Park

Kodar National Park contains about 20 glaciers, dozens of mountain lakes, cascades of waterfalls and alpine meadows. The highest point of the Kodar range is peak BAM (3 073 metres). Main attractions include uranium mines, the Marble Gorge, the Medvezhy (Bear) Pass and several lakes: Sleeping Beauty, Uglovoye and Alyonushka (on the territory of the Chara Sands). Tourist routes usually start from the settlement of Novaya Chara, home to just over four thousand people. Hiking alone and without experience is not recommended: routes are dangerous, the taiga is truly wild with sharp temperature swings and sudden weather changes. Bears, foxes, wolves, lynx, wolverines and snow sheep inhabit the park. If you go hiking here, notify the Emergency Ministry (MChS) and the Novaya Chara administration of your group composition and planned route. The best time to visit Kodar and the Chara Sands is mid‑summer, when hot weather sets in (around +25 °C) with minimal rain — then camping overnight and staying in huts during a trek usually presents no problems. Various travel companies run trips in Kodar: “Territory of Adventures”, Siberian Hike, “Sila Territory”. Depending on duration, such tours cost 50 000–110 000 rubles. How to get there: you can fly from Chita to Novaya Chara (flights run every other day). A one‑way ticket costs from about 15 000 rubles per person with baggage; flight time is 1.5–2 hours. Another option is by train with a transfer: first Chita–Skovorodino (along the Trans‑Siberian, about 20 hours), then Skovorodino–Novaya Chara (along the BAM, about 12–13 hours) — the total cost is almost the same as flying: about 12 000–15 000 rubles.