Itinerary

Day 1
Transfer to the Hotel "Russia" (3 star, centrally located near the Red Square). Walking tour that includes the Kremlin, Red Square, and St Basil's Cathedral.

Day 2
Sightseeing around Moscow by van - 3 hours. 12:00 check-out of hotel, but we will keep two rooms for luggage storage and late afternoon showers. Transfer to Domodedovo airport for our night flight to Barnaul. We will be flying east, across 3 time zones, and will still only be about halfway across the massive country of Russia!

Day 3
Arrive Barnaul in the morning. Barnaul, with a population of just under one million, is the capital of Siberia's Altai Region. You will find it a thriving city in this time of tumultuous change and you will experience development and progress first hand just strolling the grand avenues and sipping tea in the sidewalk cafes. Homestay in a village outside of Barnaul: a great opportunity to spend the evening and night with a local family. You will be welcomed warmly and treated to a sumptuous feast. You will have the opportunity to see how people live in rural Russia – their beautiful, abundant food gardens, their root cellars that store summer’s produce for the long Siberian winters. They will make you feel right at home with warm Russian hospitality.

Day 4
Drive to Ust Sema (5 hours). We will be driving on an old road that connects Siberia with Mongolia. The ancient spice trade used to follow this route. Along the drive we will visit local villages, stop at holy sites and enjoy each other's company on this long journey to the put-in. We will camp in the mountains at a rustic campground.

Day 5
Drive to Tungur. We continue our journey through the Altai mountains and camp at put-in. The Katun is at big volume river whose source is the glaciers of Mt. Belukha, the highest peak in Siberia. The river trip will take us through a variety of landscapes from deep canyons to open meadows to rolling hills and sandy beaches strewn with Siberian pines. A highlight of the trip is access to Siberian villages and the opportunity to meet and observe people living life as they did hundreds of years ago, untouched by the politics of change. The trip will include Russian guides and locals from Barnaul. Each night on the river you can be sure the festivities will include Russian folk singing around the campfire and plenty of dancing and cultural exchange.

Day 6
Raft the mighty Katun River to the Ak- Kem River confluence. This is a warm-up river day in terms of rapids. The river swiftly runs through alpine meadows and Siberian taiga (pine forest). We will stop in a beautiful spot for lunch everyday – our Russian guides swiftly and efficiently get a fire started and cook up a delicious hot meal.

Day 7
Rafting to Argut confluence. Today is a big day on the water- Akkem Breach is one of the biggest and longest rapids on the Katun. Continuous class 4 whitewater through a narrow canyon which we will scout. Numerous confluences enter the Katun adding to the volume. Many of these side rivers have trails that we can hike.

Day 8
Rafting to the River Bolshoi Yaloman.

Day 9
Rafting to " Pine Beach".

Day 10
Rafting to "petroglyphs" – at camp there is a short hike to a giant rock wall covered in ancient petroglyphs.

Day 11
All day "lay-over" in camp. Experience an authentic, riverside Russian Banya (Sauna). Our Russian guides will spend the day building a bonfire to heat the rocks. They will construct a tented sauna with tarps. Once the rocks are hot enough the sauna is ready. Women will enjoy the sauna together, then men separately. One tradition in the sauna is to gently slap the skin with birch branches to increase circulation. Another tradition is to run straight into the cold river water after becoming sufficiently hot enough in the sauna. This is a great cultural experience and may give insight into why the Russians have such lovely complexions!

Day 12
Rafting to the rapid "Teldekpen".

Day 13
Rafting to the village Chemal. We will visit the village and maybe stock up on some supplies where they still use an abacus for calculating transactions!

Day 14
Say farewell to the mighty Katun then depart for Barnaul (4-6 hour drive). Festive, farewell dinner at a local bistro in Barnaul. The host families from the homestay will join us as well. One last vodka toast, “Nastarovya” as we exchange addresses and hugs and celebrate a wonderful adventure!

Day 15
Depart for Moscow on a morning flight to then transfer out for USA -- (depending on what time your flight departs you will have the option to stay one more night in Moscow.)

Day 16
Depart for U.S. (for people staying one more night in Moscow.)

More information from Bio Bio Expeditions:

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  www.bbxrafting.com/rafting-on-the-katun…
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