Walking tours in Karelia. Tours to Karelia

Discover Karelia with its waterways! Our Travelers Club "Wanderer" invites you to rafting in Karelia on catamarans. If you visit Karelia for the first time, then you will personally see the pristine beauty of its nature, smell the needles, hear the quiet lapping of waves, fill your day with impressions.

River selection

The abundance of rivers and routes is simply amazing. To make it easier to find your ideal trip, below we have placed small tips to help you decide on the choice of the river.

We have arranged them in order of difficulty of the routes.>>

Difficulty: simple (Light)

Msta river- the passage is possible only in the spring! There are no difficult rapids for lovers of leisurely rafting. There are many ancient villages, churches and estates along the river. Suitable for beginners, families with children and those who love to photograph.

Shuya river is the most popular river in Karelia! It is easy to get to, as it is located close to civilization, as well as fairly simple rapids. Therefore, routes along Shuya are ideal for beginners and families with children. The passage is possible by kayaks and catamarans. There are spring and summer routes.

Difficulty: Medium (Medium)

Pistajoki river- the most western river Karelia, passes on the border with Finland. Due to its remoteness, it is not visited by tourists. WITH the purest water and lots of berries, mushrooms and fish, surrounded by amazing wildlife. Excellent fishing possible. The route is open to everyone, but the participants are encouraged to have some experience.

Okhta river- removed from civilization, while having rather complicated rapids. Excellent fishing is possible.

Chirka-Kem river- the most long river Karelia. Excellent fishing is possible (not only pike and bream are caught, but also grayling, and trout, and brown trout).

Keret river- the northern river of Karelia. Acquaintance with wild nature and access to the open White Sea. Successful fishing is possible.

Difficulty: high (Hard)

Umba river- located on the Kola Peninsula. The Umba belongs to difficult rivers, there are many difficult rapids on it. Since the river is spawning, red fish come in here. Sea fishing is possible. Ideal for seasoned tourists and adrenaline lovers.

Tumcha river- the route along this river is one of the most difficult! Wildlife, lots of fish and serious rapids. Ideal for seasoned tourists and adrenaline lovers.

Uksunjoki river- difficult rapids, wild nature... For experienced tourists ONLY or for people who love extreme sports. Passage is possible only SPRING!

The article talks about how to organize your independent travel in Karelia: when to go, what to see and how to get there.

Russia, next to Finland is a rich natural beauties and cultural heritage Republic of Karelia. The region attracts travelers with its pristine purity. It is ideal for both the quiet, quiet rest, and for active pastime with a continuous change of scenery. Hunting for birds and animals, along rough rivers, skiing and dog sledding, fishing, excursions - all this awaits curious tourists in Karelia.

Note: 2 helpful reviews about independent trip to Karelia

• about Karelia
• : advantages and disadvantages
• About the main attractions, and most

How to get to Karelia?

In North-west
There are 4 options for how to get to the republic:

• By train.
  Direct routes are provided between Petrozavodsk and Moscow or St. Petersburg. If there are no direct flights from other cities of Russia, you can always take a ticket with transfers.
• By bus.
  The most suitable option for residents of St. Petersburg. Flights to Petrozavodsk.
• By plane.
  The main airport of Karelia is located near the village of Besovets, 12 km from Petrozavodsk. It is recommended to buy tickets in advance.
• By car.
  An excellent travel option in Karelia in terms of economy and freedom of movement. Suitable for large families and companies. It should be borne in mind that many roads in the republic are unpaved.

Choose a tour to Karelia

When there is no time to plan a trip to Karelia on your own, you can contact the guys from Alem Tour... This is a tour operator verified by us. They have been working since 2002 and know all the most Beautiful places republics. All tours are turnkey: accommodation + transfer + excursions. In general, we recommend. See what tours to Karelia they offer now.

What to see in Karelia?

A huge number of people are concentrated in the republic cultural monuments... The most interesting attractions for tourists:

Planning a trip? That way!

We've got some useful gifts for you. They will help you save money during the travel preparation phase.

• Valaam, Solovki – popular islands, which have preserved ancient monasteries and churches, many of which are UNESCO heritage sites. The islands are also attractive for their natural beauty: dense forests with slender spruce trees, stone, steep banks, clear river water. You can read more about it in a separate article.
• Architectural Museum of Kizhi. On the island, directly under the open sky, samples of the life of the peoples who lived on these lands many centuries ago are collected. During the excursion, travelers will learn many legends and customs of local residents.

