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It is now almost three hundred and fifty years since the Cossacks discovered this mysterious peninsula in the north-east of Russia.
But it is still unknown terrain. During the Cold war Kamchatka was one of the most secret zones, prohibited for foreigners to come and seldom visited by Russian.
However, this situation had its advantages: volcanic landscapes, wide valleys, gigantic coastal regions, forests and tundra of incomparable beauty were largely preserved as they had been known to aboriginal population and as the first Russian conquerors found them. |
Kamchatka can be reached via the Trans-Siberian and a short flight, direct from Moscow or by flight from Alaska. Wild, beautiful, remote and inaccessible are all good descriptions, although its nickname, 'The land of Ice and Fire' is also very apt due to the long cold winters and the line of volcanoes (five are active) which run up the spine of the peninsular. The best time to visit is undoubtedly September and given the size of the area there are many programmes available to the adventurous traveller.
The programmes can be diverse, still the sample itinerary looks like this:
| Day 1 | Arrive Moscow | |
| Day 2 | Fly Mow-Petropavlovsk (9 hrs) | overnight flight |
| Day 3 | Arrive Petropavlovsk, overnight in Paratunka | hotel |
| Day 4 | city tour + fishing in Avacha bay | hotel |
| Day 5 | Drive to Tolbachik (10-12 hrs) | hotel |
| Day 6 | Explore Tolbachik area | camp |
| Day 7 | Explore Tolbachik area | camp |
| Day 8 | Explore Tolbachik area | camp |
| Days 9-10 | Arrive Petropavlovsk via Esso | hotel |
| Day 11 | Drive to Mutnovsky and Gorely (5 hrs) | camp |
| Day 12 | Mutnovsky visit | camp |
| Day 13 | Gorely visit | camp |
| Day 14 | Drive to Rodnikovaya valley | camp |
| Day 15 | Drive to Petropavlovsk, overnight Paratunka | hotel |
| Day 16 | Fly back to Moscow | hotel |
| Day 17 | Departure | |
The usual trip to this region lasts two weeks plus 2-3 days for extensions, including different combinations of activities:
- Tolbachik + South volcanoes
- Tolbachik + Esso village + Bystraya River rafting
- South volcanoes + Rafting + Avacha climbing etc.
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Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky city tour & Avacha Bay trip
Petropavlovsk is the industrial, scientific and cultural center of Kamchatka. The city its ideally situated harbor is protected by the bay from all storms and even from the dreaded tsunami tidal waves.
Petropavlovsk has one of the largest harbors in the Far East of Russia and it is also of great strategic military importance. The city has over seven hundred different businesses and administrative and organizational bodies. It is a base for deep-sea fishing and the trawler fleet. Beside all this, the city is research center. Several different scientific institutes have their headquarters here, including the Institute for Volcanic and Geochemical Geology, the Institute of Vulcanology and etc.
There are a lot of historical monuments here as well +church+ market + nice museum.
The clients have a half day boat trip in Avacha Bay for learning sea birds and fishing and spend
half day in the city (museum, monuments, shopping - market to see different kind of berries, mushrooms, fish).
Volcanoes
The breadth of the volcanic belt is up to 100 km in some places, with many volcanoes lying only 20 to 30 km apart. The Kluchevskaya group of volcanoes is the main point of interest in the north region. In a relatively small area (6,5 thousand sq.m) 14 volcanoes rise to the sky. These are the largest active volcanoes in Europe and Asia - Kluchevskaya (4750 m), Karen volcanoe (4579 m), Ushkovsky (4108 m), Tolbachik (3085) and many other.
In addition, in the area and on the slopes of the volcanoes there are about 400 smaller volcanic creations: slag and lava cones, explosion craters and domes. In general, the whole group cab be characterized by the processes of volcanic and post-volcanic activity.
In 1975-1976
the world was amazed by Tolbachinsky Valley - where we were able to see how volcanoes form. Ostry and Plossky Tolbachik make up a whole area in the Klychevskaya group. During a period of 10,000 years, these volcanoes exploded no less than 60 times. This is how Tolbachinsky Valley - an exotic lava plain - was created. It is decorated by a multitude of slag cones, cracks and lava caves. Here, a large Tolbachinsky split explosion occurred the last of the seven strongest explosions of historic times. Breaks through the northern group of cones continued for 72 days. A 300 meter crack moved a mountain 1004 m high a distance of 50 m. Flame pillars rose in the sky 2.5 km high and the gas and ash cloud went up 10-18 km. As a result, three large and four small cones appeared on the surface of the earth. The tourists cover the distance about 500 km
(8-10 hours) by road in special vehicles (military buses with high cross-country abitities) and 70 km without road (3-4 hours) through the forest and lava fields. It is long driving day. Some stops are organized for lunches, berries and mushrooms hunting, to see Malki springs & Milkovo village & museum and cross Kamchatka river by ferry… The camp is located on a bottom of Tolbachik volcano and you can see huge snow covered mountains just in front of you.
