Altai– a beautiful region famous for its nature. Majestic mountains This region attracts tourists from all over the world. Altai Mountains– the highest mountains in Siberia, separated by mountain rivers and pits. The mountain system passes through four countries: Russia, China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan. In the territory Russian Federation The ridges are located mainly in the Altai Republic and in the Altai Territory.

The magnificent Altai Mountains were formed about 500 million years ago. But due to climate change, earthquakes and ice ages, about 60 million years ago the mountains were severely destroyed and acquired a completely different appearance, which we can observe today. The Altai Mountains are heterogeneous in their relief. There are three main groups here: plains, mid-mountain and glacial high-mountain relief. 2000 meters is the average height of the mountains. The highest point in Altai is Mount Belukha, its height is 4506 meters.

The Altai Mountains are unique, and have been on the list since 1998 World Heritage UNESCO.

Belukha

Belukha is the highest point of Altai, recognized as the geographical center of Eurasia - it is equidistant from three oceans. This mountain has never been just a mountain, but has always represented sacred place. The ancient Altai people of Kadyn-Bazhi believed that a terrible demon lived in the mountain, who would kill everyone who tried to climb this mountain. This is what explained the regular avalanches and rockfalls caused by the earthquake.

In contrast, Buddhists believe that it is at the top of Mount Belukha that the entrance to the mythical land of the sages, Shambhala, is hidden.

They first tried to climb to the top of Belukha back in the 19th century, but this turned out to be impossible due to constant rockfalls and avalanches. The first ascent of the mountain in history took place only in 1914 by Mikhail and Boris Tronov.

Ukok Plateau

The Ukok plateau is considered the meeting point of the borders of four states - Russia, China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan. Incredible nature, thousands of small rivers and reservoirs attract tourists from all over the world to visit this place. This plateau is famous for a large number of cultural monuments. Found here cave drawings, mounds, stone sculptures. “Princess of Ukok” is the main find in this area. This is the mummy of a 25-year-old woman found here in 1993. Tattoos on her skin, as well as horses, gold, and household items buried with her, give the right to claim that she was a very noble woman. Archaeologists, historians, and art historians still continue to study this incredibly picturesque place.

Altai Mountains brief information.

Posted Fri, 03/27/2015 - 08:50 by Cap

Southern Altai is a mountain range in the south of Altai, the western part of which is located in Kazakhstan, the eastern part of the ridge separates Russia from China. Length about 125 km. Height up to 3871 m. In the foothills up to an altitude of 1400-1500 m there are steppe landscapes, park larch forests reach an altitude of 2100-2200 m; the high mountain zone is dominated by subalpine and alpine meadows. About 180 glaciers (including Adakhinsky - length 5 km, area 19.5 km2). It starts to the west from the Karakoba River, separating it from the Kalbinsky ridge located even further west. Passes from west to east. In the east it ends at the Tavan-Bogdo-Ula massif, which begins the Sailyugem ridges (to the east) and the Mongolian Altai (to the south).

Mongolian Altai is a mountain system in Mongolia and China (on the border). It consists of several ridges separated by valleys, stretching for 1000 km from southeast to northwest. The width varies from 150 km to 300 km, the highest point is Mount Munkh-Khairkhan-Ula (4362 m). The tops of the ridges are plateau-shaped and covered with glaciers, the total area of ​​which is 830 km². Most of them, including the largest Potanin glacier, are located in the Tavan-Bogdo-Ula massif. The ridges are mainly composed of crystalline schists, porphyries, porphyrites and granites. On the moist slopes of the southwestern side there are meadows and forests, on the dry northeastern slopes there are steppes and semi-deserts.

In the north it approaches the highlands of the Altai Republic, in the west and south there are semi-deserts and deserts of Dzungaria and Gobi, and the entire northeastern part of the system borders on the semi-deserts of the Great Lakes Basin. In the east of the Mongolian Altai there is the Alag-Nur depression, which separates it from the lower Gobi Altai (altitude up to 3900 m). At the northwestern extremity of the ridge is Kanas Lake.
On the territory of China, the mountains are located in the Altai District in the Ili-Kazakh Autonomous Region of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China with its capital in Altai.

