Expedition to the Southern Kuril Islands

We invite you on an expedition to the most remote islands of Russia. Our comfortable trip will take place throughout the South Kuril Islands. September is the perfect time to visit the region: the flow of tourists has almost dried up, but it is still warm enough to walk around the islands in T-shirts and bask in the sun. In two weeks we will visit four major islands. On the island of Kunashir, we will climb the volcanoes Golovnin and Mendeleev and pass through the Kuril reserve to the famous Cape Stolbchaty. On the island of Shikotan we will visit the most beautiful bays of the island - Nameless and Snezhkova, we will find ourselves on the Cape of the World and climb to Cape Shikotan. On the island of Iturup, we will go to the White Rocks and swim in the hot springs of the Baransky volcano. On Sakhalin, we will go to the most inaccessible lighthouse in the region - Aniva. Between the islands we will travel by plane and reliable small boats. The Southern Kurils are worth visiting.

What awaits you:

• A real expedition to islands in the Pacific Ocean.
• All the most interesting locations of the Southern Kuril Islands.
• Movements on various modes of transport: from a jeep to a small vessel.
• Swimming in hot springs.
• Climbing active volcanoes.
• The incredible beauty of the bay and the coast.
• Interesting excursions and short transitions.
• Tasting local seafood.

Detailed description of the expedition

• Number of participants up to 15 people. The team will always be accompanied by experienced instructors who ensure safety on the route.
• The program is prepared in such a way as to spend every day as interesting and rich as possible.
• The expedition will take place without tents and heavy backpacks
• We will stay in comfortable hotels every night.
• By the beginning of each tour, we will drive up in cars, so as not to waste time in vain.
• climbing volcanoes will take place along prepared hiking trails and will require physical endurance from you
• Autumn in the South Kuril Islands comes late, and in September it is hot as summer. However, you need to bring warm clothes in case of bad weather.
• Between the islands we will move on planes and small ships.
• During the excursions, we will have lunch with a wonderful view.
• During the trip we will try local seafood, and from Sakhalin there will be an opportunity to take with you Japanese souvenirs, products and cosmetics.
• on a trip, it is advisable to take with you scattered tourist shoes and trekking sticks, which significantly simplify hikes on the islands.
• Under favorable weather conditions, our program will take 13 days, but we recommend taking return tickets from Sakhalin with a margin of 2 days.

Day 1

Beginning of adventure

Meeting of participants at Yuzhno-Kurilsk airport. Modern aircraft fly here daily from Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. Mendeleev Airport is located at the foot of the volcano of the same name, which is visible from anywhere on the island. After meeting, we will move to Yuzhno-Kurilsk and stay in a hotel. Travelers arriving by boat get to the hotel on their own. The village of Yuzhno-Kurilsk is the largest settlement of the island of Kunashir and all the Southern Kuril Islands. After we arrive, we will explore the surrounding area. Dinner at a local cafe and walk to an abandoned lighthouse where we meet the sunset overlooking the Pacific Ocean. In the evening we will return to the hotel and discuss our upcoming trip.

Day crossing - 6 km.

Day 2

Transition to Shikotan Island

This morning we are going to Shikotan Island. We will board a small ship in the port of Yuzhno-Kurilsk, the journey time will be four hours. Shikotan Island differs from its neighbors by the indented coastline and many picturesque bays. This small island is rarely visited by tourists. The ship is docking in port pos. Small Kuril. After checking into the hotel, we will go for a walk to Cape Shikotan, which offers views of the village and the nearest bays. In the evening we will return to Malokurilsk.

Day crossing on the ship - 90 km. Day crossing - 6 km.

Day 3

Cape End of the World

Today we are waiting for an excursion to the Cape of the World. After breakfast, we will go on SUVs to the southern part of the island. After the excursion to the cape, we move to the Spanberg Lighthouse, built by the Japanese. Then we get to the Bay Nameless, where in 1972 filmed episodes of the film “The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe”. In the evening we will return to the village and have dinner in the cafe.

Day crossing - 8 km. Day crossing - 30 km.

Day 4

Church Bay

Trip to the bay Church, the locals call it Aivazovsky in honor of the island located right in the bay. The road goes to the village of Krabozavodskoe and then through the entire island. There is no car to drive to Church Bay, so we will walk the last four kilometers. The whole of Shikotan is overgrown with a dwarf bambooman, which makes hiking on it an easy activity unlike hiking on neighboring islands. Come back to the hotel tonight.

Day crossing - 8 km. Day crossing - 40 km.

Day 5

Mount Shikotan

Before returning to Yuzhno-Kurilsk, we will climb Mount Shikotan, the highest on the island. Its height is only 405 meters, but it offers the best view of all the neighboring islands. In the afternoon we will return to the port and in the evening we will reach Yuzhno-Kurilsk. Hotel check-in. Day crossing - 6 km.

