What does biking on the Road of Bones in the late September look like? The answer is in the following video and pictures.
Enjoy adventure! Read more…
Travel
Benjy Davenport finally made it from UK to Yakutsk, Russia. He and his Landrover Defender in front of the Government of the Republic of Sakha-Yakutia.
Last Friday Benjy Davenport, who is doing the long trip from London, UK, to Cape Horn in South America, finally made it to Yakutsk. His driving on LandRover Defender to my city took more than one year.
Yes, that’s how long his journey was. He was supposed to come in August 2010, but a crazy drunk driver hit his landy in the Ukrainian city of Kharkov and Benjy was forced to return home for the total reconstruction of the car. He resumed his journey this year’s April.
So, who is Benjy Davenport and why he is doing an epic charity fundraising expedition?
Here is what he says himself:
My name is Ben Davenport. I’m 28 and live in the South West of England in Cornwall. Last year I embarked on a solo expedition in my Land Rover, attempting to drive from London to Cape Horn in South America. My route was to take me through Scandinavia via NordKapp, across Europe, Russia, The Central Asian “Stans”, Mongolia, across the Pacific to Alaska and then down through Canada, The United States, Central America and South America to Tierra del Fuego.
While a fair few people have done such expeditions, what makes my solo trip that bit more challenging is that I’m afflicted by Noonan’s Syndrome… Don’t worry ! You aren’t the only one not to have heard of it !!
In short, he travels to raise funds for Newlife Foundation and British Heart Foundation. If you are active donators, you can help him to help others. Learn more about his charity at Cornwall2Capehorn.com
Meanwhile, he is determined to follow his mission, “40 borders, 50,000 miles, 1 landrover, 1 driver, solo.”
Further, please, see more photographs from our meeting in Yakutsk, Russia. Read more…
The Lena River in Yakutia, Russia
Questions from a guide book writer regarding the construction of the AyAM railway to Yakutsk and a bridge across the Lena River:
In your opinion, when do you think the AyAM train to Yakutsk will be ready? My best guess is not before the Sochi Olympics in 2014.
When the AyAM is complete, it will just go to Nizhny Bestyakh, right?
Somebody told me there will also be a train station in Yakutsk. Why do they need a train station in Yakutsk? Is there another train line being built on the west side of the Lena River, or will there be a bridge across the Lena somewhere?
And here is my reply: Read more…
The Lena River in November. Near Yakutsk, Yakutia, Russia. Photo by Alexander Li, Yakutsk Vecherny Newspaper, Vecherka.Ykt.ru
Often asked, if it is possible to drive roads (ice roads) and crossing rivers in Yakutia in a particular month. Yes, such questions arrive mostly from independent vehicle drivers.
So decided to give description of the conditions of roads, ice roads and river crossings month by month.
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…
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.
Two Australian families brought their cars to Vladivostok. Now they are heading from Yakutsk to Magadan. In weeks, they hope to traverse Mongolia. It was Jon (the 1st from the right), who gave me Yuri Melnikov s contact. The latter helped them with dealing custom clearance and cargo company in Vladivostok.
Travellers, who prefer to move across Russia’s Siberia and Far East on their own vehicles (motorcycles or off-road cars), tend to ask me this question often.
Indeed, if they ship their transport to Vladivostok by sea, they would need a person, who will help them to deal with custom clearance service, a sea port’s clerks, cargo companies, and do the seem-to-be-complicated paper work and etc, etc, etc.
Which travel insurance is valid for Yakutia, Russia? This is a good question! You cannot be sure in your health, but you can be sure in your pro-activity.
Let’s start from the fact that Yakutia is a part of Russia. So when you think about insurance valid in Yakutia, you need to apply this issue in relation with the whole country. If your insurance works out in Russia, it should do in Russia’s Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). It must be so at least, but…
Morelikely, when foreingers will be asked to pay for medical service and treatment and consults in a Russian hospital and they will refer to their available foreign insurance policies, they might hear the reply, “We do not recognize your paper! You should have an insurance from a Russian company. So, you need to pay yourself.” Actually, if doctors say that, it means they do not know, what to do with your paper.
Here are my quick tips about travel insurance for Russia:
An American motorbiker, Ben Myburgh, in Yakutsk before his ride on the Kolyma Highway also known as the Road of Bones.
Yesterday, an American motorbiker, Ben Myburgh, arrived in Yakutsk. He made the way from Portugal to Yakutsk via Moscow and Mongolia. Today he is starting his journey the Kolyma Highway from Yakutsk to Magadan.
When he arrived, he got a few questions, but his most important request was, Where to buy a front wheel tube for his BWM F800 motorcycle in Yakutsk? Everything is cool with his current tubes, but he wanted to have one more for replacement.
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…
