Hi! My name is Bolot. I am a journalist. Based in Yakutsk. Ask me a question about the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), Siberia / Russia, and get the answer.
So… Two UK adventurous bikers of the Sibirsky Extreme travel motorcycle expedition have just ridden the Kolyma Highway. They had left Yakutsk on Thursday afternoon and arrived in Magadan on Sunday evening. 2100 km, 3.5 days, and 7 tyre changes! What did they say about the federal road?
The road was a little better than the Vilyuisky Trakt, but only a little better. There were still long gravelly sections, the odd sandy patch.
A Turkish traveller, who is planning to complete the around-the-world lonely trip “Istanbul2Instanbul”, is asking: “Everybody is talking about the danger to cross the Road of Bones alone, however, there are lots making lonely trips with thier motorbikes or cars. Do you think that it is dangerous to be alone on this road? If so, can it be a solution, for example, to go together with a truck which carries goods from Yakutsk to Magadan, if there is any?” Read more…
Received a message from the U.S.:
I think your website is a great service to travellers who are interested in visiting Yakutia! I have been to Yakutsk before and love the nature. After looking though the internet and your site I still have two questions that I couldn’t find answered. Both of them have to do with what kind of roads or passenger services exist.
What can I say? Thanks a lot for giving me a positive feedback. Appreciate it. So good to hear it from time to time. Think, maybe, it will be good to quote such feedbacks in the seperate page category :)
Well, the question asked by a Dutch seems easy to answer. But… when we talk about roads to remote settlements in Yakutia, everything appears to be so complicated. The same issue we get with this question.
Sebyan-Kyuel is a small village located by the Silyan River in Kobyasky Ulus, North Yakutia. Check the map. Known much as the place of reindeer herders’ settlement. Read more…
This question was asked by a Russian TV crew, that plans to make a journey across Yakutia in the midst of April. A TV producer is pretty much anxious and thinking over what type of transport to rent – a car or helicopter. Well, it’s about time. According to last Friday’s news, there is the ice roads close schedule approved by State Motor Vehicle Inspectorate and the Russian Emercom. Read more…
Received a request from a traveller of Croatia: “I am interesting about the road condition in the winter. I mean main road from Yakutsk to Moscow and Vladivostok. Are there any traffic? How about supply, trucks…? Is it possible to go from Moscow to Yakutsk by regular car or 4×4?” Read more…
“Yakutsk, Cherrapunji, Hammerfest, La Paz… these are the cities that top the charts. They struggle doggedly against the toughest environmental conditions on our planet to provide their populations with an acceptable level of existence. These cities persist and continue flourishing in places where normally only traditional villages would be expected to survive…”
That’s how the description of France-based Zadig Production’s documentary film “Extreme Cities” starts. It was the ZP crew I did assist a little in terms of information and contacts prior to its visit in Yakutsk a year ago. In my turn, I am proud to share the promo video of “Extreme Cities: Episode One YAKUTSK” with a film’s annotation. Read more…
An interesting request arrived from Ulan Bator, Mongolia. A couple is planning to visit Yakutsk and asked me about available opportunities to meet local shamans in the city. That was an unexpected question. I don’t have friends among shamans to ask them about meetings. But, Praise God, my mom has a few contacts :) Read more…
Recently Yakutia was visited by Germans’ Land Rover off-road vehicle expedition “Paris – Moscow – New York: Transcontinental 2009.” Everything went smoothly. Two vehicles entered Russia, expedition members spend a few days in Moscow, gave the press-conference and did much work with cars preparation, then a few weeks on the way to Yakutsk. Eventually they arrived in our city. Precisely, one car reached the city only, another stuck in Aldan after unpredictable accident on the road. The repair took another few precious days.
And, you know, what happened next?.. Instead of forwarding to the Pole of Cold and Magadan, adventurers flew back to Germany in order to get another Russian visas with the new period of the visit to Russia.
How much time the visa procedure will take, nobody knows exactly. Two weeks (including flight time), for sure or maybe. So… To avoid such sitautions, when you didn’t manage to fit to the restricted visit period, and any problem with Russia’s Federal Migration Service in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), you must keep in mind a very important thing. That’s the importance of obtaining appropriate visas. Read more…
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