The Gobi Altai is a mountain system in the south of Mongolia, a southeastern continuation of the Mongolian Altai. The Gobi Altai consists of chains of sublatitudinal ridges and ridges, separated by dry valleys and basins and surrounded by sloping plains (bels). The length of the system is over 500 km, the prevailing heights are from 1500 to 3000 m. The highest point is the peak of Barun-Bogdo-Ula (3957 m) in the Ikh-Bogdo ridge. The vegetation in the lower zone is desert, in the upper zone it is steppe. The mountains are composed of crystalline schists, granites, sandstones and limestones. The Gobi Altai region is highly seismic. In 1957, a catastrophic earthquake of 11-12 magnitude occurred here; noticeable soil vibrations were observed over an area of ​​5 million km². In 1958, another earthquake occurred in the Gobi Altai, with a magnitude of 10, called the Bayan-Tsagan earthquake.

Steppe Altai is part of the Priob Plateau on the territory of the Altai Territory, gradually turning into the foothills of Altai in the south. Average height 250-260 m. The Priob plateau rises 50-75 m above the Kulunda depression, the plateau is dissected by wide and deep (40-100 m) hollows, stretched parallel to each other from northeast to southwest. The bottoms of the hollows are filled with sand, the surface of which, under the influence of the wind, has acquired a hilly-ridge character. Modern rivers laid out their valleys in these hollows. The largest of them are Alei, Kasmala and Barnaulka.
In the hollow of the Kasmalinskaya ribbon there are bitterly salty lakes Bolshoye Gorkoye and Maloe Gorkoye. The climate of the plain is warmer and drier than other zones of the West Siberian Lowland. The average annual temperature on the Priobsky plateau is +2.5 °C, the average annual precipitation is 450 mm. Due to the almost flat terrain, it is subject to the influence of strong winds and intrusions of air masses from both the Northern Arctic Ocean, and from Central Asia. Soils are formed on loess-like loams. Open steppe spaces on chernozem soils predominate. In some places, birch trees are found, mainly on dark gray forest soils; Ribbon pine forests (under which soddy-podzolic soils are formed), swamps and lakes are confined to the hollows of the ancient runoff. Most of the territory of the Priob Plateau is plowed.

Mount Belukha is located in the Ust-Koksinsky region of the Altai Mountains. It is the highest point of the Katunsky ridge and the highest point of Siberia. Belukha has two peaks in the form of irregular pyramids - Eastern (4506 m) and Western (4435 m), between which there is a depression - “Belukha Saddle”, 4000 m high. The two peaks of Belukha together with the peaks Delaunay and The crown of Altai forms the Akkem wall, falling almost vertically down towards the Akkem glacier.

On the territory of Russia, beyond the Urals, only in Kamchatka there is a peak higher than Belukha - Klyuchevskaya Sopka. But it’s not so much its height that attracts this mountain. As climbers say: Belukha is not for records, but for the soul. It gives off some special influence that is noticeable even at a distance from its foot. Seeing it for the first time, a person is filled with delight. In the valley of Lake Akkem, at the foot of Belukha, there is generally an atmosphere of openness and brotherhood with everyone nearby, even strangers. What Turistka.ru felt when she visited here in August 2008.

Altaians revere Belukha and consider it sacred mountain. Altai names (peak of Katun), Ak-Suru (majestic), Musdutuu (ice mountain. Belukha is not an easy mountain, it is an antenna that receives information from Space, transforms it, and distributes it to the whole Earth. People are prepared, harmonious, in connection with nature, can “communicate” with Belukha and “read" from her the information that she carries. Belukha has a harmonizing effect on a person, increasing his sensitivity and love for nature.

