Spiritual Altai. Author's equestrian retreat tour

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We invite you to go with our team on a unique author's equestrian tour and touch the subtle, mysterious world of Altai spirits.

We will visit the amazing beauty of the Karakol lakes and admire them from the height of the Bagatash pass! We will also visit Lake Veronika, hidden among the mountain ranges, admire the power and beauty of Akkinsky Waterfall, and see the ancient rock remnants - Castles of Mountain Spirits.

We will learn to listen and hear the songs of cedars and streams, to look and see, and most importantly, to slow down and let that most cherished "here and now" flow through us.

Location

S. Elekmonar

Horse riding tours

from

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Weekdays: 8am - 8pm
Weekends: 8am - 7pm (GMT +3)

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Tour highlights

Meditation and merging with nature

Morning and evening qigong practices will help open up your energy flows to communicate with nature.

Horseback riding

We will make an unforgettable horseback ride of more than 100 km.

Karakol Lakes

We will visit the unique alpine lakes, as well as admire them from a bird's-eye view.

Immersion in the Altai epic

There will be a lot of useful and interesting information about mythology and traditions.

Secrets of Altai cuisine

We will brew delicious herbal teas, taste talkan, honey and kurut

Itinerary

Day 1 - The village of Elekmonar
Dear friends, we are glad to meet you at the airport / bus station in Gorno-Altaysk before 10 a.m.
Next, the transfer will take you to our "Headquarters", where in a friendly atmosphere you can relax from the road, drink tea and we will tell you about all the subtleties of camping, we will give you all the necessary equipment.
We are waiting for those who get there on their own until 2 p.m., after which they will load their belongings and equipment onto a GAZ–66 SUV and drive to the horse farm.
The journey will take about one and a half to two hours and will give you an unforgettable experience of the driver's skill and endurance of the car!
GAS is always for you!
Upon arrival at the equestrian base, accommodation in tents, instruction, horse riding instruction.
After the briefing, a sauna is planned, and after that, we will hold a trial session on qigong – tune in to the Altai wave.
Well, when it gets dark, we'll sit by the hearth to enjoy a dinner cooked over a campfire, listen to the Altai rituals of welcoming guests, and take part in one of them.
Day 2 - Horse crossing to the taiga glade at the foot of the Kylai mane
The morning will start with our standard phrase – "Cats! Wake up!"
We wake up, wash up, and get ready for our morning qigong class.
After the lesson – a hearty breakfast, packing and "riding horses"!
Our way to the cedar glades begins with forest paths that lead to the first pass on the route – Karatash.
It opens up the prospect of a further path, the top of which is the snow-covered Bagatash pass.
Here we will stop to fill our eyes with beauty, appreciate the scale and, of course, have a snack!
After a snack, back on the road!
Down, then up, and further away from the highways, a trail leads us deep into the Altai taiga.
A thousand more horse steps, and we enter the fabulous world of the highlands.
The final point of this day's route will be the Kylai taiga glade, located among century-old cedars, juniper bushes and mountain ledges.
We set up a camp, set up tents and walk around the neighborhood.
After the rest, a set of qigong exercises, followed by a dinner cooked over a campfire – oh! This is a special cuisine!
When it gets dark, it's time for fairy tales and fascinating stories.
Well, we will have to fall asleep to the magical music of a mountain stream, the ringing of bells on the necks of grazing horses and the songs of the nocturnal inhabitants of the forest.
Today we have a 25 km long journey ahead of us. The journey time is about 5-6 hours, during which we will climb about 700 meters on horseback and, bypassing the high-altitude tundra zone, we will find ourselves in a cedar glade.

