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.
“What to do in Oymyakon?” is the question I receive pretty often. Usually, I give a short list of possible activities, provide the link to the page with the description of our last winter’s Journey to the Pole of Cold and with a lot of photographs disclosing what we did in Oymyakon.
Frankly saying, when we were on the way – on the Road of Bones – to Oymyakon, we didn’t have any structured plan of our visit to the coldest Siberian place. Our mission was simple. We wanted to (1) have fun, (2) enjoy the cold weather and (3) take winter pictures as many as possible. That’s it.
The itinerary was flexible and customizable, as our trip was in the Do-It-Yourself format. We had got independence with our rented UAZ minibus and democracy. It worked like this. When an idea or an offer arrived, we just made that idea public, thought over it and made a final decision. Usually, such discussions happened in the evening. Sometimes just on the go.
We tried to put all outdoor activities in the short daytime frame, i.e. from 8|9 am till 3 pm, as we wanted to take good photographs.
I hear this question very often. Frankly saying, it was that show, that forced me to upload winter photographs of the Road of Bones (officially known as the Kolyma Highway) built by GULAG work camp inmates in the time of Stalin.
Well, if anyone is interested in the winter Road of Bones condition. Here we go. Further, please, find 45 pictures taken the last winter by me. Read more…
About exhibition
Through photography and mixed media, “On the Road of Bones” reveals the secret history and hidden landscape of Kolyma, formerly the land of Soviet labor camps and the coldest inhabited region on earth. Stunning new works by young native Siberian photographers Bolot Bochkarev, Nastya Borisova, and Ajar Varlamov trace the remains of the vast highway built across the taiga, tundra, and permafrost of North Asia by Stalin’s prisoners. The exhibition juxtaposes the tragic events of the past with the powerful natural beauty of the frozen land and the daily lives of northern people.
An American Ian was asking me recently, “I am wondering how the lack of sunlight effects people in the long winter months. How many hours of daylight do you have, and it is dreadful? In summer, are the days extremely long? I am fascinated by your home.”
Vaselisa Popova, my new contact in Verkhoyansk, Yakutis, Siberia.
Good news to all travelers, who are interested in Sangar (the Kobyajsky region) and Verkhoyansk. I visited the 2010 Sakha Travel Exhibition held at Polar Hotel in Yakutsk on April 9-10, 2010. Finally, I acquainted with travel enthusiasts from those places. You can see them in the photographs.
The Kobyajsky region is famous for its fantastic fishing and rafting near Segyan Kyol as well as its Even nomads‘ settlement of Sebjan Kyol in the Verkhoyansky Range. Read more…
See how frozen carcass reindeer meat will be cut into small pieces. Photos and video were done by Artem Petukhov and Katya Ipatieva (they stand behind the Adventure in Yakutia blog http://adv.yktv.ru, in Russian) specially for eYakutia.com . Thanks, guys.
Yeah, we, Yakutians, love meat. We eat them a lot. To save money, we usually buy them of big sizes, and then we think how to cut them. Praise god, there are people who are ready to help at the cost of 20 bucks for each carcass. Read more…
Marat Zalyalov, a local mountain cyclist, gave quick tips to an Italian biker Dan, who had written to me as follows:
“Your site is really useful, but I didn’t find anything about cycling… So hope you could help me… I’m used to travel by bicycle in hard conditions, and your country looks amazing… Questions: what do I must focus on? Dangers and problems? Any suggestion?.. I am planning to cycle the Kolyma Highway [the Road Bones] this summer. Thanks in advance.”
Yeah, that’s true. I didn’t write much about cycling opportunities in Yakutia. The last post was “Video & Photos: Winter cycling on the Road of Bones.” I have many local friends of mine, who are big fans of long distance cycling. I asked them very often. I was really annoying repeating “Give me your tips. Give me your tips.” Praise god, Dan’s request was a good reason to torture Marat once again, and finally he did. He dedicated some of his precious time [ :) ] for sharing with quick tips in English. Read more…
It is February 11th, 2010. I am sitting in Magadan and have time to reflect on my journey so far. It is GMT+11 here, which means I have travelled pretty much halfway around the World. And all without taking a single flight so far. Unfortunately I have to break the ‘rules’ and take a flight to Kamchatka, as there really is no other practical way to reach that place. I left the UK nearly 4 months ago, and have been in Russia for two months exactly today.
Matt in Oymyakon at -54C
So 8 days ago I left the city of Yakutsk in the classic Russian ‘Uaz’ (see the photos- they’re like a VW camper with bigger wheels, and they’re everywhere in Russia, but especially in the east). They’re generally old, and look like they’re on their last legs, but I guess they’re hardy steeds, and seem to be the first choice for people around here. Read more…
In a previous post “How to get a taxi going to Yakutsk at the Neryungri railroad station?” I mentioned Matt George, a UK backpacker. This is a guy, who asked me about how to get at the Neryungri railroad station a taxi going to Yakutsk. My answers you can find in the mentioned publication. Here is his travel report. He made it to Yakutsk. He is one of a few international visitors, who experience an “unforgettable” 16-hr winter overland trip from Neryungri to Yakutsk. Read more…