The famous mystical artist, artist-traveler Nikolai Konstantinovich Roerich, who visited Belukha in 1926 during his Central Asian expedition, also noted the unusualness of the space around Belukha. He wrote: “We saw Belukha. It was so clean and loud. Straight to Zvenigorod.” The artist felt that there was an energy bridge between Belukha and Everest, like two space antennas. “Altai - the Himalayas, two poles, two magnets” - this is what he wrote in his diaries. Roerich did a large number of sketches in the Belukha area. And after visiting Belukha on the southern side, he painted the painting “Belukha”. In 1942, Nikolai Konstantinovich painted the painting “Victory”. In the foreground is a warrior in ancient Russian armor who slayed a dragon. On the second are the shining peaks of Belukha. In honor of N.K. Roerich and his family members are named

The first records about Belukha appeared more than 200 years ago, when the Russian scientist and traveler P.I. Shangin, in his expedition to Altai, having visited the Uimon Valley, recorded stories about Belukha hunters and miners.

Gebler Friedrich Vilgelmovich, a well-known scientist and researcher in Altai, a doctor at the Kolyvan-Voskresensk factories, managed to reach Belukha for the first time in 1835. In order to collect and study medicinal plants, he traveled a lot throughout Altai and in 1836, striving for the source of the Katun, he approached Belukha from the south and discovered the Katun glacier, which was later named after him and the Berel glacier. Gebler then climbed the southern slope to the border of the non-melting snow and made an attempt to determine the height of Belukha. Later in his article “Note on the Katun Mountains” Gebler speaks of Belukha as highest peak"Russian Altai".

A faithful researcher of Belukha for many years was the Siberian researcher and scientist, professor of Tomsk University Vasily Vasilyevich Sapozhnikov, who in the period from 1895 to 1911 was repeatedly in the Belukha area from the northern and southern sides and discovered and described the Belukha glacier massif: Akkemsky, Iedygemsky glaciers , as well as their tributaries and satellites, the Cherny glacier, Myushtuairy (Tronov Brothers) and several other glaciers in the upper reaches of Kuchurla. In 1898, after two unsuccessful attempts in previous years, Sapozhnikov and his companions reached the saddle of Belukha and measured the height of its peaks.

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SOURCE OF INFORMATION AND PHOTO:
Team Nomads
N. G. Seledtsov, N. E. Shpilekova. "To help tourists." Gorno-Altaisk, 2000
Sapozhnikov V.V. Across Altai. - M.: Geographgiz, 1949. - 579 p.
Galakhov V.P., Mukhametov R.M. Glaciers of Altai. - Novosibirsk: Science, 1999.
http://www.altai-photo.ru/
Altai Mountains - article from the Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Altai landscape region in the book: N. A. Gvozdetsky, N. I. Mikhailov. Physical geography of the USSR. M., 1978.
Golden Mountains of Altai on the website of the Okhrana Foundation natural heritage»
Murzaev E. M. Dictionary of folk geographical terms. 1st ed. - M., Mysl, 1984.
Murzaev E. M. Turkic geographical names. - M., Vost. lit., 1996.
Altai // Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron: In 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional ones). - St. Petersburg, 1890-1907.
http://www.turistka.ru/altai/

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The Ram's Forehead Mountains are two rocks with smooth peaks, which are polished by glacier activity. More than 20 years ago, the glacier crossed the rocks, connecting with its right branch and forming a common channel.

Currently, the glacier has retreated, and a waterfall has appeared between the mountains, carrying the waters of the melting glacier to Aktru.

Now this place is extremely popular among tourists who want to hike among the picturesque nature of Altai. “Sheep's foreheads” are considered a difficult place for travelers, because there is a very steep climb with crushed stone crumbling underfoot.

On the slope behind the "Ram's foreheads" it is best to watch a very impressive spectacle - a solar eclipse.

Mount Argamdzhi

Argamdzhi is a mountain peak located in Russia, in the southern part of the Altai Republic, in the southeast of the Ukok plateau, three kilometers from the border with the state of Mongolia.

The absolute height of the peak is 3,511 meters. The mountain is part of the Sailyugem mountain system. The Argamdzhi River, which belongs to the Ak-Alakha basin, originates on its territory. Opens from the mountain great view to the peaks and glaciers of the Argamdzhi massif.

