Today we will continue our virtual journey through the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug and pay attention to the other side of the Anadyr Bay, which is also fraught with many attractions. However, sights in the classical sense of the word are rare in Chukotka, but amazing places shrouded in a halo of mysticism, magic and beauty - as much as you like.
Gudym. In fat Soviet times, on weekends and holidays, asphalt was washed in it with a fire truck ...
Near the village "Coal Mines" the largest airport in the region is located - "Carbonic". And from the main entrance of Chukotka, restored during the time of Abramovich, only 20 minutes. by car to the former secret base of the USSR armed forces "Anadyr-1". In the 60s of the last century, at the peak of the confrontation between Moscow and Washington, Soviet government decided to create a number of secret military units with nuclear weapons - the so-called. "northern nuclear shield". And the appearance in Chukotka of an object with intercontinental ballistic missiles was not long in coming. Combat duty of the nuclear missile deterrent system lasted until "perestroika". During this time, two military camps have grown in a picturesque valley between low hills: the main one - No. 5 (Gudym) and the auxiliary one - No. 2.
Gudym today is a sad and at the same time amazing sight.
The scope of construction of buildings, roads, landfills, tankodrom and other buildings, according to the speed of construction for the regions "permafrost" was unprecedented. But the most amazing building erected on the outskirts of Gudym, of course, "Portal"- an underground command post for controlling nuclear missile launches, located in the depths of one of the hills. The imposing dungeon, the upper level of which can still be penetrated today, strikes the imagination with the scale of the device, the degrees of protection and the presence of a well-preserved narrow gauge railway.
Barracks of the town №2
According to these and many other parameters, Gudym is considered "first among equals" from among the abandoned military bases on the territory of the former USSR. Today, there is not a soul there, and only rare scrap collectors and adventurers disturb the peace of the ghost town. At the best of times, several thousand people lived here, mostly members of the families of military personnel who were supplied with "mainland" by category "A", such as the apparatus of the Central Committee of the CPSU. The provision at the highest level affected all spheres of life, even the teachers of Gudym's only school came from Moscow. However, all this idyll suddenly sank into oblivion with Gorbachev's coming to power. First, nuclear weapons were removed from there, then the supply conditions changed, and finally, with the destruction of the Union, very dark times came for the inhabitants of Gudym. The disbandment of the facility dragged on until 2002 and wait "dead city" continues to keep his secrets all alone. Today Gudym is an excellent set for a disaster movie. A post-apocalyptic landscape with picturesque ruins of military installations is one of the best places industrial tourism from the category " made and forgotten in the USSR".
Boxes and barrels
Washbasins
Be h interchangeable sentry of John
Several of the following sights of the Anadyr region add up to a similarity "Golden Ring", especially since the entire route is directly related to the precious metal. From the Gudymsky hills originates the Golden Range with the highest point - the city of John (1014 m.), Stretching for 70 km. deep into the Anadyr lowland. And the first unusual place, except for the natural splendor of the mountain range, is the village of Zolotorye, located on the southern spurs of the ridge of the same name. At the very beginning of the last century, resourceful Yankees began to mine gold here industrially, and after the establishment of Soviet power in Chukotka, they were replaced by domestic gold miners. Today, the mines, as well as the scattering of former miners' settlements, are abandoned. At times "developed socialism", Zolotogorie, being the center of gold mining in the Anadyr region, was the same closed place as Gudym. Now, in these foothills, in addition to curious bears, you can also meet a person: the preserved artifacts of the Soviet past and the contrasting views of the Golden Ridge against the background of the surrounding tundra attract more and more tourists every summer.
Golden Mountains and the city of John
The next Chukotka point after Zolotorye "Golden Ring", Perevalnye lakes - graceful reservoirs, so named because of the location on both sides of the mountain pass. The narrow gorge and wonderful views made this remote place a real pearl of the Anadyr region.
