Inya is a small village on the Chuysky Trakt, the great road that runs from Biysk across the Altai Mountains to the Mongolian border, and it sits right on the banks of the Katun, the turquoise river that drains the glaciers of Mount Belukha. An old suspension bridge spans the river here, swaying slightly in the wind, and walking out onto it with the water rushing milky green below is the classic way to break a ride. The village has about two thousand people and the slow, practical feel of a settlement that lives by the road and the river.
A few kilometres downstream, the Chuya River joins the Katun in a confluence of two different colours of water, the grey-white Chuya meeting the bright Katun and running side by side for a while before mixing. Close by, on a rock face beside the road, are the petroglyphs of Kalbak-Tash, thousands of images carved over millennia, from Stone Age hunters to Turkic warriors, showing deer, ibex, horses and strange figures. It is one of the richest rock art sites in Siberia, and you can walk among them in a few minutes from the road.
The Chuysky Trakt is one of the world's great motorcycling roads, and the section around Inya is among its best. The road follows the Katun through a deep valley, with sweeping bends, rocky cliffs and views of the river at every turn. Further east it climbs toward the high, dry steppe of the Kurai and Chuya basins, with snowy peaks of the North Chuya Range on the horizon. The surface is generally good, but watch for trucks, tourist buses and livestock. Summer is the main season; snow and ice arrive early at altitude.
Inya has a shop, simple cafes and guesthouses, but fuel is a question. Onguday, about forty-seven kilometres back toward Biysk, is the nearest larger village with reliable fuel, and Aktash further east is the other option. Fill up whenever you can along the Trakt. Try the local Altai honey, sold at roadside stalls, and a bowl of hot soup in one of the cafes. Then walk out on the bridge and watch the river; there are few better places to feel the power of the mountains.