In the wild. Why do Russians defy nature, storm the peaks and cover thousands of kilometers on foot?

Foam and a sleeping bag — instead of a bed with an orthopedic mattress, buckwheat with stewed meat cooked over a campfire — instead of a buffet, icy water of a mountain lake — instead of a warm Jacuzzi, a backpack and trekking boots — instead of a suitcase with fashionable outfits and flip-flops. Increasingly, young girls are sacrificing comfort in favor of the opportunity to feel at one with nature and take a break from all the delights of civilization. What is pushing them to take this step? How do they prepare, what problems do they face on the road and what advice do they give to those who are going on their first hike? About this “Tape.” talked to avid and novice hikers and an instructor guide.

“When you realize that you can do everything alone, an inner core appears”

I can drive alone along the Chui highway, go hiking, exist in the wild, walk 30 kilometers a day, set up a tent and make a fire in the forest. When you realize that you, it turns out, can do all this alone, some kind of inner core and confidence in yourself and in the future appear. At this moment it seems to you that if I can do it, then everything in my life will work out

Polinasolo is a tourist

As a child, Russian Polina read novels about Tom Sawyer, Robinson Crusoe and Sinbad the Sailor and adored the film “The Lord of the Rings”, the main characters of which go on a long adventure trip. She has always been fascinated by the idea of going somewhere, walking, flying or swimming – because it is in such endless movement that a person, in her opinion, finds real freedom.

In 2023, the girl went on a solo hike to Altai — it was her first such experience. “When I tell someone that I went camping alone, many people don’t understand what it means. They think I was alone and just joined some organized group of people. But no, I was completely alone. I flew to Gorno-Altaysk, rented a car, drove to the village of Chibit, where the route to the Shavlin Lakes begins, and went hiking. I was incredibly scared and anxious. On the first day, to be honest, I was scared of every rustle,” Polina admits.

The traveler suggested that these feelings seemed to be imposed on her from the outside — her family and friends dissuaded the girl from such a desperate trip, and their fear was transmitted to her. But after the first night he passed. Polina realized that she had nothing to fear, she was confident, well equipped, knew the route and was aware of all the risks.

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What things to take with you on a hike:what to take from food and how to make a hike comfortable on June 9, 2023

“This is a feat”Russians give up everything and travel alone. Why are they doing this and aren’t they scared?November 16, 2023

“I didn’t have any maximalism about the fact that I definitely had to reach the end point. I didn’t have unconditional faith in myself—that I was so omnipotent, that I would conquer myself and this wild nature. At any moment along the way, I was ready to go back or join some group,” says the hiker.

On the second day of the journey, Polina met another girl who also went on a solo hike with two dogs. “This is really some kind of gift of fate – imagine two crazy girls just went hiking alone, and as a result, they met on the same route on the same dates and went through it together. Of course, she was much crazier than I was, because she was coming back by a more difficult route, and even with two dogs. But I know that she has reached it,” the solo tourist admired.

During this solo hike, the girl realized that women are capable of a lot. Another important thought that she came to during her numerous trips in the wild is that hiking is an excellent test of a person’s personality. How is he ready to work in a team? How will he behave in a difficult situation: will he leave everyone or will he help? Will he get in the way on the road? The answers to all these questions will come at once.

“Vysotsky had a line, I think all hikers know it by heart: what if a friend suddenly turned out to be neither a friend nor an enemy, but so, it’s better to pull him into the mountains, take a chance. I think many people will agree with me that you need to pull a person into the mountains to check if he is actually a good friend or a bad one. By the way people manifest themselves in the campaign, it is possible to determine how stable a person’s psyche and tenacious spirit are,” concludes Polina.

Lake Shavlinskoye in Altai

“I had thoughts that this would be the last night of my life.”

Tatiana learned about the Altai hike from her friend and thought it was a great option for a vacation at the end of June. The girl had never participated in anything like this before, so the guide who organized the train and her friend, an experienced hiker, helped her to get ready. She lent Tatiana a warm sleeping bag, a backpack and trekking poles, so she had to spend only on comfortable shoes.

The tourist was walking with a group of nine people to the foot of Belukha through the Karatyurek pass. The route was designed for 11 days. The hikers left the village of Kucherla and by the evening of the third day they had already set up camp near Akkem Lake with a view of Belukha. The travelers were not very lucky with the weather: summer was delayed that year, snow lay in many places, it often rained, and at night the temperature dropped to zero. Despite this, the participants of the hike managed to see many beautiful landscapes.

On the night before the most difficult crossing of the pass at an altitude of 3060 meters, the group set up camp at the so-called “Stone Hut”. In the evening, a thunderstorm began, and tourists practically did not close their eyes that night.