The last point of the route, the very heart "Golden Ridge"- Zolotaya (925 m) has an excellent observation platform. In good weather, Anadyr and its environs, Mikhail Hill and Mount Dionisia are visible from its top. And although the Chukchi landscapes are a topic for a separate, big conversation, it can be said with confidence that any trip to this lost world is unthinkable without a eulogy to the local beauties.
The road to the village Miner
Returning to Anadyr, before turning to Coal Mines, you can turn into another abandoned village located on the shore of Melkaya Bay near the Vtoraya Gorka hill. This is Shakhtyorsky - an urban-type settlement, which almost completely repeated the sad fate of Gudym. The reforms of the 90s brought to naught all production, including the oldest fish cannery in Chukotka, built in 1929. Abandoned to the mercy of fate, the inhabitants sought to move as quickly as possible, if not to "big land", then at least in Anadyr and in 1998 the leadership of the district began to implement the decision on the complete liquidation of Shakhtyorsky.
settlement Miner
In addition to inspiring landscapes in the style of urban cyberpunk, Shakhtyorsky has a unique monument of the Soviet era, which has miraculously survived to this day. This is a small, dilapidated obelisk to the first Chukchi pilot Timofey Elkov. In addition to it, a lot of artifacts of the Soviet period have been preserved here: household utensils, books, children's toys, household appliances, cars and even airplanes. Cape Observation is located near the village, from where wonderful views of Anadyr and the entrance to Kanchalan Bay open.
According to the latest data, the monument will be updated and moved to the village. Coal Mines
Resorts of the Bering Sea
This side of the Anadyr estuary, where the diversity of amazing and harsh Nature is intertwined with the aesthetics of decadence, surpasses the metropolitan area in the abundance of remarkable places. And although the crisis phenomena in our life are a constant value, Chukotka makes it possible to fully experience the variability of our world. Here one feels more deeply the inexorable time, which sooner or later will bury any hopes of the conformist for "enduring values". At one time, this was subtly noticed by the famous relative of Abramovich - King Solomon, expressing the whole essence in the famous phrase-prophecy: "This too shall pass"...
Windmills in Chukotka
The extreme north-east of Russia is the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug with the administrative center in the city of Anadyr. The most distant territory from central Russia. Further, through the Bering Strait is already Alaska - America.
The only possible way to get to Chukotka is by plane. The existing maritime communication during the summer navigation season is used only for the delivery of goods. There is no passenger traffic due to the large length of sea routes. In principle, there is no railway and road communication with the "mainland".
The distance from Moscow to Anadyr is about 6400 km. The flight takes place in an arc above the Arctic Circle. If you fly during the day, then from the window along the entire road you can see the tundra stretching for many kilometers.
Currently, only one airline, Transaero, operates regular flights from Moscow to Chukotka. From Khabarovsk to Anadyr can be reached by planes of the company "Vladivostok Avia". All. No more message!
Despite the significant cost of tickets (20 tr.), all planes are almost 100% loaded.
It should be noted that even by plane it is not always possible to get to Anadyr. Unstable weather prone to rain, snowfall and strong winds can cause flights to be delayed or canceled altogether. In spring and autumn, at certain intervals, planes do not fly at all.
The entire territory of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is a border zone with appropriate entry rules. Border guards meet arriving already on the plane. If you do not have a local propiska, you must have a reason to enter. For example, an invitation from someone or a travel certificate. Passengers who did not take care of the documents are sent back by the same plane, without setting foot on the land of Chukotka.
Anadyr Airport in the village of "Coal mines" is located on the opposite side of the Anadyr estuary. In the summer season, you can get from the city to the airport by boat. The fare is 400 rubles. There is also such an exotic form of transport we have - a hovercraft. If you want to travel in comfort, then by paying taxi drivers a certain amount of money, you will be taken to the place directly by car. Cars are loaded onto a barge that transports them to the other side. The disadvantage of this method is that on the road you will not be able to admire the seascapes. The sides of the barge are very high, and getting out of the car is problematic. They are placed very close to each other.
