If you look at the eastern part of Russia, you are sure to notice a big peninsula, resembling a fish. And, as it happens, Kamchatka is one of the world's largest wild Pacific salmon spawning grounds. The waters around the peninsula are also rich in halibut, flounder, giant grenadier and dozens of species of marketable fish, as well as Kamchatka king crab and squid. It is clear that fishing is the main industry of Kamchatka.
But let us move away from the fish and have a closer look at this place. We will see that two-thirds of the peninsula are covered with mountain ranges and dozens of volcanic cones are scattered around. From November to July these mountains and volcanoes are covered with several meters of snow.
The peninsula covers about 472 000 square kilometers, which is bigger than many European countries, for example, Italy or Germany. Let’s take into consideration the fact that only 300,000 residents live in Kamchatka, 75% of whom live in three cities - Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Yelizovo and Vilyuchinsk. The rest of the territory is a sparsely populated land and absolutely wild mountains.
Along the central part of the peninsula the Sredinny Range stretches 1200km with a width of up to 120km. In the eastern part of the peninsula lies the Eastern ridge, 800km long and up to 100km wide. All these mountains are of volcanic origin, created by nature hundreds of thousands of years ago. But volcanism is still happening in the peninsula: There are about three hundred volcanoes In Kamchatka, 30 of which are active. Volcanoes of Kamchatka are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List and it is named as “one of the most outstanding volcanic regions in the world”. It also includes Kluchevskaya Sopka volcano with an altitude of 4835 meters, which is the highest active volcano in Eurasia and probably in the Northern Hemisphere.
Kamchatka is also the most extensively glaciated region of north-eastern Asia, with glaciers covering more than 900 square kilometres. That's why Kamchatka Peninsula is also known as the "Land of fire and ice".
Mountains and volcanoes are not the only attractions of Kamchatka. Here rich flora and fauna can be found, as well as the Valley of Geysers, hot mineral springs, the stunning Pacific Coast, Aboriginal culture, history and development of Kamchatka and Russian America. When visiting Kamchatka every guest will find something interesting and unique for themselves.
Welcome to Kamchatka, the land of fire, ice, amazing scenery and unforgettable skiing!