The slopes of the peak are covered with tundra. The nearest settlement is the village of Belyashi (Dzhazater). This territory belongs to the “Mongolian” border sector.

Mount Anyytaiga

Anyytaiga is a mountain that belongs to the Karlygan ridge and is part of the Western Sayan mountain system. It is located on the territory of Russia, in the Tashtypsky district of the Republic of Khakassia.

Height mountain peak reaches 2,834 meters above sea level. The rocky cliffs of the summit are pronounced, they face west, and there is no vegetation on them. On the western side, the slopes are covered with cedar and spruce-fir forests. Anyytaiga is the most maximum height Karlygan mountain range. Tectonic uplifts still continue here, and the relief is subject to the destructive effects of wind erosion.

The earth's surface in the Altai Territory is mostly flat, but there are also low mountain ranges. In the east, the Pre-Altai Plain is bordered by hilly territory, in the south by the spurs of the Anuy, Tigiretsky, Cherginsky, Seminsky and Baschelaksky ridges, in the southwest there is a popular for tourist travel Kolyvansky ridge.

The land surface of the region gradually rises from the northwest to the southeast. The highest point of the region has a height of 2490 meters, it is named Shangin Lighthouse in honor of the famous Altai explorer. It is located in the Korgon ridge at the source of the Kumir River.

Geology and tectonics of mountains

The geological formation of the territory of the region took place over 2 billion years. In the north of the region, where a plain is observed in the modern topography, there is the outskirts of the young West Siberian platform or plate. In the east and south of the region there are tectonic structures of mountain structures of different ages.

The earth's crust here has a three-layer structure, the thickness of which increases under mountain structures and reaches 50-55 km. In the east and southeast of the region, the Altai-Salair fold system was formed. In the southwest it is associated with the tectonic structures of Western Altai.

In the marine and oceanic waters of the ancient sea with a large number of island chains, thick sediment layers were formed in the distant geological past. Clay, sand and calcareous sediments were deposited near the islands. It is they, in the form of crystalline shales, that today make up the shores and the Terektinsky ridge.

After the geological period of sedimentation, active volcanic activity began. Powerful lava flows penetrated into sedimentary rocks and volcanogenic-sedimentary and metamorphic rock strata were formed. About one and a half billion years ago, calcareous and calc-siliceous rock strata formed again along the outskirts of the extensive underwater swelling formed during the process of volcanism.

Calcareous-siliceous rocks with remains of marine organisms, quartzites and intrusive granites, diorites and gabbro today make up the rocky ledges of the northern face of Altai. In relief today these are the beautiful and bizarrely shaped remnant rocks of Babargan and Maly Babyrgan, the towns of Mokhnatoy and Sinyukha, the town of Pleshivaya and the Makaryevka rocks, the Tserkovka rocks and the “Four Brothers” in Belokurikha.

Relief of the Altai Mountains

The relief in the Altai foothills is very diverse; low mountains and partly middle mountains, ancient intermountain valleys are concentrated here. Low-mountain relief forms rise in the south of the region above the plain up to 500 m, and gradually continue to the south with mid-mountain ridges up to 2000 m.

The low mountains of the Altai Territory are characterized by dome-shaped ancient peaks with remnant rocks significantly destroyed by erosion. Low-mountain and partly mid-mountain landforms were formed as a result of volcanism on the site of an ancient plain. These landforms are highly dissected by erosion from glaciers, wind and water flows.

The mountain ranges here extend from northwest to southeast. Their destruction under the influence of frost and heat, precipitation, wind and flowing water greatly dismembers the relief of the foothills. The forces of nature destroy, crush sedimentary rocks on the surface and carry them away from the slopes. As a result of this process, granite, marble, porphyrite, and diorite remains are exposed. From the tops of collapsing mountains, debris rolls down in scree and accumulates at the foot.

Minerals

The subsoil of the industrial “Rudny Altai” (Gornyak, Zmeinogorsk) is rich in polymetallic ores. They contain compounds of lead, copper, tungsten, zinc, molybdenum, precious and rare earth metals. The Salair ridge is rich in bauxite; magnesium ores occur at the junction with Altai.