Day 6

Volcano Golovnina

After breakfast, we will go to the southernmost volcano of the Kuril Islands - Golovnina volcano. From here to Japan only a few dozen kilometers. Our walk will pass through the caldera of an active volcano. The route is quite difficult, but it goes along a convenient tourist trail. On the site of the crater of the volcano after an ancient catastrophic eruption, two lakes were formed - Boiling and Hot, the names of which speak for themselves. The water in the Boiling Lake is heated by volcanic hot gases, and in the places of their exit the water temperature reaches +95 ° C. On the shores of this lake you can still see the remains of the Japanese sulfur industry - metal boilers and wooden piles. Climb to the observation deck, where you can see the entire crater of the volcano Golovnina, and on the horizon will open a view of the northernmost Japanese island of Hokkaido. We'll have lunch with a view of the lake. In the evening we will return to South Kurilsk.

Day crossing - 10 km. Day crossing - 180 km.

Day 7

Mendeleev volcano

Today we will go to the fumarole fields of the volcano Mendeleev. Fumaroles are holes in the ground from where gases of volcanic origin escape. From Yuzhno-Kurilsk there is an excellent asphalt road to the foot of the volcano, from where the hiking trail begins. The path goes through the dense thickets of bamboo in human growth and takes about 2 hours in one direction. In front of the fumarole field are small natural baths with thermal water, where you can swim with a view of the island of Hokkaido. The fumarole field of Mendeleev volcano is the largest in all the Kuril Islands, with a large number of griffins and sulfur deposits. In the evening we will return to Yuzhno-Kurilsk and have dinner in one of the cafes of the city.

Day crossing - 8 km. Day crossing - 55 km.

Day 8

Cape Pillars

Today we will go to Cape Colobchatny - the most famous place in Kunashir. The path to the cape goes along the ecological path of the Stolbov Kuril Reserve. On the trail, we will get acquainted with the rare relict plants of the island, see a bear trail and swim in hot springs if desired. At the shore of the Sea of Okhotsk we will stop at the Blue Rocks (they are also called Monks) and walk along the sea shore to our final point. Cape Column is composed of frozen basaltic formations in the form of five and hexagonal columns that arise when lava cools. This phenomenon is called “pillars’ separateness”, hence the name of the cape. After lunch at the seaside, we will go to the nearest settlement and return to Yuzhno-Kurilsk. In the evening we will go to the airport, from where we will fly to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.

Day crossing - 13 km. Day crossing - 60 km.

Day 9

Aniwa lighthouse

Today we will go on an excursion to the Aniva lighthouse. Built in 1939 by Japanese engineers, the lighthouse attracts travelers from all over the world. It is located on detached rocks in the southern part of Sakhalin Island and can only be reached by water. We'll move to the posh. Novikovo, where we will sit on motor boats. The way to the lighthouse goes along the bays and capes of the southern part of Sakhalin Island and in good weather takes two hours. The lighthouse has long been abandoned, so you can freely land and climb to the very top. On the way back we will stop for lunch in Marmara Bay. In the evening we will return to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.

Day crossing - 2 km. Day crossing - 300 km.

Day 10

City of Kurilsk, Iturup Island

After breakfast at the hotel, we will go to the airport, from where we will fly to the island of Iturup - the largest in the entire archipelago of the Southern Kurils. Here is the most remote city from the capital of Russia – Kurilsk with a population of only 1500 people. Prokhladny Airport is located in the center of the island, from where we will move to Kurilsk. After checking into the hotel, we will explore the city. We will have lunch at the local cafe and walk along the city promenade. Come back to the hotel tonight.

Day crossing - 4 km.

Day 11

White rocks

After breakfast we will go to the business card of Iturup – White Rocks. This is a bizarre form of formation of pumice and volcanic glass, formed after a catastrophic eruption of a volcano located on the shore of the Sea of Okhotsk. We will go further than most tourist groups on the island – to the Wind Isthmus, which overlooks the Falls of Girl Tears. On the way back, we will go swimming in hot springs. Near the city, we turn to the Yankito lava plateau - a section of frozen lava from the Bogdan Khmelnitsky volcano closest to the city. We'll be back in town tonight.

Day crossing - 100 km.

Day 12

Orca Bay

In the morning we will go to the southern part of the island to Orca Bay. From this place on November 26, 1941, the Japanese fleet went to Pearl Harbor Bay. The trip along the coast will take all day. We will walk along the cliffs and grottoes of the bay, look at the abandoned ship on the shore. On the way back, we swim in the hot springs of Vannochka, located right on the beach. We'll be back in town tonight.

Day 13

Baranski volcano

Today we will go to the Baransky volcano, famous for its hot springs. On the slope of the volcano once functioned Ocean GeoTPP, which supplied the city of Kurilsk with electricity. At the moment, only rusty remains remain. We will walk along the Serna River, where hot springs originate, admire the boiling Blue Eye Lake and see fumarole activity on the slopes of the river. Nearby there are comfortable fonts, where we buy in hot springs.

Day crossing - 46 km.

Day 14

Flight to Sakhalin

From Prokhladny airport, located near the city of Kurilsk, planes fly daily to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. After breakfast we will visit the local museum. Transfer to the airport and flight to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.

• escort of the instructor from the arrival in Yuzhno-Kurilsk
• Airport-hotel-airport transfers (in case of arrival and departure with the main group)
• accommodation in hotels on Sakhalin, Kunashir, Shikotan and Iturup
• tours
• hotel
• sightseeing
• Tickets from Kunashir to Shikotan Island and back
• health insurance
• kit
• Permits to visit border areas (copies of passports required)
• permits to visit natural parks