From Baikal to source of the river Lena

Day 1 / Irkutsk

Arrival to Irkutsk. Meeting at the airport and transfer to the center of the town. Accommodation in guest rooms (hotel on request). After a short rest - walk on your own (excursion with accompaniment of a guide on request). You will be able to see a historical quarter of the wooden city, museums of Decembrists, museums of history and ethnography, the center of the city and the embankments of Angara. Preparation for the tour, rent or purchase of missing equipment for the tour.

Dinner and overnight in guest rooms.

Day 2 / Departure for Baikal

Breakfast. Departure in direction of Lake Baikal by minibus, 250 km of a good asphalt road in direction of the southern part of Olkhon Island, then 145 km of a dirt road along the coast of Baikal. Numerous stops, making photos, enjoying the views. Lunch at the roadside café. The road is hard, but you will be rewarded with unforgettable views of the majestic Lake Baikal. Overnight in a tent on the southern border of the Reserve. Evening campfire. Dinner.

Day 3 / Cape Ryty

Breakfast. Trip to the cape Ryty where we will set up a campsite by motor boat. In case of storm we can go on foot. Walk on the cape Ryty, visit to the very interesting, mysterious and inexplicable places. The Cape Ryty has a reputation of a place that UFOs often visit, local people bypass it. Overnight in a tent on the coast of Baikal. Dinner.

Day 4 / Source of the river Rytaya

Breakfast. The beginning of the trip. Our way passes along the canyon of the river Rytaya. It will take 8-10 hours. The trail is stony, it crosses the river several times. The river in these places is 2-4 meters wide.

The river flows in a canyon surrounded by the 1000 meters high rocks. In the upper reaches of Rytaya taiga is quite dense and the cedars impresses with its size. At any turn you can meet a bear or a Siberian deer - Siberian stag. Dinner. Overnight in the upper reaches of Rytaya under the cedars' crowns.

Day 5 / Hunting cabin on the source of Lena

Breakfast. Continuation of the trip. Up to 8 hours travel to the hunting cabin located near the source of Lena. Climbing to the pass crossing numerous rivers and taiga. From the passes there opens an unforgettable view of the surrounding mountains with numerous small lakes and Lake Baikal. Overnight in the hunting cabin. Dinner.

Day 6,7 / In surroundings of the source of Lena

Breakfast. Day stay. Walking around the source of the river Lena. Animals observation. Lunch. Climbing the surrounding peaks. Recreation. Fishing. Swimming. Dinner.

Day 8 / Return to the mountain pass

Breakfast. We leave the source of the Lena River, heading for Lake Baikal the familiar path to the pass. Without going down into the canyon Ryty we move along the ridge, with a gradual decrease in height. Dinner. Overnight on a plateau at an altitude of 900 meters above the river Rytaya.

Day 9 / Descent to Baikal

Breakfast. Descent to the southern cordon of the Reserve along the crest of the mountain with the opportunity to contemplate Baikal all day long. You will see a panorama of the whole central part of the lake with views on the Barguzin ridge, the peninsula Svyatoy Nos, the archipelago of Ushkany Islands and the Olkhon Island, and of course the mountains of the western coast of Baikal for several kilometers to the south and to the north, dinner. Overnight in tents.

Day 10 / Olkhon Island.

Breakfast. Departure from the Reserve to the south, 145 kilometers of the same dirt road. Lunch. Ferry though the Olkhon Gates strait and overnight in the capital of the Olkhon Island, in the village Khuzhir. And, finally, double rooms, toilet and shower. Walk in the village and to the cape Burkhan (Shamanka Rock). Dinner.

Day 11 / Cape Khoboi.

Breakfast. Trip by car to the northern part of the island to the sacred cape Khoboy. Panorama of the widest part of Baikal (almost 80 km). In the distance we see already familiar to us the canyon of the river Rytaya. Picnic on the cape Khoboi. Overnight in Khuzhir. Dinner.

Day 12 / Return to Irkutsk.

Breakfast. Return to Irkutsk. Dinner at the roadside cafe. Dishes of the Buryat cuisine: pozy, bukhler, saguday. For extreme-lovers – tarasun. Arrival to Irkutsk, overnight in guest rooms (hotel on request). Dinner.

Day 13 / Departure.

Transfer to the airport/railway station.

Total price includes:

• Overnight in Irkutsk and on the Olkhon Island in double rooms;
• Tents/wooden houses near Lake Baikal;
• Permission to visit the reserves;
• Experienced English-speaking guide on the whole route of the program;
• Tents and mats;
• Meals – FB (except the 1^st day (only breakfast and dinner, without lunch!);

Extra charges (optional):

Additional payment for accommodation in a hotel on the 1^st and 12^th day

Number of people in the tour: from 2 to 6 persons;

Additional information:

Mosquitoes: there is a high probability of the presence of gnats and mosquitoes in tolerable amounts. Hats from mosquitoes are provided.

Difficulty level: up to 10 hours of hiking a day. Cross-country with stones. A lot of fords (up to 50 centimeters deep). Numerous elevation changes, necessity to carry food for the group in your backpacks. You need to have good sport shoes and willingness to difficulties and good mood; you will go on foot for several hours on cross-country and to ford the rivers. It is required to spend several nights without a tent under the open sky. Field kitchen during the trip (in order not to carry too much food).

You should be ready to carry a backpack with some food for the group and minimum of your personal belongings up to 15 kg.