Khandyga

A Road Trip from Yakutsk to Verkhoyansk in Yakutia, Siberia / Russia. March 2012. Travel Report.

April 13, 2012

A winter road trip from Yakutsk through Topolinoe and Gulags to Verkhoyansk, Russia

A winter road trip from Yakutsk through Topolinoe and Gulags to Verkhoyansk, Russia

A winter road trip from Yakutsk through Topolinoe and Gulags to Verkhoyansk, Russia

A winter road trip from Yakutsk through Topolinoe and Gulags to Verkhoyansk, Russia

This is really cool to help international travellers with their trips across Yakutia. In March 2012 in Yakutsk, I met three nice Westerners, Austrian Brigitte and the Swiss couple Susan and Peter, who were invited to the Russian region of Republic Sakha-Yakutia by my friend Alexander Permyakov‘s Russian Expedition Club. Extremely nice people!

They planned to go to Verkhoyansk, one of the coldest inhabited places in North-East Yakutia, and they eventually made it there. I resolved for them just a few issues with a vehicle and drivers. Saying a lot of thanks to Slava Mestnikov for an urgent assistance.

Their route was Yakutsk – Khandyga – Teply Klyuch – Topolinoe (reindeer herder community) – Stalin’s Gulags – Batagai – Verkhoyask. As you know, the part Khandyga – Teply Klyuch is located on the Road of Bones, officially known as the Kolyma federal road.

No more words from me. Let’s continue to traveller’s road trip witnesses and photos. Yes, photos. 50+ images of the long journey from Yakutsk to Verkhoyansk.

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5-day travel to/with Even reindeer herders in Yakutia’s valley of Oymyakon, Siberia / Russia

March 12, 2012

Reindeer sledding journey in Oymyakon, Yakutia, Siberia, Russia

Reindeer sledding journey in Oymyakon, Yakutia, Siberia, Russia

If you follow me on Facebook and Twitter, you might already know and see photographs of my recent Oymyakon travel to Even reindeer herders, whom I and my friends experienced fascinating winter reindeer sledding through snowy rivers, mountains and hills with.

Hereby I am posting more photgoraphs and adding more journey details. I’ll post info part by part in this post, as I have a lot to say in fact. Meanwhile, enjoy 200+ pictures.

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Is it crazy to drive from Yakutsk to Oymyakon in winter?

December 28, 2011

road to oymyakon

Thought I wrote much about driving from Yakutsk to Oymyakon, but still questions are coming into my mail box. Here is the last one with many repeated questions. It arrived from a journalist who wants to do a report for a German car magazine about driving in a real winter. He says he needs a car.

“Is there any rental car company that rent cars for self driving? Or what are the major car dealerships in the city (German brands very welcome like Mercedes, BMW, Volkswagen, Opel, Porsche, Audi; or Volvo, Fiat, Renault… – or do you only drive Japanese cars?). Also I like to know the problems using a car at minus 45 degrees. Can you stop the engine? How do you keep the petrol liquid? What about the tires? I am thinking to drive from Yakutsk to Oymyakon. Is that possible? Very dangerous? Crazy? How long does it take? Huuh, so many questions, but you probably know the answers…”

Find my answers to this man’s questions: Read more…

How much does it cost to travel from Yakutsk to Oymyakon, the world’s coldest inhabited place?

November 24, 2011

Travel to Oymyakon, Yakutia, Siberia, RUssia

Ok. Here is my answer to the most frequently asked question last days, “How much does it cost to travel from Yakutsk to Oymyakon?”

Hope you remember that Oymyakon is the village located almost 1000 km west off Yakutsk and considered to be the world’s coldest inhabited place.

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Dimitri Kieffer about his cycling from Omsukchan (Magadan Oblast) to Yakutsk (Yakutia) via the Kolyma Highway #Siberia #Russia

October 8, 2011

Dimitri Kieffer (http://nexusexpeditions.blogspot.com/) is the Franco-American adventurer, who is listed in NYC-based Explorers Club. He is doing an NEXUS expedition around the world using human powers only. Some call such a journey human powered circumnavigation.

It was him, who walked with Karl Bushby from Alaska (US) to Chukotka (Russia). By foot. On the sea ice. Through Bering Strait. It was him, who gave me a great info on the route from Chukotka to Magadan Oblast, as he walked that way with a sledge in last winters. Check the post Dimitri Kieffer’s ultimate description of Russia’s Chukotka – Kamchatka – Magadan route. From Uelen to Anadyr, Omsukchan and Magadan.

And here is what he says about cycling together with his lady, Gulnara Miftahova, from Omsukchan to Yakutsk in August-October 2011.

A great fellow! A great explorer to follow!

I was pretty happy to follow, help a little and meet him and make the above video. Further, please, find his current expedition facts and, certainly, 40 travel photographs! Read more…

The Road of Bones (Kolyma Highway) by the Scottish MAD Expedition. Magadan – Yakutsk in September, 2011

September 21, 2011

The Kolyma Highway, Road of Bones, Magadan and Yakutsk. Road condition in September 2011

Yesterday I said bye to the Scottish travellers, who are making the MAD Expedition from Magadan (Pacific Ocean) to Scotland (Atlantic Ocean) on their own Landrover Defenders. They drove the Kolyma Highway through Ust Nera on September 13-18, 2011.

