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.
Last year on June 12, I met three Canadians, Ion, Richard and Kim in Yakutsk, Russia. They arrived on their Toyota Landcruiser, which they shipped from Australia to Vladivostok.
By the way, if you wonder about shipping to/from Vladivostok, get in touch with the best fixer I’ve ever known. His name is Yuri Melnikov, CEO of Links LTD.
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.
Andrey I is a prominent Russian film maker. He is the man, who helped a lot to clean Shergin’s Shaft, the world’s deepest permafrosted well created in Yakutsk, Russia, a few centuries ago. Here is the related news.
Hereby, Andrey I sent me his own story about his extraordinary descent to the bottom of Yakutsk. Praise god, his text in English.
History background:
1837. After a decade of wearisome work in the permafrost a well of 116 meters depth was dug out. Now it is known as Shergin’s Shaft.
1844. Scientific research began. Shergin’s shaft became the world’s “cradle” of science of cave exploring and permafrost studies.
1942. In unknown circumstances the cable used to descent to the bottom of the shaft breaks off. The shaft remains inaccessible for 67 years.
2009. After a long preparation and the digging the snow cork the entrance of the shaft is opened. The 3rd of November is set as the day of storm of the shaft, the attempt of the work in TV format with direct broadcast of the event.
Further, see photographs and a story written by Andrey I himself.
I know three good websites selling air tickets for flights within the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), Russia’s Far East.
One of them belongs to the agency called GAVS (a short name for Glavnoe Agentstvo Vozduzhnyh Soobshenij). Two other online shops to local air companies, Yakutia Airlines and Polar Airlines, that conduct regular regional flights.
Kihilyakh is a Holy Place in the Republic of Sakha-Yakutia, Russia’s East Siberia & Far East. Precisely, it is located in North-Eastern Yakutia’s Verkhoyansky region a few km away from its regional admistrative center of Batagai near the village of Elges.
Local peoples, especially Yakuts, do believe in the Kihilyakh sacredness. They come to touch its stones and receive the positive power from the nature. They also say, if you disrespect Kihilyakh, it will put curse on your life. It is a holy place. A Mecca to Yakutia residents.
I have receieved a request from the Netherlands, but, unfortunately, the author mentioned incorrect email address, so I post an answer here on the blog.
His question was:
What are the exact dates of the Ysyakh festival in 2012 and 2013?
The answer:
In the city of Yaktusk, Ysyakh takes place annually during the last weekend of June. So, this year it must be on June 30th and July 1st.
In the previous post I wrote that I had returned from 5-day travel with reindeer herders in Oymyakon, one of the coldest places in the Republic of Sakha-Yakutia, Siberia, Russia.
When we were heading back to Yakutsk through the Road of Bones (officially known as Kolyma Highway), the temperature was somewhere under minus 40 degrees Celsius. Cold weather as usual.
We were driving on a Nissan Patrol 4wd vehicle without any long stops. On our way back – around 1000 km – we spent 16 hours only. Fast. It means the road appeared to be in good condition.
Clean. Partly icy, but covered with sand by road workers. As you know, the Kolyma Highway (including the route through Ust Nera) is considered to be a federal road. So even in the nowhere of Russsian Siberia, roads with such statuses might be maintained all around the year in pretty well manner.
So, if you’re going to Magadan from my city in winter, remember one of my travel advices.
Tip: Reserve one of your travel expedition stickers for a gas station in Kyubyume to attach on the right side of the tube from cashier’s window. It’s a new tradition.
Further, see more photos taken during a few short stops. They were done on February 24th, 2012.
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.
From Yakutia through Magadan Oblast to Chukotka
Chukotka Expedition Vehicles
This week famous Russian blogers, photographers and designers, embarked the winter off-road expedition from South Yakutia (Nerungri) to Chukotka (Mys Shmidta).
On March 07 they were already in Yakutsk. In two days in Oymyakon. Yesterday in Ust Nera. Currently, they are heading to Magadan on their pretty glamour 4wd vehicles.
Once I had a great wish to make a report on my and my friends’ travel to Oymyakon, Russia, along Stalin’s Kolyma Highway.
First, I created the page called A Roadtrip to the Pole of Cold, Jan. 17-22, 2010. Yep, it was two years ago. Time is passing so fast.
After while, I published the post Activity tips: What to do in Oymyakon? Part I – Tomtor.
Then, people kept on asking me additional questions. Read more…
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