Off Russia's Beaten Path

Traditionally, Easter has heralded the beginning of the Russian (and FSU) inbound travel season. And, for those seeking to travel off the beaten path in these regions, the arrival of Spring means a wealth of travel options await. You can bike through Tunna Tuva, ascend Europe’s highest peak, take an intimate tour of the Lake Baikal area, ride an ice breaker to the North Pole, visit the volcanoes of Kamchatka, trek in the footsteps of dinosaurs in Central Asia, fish in the outback of the Kola or Kamchatka Peninsulas and much more!

Before you go

The unrivaled bible of adventure travel to the region is Frith Maier’s Trekking in Russia and Central Asia: A Traveler’s Guide. While written by Maier for hikers and climbers, the wealth of advice on trip preparation is useful for anyone preparing for independent or adventure travel in the former USSR. Like her list of the “ten essentials” to bring along if you are going in the back country: extra clothing; extra food; sunglasses; knife; firestarter; first-aid kit; matches; flashlight; map; compass.

Maier, a ten year veteran of adventure travel in Russia and Central Asia, and an accomplished mountain climber, also gives detailed advice on crime, safety, health, communication, securing native guides, food, bribes, and more. This in addition to meticulous, environmentally-sensitive descriptions (with excellent maps) of hikes from Mount Elbrus in Crimea to the volcanoes of Kamchatka. Her book is a must read for anyone considering adventure travel to the region. Additional, useful readings and resources are listed at the end of this article.

The right attitude

Travel to Russia and the FSU’s hinterlands is bound to be fraught with delays, frustrations and inconveniences common to adventure travel the world over, and heightened by the region’s uncertain economic development. If you are not of a flexible bent, excited by the uncertainty of independent travel, adventure travel in Russia is not for you.

The upside is that such travel offers an unparalleled look at beautiful, remote and untrammeled places. Anyone can travel to Moscow. But few have walked along the edge of a Kamchatka volcano (see Russian Life, August 1996).

Make sure you understand fully what you are getting into, what the cost and difficulty of the trip is, what experience you should have, what kind of co-travelers you might have, what the health and travel risks are, and, last but not least, what kind of company you are traveling with.

The right company

There is heightened competition among tour providers for the more popular travel itineraries (see below). Our price comparisons showed, in some cases, differences of as much as $800-1000 on very similar trips.

“There are a number of companies that have acquired a great deal of experience and run great trips,” Maier told Russian Life, “but not all of them... you need to ask a lot of questions and be sure to get recommendations of past travelers.” In her book, Maier lists a series of questions she suggests travelers ask of their tour providers:

“How much experience do they have in Russia and Central Asia? How knowledgeable is the person selling the trip about the itinerary and the area? How thorough are the materials they send you about the trip? Are they involved in the operation of the program, or are they simply marketing it? Who leads the trip? What emergency medical precautions do they take? Ask to talk to a client who’s participated in a similar trip in the area.”

What is on offer

The list of adventure travel destinations in the FSU is surprisingly long and diverse. While this listing is not to serve as an endorsement of these companies, every effort has been made to include only companies which are known in the field and which have been operating in Russia for some time.

Cycling. This is a unique, environmentally-friendly way to see a small region, like little Tannu Tuva, at the furthest reaches of Russia. There you can mountain bike with Asian Pacific Adventures through this region most known for its postage stamps and Khoomei singing. Team Gorky offers a biking interary closer to the heartland of Russia: weekend trips around the Golden Ring. REI Adventures has a more strenuous mountain biking journey along the Silk Road in Central Asia.

Trekking. Central Asia, which combines exotic, Eastern cultures with uniquely severe terrain, is the most popular destination for trekking trips. Mir Corporation offers a light trekking adventure to “walk in the footsteps of dinosaurs” and see two sites of dinosaur prints in Uzbekistan. They also offer a 16-day Silk Route Odyssey with camel safaris and day trips overland, plus a wide range of trips from hiking in Mongolia and Eastern Siberia to visits to gulags on Solovetsky island. Exodus offers an 18-day road trip through Central Asia. Mountain Travel/Sobek has a 21-day trip for trekking through Central Asia, and, in 1998, will offer a special trek in Kirgizistan. Adventure Center has a “moderate” 14-day trek in Tadzhikistan and Uzbekistan. Himalayan Travel has a 16-day Uzbek and Tadzhik trek, or a Kirgizistan only trek. REI Adventures has a 15-day trekking trip through Uzbekistan, Kirgizistan and Tadzhikistan, half of which is spent trekking, the other half in transit and visiting Samarkand. For trekking amidst the volcanoes in Kamchatka, contact East-West Discovery.