In addition to metal ores, in the mountain systems of the foothills of the region, in the sedimentary strata of the ancient sea, many deposits of building materials, various types of sand, sand-gravel mixtures, marls, marble, clay, limestone, ornamental stones, quartzites, porphyrites, and jasper were formed.

In the foothills on the territory of the Cherginsky ridge, the richest reserves of thermal radon waters were found, on the basis of which the balneological resort of the All-Russian Health Resort operates. Together with thermal waters, mountain coniferous air, the unique relief forms of Mount Tserkovka, the rock “Four Brothers” are used here for healing, ethnographic and event tourism is being developed.

Climate

The climatic conditions of the foothill southern territories of the Altai Territory are moderate, continental with a large difference in the amount of sunlight and heat throughout the year. In winter, the territory of the foothills becomes very cold due to anticyclonic weather, but in summer it warms up well.

In terms of the amount of solar radiation, the territory of the Altai foothills is not inferior to the famous Crimean resorts of Sochi and Anapa. To the south in the mountain spurs the cloudiness becomes stronger and more precipitation falls, up to 800-900 mm per year. In the foothills there are many days with winter snowfalls; the territory is promising for the development of ski tourism.

Average temperatures during the long winter range from -15°C to -20°C, and in January the minimum temperature can drop to -50°C with intrusions of cold arctic air. In summer, dry warm foehn winds from the Iranian Plateau and Central Asia significantly soften the climate of the foothills. Average July temperatures are +18оС, +20оС, they can rise with southern winds to +38оС. Wet cyclones come from the west, from the shores of the Atlantic, bringing with them heavy rain with winds and thunderstorms.

The transition seasons of the year are characterized by frosts and sharp cold snaps caused by Arctic air. Spring is coming in Altai region from the southwest, with the arrival of warm winds from Kazakhstan specifically from the foothills. The snow melts very quickly with dry southwest winds. In autumn, after the first frosts, clear, warm weather usually sets in, which is called “Indian summer”. Then cold winds and long, dank autumn rains arrive.

Hydrography

The foothill territories and spurs of the northern Altai ranges, with an abundance of atmospheric precipitation, have a dense hydrographic network. Many abundant fresh watercourses, springs and springs, streams, mountain karst and glacial lakes are formed here.

The Suenga, Ik, Alambay, Chem, Konebikha, Bachat rivers originate from the slopes of Salair, flowing into Inya, and rushing to Chumysh Kara-Chumysh and Tom-Chumysh. The reservoirs of Salair support the hydrological regime of groundwater in the Ob-Irtysh interfluve.

The right tributaries of the Charysh and the upper reaches of the sources of the Alei flow through the specially protected territory of the Tigiretsky ridge. Here is the richest in species biological diversity of the Belaya River basin, the upper reaches of the Bolshaya Khankhara River. The Anuya ridge is a natural watershed of the Anui and Peschanaya rivers.

The Cherginsky ridge separates the basins of the Peschanaya and Sema rivers. The rivers Peschanaya and Sema, Emurla and Bertka, Apshuyakhta and Anos originate on the Seminsky ridge. Peschanaya and Sema are rich in placer gold. The Baschelaksky ridge separates the basins of the Charysha and Anui rivers, they are widely known deep lakes Baschelakskoye and Talitskoye. In the area of ​​the Kolyvan ridge, the Belaya River flows, flowing into Charysh, the White Lake of the same name and the natural monument Lake Savvushkino, which is often called simply Kolyvansky, are located.

Nature of individual mountain ranges

The highest peak of the Kolyvan ridge in the Kurinsky region is Mount Sinyukha with a height of 1210 meters. Its slopes are covered with virgin forest, which, in thin air, from a distance has the hue of Sinegorye and is covered with a bluish haze. Nearby is the village of Kolyvan with the famous stone-cutting factory.