• White Sea petroglyphs. On the islands of Karelia, archaeologists have discovered about three dozen ancient sites, as well as images and compositions carved on rocks dating back to the 3rd millennium BC. It is recommended to look at the drawings accompanied by a guide.
• Ruskeala marble canyon. It was here that marble was taken for the St. Petersburg palaces. The canyon is surrounded by ancient trees, which makes it more beautiful and majestic.

• Waterfalls Girvas and Kivach. The first is unique in its location on a volcano, and the second - in size.
• The Kuzov archipelago. Rare birds and animals live on 16 uninhabited islands. Interesting place for visiting naturalists.

How to get around in Karelia?

Railway transport is the least popular in the republic. Since the main task of Karelia is to preserve the pristine beauty of nature, new rails are not being laid. For travelers, Oktyabrskaya Railway... You can use it to get to Onega and Kandalaksha lips. Of the White Sea, Lake Onega. Branches were also laid to Yushkozero, Belomorsk, Sortavala.

To get acquainted with all the beauties of Karelia, it is recommended to travel by your own car or rent a transport on the spot. Moving along federal highway M-18 "Kola", you can turn onto any secondary road, which will certainly lead to one of the lakes of the region.

There is a sea and river shipping company in Karelia. The system of water communication is well developed here, so travelers can easily move along the White Sea coast, along the rivers Neva, Svir, lakes Ladoga, Onega, White Sea-Baltic canal.

No problem! Karjala Park tours are designed for both professionals and amateur beginners. Due to the incredible number of rivers, lakes and other water bodies, water tourism in Karelia is very developed, they are especially popular.

After all, this is not only a way of moving along the river - it is a separate art that allows the participant not only to show their physical strength, struggling with the rapids of whimsical rivers, but also to have time to enjoy picturesque places. What can you see while rafting on mountain rivers:

• historical and modern villages: Rubchoila, Keret, Kinerma, Umba and Nizhnaya Pulonga. Many of which are known for their uniqueness and historical significance. Each of the villages has its own distinctive characteristics and cultures;
• second largest in Europe - Lake Onega, the beauty of which is mesmerizing, and makes true artists take out canvases and perpetuate all the mystery and mystery of this place;
• the largest freshwater lake in Europe - Ladoga. Its area is 18 400 km2! Creating Lake Ladoga, nature did its best. The numerous islets that adorn the lake give it a special uniqueness and will not leave anyone indifferent;
• The Devil's Chair is also known as Mount Bolshaya Vara. A huge stone massif, which really looks like a huge chair from a distance;
• Botanical Garden. V Botanical Garden collected plants from all over the world. African, American and European exhibits can be found here. The special pride of the garden is the Karelian birch;
• numerous rapids of different difficulty levels (Pink Elephant, Mill, Canyon, Khramina, Big Tolly, Kumio, Dzotovy, Bear and many others);
• Mount Huatavaara, which has acquired the fame of itself mystical place... There are many legends about this place and this is not surprising, because it is here that the burials of shamans are located;
• islands Mayachny, Andronin, Oleniy;
• shivers and rapids of the rivers Shuya, Suyoka, Uksa, Vitsaoya, Kolosjoki, Keret, Umba and others;
• lakes Ojärvi, Vedlozero, Pistajärvi;
• the ten-meter Arengsky waterfall;
• museums: ancient buildings of the Sami, Sheltozero Vepsian ethnographic museum and a lot of other interesting and informative things.

it The best way take a break from all the benefits of civilizations and truly taste all the charm of life. With Karjala Park tours you can learn to: cope with violent rapids; install chum; to drive a kayak; drive a canoe and kayak. And thanks to carefully designed programs, rafting tours can be suitable: as beginners; and families with children; and corporate clients; and large groups; or simply for amateurs; or just everyone who wants to forget about stress at work.

Accommodation and meals during the tours

During the tour, participants will spend the night in the field, and cook food on a fire. Dinner consists of fish soup or fried fish, which you yourself will catch in the river, on the banks of which you will settle. You will also have to get breakfast and lunch yourself. Fortunately, rich forests for mushrooms and berries, as well as rivers for fish, will not let you stay hungry, and the accompanying instructor guide will not let you get poisoned by a poisonous plant. A sauna awaits you every evening. And not just a bathhouse, but a real outdoor bathhouse!

The length and duration of the tour you choose yourself, depending on your desires and capabilities. Rafting can last for several hours or several days. The cost of the tour varies depending on the duration. Included in cost:

1. insurance;
2. rent of all necessary equipment;
3. food and accommodation;
4. accompaniment of an instructor guide;
5. excursions and master classes.

