Exploring Kamchatka

getting there

This is certainly the hardest part. It may not be half the fun, but it could take half the trip. Since flights from Alaska to Kamchatka were recently discontinued, the best option is to travel around the world – flying direct from JFK or Atlanta to Moscow, then transferring to a direct flight from Moscow to Petropavlovsk for another nine hours. By the time you get there, you’ll almost be back in the same time zone. The alternative is to fly from Los Angeles to Seoul, Korea, transfer to Vladivostok and spend a night there, then fly from Vladivostok to Petropavlovsk.

The best time to travel to Kamchatka in summer is August and early September, when the weather is generally nice and the bears congregate around salmon spawning streams and are easily observed. In mid-September the tundra and trees begin to turn incredible hues of red and orange. For winter sports, March is the most popular time for heli-skiing (when helicopters shuttle skiers to the top of wild mountains to ski down), as well as dog-sledding, and snowmobiling.