The highest peak of the low-mountain, highly dissected Salair in relief is Mount Kivda, 618 meters high. In the Altai Territory, the spurs of Salair are located in the drainage basin of the Sary-Chumysh River. In the karst limestones of Salair, there are many forms of relief of karst origin: caves, sinkholes, basins, dry lairs and ponors.

In the mountains of the Tigiretsky ridge there is a forest of the same name formed in 1999 to preserve the rich species biological diversity of the black taiga and forest-steppe communities of the Altai foothills. Tourists here will be interested in the “Big Tigirek” ecological trail, its length is up to 70 km, and the wonderful “Seven Caves Mountain” excursion.

The most popular tourist attraction in the Cherginsky ridge is Mount Tserkovka with a height of 815 meters and bizarre, unusually shaped rocks at the top. The rocks crowning the mountain really look like the domes of an Orthodox church; a worship cross is installed on the top. A funicular was built from the Belokurikha balneological resort located at the foot of the mountain to the top.

The Baschelaksky ridge "byzhi-ak" "white peak" has a peculiar shape, reminiscent in relief of the Great the Chinese wall. Its outlier peaks in the form of a skillfully constructed wall were formed as a result of processes of wind and water erosion. A lot of debris has accumulated at their base.

The northernmost peak of the Seminsky ridge is the beautiful Babyrgan with a height of 1008.6 meters, which represents like a giant giant clock face of Altai. At the top of Babyrgan, high granite and syenite Devonian outlier rocks and walls are of great interest to tourists. Over the mountain from time to time, local residents and visitors see a vision medieval city with towers and loopholes.

Belukha is the most high mountain Altai. The sacred mountain has many local names: Kadyn-bazhi - “Top of the Katun”, Ak-suru - “White Giant”, Musdutuu - “Ice Mountain”, Aktau - “ White Mountain"; judging by the names of Uch-Syumer, Uch-Syuri, Uch-Ayry - “Three hills”, “Three spiers”, “Three branches”, the mountain once had three peaks. Poets, philosophers and religious thinkers call it the “Silver Thread of the World”, “Planetary Throne”, “Shield of Fiery Power”, “Tower of the Mother of the World”, “Fortress of the Diamond Throne Buddha”, “Stronghold of the One God”.
Scientists see, first of all, a granite massif covered with glaciers, composed of rocks of the Cambrian period. To this day, tectonic movement continues - an uplift that began in the Paleogene era, so this mountain is a real museum of all kinds of geomorphological processes and landforms. Two peaks in the shape of irregular pyramids - Eastern Belukha (4506 m) and Western Belukha (4435 m), with a drop to 4000 m (the so-called "Belukha Saddle") between them - crown the Katunsky ridge of Central Altai in the south of Western Siberia, where the borders of four countries meet: Russia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and China. The mountain is almost vertical in the north (the so-called Akkem wall from the side of the Akkem glacier) and more flat in the south, where the Katun River originates from the Katun glacier (otherwise known as the Gebler glacier).
People have inhabited the intermountain valleys of Altai since the Paleolithic era (the first settlements appeared about 1.5 million years ago. In the 7th-3rd centuries BC, Altai was inhabited by the Pazyryk Scythians, then they were replaced by the Huns and Sarmatians, from the mid-5th century - Turks, the ancestors of modern Altaians, who formed a large medieval state of the Turkic Khaganate (monarchy), which, along with Altai, included the territories of Manchuria, Mongolia, East and West Turkestan, Kazakhstan and North Caucasus. In the XVII-XVIII centuries. Altai is part of the Dzungarian state, liquidated by the Qing dynasty (China) during the Third Oirat-Manchu War (1755-1759). In parallel, there was an expansion of the Russian Empire, during which in 1717-1747. Northern, and in 1756 southern Altai became the possessions of the Demidovs.
Exploring and conquering this not the highest, but difficult to climb and spiritually significant mountain in the world has become a matter of honor for many. But only in the 20th century.
The slopes of Belukha, up to an average height of 2600 m, are covered with glaciers (currently 169 are known). with total area about 150 km 2), which is reflected in the name Belukha, i.e. “White”. Due to the difficulties of climbing the glacial slopes and the sacred tradition of the local population to bypass Belukha for quite a long time, no one dared to climb to the top, as one of the encyclopedic publications of 1891 laments. Its height was approximately calculated in 1835-1836. German doctor of medicine, geographer Friedrich August von Gebler (1781-1850) who worked in Russia. The Russian botanist, geographer and traveler Vasily Vasilyevich Sapozhnikov (1861-1924) reached the “Belukha Saddle” in 1895, who brought greater accuracy to the measurements.
The Tronov brothers - glaciologist (ice researcher) and climatologist Mikhail Vladimirovich (1892-1978) and chemist Boris Vladimirovich (1891-1968) - carried out a detailed study of Belukha glaciers already in Soviet times. They also have the honor of the first ascent of Belukha in 1914: its higher eastern peak managed to conquer only the third time (first unsuccessful attempt the ascent was undertaken back in 1907 by a group of Russians, and in 1909, just as unsuccessfully, by a group of English climbers).
The snow-white crown of the Altai beauty was captured in their paintings by Nikolai Konstantinovich Roerich (1874-1947) and the outstanding landscape painter of Altai origin Choros-Gurkin - Grigory Ivanovich Gurkin (1870-1937). In the wake of the revolution in 1917, he, as the most famous representative of the indigenous nationality, was persuaded to head the Karakorum-Altai district government, and in 1919 the Kolchakites arrested him “for separatism and treason.” Released on bail, the artist hastened to flee abroad. In 1925, he was persuaded to return to Soviet Russia, where he painted pictures, drew posters and illustrated folk epics until 1937, until he was accused of nationalism; died in the dungeons of the NKVD, rehabilitated in 1956.
At the end of the 20th century. Belukha turns into a center extreme sports and tourism. Today, different climbing routes are known, all of them are rock and ice.
Among the animals and birds there are rare specimens, for example, the snow leopard and golden eagle listed in the Red Book. The mountain, together with its ecosystem, was first declared a natural monument of the Gorno-Altai Autonomous Okrug, and then a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site under official name « ».