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Day 3 - Horseback riding across the Karakol Lakes to the Muikhta river
The third day will begin with waking up, qigong exercises, and a delicious breakfast.
And there is so much beauty and new experiences ahead!
One of them will be communicating with your horse.
Today we invite you to get a little closer to the creature that obediently takes you along the winding mountain trails.
Communication, cleaning, braiding the mane – all this is a fascinating process of communication between two beings, in which a person makes an attempt to understand a horse, and a horse – a man.
After the horses are cleaned and saddled, we set off on our way to the spirits of Bagatash Pass.
From the Altai language, this name translates as "stone frog".
We might even get to see her!
We climb a steep path up to the pass and, if the spirits of the pass are kind to us, we will be able to see incredible beauty: rich blue lakes framed by snow clouds from a bird's-eye view.
In this place you will definitely feel an unprecedented delight and a sense of freedom!
If the weather permits, we will definitely stay here longer to nourish our eyes and soul with beauty.
Then the horse trail will lead us to the Castles of the Mountain Spirits, the legendary place of the Ilovo range.
These are the remnant rocks located on the edge of the pass.
It is believed that such rocks remained from the "old" Altai.
There are different stories about these places, but these stories always have a flair of the mystical and mysterious.
Let's make a short stop here to try to feel this place and its power.
The parking lot is about an hour away.
We take a narrow path down from the Castles into the cedar taiga.
The first steep descent with the crossing of a mountain stream – and here it is – the Muikhta log, covered with lush grass, with sprawling powerful cedars and a stunning prospect of mountain peaks stretching away into the distance.
"The taiga Sea!" you will say! Yes! That's exactly how it is! It is in this amazing place that we will set up our camp and from here we will travel light to the main locations of the route.
And at sunset, after watching how the sun sets smoothly but quickly into the "taiga sea" and paints the log in amazing colors of beauty and saturation, we will do a set of qigong exercises and practice breathing to calm down all the impressions of the day and tune in to a new one.
After dinner, when it gets completely dark, it's time for stories about Altai and bedtime stories.
Today we will cover 15 km on horseback, which is about 4-5 hours without stops.

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Day 4 - Radial horse-drawn exit to the Ak-Kaya pass and a visit to Lake Veronika
Wake up, wash, breathe, practice Qigong, have breakfast and... get in the saddle!
We are going to visit Lake Veronica hidden in the mountains.
Get ready for a day filled with the beauty of the mountain peaks, fanned by the free wind from the pass!
The Ak-Kaya Pass, to which our faithful horse friends will take us, is, one might say, the border of the "sea" of the taiga and the pointed, still snow–capped mountain peaks of the Iloda range.
The closer the horses get to the pass, the more often you start turning your head: blue-green mountain hills remain behind, and real mountains grow in front!
But we will explore this pass tomorrow, and now we are going to the left – to the lake.
So, before us is a steep descent into the valley of Uul.
Right during the descent, we will learn to trust our horse, because this is a great opportunity to feel very vividly that there is a living, thinking being under you!
We overcome the most difficult sections of the descent on foot, leading a faithful friend.
Believe me, this descent is a kind of therapy, a practice of trust and choice.
Next, after crossing several small rivers, we will walk along the cascade river-waterfall and stop at the water surface of the magnificent Veronica.
While the horses are resting, we will have enough time to feel this magical place!
If desired, you can try to perform the form of taichi, just take a walk or swim.
But we warn you right away: the water in the lake is icy!
And this is not a metaphor – a snowfields is clearly visible on the other shore, going deep into the waters of the lake!
Well, after the walks we'll have a snack.
We return by the same path, but the view will be completely different – such is the specificity of traveling in the mountains!
After returning, take a short rest.
Then a new batch of Qigong exercises, followed by a hearty camping dinner and an evening of interesting stories around the campfire.
We will walk about 20 km on horseback, the journey time is 5-6 hours.

