Ladoga skerries are the pearl of Karelia. Kayaking to uninhabited islands

This trip is carried out on three-seater Neva models (occasionally double ones). This is a classic frame kayak with an open deck for lakes and rivers with a calm current. 

The model is ideal for water trips on Ladoga: high stability and large useful volume, which allows you to take everything you need with you. 

The set includes an apron and waterproof skirts to protect against splashing, paddles, and life jackets for each participant.

There are no restrictions on our part if you and your child are ready to row and enjoy camping in any weather. We can row for about 4 hours without getting out of the kayak. The child in the kayak sits on a separate seat, not on his hands.

Evaluate for yourself whether your baby is ready to withstand this. And you can row for two.

In our experience, for children under 5, such a hike will be more of a challenge than an adventure, so we recommend postponing it until a more mature age.

You can go on this hike with a four-legged friend weighing up to 15-17 kg and up to 40 cm tall, if the dog is socialized, is not afraid of strangers, animals and is not aggressive.

Important: if the dog is small, fits in your arms and you can row with it, and/or you are walking alone with someone who is ready to row for the three of you (yourself, you and the dog), then a separate place is not required.

If the dog does not fit on the handles, she will need to book a separate seat in the kayak with an additional payment of 2000 rubles.

This option is suitable only if you already have experience of such trips with a dog and it feels comfortable on the water.

To participate, you must have your own tent in which you will live with your pet. There will be no plans for other participants of the hike to move into this tent, i.e. expect that you live with a dog alone or with your friends, comrades, with whom you will agree in advance to live together.

If you do not have your own tent, you can rent a separate tent from us, which will then need to be handed over in exactly the same condition as it was accepted, i.e. to thoroughly clean it from possible wool.

You also need to prepare food, drink and all necessary conditions for the dog yourself.

On the first night, you can only stay on the territory of the base (including the camping area and the coastal area) with a dog on a short leash, it is forbidden to let dogs off the leash and walk on the territory of the base.

Please indicate in advance in the application and the questionnaire that you are going camping with a dog.

If you have allergies or are afraid of dogs, be sure to indicate this in the pre-admission questionnaire or ask the consultant in advance if a pet is planned in your group.

According to our custom, we start from the one who will book a place in the group first, i.e. if you are afraid of dogs, warned us about it and booked a place in the group, then you will no longer be able to enroll with a dog in this group. Conversely, if there is already a participant with a dog in the group, then we will warn the one who is against dogs so that he can decide on his own whether he is ready for such a neighborhood.

Our first overnight stay on Friday will take place at the campsite (except for hiking on the May and June holidays — there we immediately sail away from civilization to the wild).

There is a rustic toilet, a changing room, washbasins and spring water (you can take it with you on a hike in your bottle).

For an additional fee, you can use a shower and a porcelain toilet (why not?).

After sailing to the islands on Saturday (or immediately, for hiking on the May and June holidays), any civilization ends, we will live on uninhabited islands in tents, without communication, showers and toilets. Ladoga is all around us, so if you wish, you can always refresh yourself in the lake.

We return to the campsite on Sunday for lunch and meet again with toilets, washbasins and a locker room. A shower and a porcelain toilet are also available for an additional fee.

Our trip will include 3 meals a day (dinner on Friday, breakfast, lunch and dinner on Saturday, breakfast and lunch on Sunday). GOST stew (97.5% meat) of the highest quality is added to each lunch and dinner.

We respect and appreciate vegetarians, for them we bring all the food to readiness and put it on plates before the stew is in it.

We will also take into account all the comments on food that you leave in the questionnaire before the trip, but do not forget to remind the attendants about them immediately before cooking.

The participants prepare independently, under the strict guidance of an instructor. We will form groups of 3-5 people and prepare for duty.

You don't have to take extra food with you (well, only if there are some nice things without which life is not a joy at all). Vegetarians can take with them something that they are used to replacing meat with (soy meat, dried legumes, etc.).

Be sure to bring a bottle of water with you! It will be possible to replenish supplies at the pier on Saturday. For cooking, boil water from Ladoga.

What about alcohol?

We strive to ensure the safety and comfort of all participants in our hikes. We understand that many of us associate outdoor recreation with pleasant evenings around the campfire, so we organized cozy gatherings with mulled wine, which we prepare ourselves.

Nevertheless, we urge you to be responsible and moderate: considering that the next day will be an active day on the water, it is important to maintain mental clarity and strength to control the kayak.

Therefore, please do not take extra alcohol with you in order to maintain an atmosphere of mutual understanding and safety for each participant of the hike.

The weather is a part of any real adventure. On Ladoga, there are sunny days with calm, there is wind and rain. We take all this into account when planning the route and always adapt it to the actual conditions in order to maintain the safety and comfort of the participants.

An important plus: Ladoga skerries is an ideal place for water trips.

It's not an open lake—it's a maze of islands and narrow channels. It's easy to hide from the wind in them, and the wave just doesn't have time to accelerate to an unpleasant size. That is why the skerries are considered one of the safest and most protected areas for kayaking routes.

Depending on the wind direction, we adjust the route so that we can walk along the most convenient and wave-protected areas. Instructors know the area like the back of their hand — they can always find a back way, a cozy parking lot or wait out the bad weather in a beautiful place.

And most importantly, we will never go out on the water if there is even the slightest doubt about safety. We always have a backup plan, and the experience allows us to adjust flexibly. The comfort and safety of the group is more important to us than any "according to plan".

Well, if it does rain, we have tents, hot food, mulled wine and warm company.