The Peschanaya River on all existing sites is clearly divided into areas that are very different in nature and complexity. Below Ilyinka, near the village of Baragash, the water workers, as a rule, have the most unpleasant problems one can imagine: the so-called "combs" (low-lying fallen trees above the water), which always unexpectedly "float" Because of the steep turn of the river, blocking the way of a catamaran in the narrow channels of Peschanaya. In one of these "combs" once pleased me and Oleg. It happened so.
Sandy, once again, gracefully made a bend, turning almost 90 degrees to the right, and suddenly, pouring out from behind a turn, in a dark tunnel from twisted trees, we saw a huge "comb" lying across the river. "Seryozha, hold on!" - just managed to shout to me Oleg, as it had already picked up some unknown force, rudely ripped off the catamaran and dropped into the bubbling around the "comb" water. Now it's my turn to fall. Under the influence of all the existing laws of physics, unexpectedly left alone on an unstable "ship", I make a spectacular "overkil" (an automatic - overturning a catamaran) and I am underwater, losing my paddle. Then I was "kolbasit" and hurled the river from side to side, and only the life jacket did not let me drown and drown in this situation. Remembering that it was completely useless to resist the mountain river, I completely surrendered to the power of a boiling stream, which, fortunately, soon took me wet, like a water rat, to a sandy desert beach.
A little later, on the horizon appeared wet through Oleg, who angrily looked at the overturned catamaran to my own shore. "After all, I cried to you - hold on! And why did you jump off the catamaran? "He said angrily to me with some kind of another stupidity, in order to somehow shed some of the irritation that had accumulated during the cold bathing in the mountain stream. "Who, I jumped off? - I exclaimed in surprise .- Oleg, what are you talking about? The first "comb" you first knocked off the catamaran, and then it overturned me! "" And why did you lose the paddle? "- Oleg was already calmer, more for the pro forma, which, after all, Then I "eat". "I could not hold it in my hand, so what can I do?" And, really, nothing terrible happened. The good thing is that Korobkov, a resourceful one, in advance, tore off from the chairs in the university audience with a dozen backs for future wooden oars. On this sandy beach and it was decided to make a parking for the night, to dry off properly and put himself in order after an unsuccessful "overquisition". I, as always, "cooked", cooking on a fire noodles with meat stew (such as "pasta in the Navy"). With us we had a full flask of pure medical alcohol and a bottle of semi-dry red wine, to which, most surprisingly, we did not even touch during the whole trip - there were already enough "hormones of joy" caused by the majestic, simply indescribable nature of the Mountainous Altai The Swiss Alps simply "rest"). Located near the fire, we surrendered to memories and dreams - the cherished dreams of these "water leopards", which we ourselves felt at that moment. And our dream was one for two - to pass the Chulyshman River of the 6th (most dangerous) category of complexity, not accidentally chosen for the international competitions of the "Splav-Raft" watercraft, held annually in the Altai Mountains.
The Chulyshman river, which is the most vigorous and beautiful in Siberia, is the main feeding artery of the Teletskoye Lake - this genuine "pearl of Altai". It flows in the highland zone of the eastern part of the Altai Republic, located in the very picturesque nature reserve of Ulagansky district. The beauty of Chulyshman, his simply indescribable beauty has long been appreciated by many tourists, including because of the "hillock": it is not by chance that Chulyshmansky canyon, amazing imagination, was successfully nominated for the contest "7 Wonders of Russia" in 2008 ( See photos 15 and 16). The deep narrow canyons of Chulyshman are comparable only to the famous Grand Canyon in America, and, in my opinion, in no way inferior to it. The valley of Chulyshman is amazingly picturesque, full of beautiful waterfalls and mightiest rapids, in places absolutely not passable for catamarans. By the way, the most cascading waterfall Uchar (Chulchinsky) is also located in the valley of Chulyshman - not on the river itself, but on its right tributary Chulche (the left inflow of Chulyshman, to the attention of the reader, is the legendary Bashkaus - also "not at all feebly Mountain rivulet "of the 6th complexity category), which is 12 km from the confluence of this relatively small river in Chulyshman.
Oleg told me that the director of the Altay camp site Viktor Petrovich Vasiliev in May 1986 also took part in Splav-Raft on Chulyshman as a member of the USSR water slalom team. The Americans are kayakers (kayak is a type of rowing boat, like a single kayak designed for rowing slalom), having gone far beyond the most complex plums of the Tudan cascade (see photo 17) stated that "only crazy Russians can raft along this insane Siberian river" And refused to further raft
