Roerich's non-expedition to Altai. 100 years later

The largest tourism center, including a warm artificial lake for swimming, a pond for fishing, caves, an apiary, restaurants, tourist complexes, ski slopes, an extreme entertainment park, an art gallery. 

Roerich Park and a monument on the banks of the Katun River. 

Masterfully made of white marble, Nicholas Roerich stands above the high Katun cliff. 

In front of him, the green paws of Altai pines swing; behind him, the queen of Altai waters rumbles, tirelessly rolling her turquoise waves.

The figure of the great artist and thinker, hand-created by sculptor Vladimir Voychishin, perfectly fit into the pristine landscape, and did not violate it, but only decorated it. 

The monument was erected near the places through which Nicholas Roerich passed during his Central Asian expedition.

He described this journey in the book "The Heart of Asia". 

The art gallery "Prostor" with an exposition about the life and work of Roerich.

Accommodation: Podgorica Park Hotel. On foot – 5 km, by car – 60 km.

The Museum of Local Lore. 

The banner of Roerich's peace in Makarievka. 

Not far from the village of Makaryevka, where the expedition route took place, the so-called Roerich's sign "Banner of Peace" was discovered. 

Who and when put this sign on the rock remains a mystery. 

The volunteer landing on the installation of a navigation sign is an element of the "useful program". 

The Roerich Pact is an international treaty on the protection of artistic and scientific institutions and historical monuments. 

The symbol of the pact is the Banner of Peace – three connected spheres of amaranth on a white background. 

Field cuisine in the style of "gastro-botanic show in Altai" is a modern culinary trend popular in Altai, when traditional dishes with the addition of wild plants and medicinal herbs acquire new tastes, aromas and properties. 

Salads, soups, balms, tea and meat with Altai herbs are already well–known brands, but soup-taiga, kundubki, chaga dessert - you can try this exotic only in Altai. 

Accommodation: Podgorica Park Hotel. On foot – 5 km, by car – 60 km.

The National Museum of the Altai Republic named after A.V. Anokhin.

The exposition of the original artist, an exhibition of reproductions of Roerich's paintings on the street. 

The museum holds rich ethnographic collections of the indigenous peoples of Altai, a special place is devoted to culture, everyday life and such attributes of shamans as tambourines. 

The most unique exhibit is the mummy of Princess Ukoka, who only recently returned home. 

Uch-Enmek. 

Karakol Nature Park is a specially protected area in the vicinity of the sacred mountain Uch-Enmek. 

Numerous petroglyphs, ancient mounds and megalith complexes, as well as mystical phenomena that even geophysicists have observed here, amazing finds have been discovered here and continue to be found by archaeologists from all over Russia. 

A tour of the valley will immerse you in the Altai culture and its cosmogony. 

It is here that you better understand Roerich's ideas about the Great Migration, the assimilation of different cultures and the symbiosis of East and West.

An immersive costumed equestrian mini-hike with a photo shoot based on the principle of immersion in the era. 

Accommodation: Uch-Enmek tourist complex. On foot – 5 km, by car – 60 km.

A trip towards the Bashtali plateau, which offers an incredible view of the Shambhala of Altai – Mount Belukha (in clear, cloudless weather). 

Let's consolidate the WOW effect of the excursion with the ritual "Listening to silence". 

Evening discussion "Hypotheses and insights of the great intuitionist". 

Accommodation: Ark campsite. On foot – 5 km, by car – 60 km.

N.K. Roerich Memorial Museum in Altai, exhibition hall. 

The museum is housed in the restored house of the Old Believer Vakhramey Atamanov, where Nicholas Roerich and his companions stayed during the Central Asian expedition in 1926. 

The journey, which took place through India, China, Russia, Tibet, Mongolia, is included in the golden fund of geographical discoveries of the world. 

Museum of the History and Culture of the Uymon Valley. 

The tiny five-walled hut attracts travelers interested in the culture and traditions of the Old Believers. 

The creator, guide and researcher of this museum has been collecting parables, conspiracies, sayings, proverbs, memories of local Old Believers for 50 years, and has turned into a living legend herself.

Accommodation: Ark campsite. On foot – 5 km, by car – 60 km.

A unique archaeological site of world importance, in which a fossilized phalanx of a finger was found, belonging to a species of people representing a special branch in evolution (Denisovans) and different from Neanderthals and modern humans.

