Arshan means healing water in Buryat, and the village earns its name. It sits near the head of the Tunka valley, a long, flat-bottomed trough running east to west between the Eastern Sayan mountains to the north and the Tunka Alps to the south, and it has been a spa resort for well over a century. The nearest larger settlement is Kyren, about thirty kilometres away, with Zhemchug a small neighbour; fuel stations are in Kyren and along the valley road, so fill the tank before heading up toward the Mondy road.
Getting here is a pleasure. The Tunkinsky Trakt comes from Kultuk at the southern tip of Lake Baikal and climbs through pine and larch forest, then opens onto the valley, a wide green bowl of meadows, birch groves and farms, with white-capped peaks standing along the skyline on both sides. The road is mostly decent tarmac, with long easy bends and straights, and traffic is moderate. Summer weekends can be busy with holidaymakers, and spring brings high water in the rivers. From Arshan, the road to Mondy climbs toward the Mongolian border, with the highest summits of the Eastern Sayan rising above three thousand metres.
The Tunka valley is a meeting place of Buryat and Russian culture. Buddhist prayer flags, small shrines and the occasional stupa mark the Buryat presence, and in several places stones carry painted prayers. Spa houses and sanatoria stand in the village among pine trees, with mineral springs that people drink and bathe in, and the smell of sulphur is not unknown. A small waterfall and a mountain stream run just behind the village, where a short walk takes you into dense forest of cedar and fir.
The surrounding nature is strongly alpine. The Tunka Alps and Sayan ridges hold glaciers, high lakes and rocky summits, and the valley itself has hot springs scattered along its length. Hawks and eagles are easy to spot, and the forests hold deer and bears. The valley air is dry and bright, with a cool edge even in summer.
Plan to arrive in the afternoon, eat something simple, take a soak if you feel like it, and start early for the mountain road. Keep a warm layer on hand, since the weather changes quickly.