Mountain Climbing. For the hardier souls who want mountains to climb, Russia is a good point of departure. Mount Elbrus, in the Caucasus, is the highest peak on the European continent, at just under 17,000 ft. Yet, due to its high base camp (you can be flown in to it), and a higher acclamation lodge, its peak can be ascended in a long day of hiking. Four of the companies contacted offer Elbrus climbs: REI Adventures, Alpine Ascents, OTT and Himalayan Travel. Interestingly, most firms which, in the past, had offered climbs of higher Central Asian peaks, have stopped offering them, due to depressed demand and heightened uncertainty in the region (“one day they tell us it’s okay to land helicopters, the next day it isn’t,” remarked one tour operator who preferred to remain anonymous).

Higher Still. If 17,000 feet is still not high enough for you, how does 70,000 feet sound? Depending on weather, that is how high you can fly in a MiG-29 taking off from Zhukovsky air base near Moscow. Incredible Adventures has been offering these specialized adventures for several years, plus has on offer a Zero-G flight where you can experience the sensations of weightlessness.

Ecotourism. Coming back down to Earth, Friends of the Russian National Parks Society offers a 17-day trip, “Lake Baikal: Mountains, Taigas and Seals,” an exploration of the lake and its splendiferous Eastern shore (with “moderate hiking”), plus a chance to see the famous seals of Baikal. Earth Island Institute offers a similar opportunity, but longer trips (3-4 weeks) with its Baikal Watch team, where all profits go to groups working to save the lake. Earthwatch affords travelers the opportunity to study the human species in their Russian Folklore tour, where the intent is to travel to villages and document on videotape local folklore.

Fishing. Take your pick: incredible Atlantic Salmon or incomparable Pacific Salmon and Rainbow Trout. Frontiers International Travel offers fishing for Atlantic salmon on the Kola Peninsula. Kamchatka Fishing Adventures, Nomad (agent for Lena and Friends and Alaska Wilderness Tours) and Ouzel offer fishing for Rainbow Trout on the Kamchatka peninsula. Kamchatka Fishing has lodges for fishing on the Zupanova river on the East Coast, and a newer camp on the Sopochnaya river on the West coast, where fly-fishing for Steelhead is on offer. Ouzel and Nomad each offer 7 days of float fishing down the Zupanova, Opala or Medved rivers, with moveable camps. Nomad also has a 16 day trip that includes some float fishing, plus  backpacking on Sakhalin island. Team Gorky has a Taimen fishing trip in Northern Siberia.

Rafting and Sailing. For white water rafting, turn to Team Gorky. They have scheduled whitewater trips down the beautiful Katun river in Siberia, the Chatkal in Kirgizia and flatwater rafting on the Lukh river near Nizhny Novgorod. For some reasonably-priced kayaking in Lake Ladoga, contact White Nights. And if the Artic Sea beckons you, TravelWild offers travel aboard the Russian icebreaker Yamal, or a photo safari through the Northwest Passage on the Kapitan Khlebnikov, visiting the Chukotka peninsula and the Pribilof and Alaskan islands along the way.

If none of the above seems to fit the bill, never fear! There are firms which specialize in unique, one-off travel adventures. T.E.I. has organized everything from trips to diamond mines to visits with Chuckchi reindeer herders and plans an organized military tour of the Far East this fall, as well as Amur river cruises. And Mir Corporation has a full range of independent travel options throughout Russia, Mongolia and China. White Nights offers similar capabilities, including archaeological expeditions to Siberia and an opportunity to “live a few days in a quaint Russian village, surrounded by forest, isolated from civilization.”

Sometimes adventure can be found in the humblest of places.