Maralnik in the Soloneshensky district. 

The Altai maral is a timid, cautious, majestic animal from the deer family. 

Antlers are the uncosted horns of a maral – a complex of substances created by nature with a huge immunostimulating force, natural doping. 

Antler baths are a wellness procedure using an aqueous extract from boiled maral horns, the use of which, as well as products of antler maral breeding, increases the energy of the body, improves blood flow, promotes tissue regeneration, accelerates muscle recovery, and slows down the aging process of the body. 

Accommodation: maralnik "Lesnaya skazka". On foot – 5 km, by car – 60 km.

Topolnoye – Soloneshnoye – Solonovka is a village founded by Old Believers and Russian settlers. 

Such settlements became objects of N.K. Roerich's ethnographic interest. 

Salt shaker. 

The Roerich's Way tour with a visit to Tolstukha Mountain (according to the weather) is today a place of attraction for paragliders. 

A master class in watercolor in the style of Nicholas Roerich. 

Acquaintance with reproductions of N. Roerich's works – his views from Tolstukha Mountain. 

The master class is accompanied by a tea party with a Solonovsky printed gingerbread. 

Lunch in the traditions of the Old Believers in the "Kerzhatsky Tents". 

Kerzhatsky Palati is the ancestral home of the Old Believers, built in 1895. 

The atmosphere of the settlers' life has been recreated here. 

The owner of the estate is the great–granddaughter of the very Kerzhak who settled in Solonovka in 1925. 

Perhaps an expedition caravan stopped at a similar inn almost a hundred years ago. 

Belokurikha. 

The resort town is located on the so-called Altai Face – the border of mountains and plains, known for its healing air and thermal springs. 

100 years ago, during the Central Asian expedition, a resort development plan was already developed here, 16 baths, a solarium and a dining room operated.

Belokurikha today consists of dozens of sanatoriums with high–tech treatment methods combining a modern approach and traditional medicine. 

Altai Sandoons. 

A Russian sauna with steaming in the hay is a special ritual during which you can rejuvenate in a warm vat with a decoction of oregano and chamomile. 

Accommodation: hotel "Grace" or Eco-complex "Gold of Altai". On foot – 5 km, by car – 60 km.

The city, built by decree of Peter I in the 18th century, the former Bikatunsky prison, now has the status of a Science city, is known for progressive inventions and merchant business of the XVIII - XIX centuries. 

Atmospheric Biysk streets often end up in photo and video stories. 

We will walk along the "Biysk Arbat" – Sovetskaya Street, a reserve of brick houses of the early 20th century and find the house where the participants of the N.K. Roerich expedition stayed. (Hint: this is the Vtorovsky Passage on Count L.N. Tolstoy Street – an exact copy of the casino in Nice, now it houses a hotel). Biysk Museum of Local Lore named after V.V. Bianchi: exhibition "N.K. Roerich. 

From the heart of St. Petersburg to the heart of Asia" from the St. Petersburg Museum-Institute of the Roerich Family. 

Barnaul. 

The point is the name of the traditional completion of the Altai expeditions. 

The non–exhibition ends in an unusual atmospheric place – the "Mountain Pharmacy" - a museum telling about the pharmacy business 200 years ago, and a restaurant with dishes of Siberian cuisine according to recipes of the XIX century.

The interiors, furniture, and equipment of the pre–revolutionary pharmacy have been recreated here, but the most interesting thing is that the basements of the building have been opened, where more than 500 artifacts were found during restoration in 2010. 

Signatures, recipes, labels, pharmacist's workbooks, receipts, pharmacy vials, bottles, hand–held "grass cutters", stone mortars with pestles, balances, forged objects, coins, pharmacy utensils dating from the XIX – first half of the XX century, as well as ampoules with an unknown liquid are non-trivial items of the exposition. 

The ampoules are hermetically sealed, and expensive examinations are required to study their composition. 

So their contents are still a mystery!

Gornaya Drugstore is also a store of Altai souvenirs and gifts. 

You will find here not only authentic handmade items made by craftsmen in wood and stone, but also all kinds of collections of Altai herbs, teas, balms and delicacies. 

Accommodation: Barnaul Hotel or Airport Hotel. On foot – 5 km, by car – 60 km.

Breakfast.

Departure.