There are two main directions of eruption 1975-76 from Tolbachik:
a) North break (crack) 18 km from Flat Tolbachik, includes 3 new craters which is located on one line (like pyramids): 1st-300 m, 2nd - 278 m, 3d - 108 m
b) South break (crack) 28 km from the main volcano, only one new crater (165 m) but it is very interesting as well because: huge lava fields, another type of lava and bombs, caves
On the way back to Petropavlovsk we stop in Milkovo to see a local museum. Milkovo is a large and relatively modern settlement. There is a local museum - one of the first Cossack forts, Verchne-Kamchatsk, was founded precisely here. In Milkovo and its surrounding areas live very interesting people known as Kamchadals. This group was created as a result of a mixture of two nations and cultures: Cossacks and Itelmens. Lovers of ethnography will be interested to learn about the life of Kamchadals.
It is possible also to visit Koryak village Esso (100 km from the main road from Atlasovo). One can spend here our extra day. The settlement Esso, which, in the language of the native people, means "large", one of the coziest in Kamchatka, is surrounded by evergreen forests, sculptured cliffs and ridges. Esso is heated by thermal waters. Thermal sources also heat greenhouses, where even southern vegetables have been grown. In the center of the settlement there is a large swimming pool. The native population cosist of Evens. You can learn about their original traditions in the Museum of local lore and in the concerts of their folkore group.
Visit to Mutnovsky and Gorely volcanoes. The tourists drive about 3 hours by serpentine road through stone birch tree forest along mountain ranges and Viluchinsky Volcano then 2-3 hours without roads through ancient lava waves and snow. There are a lot of snow fields around Mutnovsky & Gorely.
South Kamchatka is higher then North part and there are a lot of snow there in summer time Mutnovsky's plato summer temperature +5-12 C. Tolbachik area is warmer.
"Mutnovsky" (2322 m) consists of four cones.Ten explosive outbreaks have been recorded this century. In the pauses between them there is active fumarole activity, strongest in the so-called active crater. In fine weather the cloud of gas rising it can be seen from Petropavlovsk , 80 km away.
An excursion into this crater offers its own attractions, particularly in good weather. Hot gases make the colored rims of the glacier"weep', the Great Fumarole howls like a jet plane, a strange sound reaches the visitor's ears from various cauldron-like areas where a sulphurous solution is boiling. It is a place to evoke the most horrific of fantasies."
Gorely (1829 m) volcano has 11 craters and usually we visit 2-3 of them depends on the weather and the clients. There are acid lake & pure water lake inside the craters as well.
Climbing is not difficult, the clients do not need special equipments just good trekking shoes.
Based camp is located between two volcanoes as close as possible. It depends of snow level.
Rodnikovaya Valley is located en route Mutnovsky-Petropavlovsk and usually we stop there for overnight to have hot spring swimming and relax after cold Mutnovsky Plato. It is nice place to rest.
It is possible to spend half day there as well and then continue driving to Petropavlovsk.
EXTENSION:
As the clients usually have 2-3 spare days, this is a notice of what we can offer:
1. Visit to the Valley of Geysers and Uzon (UNESCO protection nature preserve)
2. Flight to Lake Kurilskoye
3. Rafting
4. Climbing Avacha volcanoe
5. Visit to Nalychevsky museum-preserve
One day trip to The Valley of the Geysers that was discovered in 1941 only. A private jet from Petropavlovsk takes you to the site. From the jet one can admire the fantastic view of the mountains and valleys. The Valley of Geysers is a tiny plot full of wonders like treasure-house and hidden by Nature deep in the mountains of Kamchatka. There are 20 large geysers in the valley. Their names are descriptive of their shapes: Giant, Pearly, Sugary, Threefold, Fountain. There are geysers that shoot up every ten to twenty minutes. The clouds of vapour and jets of boiling water give rise to an incomparable intensity of color on the rocky slopes. Uzon Caldera has a diameter of about ten km. Here, surrounded by steep walls of rock as if in a museum, is almost everything for which Kamchatka is famous: thermal springs and cold rivers, venomous-looking mud cauldrons and pure lakes full of fish, berry-bearing tundra and birch woods, mountains and marshes, land animals and birds.
Uzon was closed for tourists till 2000 and now we have opportunity to visit it for 1 hour after
The Valley of the Geysers.
Europeans first appearing in Kamchatka in the 18th century were stunned at the opulent number of brown bears . Their size was terrifying but the local bears unlike their Siberian relations occurred to be quite harmless. There is the biggest population of brown bears (10,000) here. During the trip you might have a wonderful opportunity to see some of them in natural surrounding. We offer you a day trip to Lake Kuriskoye , where shores are trampled upon by bears waiting for salmon spawning. A private jet takes you for the whole day to the place. You'll have a nice walk through the forest to the lake where you have a chance to see "the true master of Kamchatka".
Rafting on Bystraya River occupies 3 days. Rafting is good opportunity to see birds, fish and just relax. Bystraya River rafting is not difficult and the clients do not need any experience.
Avacha volcano (2751 m) climbing trip lasts 3 days. On the first day you drive to Avacha, stay overnight in camp, climb the volcano the second day (6- 8 hrs up and 4-5 hrs down), then drive back to Petropavlovsk. Avachinsky volcano lies only 30 km north of Petropavlovsk. The active cone is inside the soma, which formed as the result of a mighty eruption some thirty thousand years ago. The cone formed about five thousand years ago. It has a large crater at its peak which has been filled with lava since the outbreak of 1991. The outbreak of 1991 was accompanied by a moderate fall of ash over Petropavlovsk and flow of lava down the south-eastern slope. The clients do not need special equipment just good trekking shoes.
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