Going to raft down the river on or, you choose the opportunity to take a break from the hustle and bustle of the city, enjoy the primeval nature and feel like a breadwinner and pioneer. Freed from the shackles of work and obligations, you find yourself in a world of tranquility and peace. Surrender to the elements and dissolve in the singing of birds, the rustle of tree leaves, the murmur of rivers and the atmosphere of complete unity with nature!

Let all your problems and worries go away along the river, and the tailwind will bring happiness and good luck! When choosing Karjala Park tours, remember: your pleasure and safety are our main goals!

Hello, friends!

With this post, I open a series of stories and photo reports about my hikes, in which I, one way or another, go from the 8th grade of school. Not to say that they are especially extreme, but also not purely tourist. I went on pure hiking, rock climbing, horseback riding, kayaking, etc. But the greatest pleasure I have always been given by unhurried relaxing trips to Karelia and the Kola Peninsula. Let's start with them. In this part - a short story about a calm, partly walking on foot in Karelia. In the next - a car Karelia with off-road elements.

So, Karelia.

A place where you always want to return. The most beautiful nature, tranquility and tranquility, thousands of the purest lakes, hills covered with reindeer lichen and lingonberries, and of course pines. Being in the middle of this splendor, breathing the crystal clear coniferous air, and resting your body and soul from the stuffy, bustling metropolis. Our trek began in Kandalaksha, which can be reached by train along the Oktyabrskaya railway in about 30 hours (some of my trips to these regions started from the Khibiny, but about this place some other time). The Kandalaksha station looks quite prehistoric, and not a single detail in it has changed since 1998, when I was first in Karelia.

The purpose of our current trip was disgracefully simple: to live in a native Karelian village, walk around lingonberries, visit Hit-island (a place known for its nature and remoteness from settlements, in the center in a small rock there are many beautiful stones "Pomegranate", similar to "Ruby" ), go to the White Sea, where to settle in a fishing village and fish with the locals. It seems that's all :)

We started from the village. Since the end of the 90s, I knew one former mining village a few hours by train from Kandalaksha, and we went there.

From this station 6 km walk inland and we are on the spot. Unfortunately, I have not preserved any photographs of the village, so I will describe in words. Naturally, like most mining villages, it is half extinct. The houses are abandoned and useless. But at home, whole mines. Together with cabins, in which helmets and self-rescuers are on the shelves. They have been lying for thirty years. In such places, the feeling that time has stopped does not leave. But without problems and for free, you can live in a completely normal hut, it is enough to tell the locals that you are tourists, you just came to stay and pick berries. You will certainly find an empty house with a stove)

After living in the village for a couple of days, picking up blueberries and just taking a break from the road, we moved to the Heath Island. It is about 5 hours walk from the village. Halfway along the dirt road, along which for all 3 hours of walking you will not meet a single car or a single person, the second halfway through the forest. The road is not easy, but then - beauty!

An island lost in the middle of the taiga, to which you can get from the mainland only by raft. On the island itself and around it - virgin nature. After a tiring 5 hours of walking with a 40-kilogram backpack, a long-awaited halt. But not for long. We need to set up camp, find firewood, and make dinner. This is a hike, baby, not Sochi)

On the way somewhere in Karelia it is very easy to pick up a fair amount of good mushrooms that literally grow on the road. They were very useful to us as the first lunch on the Heath.

Well, after such a dinner, to which 50 grams were naturally attached, you can remember your camp childhood)

Unfortunately, for reasons beyond our control, we were unable to go to the White Sea and had to return to Moscow after anchorage at Hita. It was decided to go to the sea next year, in the end it turned out a year later, but by car.

Heath Island nature.

These guys are everywhere, right on the road.

View from Heath Island to the bay, beyond the bay is a huge lake in the middle of the taiga.

Express installation of a tent in 4 hands.

Light snack while waiting for the train.

It is sometimes sad to leave, especially if the program has not been completed. But, unfortunately, not always everything depends on us.

Now, a few tips for a novice hiker, who suddenly will come in handy)

1. Personal equipment.

It is better not to save on equipment. In the hike "it's all for you." I will especially highlight the backpack, knife, boots and jacket.

Backpack - 80-90 liters, with a hard back (usually metal plates) and a strong lumbar belt. The belt is very important! It accounts for up to 50% of the load. Without a lumbar support with 40 kg, you will not go even 300 meters. I advise you to buy once and for all a good backpack from a reputable company. For example, Tatonka, like mine.

