Altai: 5 days, 5 secrets

Today we are going to the Altai past.

It is not for nothing that Altai is called the cradle of civilizations.

Huns, Scythians, Turks – they did not leave us castles, cities and manuscripts.

But for some purpose, they created mounds, dug giant steles, and carved drawings on the stones that had been preserved for hundreds and thousands of years.

What messages are they hiding?

We will devote the first half of the day to the Karakol Valley.

This fantastically beautiful, cozy and green valley with the three-domed peak of Uch—Enmek proudly towering over it is a sacred and revered place for all Altaians.

Literally like a Mecca for Muslims.

It contains an incredible number of mounds from different eras.

We will definitely look at the Bashadar mound, find out why it is called tsar's mound and why a semicircle of stones is laid out around it.

After the tour, we will continue our journey along the Chuya highway, admire the scenery from the Chike Taman pass, visit another sacred place - the confluence of Chuya and Katun Rivers and stop at the Kalbak Tash sanctuary.

That's where the concentration of mysteries and riddles is!

Who etched hundreds of drawings on the stone and when?

Are there spaceships, people with tails, mythical monsters and a map of the starry sky?

We will definitely find them and find out what science says, and what knowledge the locals have preserved about these drawings.

We will also stop at the famous Chuya deer stone, which is one of the few stone warriors preserved in its place and not taken to museums.

On the way, we will visit the ethnoail, where the hostess will introduce us to the customs and way of life of the peoples of the Altai Mountains.

In the evening we will arrive in the village of Chibit, where we will stay for 2 nights.

Today we will rise to the very heavens!

On powerful off-road vehicles, we will go to an altitude of 3,000 meters to the Repeater, from where a breathtaking panorama of snow-capped ridges will open.

In clear weather, the highest point of Altai, Belukha, can be seen on the horizon.

Along the way, we will witness amazing changes in nature: you will see how vegetation changes with height, learn about the movement of ancient glaciers that, like giant bulldozers, reshaped landscapes.

We will discover an abandoned mine and find out what treasures the mountains hold inside.

Next, another miracle awaits us — a small Geyser lake, where mysterious patterns are born on the bottom.

Many people believe that you can ask questions about the surface of the water, and look for answers in the bizarre paintings that underground springs paint.

The end of the day will be the powerful Mazhoy cascade on the Chuya River, where stormy waters cut through a narrow canyon, creating more than 50 rapids of the highest difficulty category.

This sight leaves no one indifferent!

In the evening we will return to the cozy guest houses in Chibit.

By this day, you will already be impressed by the harsh conditions in which people have to live.

But they live peacefully, calmly, in harmony with nature.

What is their secret? Today we will go to the modern nomads to find out the answer.

In addition, today we will land on two Martials, we will explore the fantastic red hills of Kyzyl Chin.

And then back to the secrets of the nomads.

The Telengit Museum of the Chui steppe has prepared its secrets.

One of the main ones is the mysterious head and hand of an ancient warrior found in a distant gorge.

The next stop is Altai Stonehenge, giant stones stacked in a circle with a diameter of 60 meters.

An ancient observatory or the work of a glacier?

On this day, a visit to the shaman is possible by appointment.

The shaman will conduct a general cleansing ritual and talk to everyone individually.

Today we begin the return journey.

But what a!

The Chuisky Highway is one of the most beautiful roads in the world, the northern branch of the Great Silk Road.

This time, the whole day will be dedicated to the Chuisky highway.

We will stop at the most iconic places, walk along the remains of an ancient road, marvel at the dry masonry and the scale of the work done over 100 years.

Let's find out why it is believed that the path existed here thousands of years ago.

We will look for traces of ancient Katun River crossings and admire the suspension bridge of the 30s, a progressive creation of engineer Tsaplin.

Let's stop at the monument to the drivers of the Chuisky highway, listen to an interesting song about Kolka Snegirev and find out what the fate of the main character really was.

We will arrive in Gorno-Altaysk around 18:00-19:00.

If you have a morning flight, we will help you book a hotel.