Experiences you'll have
Having settled in a cottage settlement on the shores of a scenic lake, you'll discover new outdoor activities every single day! You'll enjoy boating and kayaking, you'll ride jeeps and quad bikes across taiga trails amidst giant pine trees; you'll feel the surge of adrenalin in your blood when challenging the turbulent rapids while rafting!
If you manage to get a group of four, we can organize a tour for you any time you want!
Beside outdoor activities, you'll visit the ancient Syandem Poustinia and the monuments of the war years. If you wish, you can travel to the Isle of Kizhi that boasts a world-famous folk architecture monument created in the 18th or the 19th century, a UNESCO World Heritage site!
Itinerary
The starting point of your journey is the Lodeynoye Pole station, where you have to get to on your own. We recommend the 018A Moscow - Petrozavodsk train that departs at 21:02 and arrives at 06:00.
NOTE: you have to buy return tickets with Petrozavodsk as the departure station. We recommend the 017A Petrozavodsk – Moscow train that departs at 20:20 and arrives at 09:57.
Day 1 A lake trip
We'll meet you at the railway station and transfer you to the village of Umoste on the shores of a Karelian lake. There you'll stay for the entire tour program.
Have a breakfast before you row to Lake Vekkoylayarvi and Lake Peyziyarvi. En route you'll stop to have a picnic at a very picturesque place on the shore, to stroll in the forest, to go fishing and to gather some mushrooms and berries.
In the evening, you'll come back to the camp to unwind and relax in the sauna.
Day 2 Cycling
You'll ride a bicycle from Umosto to Syandeba and then back to Umostu, for a total distance of 20 kilometers.
You'll visit the famous Syandem Poustinia founded in 1577 as well as the Great Patriotic War (the World War II) monuments.
Day 3 Kayaking
Pick up kayaks for two or three and go kayaking in the calm waters of the Gushkalka River! Admire the landscapes and enjoy the motion!
You'll stop en route and disembark to have a beach picnic. In the evening, you'll return to the camp to unwind and relax.
Day 4 Quad biking
Ride double-rider quad bikes across forest roads, across abandoned Karelian villages lost in taiga and swamps. You'll master quad biking on smooth highways and off-road.
You'll also visit the ethnic village of Kinerma, a monument of wooden architecture. There you'll try the national cuisine and enjoy the exhibits of the local museum.
Day 5 Jeep tour to Lake Ladoga
You'll ride SUVs from Umostu to the village of Tuloksa, then to Lake Ladoga and back to Umostu, for a total distance of 50 kilometers. You'll try operating an all-wheel drive car on smooth highways, forest roads, and sandy beaches.
You'll have a picnic on the lake shores en route. Then you'll be able to ride across the Ladoga dunes and visit Varashev's Stone, a historical monument of Swedish-Russian relations.
If the weather is nice, feel free to swim in Lake Ladoga and relax on its beaches.
Day 6 Rafting along the Shuya river
You'll drive a minibus towards Petrozavodsk (160 km) to where your rafting starts.
You'll raft 8 kilometers from Yumanishki to Polovina in 1.5 hours. On the way, you'll encounter shivers and two rapids including the famous Bolshoi Tolly (Great Tolly) rapid that 'hosts' international rafting competitions. After rafting, you'll have a picnic by a campfire on an equipped clearing in a pine forest.
Then you'll go to Petrozavodsk and have spare time for sightseeing and souvenir shopping.
Accommodation during the trip
You will stay in the cottage village of Umostu on the shores of the picturesque Lake Vekkoylayarvi.
Each cottage has
– a bedroom with a double bed
– a bedroom with two single beds
– a living room with a fireplace, a satellite TV, and a sofa bed.
– a complete kitchen with a fridge, a gas cooker, and utensils
– a combined bathroom (with a toilet and a shower in the same room)
Each house can accommodate four to six persons. This is a good option for families with children or for friend groups.
The camp has five cottages, a cafeteria, a Russian sauna, and a gazebo. You can rent rowing boats and fishing rods and spend time as your heart desires any time you want.
Common questions
You will be guided by professional guides and instructors
You'll have three meals a day. Breakfasts and dinners will consist of traditional homemade foods; you'll have them at the camp cafeteria. For lunch, you'll have picnics and snacks outdoors. You can specify what you want for meals in the application.
Temperature varies from +15°С to +30°С in the day and from +5°С tо +20°С in the night. Precipitation may occur.
– a backpack or a travel bag
– comfortable hiking clothes and shoes, including Wellington boots or high boots for hiking
– a water- and windproof raincoat
– a headdress
– two pairs of sport pants
– cotton socks
– two or three T-shirts
– gloves and wool socks
– sunglasses
– sunscreen and after-sun cream
– first aid kit
– personal hygiene items
– tick and mosquito repellents
– it's better to keep your camera in a small waterproof package
Children aged 3 or older can do whatever they want in this tour except for quad biking. You can leave your child at the camp with a babysitter. Children aged 3 or older can do all the activities under the program.
Minors are provided a 10% discount.
Optionally, you may travel to the Isle of Kizhi, an outdoor architectural museum-reserve, on the last or the penultimate day of the tour. This tour costs 3,500 RUB. Thie fee includes a Meteor ride from Petrozavodsk and back as well as guide's services and entrance fees.
Booking
Accommodation during the trip
5-night stay at a comfortable cottage camp
Three meals a day
Rental of jeeps, quad bikes, boats, kayaks, bicycles, and special gear
Rafting
Instructors' and guides' services
Transfers provided by the program
Railway tickets from Moscow to Lodeynoye Pole and from Petrozavodsk to Moscow, about 6000 RUB for a round-trip ticket
The optional Kizhi tour, 3500 RUB
Sauna, which is also optional and costs 2000 RUB for two hours
5-night stay at a comfortable cottage camp
Three meals a day
Rental of jeeps, quad bikes, boats, kayaks, bicycles, and special gear
Rafting
Instructors' and guides' services
Transfers provided by the program
Railway tickets from Moscow to Lodeynoye Pole and from Petrozavodsk to Moscow, about 6000 RUB for a round-trip ticket
The optional Kizhi tour, 3500 RUB
Sauna, which is also optional and costs 2000 RUB for two hours