general information

The most high point Siberia.

Administrative affiliation: border Ust-Koksinsky district, Siberian Federal District, Russian Federation.

Ethnic composition: Altaians (indigenous people) are the majority, Kazakhs - up to 6%, there are small groups of Russian Old Believers who moved here more than 200 years ago.

Religions: Burkhanism (local belief with elements of Buddhism and shamanism), Buddhism (Altaians), Orthodoxy (Russians), Islam (Kazakhs).

Largest river: Katun.
Largest lakes: Kucherlinskoye, Akkemskoye.

Largest glaciers: Sapozhnikov Glacier 10.5 km long, area 13.2 km 2; The Big and Small Berel glaciers are 10 and 8 km long and 12.5 and 8.9 km 2 in area.

Immediate settlements: Ust-Koksa village.

Distance from China and Mongolia: about 100 km.

Numbers

Eastern Belukha: 4506 m.
Western Belukha: 4435 m.
Belukha Saddle: 4000 m.
First ascent: 1914, Tronov brothers.
Glaciers of Mount Belukha: number - 169, area - 150 km 2, 50% of all glaciers of the Katunsky Range.
Ice movement speed: from 30 to 50 m per year.

Climate and weather

Sharply continental, with short hot summers and long frosty winters. Varies according to altitudinal zonation.
Average annual temperature in the valley: 0…+5°С
Average annual temperature at the summit:-6°C
Minimum summit temperature: in winter up to -45°C, in summer up to -20°C.

Curious facts

■ Complex cosmological ideas connect Belukha with Tibet and India. Locals We are sure that Belukha and Tibet are connected by very real cave passages. According to one version, Indian mythological sacred mountain Meru (the center of all universes) is the Altai Belukha.
■ The number three carries important symbolism for Belukha. It is believed that three religions meet here: Christianity, Buddhism and Islam; Altai, Himalayas and Pamirs are connected through Belukha; the mountain is located at approximately equal distance from three oceans: the Pacific, Arctic and Indian.