Kolyma

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…

Dimitri Kieffer’s ultimate description of Russia’s Chukotka – Kamchatka – Magadan route. From Uelen to Anadyr, Omsukchan and Magadan.

May 8, 2011

Dimitri Kieffer on his Arctic walking expedition from Alaska to Chukotka, Russia.

Dimitri Kieffer on his Arctic walking expedition from Alaska to Chukotka, Russia.

From time to time, I get really frustrated about being the answer machine and doing research works at requests. Aaaah, but I do not complain at all, as to give answers and insights into Yakutia and neighbouring regions is my passion…

Thanks to the Ask Yakutia weblog, I have aqcuainted with a lot of people around the world. Lately, many of them moved within my email inbox from the “Requesters” category to the “Friends” list :)

This month, for instance, brought two great adventurers. Both of them are fellows of the Explorers Club.

It is Karl Bushby, the author of the highly praised “Giant Steps” book. He is mentioned in the prevous post “Karl Bushby, the UK explorer, about his walking from Bilibino (Chukotka) & Srednekolymsk (Sakha-Yakutia), Russia’s Far East.”

The second great one is Dimitri Kieffer, a Franco-American explorer, who completed together with Karl Bushby the famous Bering Strait Crossing Goliath Expedition from Nome (USA) to Uelen (Chukotka / Russia) in 2006. So, more info on Dimitri and his achievements can be found on his page http://nexusexpeditions.blogspot.com/

So what am I trying to say by this long entry?..

It was Karl Bushby, who gave the explaination of how to get from Srednekolymsk to Bilibino by a car using winter roads. It’s the way that goes through Yakutia’s Kolyma.

Finally, Dimitri Kieffer gave me the ultimate description of his winter walking journey from the farest point of Chukotka, Uelen, to Magadan (read the Kolyma Highway, the Road of Bones, that connects Yakutia’s Yakutsk and Magadan Oblast).

Dimitri said, “Here was my route over multiple winters… Uelen – Anadyr- Krasneno – Vayegi (all in Chukotka) – Slautnoye – Kamenskoye – Manily – Paren (aka Urs Paren) (all in Koryak Okrug of Kamchatka) – Verniy Paren- Giziga – Evensk – Tavatum – Shiroka River – Galimy- Omsukchan (all in Magadan Oblast) and then you are on a permanent road to Magadan…”

Read more…

Karl Bushby, the UK explorer, about his walking from Bilibino (Chukotka) & Srednekolymsk (Sakha-Yakutia), Russia’s Far East

May 4, 2011

Karl Bushby, of 21st Century Odyssey, in Yakutsk, Yakutia, Siberia, Russia

Karl Bushby, of 21st Century Odyssey, in Yakutsk, Yakutia, Russia

This is Karl Bushby (www.odysseyxxi.com), who has been doing the epic journey back home to London from Puntas Arenas (Chile), the most sourthern point of South America. He has been walking around the world for 14 years. Alone. Unsupported.

When he walked from Chile to Alaska, he wrote the famous book “Giant Steps.” When he crossed the Bering Strait from Alaska to Russia’s Chukotka, he made a documentary for BBC Channel.

Further, find more info, and two videos. Read more…

Who did The Long Walk? Slavomir Rawicz or Witold Glinski?

December 12, 2010

That is how guys looked at the finish.
Tomasz, Bartosz and Filip. That is how guys looked at the finish.

In May I wrote the post Long Walk Plus Expedition: Walking up the Lena River from Yakutsk… to Calcutta, India about three Polish students, Tomasz Grzywaczewski, Bartosz Malinowski, Filip Drozdz, whom I met in Yakutsk and who said they were planning to repeat the famous escape from Yakutsk-based Gulag to British India depicted later in Slavomir Rawicz’s memory book “The Long Walk.”

There was a dialogue between us. I wrote,

These young Poles asked me, “Have you heard about Slavomir Rawicz’s The Long Walk?” I said, “Sure. It’s a real story about the Polish prisoner, who escaped from Gulag and walked southward to India.” And they were like, “Yeah, but you know what?! Its author says that it was him, who escaped to British India, but in reality the depicted character appeared to be another Pole, who lives now in the UK in poverty. A true hero is Witold Glinski. He didn’t earn anything from the book revenues, because he is very modest and unpretentious, and the publishing house was too authoritative to convince him to keep silence.”

Further, three guys, Tomasz Grzywaczewski, Bartosz Malinowski, and Filip Drozdz, started disclosing all the truth. Finally, they said they wanted to make the documentary and share the truth with the whole world by making the Long Walk Plus Expedition.

In October Polish guys finished the Long Walk Plus Expedition in Calcutta. Read more…

How to get from Magadan to Anadyr in summer? Via Yakutia’s Kolyma

November 19, 2010

The village of Anyuisk, Chukotka. The way goes through this place as well.

Off-road drivers, motorcyclists, and cyclists keep asking me about the road from Magadan (Magadan Oblast) to Anadyr (Chukotka). Like road existence, road maps, road conditions, road reports, road photos, road traffic, road weather, and any other possible road information. Some requesters are asking, if there is an unexplored road.

Actually, all their questions can be expressed in short, “Is it possible to make it from Magadan to Anadyr overland?” “Yes” and “No.” The final answer depends on many factors.

Read more…

Long Walk Plus Expedition: Walking up the Lena River from Yakutsk… to Calcutta, India

June 4, 2010

The Polish Long Walk Plus Expedition. The start. Up the Lena River from Yakutsk to Ust Kut

“..Long Walk Plus Expedition has just started! Two weeks ago we set out from Yakutsk to Olekmnisk. Since that time we have dozens of adventures but what’s the most important we met extremely a lot of wonderful people. Every place we visited we were welcome with great hospitality. We traveled by bus, car, motor boats and at last on foot,” writes Tomasz Grzywaczewski, an expedition cameraman, in today’s travel note especially for AskYakutia.com.

Okey, let’s start the story from its very beginning. Two and a half weeks ago three Polish guys appeared in Yakutsk. They were hosted in the city’s Catholic church and were accompanied by Valentina Shimanskaya, chairman of Yakutsk Polish community. Certainly, our ways crossed, and these young Poles asked me, “Have you heard about the book Slavomir Rawicz’s The Long Walk?” I said, “Sure. It’s a real story about the Polish prisoner, who escaped from Gulag and walked southward to India.” And they were like, “Yeah, but you know what?! Its author says that it was him, who escaped to British India, but in reality the depicted character appeared to be another Pole, who lives now in the UK in poverty. A true hero is Witold Glinski. He didn’t earn anything from the book revenues, because he is very modest and unpretentious, and the publishing house was too authoritative to convince him to keep silence.”

Read more…

Travel condition reports on the Road of Bones?

November 10, 2008

“I would like to know of the most recent travel condition reports on the Road of Bones in the summer. What is the best recommended itinerary and what settlements or towns does one pass. How are the bridges, when are the rivers at their lowest point? There is some information on your site but still difficult to figure out. Where does one obtain maps for the region?” a blog visitor, of Belgium, asked. Read more…