Leave the sharp edges of city life, gather friends, take boats and backpacks with things, food and water, sleeping bags and sleeping pads. Yes - don't forget the oars. Go from Pavlodar to Aitym, to the shore, inflate the boat, and go on a journey that will make you to lose touch with civilization and mobile communication, find adventures and test yourself.
Local historians say that the Irtysh is one of the largest rivers in Eurasia. It flows through China, Kazakhstan and Russia and even Mongolia. According to scientific article, published in Russia, there is a tributary, which flows into this river. Thus, the waterway concerns four States. On the territory of Russia, near the city of Khanty-Mansiysk, the Irtysh becomes a tributary of the Ob River. Irtysh River flows through the territory of Pavlodar region for 720 kilometers.
It's better to wear gloves with your fingers cut off when you will be floating along the river. It will protect your hands from calluses. During the walk, you can stop on the beach to eat, admire the scenery, and take interesting photos. At this rate, a day on an inflatable boat with two rowers, most likely, you will overcome 30-35 kilometers.
On the way from the village Aitym to the city of Pavlodar on the river you can see many different birds, for example, black cormorants, seagulls, white-tailed sea eagles in touch with the double-ended lashes and mosquitoes (so that do not think, that life is all wine and roses), to see the powerful transmission lines whose power cable hang over the Irtysh river at a height of about 15 meters, a large number of beaches and creeks, including the White river, on whose banks stands the city of Aksu. You will also see the new AutoGuide bridge, the southern water intake on the approach to Pavlodar, a lot of small and large vessels, fishermen, and many other amazing things. Be prepared for severe weather conditions, such as heat or rain, high waves and wind – all this will make you to test your strength and stamina.
There will be a place for romance here: songs in the boat, dinner and conversations by the fire, sleeping in a tent, morning coffee brewed in a pot, a frog choir near the side and fishing: there are a lot of fish here.
How to get there? From Pavlodar to the village of Aytym on the highway is 53 kilometers away. You can be taken there by any taxi driver with an empty trunk or a minibus. With a good agreement, renting a minibus will cost about 10,000 tenge, with a not very good one – up to 20,000. Don't pay any more.
There is no equipped descent to the water in the village, but the bank is quite flat. Access to the Irtysh is almost at the fence of the former pioneer camp. And in Pavlodar, you can dock in different places: at some part of the Embankment, on one of the beaches, at the boat station immediately after the railway bridge.
Anton Sergeev
Photo By Nadezhda Maiba