Kamchatka: killer whales and bears

Accident insurance is not included in the price of the tour. 

You can apply for additional travel insurance on the website of a Large Country without commission directly from insurance companies.

The season of mosquitoes and midges in Kamchatka begins in June and lasts until about the end of July. There are also insects in August, but there are much fewer of them than at the beginning of the season. In September, they are practically not annoying.

Basically, insects are most active near rivers and lakes. High in the mountains, when climbing or during boat trips, there are practically none, because the wind does its job. 

In Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Yelizov, the situation with mosquitoes, midges, horseflies, etc. is calmer than in other areas. 

Most of the mosquitoes live in the central part of Kamchatka, and a tick can also be caught there (these insect species are imported, they are not endemic to the peninsula). 

• sprays of the Gardex line;
• repellent and insecticidal line of Deta products;
• mosquito nets (relevant for multi-day hikes).

The order of the program days may vary. In case of bad weather, the program provides spare days.

To participate in the tour, you must:

• registration of necessary documents for obtaining visas and permits for staying in travel areas;
• English-speaking escort and guide;
• other additional expenses related to the organization and implementation of the program.

Check the cost of the tour for foreigners with the manager. The calculation is based on the bank's exchange rate on the day of the transfer.

• do not swim in hot springs immediately after eating, as well as after drinking alcohol;
• do not allow prolonged bathing in hot springs, be afraid of overheating;
• do not swim in hot springs at night and alone, as well as in unequipped reservoirs and rivers.
• prolonged stay in thermal pools is not recommended, the optimal time is 5-10 minutes; if you feel unwell, leave the pool and contact your guide immediately.
• It is not recommended to dive in hot thermal water;
• when bathing in the improved hot springs and recreation centers, hand over documents, money and valuables to the administrators; do not forget to lock the locker for clothes; when leaving the pool, check if you have forgotten your personal belongings.

Follow all the requirements of the guide to ensure safety on the route:

• be careful when driving through difficult terrain, when crossing fords of rivers and streams;
• do not leave the group without the permission of the guide, stay within sight of other participants of the trip;
• take precautions near an open fire (campfire, primus stove, gas burner);
• do not drink water from open reservoirs without the permission of the guide;
• do not eat unfamiliar mushrooms, berries and other plants;
• carefully monitor your physical condition, observe sanitary standards and personal hygiene; at the slightest indisposition, immediately inform the guide-guide.

On foot:

• keep the distance between the participants in the line of sight;
• follow the trail one at a time, keeping up and not getting ahead of yourself;
• remember about the one coming from behind: hold the branches and warn about obstacles;
• Do not smoke while driving;
• when driving through thickets of nettles and hogweed, to avoid burns, go dressed in trousers and a long-sleeve shirt (T-shirt);
• when driving on thermal sites, follow strictly the guide-guide one at a time, in no case leave the trail, stop only at the specified place;
• self-examination and solitary stay at thermal sites are unacceptable.

When overcoming water obstacles:

• do not arrange crossings without the permission of the guide;
• wade only in shoes;
• when crossing over rocks, do not jump – step carefully from stone to stone;
• when wading, be sure to unbutton the waist belt of the backpack and loosen the straps;

When meeting with a bear:

• in most cases, the bear tries to get away from a person first and shows aggression, as a rule, only when protecting prey or offspring;
• it is not recommended to run away, to be aggressive, it is recommended to leave unnoticed;
• it is recommended to scare off the bear with noise: metal clanging, whistling, flare, shot up, fire;
• to appear larger, raise your hands up, preferably with a backpack, while swinging slightly, the bear has poor eyesight, and as a rule, it does not communicate with an opponent larger than itself;
• if an animal roars a warning from afar that you have entered its territory, then immediately return back;
• you can hide from a brown bear in a tree, because it does not climb trees;
• a bear with a bear cub is especially dangerous, if you see a lone bear cub, immediately return back, because the bear is somewhere nearby;
• If a bear approaches you while fishing, stop fishing. If there is a fish on the line, do not allow it to splash. If this is not possible, cut the line, because if the bear realizes that he can get the fish only by approaching the fisherman, he will return again.

In the mountains:

• in the mountains, it should be borne in mind that a sharp scream, a shot, a rocket launch, loud singing can cause a landslide, avalanche, rockfall;
• it is necessary to climb scree and steep grassy slopes as close to each other as possible and in a serpentine;
• it is not recommended to enter glacial caves in the "language" of the glacier, to descend into ice cracks;
• if the avalanche fell high enough, walk or run out of the path of the avalanche to a safe place or hide behind a ledge of rock, in a recess (you can not hide behind young trees).

Before traveling, we recommend that you sign a medical insurance and accident insurance contract for the duration of your stay on the route.

If you refuse to purchase an insurance policy, then you will bear the costs incurred as a result of an accident or sudden illness yourself.

Medical care is provided in accordance with the law on health insurance. At the same time, you will have to fully reimburse the costs of emergency transportation to a medical facility yourself.

Do not forget to warn the tour operator about your chronic illnesses in order to avoid unpleasant incidents on the route.

To prevent sun and heat stroke, you should wear clothes made of natural fabrics, as well as a headdress.

Before the trip, form a personal first-aid kit, since most of our medicines are sold only by prescription. The first aid kit may include:

• medications for motion sickness in transport and on the water;
• painkillers;
• remedies for cardiovascular diseases;
• gastric remedies;
• dressing material (bandages, cotton balls, Band-aid);
• insect repellents (meaning mosquito repellents and midges, there is no encephalitic tick in Kamchatka);
• sunscreens and creams for skin care after sun exposure.

On the route, avoid eating unfamiliar mushrooms and berries, as well as water from rivers, since really clean water can only be in springs and small streams.

The climate of Kamchatka is very peculiar. Its features are due to the terrain, the large length of the peninsula from north to south, the proximity of huge water spaces and the movement of cyclones.

Summer is short here, in some areas it lasts about two months, especially in the northern mainland of the region and in the mountains.

Average temperatures in many areas do not exceed plus 10-15 °C. There are few hot days. Days when the air temperature rises above 20 ° C, there are no more than 2-3 weeks on the coast. In areas far from the sea, the number of such days increases dramatically. The warmest month on the coast is July, in the central part of the peninsula – July, August.

Warm days alternate with rainy ones. There is more precipitation in the warm season than in the cold. Thunderclouds rarely form. With high humidity, there is not enough heat to form thunderclouds.

Due to the proximity of the ocean and mountainous terrain, in one day in Kamchatka you can experience a temperature drop from +25 in the valleys to +5 in the mountains. In late August and early September, the first snow appears on the tops of volcanoes, and at the foot of volcanoes, the air temperature at night can drop to negative values.

Air and railway tickets are not included in the price of the tour. You can purchase them yourself or contact us for help.