The tent was tossing from side to side due to strong gusts of wind. It was scary from the thunder and bright lightning. At one point, I even had thoughts that this would be the last night of my life. And very early in the morning, we packed tents in the cold and went to storm Karatyurek without sleep. I must admit, the peak seemed incomprehensible to me. But step by step we overcame this path, and at the very top, for the first time, the same Beluga Whale appeared to us for a few moments

Tatiana is a naturist who went on her first trip to Altai

Tatiana says that the descent was also difficult: through snowy clouds and slippery rocks. In the end, the travelers reached Lake Akkem and spent the next four days making radial exits together with other groups. They walked back through the Akkem trail in the pouring rain, and made the last stage of the journey on the famous “shishigs”.

“The food on the hike was prepared for us by the guide, and it was very tasty. Sometimes we helped in some way, we always washed the dishes after ourselves: both our own and the general ones. For breakfast there was porridge with nuts, for lunch there were snacks in the form of loaves with pates, protein bars and pigtail cheese, for dinner there was buckwheat, pasta or rice and some freeze—dried products specifically for hiking. We even had soup a couple of times. One of the participants offered to collect young ivan tea in the mountains, and we made a divinely delicious salad out of it,” the Russian woman recalls.

The lessons she learned from her first hike: it is important to take into account the quantity and quality of warm clothes, it is vital to learn how to properly carry a backpack before starting a hike, how to maintain your health and physical fitness and be attentive to your condition.

“The hardest thing is, of course, overcoming yourself, physically and emotionally. When your shoulders ache, your legs are clogged, you feel cold, and you feel very sorry for yourself, but you keep walking. I learned a lot about myself on this hike, and it was quite a difficult experience for me as a beginner. But I am convinced that on such trips you get incomparable impressions,” Tatiana believes

The girl admits that what she remembers most in Altai is the power of nature, the silence of the mountains, the absence of fuss, any connection with the outside world and obsessive thoughts, as well as delicious water from any spring and mountain river.

“We had to spend the night in the fish smoking shed”

Hiking lover Victoria admits that she got this hobby in childhood. Even before school, she went to the Ural forests, and then hiking became a part of her life. She likes the northern views most of all: Karelia and Norway. “I love mountains and nature in general, and it’s difficult to get there from the hotel,” the traveler explains her choice in favor of this type of vacation.

Victoria’s most memorable hike was a bike ride through Norway, which lasted a month and a half.

Lofoten Islands in Norway

“My ex—husband and I traveled around Northern Norway, reached the Lofoten Islands – it’s about fifteen hundred kilometers. The nature there is, of course, amazing! We were unlucky with the weather — in June it was about plus six, and constant rain and wind. Reindeer and fawns just walked along the road and ran across it, it was very cool and cute. And we also got into a snowstorm in the mountains, and we had to spend the night in a shed for smoking fish — it was very frightening, but now I remember this hike with great pleasure, despite the wild fatigue that I often experienced,” says the hiker.

According to Victoria, after each hike she manages to rethink some things.

You are often out of touch for several days, there is a lot of time to think about what is happening in life. After a solo hike, I had the feeling that I could do a lot of things that I didn’t know about before. Some kind of overcoming, encountering danger, difficult things, unpredictable conditions — when you go through all this, then you think: “Wow, wow, it turns out I can do this!”

Victoria the Walker

“The natural element can simply destroy you and not notice it”

Hiking comes down to simple things and natural needs. You don’t have a connection, you can’t scroll through the social media feed. You walk, it’s hard for you, you think: “If only you could walk, there will be a bonfire, you can eat delicious food, put up a tent, dry things.” It clears your head very well.

Anastasia is an experienced hiker

Anastasia, an experienced hiker who has been to Khibiny, the Caucasus, and the Lycian trail in Turkey several times and climbed five thousand meters, grew up a rather sickly child and did not even do physical education. She felt a passion for hiking already in adulthood, when she met her future husband, a fan of outdoor activities.

“He supported me, and together we began to train and go hiking, which I could do. We started with easy hikes — for example, a day off. Then they started planning longer routes — for seven days or more. I hear a lot of stories from people in the spirit of: “Well, I’m weak and you’re strong, you can go hiking, but I can’t, because I’m sick or not exercising.” But I think it’s a matter of motivation. There are hikes of absolutely different levels of training,” Anastasia shares.

The girl admits that she works in a leadership position and often gets tired of making decisions, and in nature she gets a break from the daily routine and be alone with her thoughts.

