Kamchatka volcanoes

This day is associated with the Gorely volcano.

Climbing it is not difficult and passes between slag fields and frozen lava flows.

Gorely has several cones and a dozen craters. Two of them are most interesting for tourists – "Active" and "Blue Lake". The first fully justifies its name, without ceasing its volcanic activity, and the second also does not lag behind, revealing to the eyes of amazed tourists an amazing lake at its bottom.

Tourists walk along the edge of these craters, marveling at the geological richness of their structure and admiring the views. The descent is faster than the ascent.

After climbing, the travelers have dinner, rest and go to sleep in tents.

We wake up, have breakfast, and move to the foot of the Mutnovsky volcano.

A visit to the Country springs and the Calm Waterfall is planned for today. The summer thermal springs are located in the east between the Dvugorbovaya and Rocky Mountains, on the northern slope of Mutnovsky.

Volcanic manifestations are scattered in a wide band that stretches for more than a kilometer. There are 5 sources and steam emissions, the most powerful of which is the Active Funnel. We can observe hot springs, boiling boilers and steam jets on the walls of this basin.

Then our journey will continue and we will go to the Calm waterfall. The journey by car will take about 40 minutes, and you will have to walk another kilometer.

It is not high and flows in a wide stream surrounded by greenery. You can go down to this waterfall to get a better look, and even swim — but the water is cool.

We return to the hotel in the evening.

Tourists take a sea cruise along Avacha Bay with a visit to the island of Starichkov and Russian Bay. This trip will take about 10 hours, during which the tour participants will see stunning pictures of nature.

Leaving Avacha Bay by boat, you can admire the mountain landscape from a new angle, from the sea. It is impossible not to pay attention to the rocks "Three Brothers", which, like guards, stand at the entrance to the bay. An ancient legend is associated with them, which the guide will certainly tell you about.

Birds fly over the bay, snatching fish right out of the water. The closer to the island of the Old Men, the more different birds there are, and on the island itself there is their noisy residence. This is a protected area where bird markets and pinniped rookeries are located. You can admire the animals only from afar, landing on the island is prohibited. You can also look at the rookeries of the sea lion and the cleaver at Cape Kekurny, past which the boat passes on the way to Russian Bay.

This bay used to be called Ahomen in Itelmen. It was renamed in 1952. Its peculiarity is its very convenient location and security, which makes it a reliable haven for ships. Back in the XVIII century, sailboats hid here from the storm. During the Second World War, a naval base was located in this bay. In addition to its strategic importance, the bay also has aesthetic significance. This is one of the most beautiful places in Kamchatka.

Directly above the bay there is a lake with a high content of silver in the water – another unique touch to the palette of Kamchatka nature.

In the bay area, whales and killer whales can sometimes be seen swimming close enough for their fins to be visible above the water.

There is wonderful fishing in the bay. We equip tourists with the necessary gear, and they catch fish for dinner themselves, and after eating delicious fish soup and relaxing, they return back to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.

The beginning of the substantial part of the tour is connected with the road to the Klyuchevskaya group of volcanoes. It is located in the North of Kamchatka, it takes about 10-12 hours to get there, part of the way is on gravel, the last kilometers are off–road. Having left early in the morning, the group gets to the area of the Large Fractured Tolbachinsky Eruption only in the evening.

The last part of the journey takes place in the mountains, the cars rise to a height of more than a thousand meters above sea level, it is there that the tent camp is located, where tourists can relax.

The opening views smooth out the hardships of the road, fatigue is forgotten. Outside the car window there is frozen lava and growing cones of new volcanoes.

During this day, tourists dine in the dining room in Milkovo and have a snack during short halts. Dinner is served at the camp in the evening.

The day is dedicated to climbing the Plosky Tolbachik stratovolcano, which is part of the massif formed on the site of the shield volcano that once existed here as a result of the merger of two stratovolcanoes. One of them, the Sharp Tolbachik, is already extinct, and the Flat One is active.

Climbing it is not the easiest route that tourists take in Kamchatka. No special climbing equipment is required. But there must be a certain physical fitness of the participants. The top of the Flat Tolbachik is above 3000 m above sea level. The ascent is quite gentle, there are no very steep sections.

Difficulties may arise due to the rocky-sandy coating of the slopes, which is why it is so important to be shod correctly and have gaiters that will save your feet from getting sand and small pebbles. Tourists take with them a small backpack with a minimum of necessary things. It is necessary, going up, to overcome 20 km. It takes 6-8 hours, depending on the pace of movement. The descent is covered faster by a couple of hours.

In the process of climbing, tourists walk among the lava layers, see traces of volcanic bombs that once fell. An amazing sight opens from above – a valley covered with a layer of ash after a powerful volcanic eruption, and new cones formed. The last section in front of the peak is the steepest, and after overcoming it, travelers find themselves in front of a huge funnel, the diameter of which increased more than five times after the eruption – up to 1,700 meters.

In the evening, the group returns to the tent camp, where a hot dinner awaits everyone.

This day is dedicated to the Northern and Southern breakthroughs formed in the mid-70s of the twentieth century as a result of a fractured eruption. 

The cataclysm led to the formation of seven new structures. These cinder cones are called the Northern Breakthrough. Having risen to a low altitude, tourists admire the Tolbachinsky Valley – an amazing picture of volcanic activity. The cones stand in a row, forming a chain. Climbing to another cone gives you the opportunity to admire the variety of rocks. They are of different colors, up to bright red; some stones are impossible to pick up, they are so hot.

At the Southern Breakthrough, the eruption was less powerful, so its consequences did not cause the active construction of new cones, but lava caves were formed. There is also an impressive dead forest – an absolutely scorched area where all the plants died. Now you can see that life is taking its toll, and new greenery is beginning to grow.

In the evening, return to the camp and have dinner.

We say goodbye to the amazing camp in the mountains and move to the hotel.

We leave a free day so that every tourist can choose an activity to his liking.

If you want to see bears, go on a helicopter tour to Kuril Lake, visit geysers — to the Valley of Geysers. Helicopter tours are booked in advance, at least 10 days before the tour. If you did not have enough nature and hiking, we suggest visiting the Vachkajec mountain range.

For those who would like to get acquainted with Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, you can go for an independent walk along the central embankment, to Nikolskaya and Mishennaya Sopi.

We say goodbye to some of the participants — we will arrange a transfer to the airport with a stop at the fish market and a souvenir shop. And with the rest of the tourists who decided to stay longer, we continue to explore Kamchatka.