Belukha: 8-Day Horse & Foot Trek to the Foot of Mount Belukha

An 8-day horse-and-foot trek to the foot of Mount Belukha (4,506 m) – the highest peak of the Altai. The trip starts and ends in Ust-Kamenogorsk, East Kazakhstan, and runs as a small-group departure limited to 7 spots. Next departure: 3-10 August 2026.

The format is simple and comfortable for a wilderness trip this deep: 4×4 transfers to the trailhead at Lake Yazevoe, an 8-hour horseback ride to a stationary base camp under Belukha, and then five nights in one place – a proper tent camp with a cook, a dining tent, a shower and a banya. Every day you head out on a radial hike (Lake Ravnovesiya, the Kokkol waterfall, the Roerich Stone, Lake Skazka) and come back to camp for a hot dinner. Your gear travels on horses, so you walk with a light daypack.

Trip facts

• Tour type: horse-and-foot trekking
• Next departure: 3-10 August 2026
• Duration: 8 days
• Start and finish: Ust-Kamenogorsk
• Group size: up to 7 people
• Departure: guaranteed from 4 participants

Detailed itinerary

Day 1: Ust-Kamenogorsk → Uryl village

Meet the guides and the group in Ust-Kamenogorsk – introductions and a safety briefing. We drive by 4×4 to the village of Uryl, with lunch at a café on the way. Check in to a guest house; dinner at the guest house.

Day 2: Lake Yazevoe → horseback to base camp

After breakfast we drive from the guest house to Lake Yazevoe by 4×4. Gear is loaded onto pack horses and we set off on an 8-hour ride to the base camp, with lunch boxes on the trail. We settle into the base camp for the next five nights – a stationary tent camp with a cook, a dining tent, a shower and a banya. All the following day hikes start and finish here. Dinner in camp.

Day 3: Lake Ravnovesiya and the Kokkol waterfall

Breakfast, then an acclimatization hike to Lake Ravnovesiya. Lunch back at base camp, followed by a short walk to the Kokkol waterfall. Dinner in camp.

Day 4: The Roerich Stone

Breakfast, then a hike to the Roerich Stone (the Prayer Stone). Lunch on the trail beside the stone, with a view of Mount Belukha. Return to base camp, banya, dinner.

Day 5: Rest day at base camp

A free day to recover in the middle of the trip. Breakfast, lunch and dinner in camp.

Day 6: Lake Skazka

Breakfast, then a hike to Lake Skazka. Lunch on the trail, return to base camp, dinner.

Day 7: Horseback to Lake Yazevoe → guest house

Breakfast, then the 8-hour return ride from base camp to Lake Yazevoe, with lunch on the trail. At the lake we load into the 4x4s and drive back to the guest house. Dinner and banya.

Day 8: Return to Ust-Kamenogorsk

Breakfast, then the drive from the guest house back to Ust-Kamenogorsk, with lunch at a café on the way. Arrival in Ust-Kamenogorsk – end of the tour.

What’s included

• Guide throughout the tour
• 4×4 transfers
• Three meals a day plus snacks
• Guest house accommodation on the first and last nights
• Horses and a horse guide
• Base camp accommodation
• Group first aid kit

Not included

• Personal clothing and trekking gear
• Personal sleeping bag
• Personal first aid kit
• Alcohol

Price

• $1,750 per person – flat rate, whatever your group size
• Deposit to book: 20% ($350 per person); the balance is paid closer to the departure
• Departure guaranteed from 4 participants – with fewer bookings your deposit rolls over to the next date or is refunded in full

Optional: the horseback transfer can be replaced with a helicopter flight – price on request.