Around Altay, The Way Back

Unfortunately, we did not reach the Northern part of the Golden Lake, because we were not sure about the quality of the roads along the Chulyshman valley, and we did not want to risk our car. However, I would like to repeat this trip once again and to try to accomplish the initial goal.

Later, there was a long way home, and it was quite tiresome. Still, I was very happy to have such an extreme adventure. And I was hugely grateful to my friend for his great company.

Around Altay, Chulyshman valley

Before reaching the Northern part of the Golden Lake we would need to stop at the Chulyshman valley, which is represented by a big canyon with more than 130 km length. It is said that the Chulyshman valley is the warmest place in the Altai Mountains. And definitely it is one of the most secluded and peaceful places. 

We are travelling by car, so the only way to reach this place was through the Katu-Jaryk pass. It was a real challenging road and a true test of our vehicle. There are 3,5 kilometres of the earth serpentine road, and there are 9 turns to overcome, and there are 800 metres of height. It is worth mentioning, that any car can go down the pass, but only a four-wheel drive is able to ascend.

Around Altay, To The South

The Northern part of the lake is well developed and easily accessible, but we stayed here for one night only. In fact, our main aim is to reach the Southern part, which can be entered only through the Katy-Yaryk pass or by boat. So, there are 600 kilometres ahead to get to the cherished place by car.

Around Altay, The Golden Lake

Lake Teletskoye is one of the deepest lakes in Russia, with the maximum depth of 325 meters. It is also compared to Lake Baikal in terms of purity. As a matter of fact, the transparency of Lake Teletskoye is up to 12-15 meters.

The lake is surrounded by high mountain ranges up to 2,500 meters in altitude. About 70 rivers and 150 small streams flow into the lake. The Chulyshman River, which is the largest one, delivers over half of the lake’s water. The Biya river is the only one river, which is going out of the lake.