Types of Elbrus

In addition, Anastasia likes to visit sparsely populated places, enjoy landscapes “like a Windows screensaver”, and meet people close to her in spirit on her way. Each hike, according to her, gives some special impressions, but most of all she remembers the hike to Elbrus, which turned out to be one of the hardest.

Although Anastasia and her husband usually plan the routes themselves, this time they decided to go to conquer the five thousandth as part of a commercial group with a professional guide. Tourists climbed Elbrus from the north, their route took about ten days. One evening it started to rain heavily, the young people set up a tent, hid in it and decided to have a snack after a hard road.

We were at an altitude of about 3,000 meters. Thunder and thunderstorms thundered right above us, lightning flashed, and there was a very strong wind. We literally had to hold the tent because it was wobbling all the time. We were worried that it would fold or break. It was very impressive. From this riot of nature, you realize that you are nobody on this planet at all. And how strong is the natural element that it can simply destroy you and not notice it

Anastasia is an experienced hiker

The traveler admits that after a few days during the ascent, due to lack of oxygen, it became much harder for her to move. From the base camp at an altitude of 3,800 meters, the group had to reach an altitude of 5,600 meters, and the journey took about ten hours.

“It’s just a very slow monotonous upward movement in the cold. You go and entertain yourself in your head — you sing songs, you do something else, because it’s hard to talk, you need oxygen for that. The last 200 meters up were the hardest for me, I just couldn’t walk. I stopped and realized that I didn’t have enough strength. Both my husband and the guide supported me, encouraged and persuaded me. As a result, we took 10-15 steps and stopped to breathe. In the end, we reached the top, but unfortunately, I didn’t see anything there, because at that moment Elbrus was covered with clouds. But our whole group was already standing upstairs, waiting for us, and they all started applauding me. It meant a lot to me at that moment,” Anastasia shares her impressions of climbing Elbrus.

The girl can no longer imagine her life without hiking and compares this leisure time with meditation. “Such trips to nature allow me to focus on the most important thing in my life. It is in hiking that I realize what is valuable and what I often forget. It allows me to change my priorities in relation to everything that happens,” she says.

According to Anastasia, thanks to hiking, she realized how strong she really is, and now she wants to continue to develop in this area — to go to learn rock climbing in order to discover new unexplored places.

“Along the river there are crossed oars, stones and plaques with the names of people who have not survived”

What is the path of a beach holiday? Taxi, plane, transfer. What is the path of the hike? Taxi, plane, off-road transfer in the back and kilometers on foot, by catamaran, kayak, canoe, skiing. Thousands of steps through forests, fields, mountains, where a tent is a room, a sleeping bag is a bed, a river is a bath, a waterfall is a shower, and the earth is a table. And as a reward for all the trails traversed, the peaks taken, the clothes soaked in the rain, the shoulders and legs pumped up under the backpack — the immense beauty and views that take your breath away

Yaninagid is an instructor at “Let’s Go Travel”

Janina is a fourth—generation hiker. Her great-grandparents went hiking themselves and instilled a love of adventure and life outside the four walls in their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. At the age of 15, she began hiking with her great-uncles and aunts and at the same age joined the tour club, where her professional career began.

Over the past 17 years, Yanina has studied at several hiking schools and tour clubs, walked more than one thousand kilometers on foot and sailed even more on a catamaran and a little kayak, spent hundreds of nights under the starry sky far from civilization and even managed to turn it into a second job from a hobby and a pleasant pastime. Now she is an instructor guide at Let’s Go Travel (formerly Vegans Travel).

The pristine beauty of nature, the immense power of the mountains and their greatness, the rushing streams of rivers, the sky dotted with stars — Yanina admits that she would never trade all this for five-star hotels.

In one of the trips, during rafting on the Tsna River in the Moscow region, Yanina fell in love with her future husband. “It doesn’t matter that later we not only got married, but also divorced. It was a beautiful love story that began on the riverbank,” she admits.

Views of the Umba River on the Kola Peninsula

And one of the most difficult in her life was the Umbe River slav on the Kola Peninsula of the third or fourth difficulty category out of six. “We walk along the riverbank, and there are crossed oars, stones and plaques with the names of people who did not survive on this threshold, even with ashes, for a whole kilometer. Demoralized? No. It gave us an understanding of where we are,” says the guide-instructor.

Almost every day the group overcame difficult thresholds. Rowing sometimes took so long that the participants could not immediately get up at the end of the day from the catamaran and walk to the place where the camp would be: their legs simply did not go.