A knife - it should be comfortable, not large and not small, not folding and not for 200 rubles. Here everyone chooses for himself, after long experiments I found my knife - the Swedish Mora 2000. Only it is difficult to find it in Chinese, but a real one.

Boots - I've had Salomon's entire camping life. Two pairs, none have fallen apart in 10+ years of hiking. Columbia is okay, it's a matter of taste. But in our camping company, everyone has salomons. In general, boots should be lightweight, waterproof , with a high ankle, plus rubber boots, if we go to Karelia.

Jacket - always membrane, waterproof. But not a type of waterproof windbreaker, but a real membrane waterproof jacket.

2. Route. It needs to be thought out in advance, and on the ground only to make adjustments. I won't explain why, just believe me and that's it)

3. Local - without the need for contact to join, but also not to be frightened. Be polite and discreet. Money do not shine, do not say too much.

4. Food - think in advance what and how you will eat. Cana - two, do not save on them. Good stainless steel, one slightly smaller than the other. All metal dishes, thermo metal mugs. The main food on the hike is stew, pasta, rice - go with you, potatoes - from the locals. Vodka - you can local Guarantor, but only in the norms. stores.

5. Mosquitoes - a lot) And midges) Therefore, anti-mosquitoes and a net on the face. Pants, preferably with a string or elastic band at the bottom, so that there are no gaps between the boots and pants.

6. First aid kit is very important. In our group, I am responsible for the first-aid kit, I have about 100 items with me. You will be walking in the taiga, take it seriously!

7. Axes - one, small, but nice and sharp.

8. Tents and sleeping bags are light, compact and of high quality. The tent has a good awning. Sleeping bag - designed for the desired temperature regime. You do not need to take a sleeping bag with a comfort temperature of -12 with you in August. You just can't sleep in it.

Well, that's enough for a start, probably) In the next post - a car trip, with photos and a bonus in the form of a report on the preparation of an OFF-road car, this is also interesting. In the comments I will answer questions, if any.

Thanks to everyone who has read to the end!

Karelia has everything for hikers: dense coniferous forests, hundreds of square kilometers swamps and bogs, which are so interesting to overcome, and, of course, reservoirs. It is not for nothing that this region is called "the land of a thousand lakes". There are more than 60 thousand of them here. Among them there are small ones that can be walked around in a circle in 10 minutes, and the most large lakes in Europe - Ladoga and Onega.

A tour to Karelia is worth buying at least in order to breathe in the purest air, filled with the aromas of pine needles and algae, and admire the fantastically beautiful landscapes. For our part, we promise an interesting route full of attractions and good company.

Popular directions of tours to Karelia

There are many places in the region noteworthy tourists. We try to cover all of them, so every year we add new hikes in Karelia. But these destinations are popular at any time of the year with all categories of travelers - both beginners and experienced tourists.

• Ladoga lake . Here is a real expanse for both hikers and rafting enthusiasts. We travel across Ladoga in kayaks and kayaks, admire the magnificent nature of the skerries, study the flora and fauna of coniferous forests. The shores Lake Ladoga famous for its pristine beaches, where it is convenient to camp and enjoy the sunsets and sunrises over the endless water surface. If you are resting in Karelia for the first time, we advise you to go here.
• Coast of the White Sea. The best place to temporarily break free from the tenacious clutches of civilization. The coastal landscapes are mesmerizing with their laconic, “cool” beauty. Waves crash on moss-covered rocks, the light sand of the beach turns into the dark edge of the forest and there is no trace of human activity around. There are no endless cafes, stalls, attractions and other tourist "activity" like in seaside resorts.
• Valaam Island. Legendary place on the map of Russia. Here is the famous Valaam Monastery, founded over a thousand years ago, and villages in which time seemed to have stood still.
• Kizhi Island. Its main attraction is the eponymous museum-reserve. Here, as in a kaleidoscope, the panorama unfolds ancient Karelia... A visit to the museum will give an idea of ​​how people lived here a hundred, three hundred and even a thousand years ago.

Other popular destinations in Karelia in 2019 include water tours on the Shuya and Suna rivers, trekking to the Vottovaara and Nuorinen mountains. In total, our catalog contains more than 50 trips in this region.

Types of hikes

• On foot. The name speaks for itself - tourists move on foot. A separate type of such tours is travel with auto-accompaniment, where participants go light and their luggage is carried by escort cars.
• Aquatic. Tourists conquer reservoirs by kayaks and kayaks. However, water tours in Karelia are not complete without rest on the shore and excursions to the sights.