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Day 5 - Radial horse-drawn exit through the Ak-Kaya pass to Akkainsky waterfall
A new day and new impressions!
Today we are going to visit a stunning waterfall!
But first you need to get the right attitude!
Breathing practice and a set of qigong exercises will help us in this.
And a hearty breakfast will fill your body with energy!
We leave the Muikhta log and again follow the horse trail to the Ak-Kaya pass.
As a rule, we don't stay here with other bands, but today we will have time to try to feel this place, listen to the songs of the wind, and take enough photos.
We will walk down from the pass.
This is a great workout for the body and an opportunity for the horses to relax.
After the descent on foot, we continue our journey on horseback.
The trail goes through cedar glades, and the lower it descends, the more epic the view becomes.
After all, there will be mountains all 360 degrees around us, and we are in the very heart of them!
A few more mountain trails and we're here!
We park the horses under the shade of spreading cedars and warm up before a short but steep descent to the waterfall.
We take water bottles with us, but those who are ready to stand under the invigorating jets, take a swimsuit, a towel and, of course, a change of shoes! Go ahead!
The descent itself usually takes no more than 20 minutes, but in some areas it is very exciting: we walk carefully, take our time, and help each other!
And here it is – Akkain waterfall!
It breathes coolness and freshness!
You can look at it from afar, you can come closer and sit on the trunk of a long-fallen tree, or you can go under a stream of water.
After looking at the waterfall, we climb up, have a snack, rest a little more and set off again – to the Ak-Kaya pass.
The return climb to the pass is particularly impressive.
The riders have the feeling that the people and horses in front of them seem to rise into the sky and disappear into it.
In the evening, we will have a walk to the stone of desires and from it opens a stunning panorama of the Muikhta log in sunset colors.
Horses are 20 km away, travel time is 5-6 hours.
Day 6 - Horse crossing from Muihta log to Kylai parking lot via Karakol Lakes
It would seem that we are starting the journey back, but there are still so many discoveries ahead of us!
Today, the main goal is to visit the largest, the third Karakol Lake.
The morning will be held as usual, but there will also be a camp meeting.
And off we go again!
We climb to the Castles of the Mountain Spirits.
Here you can stop for a while and compare your feelings about this place.
How will you feel this time?
After overcoming the already familiar Bagatash pass and the steep descent, we stop at the largest of the seven Karakol lakes, the third.
We leave the horses to rest, and we go for a walk along the lake.
If the weather permits, you can swim in the lake!
After a snack under a cedar tree on the shore of the lake, we continue our way back to the Kylai parking lot.
Today we have another practice of communicating with a horse planned – we will learn to ride bareback!
It's an amazing and exhilarating experience!
This is how you will feel not only the mechanics of movement of this amazing animal, but also its amazing energy, wisdom and strength, as if the power of life itself!
Well, in the evening we will say goodbye to the taiga and the spirits.
There is no special ritual for this.
Everyone will do it the way they feel it is necessary at the moment.
We'll just give you time to be alone with the mountains, nature, and yourself.
For those who want, you can perform the taichi form at sunset.
The horse crossing is about 15 km, and the journey time is 4-5 hours without stops.

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Day 7 - Return to the horse base
The return journey is always a little sad, but only if you perceive it as the end of the journey.
We will try to use this day as a time to reflect, reflect, and sum up internal results.
But for now, we still have a whole day ahead of us!
Therefore, the morning will begin with tuning in: breathing, yourself, and your perception of the day.
A set of qigong exercises will help prepare the body for a long transition.
A hearty breakfast, gathering of the camp and "riding horses"!
Do you remember the geodetic lighthouse that we passed on our first day on horseback?
Today we will climb it!
This will be the final epic location of our route!
There, next to the lighthouse, standing on a stone hill, you can see a stunning 360° panorama!
And this place is also great for taking a last look at the mountains, to promise yourself to come back here again, or something completely different, intimate, to say to Altai: "Thank you!"
Many travelers note that horses always go home faster and more willingly.
Well, that's good for us, because there's a hot tub waiting for us!
We come to the base, say goodbye to the horses and gratefully let them rest.
Next, according to the program, we have a final set of qigong exercises, a long-awaited sauna and a farewell dinner.
Well, in the evening around the campfire, we will summarize the results of the hike: we will share our impressions and possible revelations that came during the tour.
Travel time is about 6 hours.
Day 8 - Departure
We're going back to civilization.
Early in the morning, or rather at 7 a.m., our taiga minibus, GAZ 66, will begin the group's descent back to Elekmonar.
Those who have a flight in the afternoon will have time to repack, the transfer will be waiting for about 12 p.m.
Well, those who are not in a hurry can go rafting on the beautiful Katun River (not included in the price).
22 km off-road to the horse farm + transfer to the airport 100 km from the village of Elekmonar.