“I remember one day my hermetic bag ordered me to live a long time. We were doused with a powerful stream of water right in the morning, then we competed for several hours with a cloud that poured rain and hail on us, and as a result, at the end of the day my backpack was wet through, like everything in it, including the sleeping bag. And it’s cold outside. I spent three hours drying my sleeping bag by the campfire. Without much result, of course. Thanks to the guys for giving me all the warm clothes they didn’t need for the night, and special thanks to the sun for drying my sleeping bag in the morning!” the traveler rejoices.

Every campaign is a small life, after living which, a person will never be the same again

Yaninagid is an instructor at “Let’s Go Travel”

How to prepare for a hike and what to take with you?

For people who want to go hiking for the first time, the instructor guide Yanina advises them to prepare physically. “My recommendation since the days of the tour club is running. And you need to run not one or two kilometers, but on average ten, at least a couple of times a week,” she warns.

The second important point that all experienced travelers note is well—chosen equipment. In no case should you save on a backpack, because back health, ease and comfort of the way depend on it. It is better to buy a backpack not online, but in the store yourself, because there specialists will help you choose a model in accordance with the anatomical structure of a person’s back. In addition, in many stores you can try to walk with a backpack with a weight and on different types of surfaces.

Solo tourist Polina recommends making a checklist of all necessary things and food in advance and packing a backpack according to it. Companies like Sportmarafon, Alpindustria or the Internet have such lists.

“On a hike, you literally carry your entire house on yourself: a backpack weighs 15-20 kilograms, and it is very important how it is assembled and what is in it. Therefore, it seems to me that the main difficulty during a hike is how you assemble yourself, and everything else will not be scary for you,” she warns.

70-90 liters

the optimal size of a backpack for a woman. For men — 90-110 liters

A waterproof cape, which will protect the backpack from the outside, and an airtight bag, which will help things stay dry inside, will not be superfluous on a hiking trip.

It is extremely important to choose the right shoes for a hike: trekking boots are required. “Hiking boots should be expensive, high-quality, which will last for many, many years. I’ve had my shoes for five years now, and nothing has happened to them yet. This is such a serious good investment for a long time,” explains solo tourist Polina.

According to her, trekking poles will greatly help on the road. In addition, the lighter the tent, sleeping bag and mat will be, the easier it will be to walk. “Don’t pack extra things. Believe me, you will feel every gram well on the way up the mountain!” — shares Yanina’s experience.

From clothes, you will need a replaceable T-shirt, socks and underwear, things in which you can spend most of an active day, cotton underwear for sleeping, hats and gloves to protect from rain and wind, sunglasses, thermal underwear and a fleece jacket, a waterproof jacket or windbreaker. Other useful equipment: a burner, gas cylinders, a compact set of dishes, a pot, a thermos and a first-aid kit, assembled taking into account the personal characteristics of a person, allergies and diseases.

“You definitely need to take a first-aid kit. And it’s important that people understand what to do with it. That is, carefully choose the right medications in advance, find out how to use nitroglycerin, a tourniquet, what to do if suddenly someone gets sick or someone gets a leg injury, this is generally a very common story. It is desirable that several people have first aid skills,” says Anastasia, an experienced hiker.

She also recommends going hiking only with trusted people and negotiating with them “on the shore” about what needs to be moved along the way, exploring the area on your own even during commercial guided hikes, downloading her offline map and finding out which animals can get caught on the road and how to escape from them.

If this is some kind of area where bears are found, you need to read what to do when meeting a wild animal, and buy some things that will protect you, for example, tripwires from a bear that will warn that it is coming, and a false fire [pyrotechnic signal fire]. It is also necessary to take food out of the tent somewhere so that the animals do not smell it and destroy everything there

Anastasia is an experienced hiker

A tourist, especially a beginner, should remember that on a hike, even of low difficulty, you will always have to face difficulties.

“Today there may be torrential rain, and tomorrow there will be scorching sun. The path you were following, which is clearly marked on the map, may suddenly disappear. You can not calculate your strength and walk or swim until very late at night. The ford may be waist-deep or even neck-deep. Even wild cows can trample on your tent and eat your food while you leave the camp for just a few hours and climb the mountain. Yes, yes, and it happens!” — warns the guide-instructor Yanina

How to eat on a hike?

The main criteria for choosing a camping meal are nutritional value and light weight. “It is very important to weigh the food. Basically, cereals are taken on a hike: oatmeal, rice, buckwheat. Lately I’ve been taking porridge in bags that brew quickly. And for dinner, there are sublimates in bags, ready meals that quickly heat up on the burner. There is a huge selection: risotto, buckwheat with mushrooms, meat and so on. The main thing is not to take something that spoils quickly,” advises traveler Pavel.