They are a group of friends from the Scottish city of Glasgow. Stuart, Richard, Gaven, Graham. They do long-distance driving travels regularly. Last time they made it from London to Kazahstan. This time they are here in Siberia on the way home.

Their mission is not just to have fun on the road, but also fundraising for charity. Check the list of charity funds they are supporting. Good friends with good intentions!

Ilya Kovyakin, the host of AskMagadan.com, helped them with cutsom clearance at the sea port in Magadan, Russia. Check out his website later to learn more about the specifics of custom paperworks.

The Scottmen’s travel delayed for more than a month. Initially they planned to start their road trip in the late July 2011, but their shipping company made a mistake in papers, so the cargo with the off-road vehicles stuck in Seoul on the way to Vladivostok and Magadan. It wasn’t the Russian custom service, that postponed their trip.

These four Scottish travellers prepared themselve to ride in the conditions of hot summer weather. In July they asked me, what the current weather was. I said, “+36C and +42C.” They were shocked to hear such news.

After a month, in the early September, the situation was totally different. The temp in Magadan and Yaktusk was already +10C, all trees turned in yellow colors. Moreover, it’s more colder on the road, especially in mountain area. When arrived in Yakutsk, guys said they were camping at -25C… at night.

Ok, no more words about the road conditions and weather reports. Let’s watch travel pictures taken by Scotsmen on the way from Magadan to Yakutsk.

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Photos: Motorbikers are getting ready for breaking through the old route of the Kolyma Highway (Road of Bones), Siberia / Russia

August 15, 2011


An American chopper Doug Wathke and an Austrian BMW rider Hansjorg.

Yesterday I received an sms from Doug Wothke, who said he arrived in Yakutsk… on a Harley & Davidson motorcycle. It was late night. Right after midnight. He wrote he was looking for hotels to stay. For some reasons, all of them were full.

Hotels were full, as the republic’s big events are coming these weeks, including international economical forum dedicated to infrustructure development in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). They didn’t know that, and, frankly saying, that was not the point to mention even. Finally, they found so-called mini hotel (a sort of a guest house).

Today I have met him and he was not alone. There was an Austrian biker named Hansjorg on a BMW and one Russian Max on a KTM from Tynda, who said he catched up his group of Moscovite bikers going also to Magadan… And, yes, there was an Moscow-based American BMW motorcyclist Tom Reiter, a friend of Walter Colebatch’s. As far as you know, Walter is the UK motorbiker, who had explored Siberian roads (www.SibirskyExtreme.com) for others.

So… today, instead of two expected bikers, Doug and Tom, I saw 9 motorcyclists, they are 2 Americans, 1 Austrian, 6 Russians. They were changing tires and preparing their bikes for a long ride to Magadan.

See more photographs of today’s meeting. Read more…

Travel Guide Video: The Kolyma Highway (The Road of Bones). By Casey Handmer.

July 27, 2011

An Australian hitchhiker Casey Handmer (on the left) with Vadim, a biker of Anadyr.

An Australian hitchhiker Casey Handmer (on the left) with Vadim, a biker of Anadyr.

A year ago, July 28, in Yakutsk I met Casey Handmer, who said he was on the way to Magadan. Asked, how he was going to make it. Hitchhiking was his answer.

He was not the first one, who travelled the Kolyma Highway (Road of Bones) by that mean. So, I didn’t worry much, but I should actually.

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How to find Gulags on the way to Topolinoe, Yakutia / Russia?

July 20, 2011

Remains of one of gulags on the way to Topolinoe in Tomponsky region, Republic of Sakha, Yakutia, Russia. Photo by Ajar Varlamov.

“Do you have any coordinates of gulags in Yakutia?” a question asked very, very often. No, I don’t have GPS coordinates, but I know there are some Stalin’s labour camps north off the Kolyma Higway on the way to Topolinoe (see the settlement on the map). If to be more precise, closer to the village.

Here are a few tips how to find camps. Read more…

What is the condition of the Road of Bones in June? Watch the video of June 2011.

June 29, 2011

Milosz Augustyniak on the Road of Bones in Yakutia, Russia, in June 2011

Milosz Augustyniak on the Road of Bones in Yakutia, Russia, in June 2011

Previously I described the condition of the Kolyma Highway (known also as the Road of Bones) in June. As you know, the Kolyma Highway (M 56) connects Yakutsk and Magadan. The significant part of the road, precisely Khandyga – Magadan, was built by labour workers of Stalin’s gulags.

In posts where I mention the road condition in June, I write that it’s possible to drive the Kolyma Highway in this month, but if to go via Ust Nera. The route via this settlement is a major way and maintained all a year around.

The road through Tomtor is not reconstructed. Moreover, there are no bridges over rivers, that tend to be full of high waters at this period. Keep in mind that late May is the period of ice river melting and spring flooding. Therefore, in June, rivers are still full of waters. So, if you’ve got motorbikes and off-road vehicles, you can try the old road, but more likely you’ll be stuck on the part Tomtor – Magadan Oblast.

On the contrary, the new route via Ust Nera is the only way to be used in June. Last years, it has been improved by road workers pretty good. Broken bridges were reconstructed. If there were gaps, they were filled.

But… Read more…

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