Difficulty

Involves moderate physical activity

Tour organizer's comments

Do not think that if you do not have riding experience, you will not be able to cope with the tour. Not at all. It's just going to be more difficult and you have to be ready for it.It is worth remembering that an equestrian tour is in any case an event of increased complexity and is hardly comparable, or rather, completely incomparable with a beach holiday on the coast, because a certain physical training of a potential participant in an equestrian tour, of course, must be present.

Accommodation

Tent

7 nights

Comfort

Basic

The tour includes overnight stays in tourist tents throughout the route.

Overnight stays in tents.

Tour conditions

Group

From 6 to 6 tourists

Minimum age

16 years old

Maximum weight of the tourist

100 kg

Duration

8 days 7 nights

Group meets at

S. Elekmonar

Included in price

transfer from Gorno-Altaysk and back (only on the day of arrival and departure);
transportation service in accordance with the tour program;
sauna according to the tour program;
nutrition;
horse rental;
the work of an instructor – guide (1-3 depending on the number of participants in the group);
recreational fees;
accident insurance / medical insurance;
equipment rental.

Paid extra

air and railway tickets to Gorno-Altaisk, Novosibirsk, Barnalua and back;
bus ticket from Novosibirsk, Barnaul to the starting point of the tour and back;

It's important to know

Equipment:

sleeping bag (comfort temperature 0 - +5) (a sleeping bag is issued, if desired, we recommend taking your own, if available);

Clothes:

underwear;
The sweater is warm;
The sweater is lighter;
warm pants for cold weather;
trousers made of thick fabric (camouflage is possible);
shorts or light pants;
T-shirt / T-shirt (2-3 depending on the length of the route);
wool socks (more than one pair);
cotton socks (several pairs);
insulated, spacious jacket;
windbreaker (windbreaker);
gloves;
headdress;
swimsuit.

Shoes:

RUBBER BOOTS (preferably on a smooth sole with a heel);
sneakers or sneakers;
slippers – run out of the tent at night into the bushes or sit by the campfire.

It will be useful to:

a pocket or headlamp flashlight;
a set of threads with needles;
spare batteries for cameras, flashlights and other equipment;
thick plastic bags for packing things during a hike;
a camping knife;
wet sanitary napkins for camping;
toilet paper;
sunburn cream;
medicines that you personally need;
personal hygiene products (wet wipes are required);
specific medicines that may be useful to you.

Try not to take unnecessary things!

Via Gorno-Altaysk (the main and most convenient option):

Step 1. Visit the website www.s7.ru and you buy tickets in the direction of Gorno-Altaysk (we will help you choose tickets in advance)

Step 2. When you arrive in Gorno Altaysk, call the organizer and within 5 minutes you will be met at the airport entrance. Transfer from Gorno-Altaysk and back is included in the price.

Step 3. We arrive at the guest house in an hour. Elekmonar, from where our journey will begin.

Through Barnaul (option 1) - description of the route without transfers.

Step 1. By air or railway transport to g. Barnaul.

Step 2. From the airport – by minibus to the bus station (railway station on the same square with the bus station)

Step 3. Purchase a bus / minibus ticket Barnaul – Chemal (~ 650 rubles)

Step 4. You drive ~ 4.5 hours and find yourself in the village of Maima, which borders the city of Gorno-Altaisky (where the mountainous area begins)

Step 5. Call the organizer and tell them the name of the locality you are passing through.

Step 6. After driving for another hour and a half, inform the driver that you need to get off at the first stop, the village of Elekmonar

Step 7. Get off the bus and call the organizer.

