The best thing to do is to book this trip together with the accommodation
(food + tent) at the base camp at either Asia Tourism at Zheltoksan Str.
160-2 in Almaty, email: asiatour@online.ru or the big travel agency of
Kazbek Valev ... I would say that you have a better chance to get
a good deal at Asia Tourism, since Kazbek Valev has so many clients that
he will be reluctant to make any discounts for you. Of course if
your budget will allow you to spent around 1500 $ for this trip you can
go ahead and book with Kazbek Valev and there is a chance that you will
get a better service for your money although I can not guarantee this.
The only thing which is sure is that his camp on the North Inylchek glacier
is much bigger and the helicopter flights to and back from the glacier
seem to be more regular. Of course there are certain drawbacks such
as the food is served 3 times per day and you get the feeling of being
in a restaurant rather than in a mess tent on a glacier at 4000 m.
The beer costs around 3 $ a can.
At the other camp we felt very relaxed since we were allowed to help
the people cooking the food as well as eat as much as we want and whenever
we want + other little things which helped us not to feel like hotel guests.
It is also possible to walk from the Byankol region to the North Inylchek
glacier. This may take several days and one needs to go over a pass
which is above 5000 m (for a better idea look at the map under the map
section of this page). In any case it is necessary that a lot
of food and gear are transported by a helicopter to the base camp on the
glacier since it is not possible that all the necessary equipment + food
are carried unless people are hired to do that. Keep in mind that
it is not possible to hire any of the local nomadic people to carry baggage
on the glacier so if one needs such help he should arrange this in Almaty.
It is also not trivial to get to the Byankol region on your own although
it is not impossible. Keep in mind that one needs a military permit
to go to this region since it is right at the border with China.
This permit can be obtained in Almaty but you will need to be fluent in
Russian at least and have tons of luck with the local bureaucracy.
It is possible that the procedure takes several days. I have met
a group of Check climbers who managed to obtain this permit in a day with
the help of a local guy who collected a fat commission for helping them
with the permit and arranging the transportation to the Byankol region.
They wanted to climb peak Marble Wall. They also carried huge backpacks
for several kilometers during the last portion of the approach way
to the base camp (food for couple of weeks + camping gear + climbing gear)...