Ethnotour to Altai

After breakfast we leave for the mountains! 

Soon the northern spurs of the Cherginsky and Seminsky ranges will begin to open up in front of us, and a little further we will notice the resort town of Belokurikha, which is comfortably hidden at the foot of the mountains. 

We will climb the most beautiful serpentine with 62 turns into the Mountain Belokurikha, from the observation decks we will admire how the plain meets the mountains. 

If yesterday we got acquainted with the life of the nobility and merchants of the XIX century, today we will get an idea of the life of Russian peasants in Altai – we will visit the house of the medicine woman, the house of bread, the distillery. 

And we will also stop at a real forge, where you can see the forging process and forge yourself a souvenir.

The next stop is a small family cheese factory.

Here we will chat with cute goats, look through the window into the "holy of holies" — the production workshop and, of course, take part in the tasting of delicious cheeses.

In the evening we will arrive at guest houses in the Soloneshensky district, where we will stay for 2 nights.

Meals: 3 times. By car: 167 km. Walking distance: moderate.

Today we are getting acquainted with the culture of the Old Believers. 

Surprisingly, there is such a trend – people and peoples who have migrated to new lands are much better at preserving their ancestral traditions. 

So it happened with the Old Believers. 

Fleeing persecution after the reforms of the church of the XVII century, the peasants of the European part of Russia found refuge in distant Siberia and carefully carried knowledge, rituals, folklore through the centuries. 

We are going to Sibiryachikha, this village was founded in the XVIII century by Poles-Old Believers.

We will visit the Upper Room, equipped in accordance with the traditions and rules of the Old Believers, it contains household items, household items of local old-timers, their costumes, ancient prayer books, icons. 

And then we'll go for a walk at the Wedding!

The ceremony of wrapping the bride, folklore songs and, of course, a real Russian feast – we will not look from the sidelines, but take part in the celebration. 

After the wedding fun, we leave for the vicinity of Sibiryachikha: admire the beauty of the foothills and look into the house of the Neanderthals — Okladnikov cave. 

Archaeological research confirms that people lived in it about 50,000 years ago. 

Moreover, this place is the easternmost known point in Eurasia for the discovery of traces of Neanderthals. 

We will return to our guest houses in the evening. 

Meals: 3 times. By car: 100 km. Walking distance: moderate.

In the morning, we pack our things and go further into the Altai.

Our acquaintance with antiquities continues. 

The world-famous Denisova Cave is on our way.

A large hall with a natural opening at the top, which served as a hood and a light source, several galleries going deep, water nearby – just an "ideal apartment".

This is probably why people inhabited Denisova Cave for almost 300 thousand years, 22 cultural layers were found in it. 

The discovery of 2008 brought world fame to the cave – DNA analysis of a small bone showed that its owner does not belong to either extinct Neanderthals or Homo Sapiens, but represents a special branch of human evolution. 

The new man was named Homo Altaensis or Denisovan. 

Almost every year, new discoveries are made in the Denisova Cave, which become a worldwide sensation. 

Soon after Denisova Cave, we will cross the border between the Altai Territory and the Altai Republic. 

Through the picturesque Kansk steppe and several passes, we will leave for the Chuisky tract, and then turn into the Karakol Valley, considered a sacred place in the Altai. 

We will devote the second half of the day to the Karakol Valley: we will see petroglyphs, royal burial mounds and modern original monuments. 

In the evening we will continue our acquaintance with Altai, now we will find out how it sounds and what it tastes like: we will have a national dinner with observance of rituals and a concert by kaichi, a throat singing performer. 

Meals: 3 times. By car: 180 km. Walking distance: moderate.

Today we are going to the Chuisky tract – one of the most beautiful roads in the world. 

Here, a new magnificent landscape opens up around every turn, so you want to take photos literally at every step. 

In addition, there are a lot of historical, archaeological and cultural sites on the Chui tract. 

Therefore, the 270-kilometer road will take us a whole day. 

In Kupchegen village we will visit the center of folk crafts. 

There are craftsmen who have preserved the traditions of felting, saddlery, leather stamping, embossing, bone carving, forging and other crafts and create real masterpieces. 

In Kalbak-Tash, we learn a lot about the life and beliefs of the ancient inhabitants of Altai, looking at the drawings carved on the stone. 

We will admire the Chike-taman pass, the confluence of the Chuya and Katun rivers, the Katuni terraces and the impressive North Chuya Ridge with glaciers and eternal snows. 

Let's take a look at a small Geyser lake that can draw abstract paintings on the bottom. 

We will stay overnight in guest houses on the outskirts of the village of Kosh-Agach with a picturesque view of the Chui steppe. 

Meals: 3 times. By car: 270 km. Walking distance: moderate.

Today we will get up early to go to Mars, while there are few tourists there. 

The outcrops of red, yellow, burgundy, white and brown clays make this place truly fantastic. 

We will climb to the top of the hills, and go down a narrow small canyon.

Let's admire the panorama of the Yuzhno-Chuysky ridge and Mars-2 from the observation deck.

Then we will cross the Chui steppe and arrive at the small village of Kokorya. 

Here, the local museum houses unique historical and archaeological finds discovered in the Chui steppe. 

What is worth is the perfectly preserved head and arm of an ancient warrior, who is at least 1.5 thousand years old. 

Then our way lies to the valley of the Yustyd River. 

At first glance, she looks completely lifeless. 

But this is absolutely not the case. 

There are ideal pastures here, which have been used by nomads for several thousand years. 

Megalithic steles, petroglyphs, mounds, huge stone mounds and boulders tell us about this. 

Kereksurs look very impressive: a large mound in the center, a ring or rectangle of large-diameter stones, rays from the center. 

We will definitely visit the most interesting ones. 

In the evening we will return to the guest house in Kosh-Agach. 

Meals: 3 times. By car: 80 km. Walking: average load.

Today we continue to get acquainted with the traditions and customs of the indigenous inhabitants of Altai.

To do this, we go to visit the ethnoail.

You will learn firsthand how to perform the ceremony of tying ribbons and feeding fire, whether there are real shamans today, where spirits live in Altai and what is important in the life of a nomad. 

You will try to cook the Altai dessert chok-chok yourself.

And we will also see a fragment of the Altai wedding, remember how it happened among the Old Believers and find common features. 

After lunch, we start our journey towards Gorno-Altaisk.

Although we travel the same way most of the way, we still have a lot of interesting stops in stock. 

We will stay overnight in guest houses in the Ongudai area. 

Meals: 3 times. By car: 270 km. Walking distance: moderate.

Today we are waiting for the last part of the way to Gorno-Altaysk, the capital of the Altai Republic. 

This part of the road will be new to you. 

We will climb the highest pass of the tract – Seminsky, and in a couple of hours we will arrive in the capital of the Republic – Gorno-Altaysk. 

Here we will have a sightseeing tour of the city. 

We will find the place where Ulala began, see how Oirot-Tura developed and find out how the architecture of Gorno-Altaisk is close to Egypt. 

After lunch— the National Museum of the Altai Republic is one of the best in Siberia. 

It is there that the famous mummy of the Altai Princess, found on the Ukok plateau, rests in a special sarcophagus. 

The historical and ethnographic halls with interesting exhibits will structure the information you have already received, remind you of what you have already seen, and will definitely tell you something new. 

In the evening, a farewell dinner.

Accommodation: no. Meals: 3 times. By car: 170 km. Walking distance: moderate.