The guide-instructor Yanina adds that on a hike it is important to think in advance about the diet for all days, calculate the weight and balance the body weight. “My diet usually looks something like this. Oatmeal porridge with coconut and peanut pastes and dried fruits for breakfast, snack in the form of protein bars or soup (when the route allows it) for lunch, and for dinner, I have prepared author’s recipes based on cereals and soy meat (it doesn’t sound very appetizing, but if you add secret ingredients in the right ratio, you get culinary masterpieces!),” she says.

Hiking routes in Russia

Big Thatch

The Bolshoy Thach mountain range is located in the Western Caucasus, on the border of the Republic of Adygea and the Krasnodar Territory.

The Bolshoy Thach mountain range

“This is a stunningly beautiful place just a few hours drive from Sochi. A simple route that can be completed in three days, or you can stretch it for five to six days, go to the radial exits, setting up camp right under the mountain,” explains instructor guide Yanina.

Mountaineering camp “Bezengi”

The Bezengi mountaineering camp in Kabardino-Balkaria is an ideal place to get acquainted with real five thousand people. Tourists can live in tents, a shared house or private rooms. The camp has a toilet, shower, canteen, medical center, free Wi-Fi, mobile communication, as well as shops with food and equipment. Every day they organize light trips to waterfalls and glaciers, but only with a guide. You can also try rock climbing.

Mountaineering camp “Bezengi”

Ladoga Skerries

Kayaking enthusiasts are recommended to visit the Ladoga Skerries National Park in the Republic of Karelia. There are about 650 rocky islands and high precipitous cliffs in the archipelago.

There you can rent a kayak and plan a route based on your capabilities: you can come for two days, or you can come for a week. If you are lucky, you will be able to see the Ladoga ringed seal.

Khibiny

The age of the largest mountain range on the Kola Peninsula, according to scientists, is at least 390 million years old. These are some of the oldest mountains on Earth.

Khibiny National Park in the Murmansk region

“This is such a Karelia at maximum. There are passes there, and with different levels of difficulty, and emerald lakes, and berries with mushrooms, if you go in August-September. In autumn, the local forests begin to change color and shimmer with yellow, green, red and so on,” says Anastasia, a hiker.

Hiking in these mountains will be mastered by people with little experience. Their highest point is Mount Yudychvumchorr with a height of about 1200 meters.

Altai

Altai has both difficult routes with passes, the passage of which requires some skill, and short routes for those who are just beginning to discover the hiking world.

“The route to the Sofia Glacier is not very popular, it is generally quite short, it can be completed in two or three days. He reminded me of Iceland. The second, already more famous route, is to the Shavlin lakes. There, at the end on the lower Shavlin lake, there is a view of three peaks called the Dream, the Beauty and the Fairy Tale. Watching the starry sky or watching the moon rise from behind these peaks is just something with something,” recalls solo tourist Polina

The third route she advises is to Akkem Lake at the foot of Belukha. According to the traveler, the path can be stretched for three to four days, and at the lake itself you will be able to put up a tent for a week, walk light in the radial exits to the valley of flowers and glaciers, and in the evenings gather around the campfire and sing songs to the guitar.

Hiking routes abroad

Lycian Trail

The Lycian Trail is an extended route in Turkey with a length of 540 kilometers, running along part of the Mediterranean coast of ancient Lycia. Along the route, you will come across ruins of ancient cities, forests, rivers with huge boulders, a multi—kilometer beach with turtles, mountains, rocks and even Chimera lights – a unique geological phenomenon consisting in the burning of natural gas that seeps through cracks in the rocks. Gorenje It is not necessary to go through the entire route at a time. Inexperienced tourists can even go on a day trip.

The length of the Lycian Trail in Turkey is 540 kilometers

The highest point on the route of the Lycian trail is Mount Takhtaly with a height of 2,365 meters. You can climb it by funicular from Kemer or on foot — from the opposite side.

“The ascent will take about four hours. And at the top you can enjoy a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice. As well as almost the entire route, as the trail passes through multiple villages and campgrounds. But if you want privacy, you can always set a route so that you can stop in quiet glades and wild coves,” advises the guide-instructor Yanina.

Nepal

“Of the foreign routes, I would, first of all, recommend Nepal. Now it is open, you can safely fly there and get yourself a permit,” says solo tourist Polina.

The track around Annapurna is a multi—day hiking trail in Nepal

According to her, the circular route around Annapurna is one of the most beautiful places she has seen in her life.

“The circular route around Manaslu is more difficult, but also incredibly picturesque. You can look at the top routes in Nepal on the Internet, there are countless of them. This is a very colorful country with very nice people,” Polina assures.

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