or insufficient planning stand in the way, they shrug it off as having already experienced something extraordinary, something new, something they didn’t have before, cherishing the process rather than the destination. 

This contrasts with our Norwegian experience. Hiking in Norway is part Norwegian identity and way of life. The aim is for it to be open to all. The DNT (Norwegian Trekking Association) is the largest leisure organisation in the country. Norwegians like to hike light, only carrying what they really need, priding themselves in finding ways to reduce weight and hike efficiently.

In Russia not so much; hiking, trekking and wild camping are still very much a tough, niche activity. Hikers of both countries are united though in their love for the beauty of their respective countries! Personally, Altai enchants, Norway invigorates me.

Top practical tips

where is it?

The Altai Republic (not to be confused with the Altai Krai - with its capital Barnaul), has approximately the size of Hungary or Portugal. Nestled in Southeastern Siberia, it borders on Kazakstan, China and Mongolia. The capital of the ‘Respublika Altai’ is Gorno-Altaysk and about two-thirds of the population of around 300,000 live in and around the capital and neighbouring towns of Chemal, Maima and Manzherok. This means the rest of the Republic is very sparsely populated.

some good helpers

If you want to join a guided tour, a bit of Google and Yandex (Russian search engine) searching will find you any number of operators, possibly operating in your own country and working together with a local agency. “Altair-tour” altairtour.ru is a very experienced operator; some of their tours run with English speaking guides otherwise they can set up a private tour for you if you wish. We booked through “Russia Discovery” russiadiscovery.com. Both travel companies can also help with visa and travel arrangements to Gorno-Altaysk, the capital of the Altai Republic. Other personal contacts include “Siberianadventurers” (find them on Instagram, or look for a piece they wrote for moscowliving.org, search for ‘Siberia’). Gabriela, who is English, and her Russian partner arrange private as well as organised group tours. They seem particularly able to arrange adventurous rafting, kayaking and horse-riding trips both for groups and individual travel.

As far as cycling, we saw a few cyclists and found out that revatravel.ru has some shorter multi-day accompanied cycling trips. Bring your own bike or rent from them. If we were to go cycling it would be along the Southern Chuysky Tract, as you share the road with vehicles for the duration of the trip. Aim for the second half of August, which seems to be shoulder season already. Some adventurous mountain bikers were riding the steppes and forests around Kyrai too, but we did not get the chance to meet them.

car hire

We booked a hire car in Gorno-Altaysk directly over WhatsApp with “Za Rulem”. For us a first in terms of trust level required, but it worked really well. If you want to get your preferred choice of car in the high summer season, they recommend booking 2-3 months in advance — specifically since a 4WD is required to take you legally off the tarmac onto the gravel roads. All we needed was an international drivers licence, our national licence, passport and visa information and of course a credit card.

tourism infrastructure

Around Chemal, Maima and Manzherok the tourism infrastructure is the most developed you will find in the region. There are camping grounds, hotels, restaurants and a large number of tourism-oriented outfits that offer all kind of excursions and day trips, from rafting on the Katun River to horseback riding, quad biking and 4x4 jeep tours. I can’t really comment on any of these as we only drove through this northern part, in search of the quieter areas further south. There are different accommodation options every 10 km or less along the Chuysky Tract, and more so in the towns en route. Given the still limited infrastructure many places are fully booked in July, the main Russian holiday month.

In the second half of August it was easy to find accommodation in so-called domniki (домники — wooden cabins), yurts or glamping sites and the occasional guest house (гостиница — gastiniza). Many spots along the way advertised with a sign (“место есть” - Mesta yest; there is space, often displaying a phone number to call). There are many camp sites too and in Russia it is generally allowed to camp wild. Expect to pay 500 Rbl for a tent on a campsite, 2500-3000 Rbl for a made-up tent or domnik. Glamping is more expensive, but this often might include dinner and breakfast

what about Russian?

We found Russian language skills very useful, unless you are going on a fully organised trip with an English-speaking guide. Our level is about A2/B1 (CEFR Levels, www.coe.int )  and we had no difficulty communicating, sometimes with the help of translating apps (especially when communicating on WhatsApp or Telegram). In some areas Altaian is more widely spoken than Russian, but communication was no barrier to getting what we needed. Many Russians and Altaians have some English skills, yet might be shy to use them. Try to communicate in Russian first if you can. At the very least, being able to greet someone and say that you don’t speak Russian, is the polite thing to do. Never assume that you are not being understood whatever language you speak in your party. Many people in Russia study English, German, French, Spanish, Chinese…

health considerations

When we travelled there were no Covid restrictions apart from the usual sanitary ones. The advice is to get a vaccine against Japanese Encephalitis, as this is carried by ticks in all of Siberia. You need two shots 2-6 weeks apart depending on the vaccine, so some planning before going to Altai is needed. 

Gorno-Altaysk and Ust-Koksa

how to get to gorno-altaysk

Unlike most other parts of Russia, there is not rail service in the Altai Republic, so transport by road and air are the main options. The nearest train station to the Republic reachable by the Trans-Siberian Railway is Novosibirsk (approx 49 hours by train from Moscow). Novosibirsk  is around 500km North of Gorno-Altaysk. 

Gorno-Altaysk is serviced by direct flights from Moscow (4.5hrs), Novosibirsk (1hrs) and St Petersburg (5.5hrs), airlines include Aeroflot, S7, Nordwind and others. The airport in Gorno-Altaysk is about a 20-minute car ride from the city. The basic Yandex taxi service (equivalent to Uber) works here.

Finding a place through booking.com in Gorno-Altaysk is easy and works. We stayed at the IGMAN hostel and would recommend it. There is a hotel next door of the same name.

Gorno-Altaysk has a good selection of grocery stores, sport stores, restaurants, medical facilities and a worthwhile museum to visit (open Wed-Sun in summer). You can stock up on food supplies and buy cooking fuel for a camping stove and spend a day or two exploring the city and nearby hills.

how to get to ust-koksa

SiLA (Siberian Light Airlines) flies daily from Gorno-Altaysk to Ust-Koksa in summer, a one-hour flight in a small 14-seater propellor jet. Book well in advance (> 2 months) through eg. superkassa.ru.

You can drive to Ust-Koksa from Gorno-Altaysk as alternative, the travelling time is six-seven hours with lengthy sections of gravel. Tour operators offer group or private transport too, and there is also public transport by daily bus from Barnaul, see www.avtovoksal.ru, bus terminal, (around 1600 Rbl for a16 hour overnight trip).

visas and permits

Finally, but importantly, as non-Russian you likely need a Visa for travelling to Russia and additional border permits to enter Ust-Koksa and to visit some of the hiking areas close to the borders with Kazakhstan, China and Mongolia. These permits can be obtained for free, but they take two months and a good level of navigating Russian bureaucracy. Best to engage the services of a travel agent for this, even if you plan to go off by yourself!

Hikers’ resources

To my knowledge there are no English language hiking guidebooks available yet that cover the Altai Mountains in Russia. Am I tempted to write one? I can’t say I’m not ;)

full disclosure: I do not get any commission from the businesses mentioned in this post

Photo credits: apart from the photos of ‘luna and mars’ that were taken by our Russian acquaintance Sergei, all photos are the author’s own