Step 8. You will be greeted within 5 minutes.

Barnaul (option 2) is a road with transfers, but buses run more often.

Step 1. By air or railway transport to g. Barnaul.

Step 2. From the airport, take a minibus to the bus station (railway station on the same square as the bus station).

Step 3. Purchase a bus ticket Barnaul – Gorno-Altaysk (~ 450 rubles)

Step 4. At the Gorno-Altaysk railway station, purchase a bus ticket / take a taxi / take a minibus to the village of Chemal (~ 150 rubles. - all three options are included in one price)

Step 5. As soon as you leave the bus station, call the organizer.

Step 6. After an hour, inform the driver that you need to get off at the first stop, the village of Elekmonar.

Step 7. Get off the bus and call the organizer.

Step 8. You will be greeted within 5 minutes.

Via Novosibirsk (option 1) – description of the route without transfers.

Step 1. By air or railway transport to g. Novosibirsk.

Step 2. From the airport/ railway station - by minibus to the bus station

Step 3. Purchase a Novosibirsk – Chemal bus ticket (~ 800 rubles)

Step 4. You drive ~ 6 hours and find yourself in the village of Maima, which borders the city of Gorno-Altaisky (where the highlands begin)

Step 5. Call the organizer and tell them the name of the locality you are passing through.

Step 6. After driving for another hour and a half, inform the driver that you need to get off at the first stop, the village of Elekmonar.

Step 7. Get off the bus and call the organizer.

Step 8. You will be greeted within 5 minutes

Horses:

It is quite easy to control a horse when hiking in mountainous terrain. In a column, the horses move one after the other independently, this is a familiar thing for them, they know the trails well, and the task of the rider is only:

Keep your distance (not too far and not too close),
make sure not to pass too close to tree trunks and under low branches.,
do not constantly allow grass to be eaten by pulling and lifting the horse's head with a rein,
Don't drive through the bushes,
do not enter dangerous places (climb rocks, steep slopes, deep places in rivers),
Don't let them jump off the rocks.

All this is quite easy to do, having even the smallest experience of "riding" and thanks to the briefing at the beginning of the hike and under the strict supervision of our instructors.

Also, I want to point out that horses themselves are smart enough not to do big stupid things. You just need to control sometimes so that the horse goes like everyone else.

The main points that should be performed/not performed (for more information, see the briefing):

You don't have to approach the horse from behind–our horses are calm, but they're still HORSES. They might get scared and kick.
A horse is a big and powerful animal, make sure that it doesn't accidentally step on your foot.
Do not let go of the horse when stopping. She needs to be tied up or asked to hold a friend.
A harness is a rope designed to tie a horse to a stop and adjust it during the transition.
If you realize that you are lagging behind, the horse needs to be adjusted, if it does not work out, then you can use a drill – this is normal, the horse will not be hurt.
The distance between the riders is 2-3 meters, it is advisable not to lag behind and, accordingly, not to catch up, resting on the horse in front, i.e. keep your distance. This will save both the horse's strength (each creature needs to keep a certain pace and load during physical exertion) and time, especially precious during long marches.
During the transition, if possible or by feeling, monitor and monitor whether the girths (harnesses securing the saddle on the horse) have loosened.
Know what your horse's ammunition looks like. Of course, you can't remember everything at once, but at least remember the place where you put the ammunition after you unsaddled it.
Know and learn how to properly saddle and unsaddle a horse.
Monitor the condition of the horse – legs (lameness), back (bumps, abrasions). If you see something, inform the instructor.
The horse is the best friend, companion and brother during a hike. It is necessary to establish contact in her so that you trust each other and have mutual understanding, talk to the horse, praise, stroke ... etc. It is well known that she is very pleased with this!

Dates and Prices

$1,093

21 – 28 Jun 8 days 7 nights

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Spiritual Altai. Author's equestrian retreat tour

Location

Tour highlights

Itinerary

Accommodation

Tour conditions

Included in price

Paid extra

It's important to know

Dates and Prices

Reviews

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