In winter and off-season, the only way to communicate is by helicopter. The ticket price is about 1500 rubles. When the ice freezes sufficiently, vehicles are allowed to cross it. But because of the danger of this route, the ice crossing does not always work.
Anadyr meets you with clean, almost perfect roads and sidewalks. The houses are painted in cheerful colors. Lawns are broken all around, benches, trash cans, etc. are placed.
The ends of the houses are decorated with stylized posters depicting elements of Chukchi life - deer, shaman tambourines, red caviar. All this is called "Chukotka Artika". You can feel the hand of a professional designer. On each poster, along with the Russian name, there is an inscription in the Chukchi language.
What do you think is the name of the bear in Chukchi? "Umk's". Remember the famous cartoon about Umka? The deer is called - "K, orany" and so on. Apparently, all this is intended to preserve the traditional Chukchi culture and language.
The city makes a much more pleasant impression than most Russian cities. All this is the merit of Roman Abramovich. Anadyr before Abramovich and after are two different cities. Gray, dirty, gloomy before and bright, modern, well-groomed after.
Permafrost is a layer of earth from several tens to several hundred meters thick, the temperature of which has not risen above zero degrees for thousands of years. The foundation of a conventional building will heat the ground, causing it to melt and spread. Such a building will be unstable or even split and fall.
For buildings standing on piles, a significant distance remains between the level of the ground floor and the ground. It serves to remove heat from the building. Thus, the soil is always in a frozen state. Piles in such soil feel even better than in ordinary soil.
All communications are also carried out on the surface.
The central square of Anadyr - Lenin Square is located on the elevated bank of the Anadyr estuary. The museum center "Heritage of Chukotka" is located on the square. The building itself has a very unusual architecture. Inside, everything is done with the latest technology. On three floors there is an exposition telling about the stages of the development of Chukotka and about the life of its indigenous people. On the ground floor there is a multimedia room. There is a concert hall in the same building.
Next to the square is the Cathedral of the Life-Giving Trinity. The cathedral is the largest wooden temple in Russia, built on permafrost, and the only cathedral in Chukotka. Like all buildings in Anadyr, the temple stands on stilts. The ground soil under it is cooled by refrigeration units in the summer.
Not far from the cargo port is the memorial "The First Revolutionary Committee of Chukotka", opened in 1981.
The environs of Anadyr are huge expanses of tundra with hills towering among them. The closest to the city are the hill of St. Michael with an abandoned tropospheric communication station located on it, about 5-7 kilometers away, as well as Mount St. Dionysius, 50 km away. From almost anywhere in the city there is a magnificent view of these hills or the mountains located on the other side of the estuary. The city itself, also located on a hill, stretches from its top to the waters of the Anadyr estuary.
The motor transport system in Chukotka is underdeveloped. And if there is no network of roads on the side of the village of Coal mines, then on the side of the city there are practically no roads. Those. in the city itself, of course, everything is in order, but immediately after it everything ends. Several primers of rather mediocre quality stretch into the tundra. But they run out pretty soon. It is impossible to reach any settlements on them.
The flora of the surroundings of Anadyr is characterized by the complete absence of any kind of trees. Unless, of course, you count their dwarf counterparts. For example, there is a dwarf pine that literally spreads along the ground, and its height is even lower than many shrubs.
Toward the end of summer, the berry ripening season begins in the tundra. Lingonberries, blueberries, blueberries, shiksha (dropsy) - this is an incomplete list of what the tundra is rich in. In addition to berries, there are a lot of various mushrooms in the tundra. As we, the inhabitants of the middle zone, follow them into the forest, so the local population goes to pick mushrooms and berries in the tundra.
What is the tundra? Usually it is a swampy area overgrown with low shrubs and grass. It is impossible to move on it by car, even with off-road capability.
The ideal means of transportation are various vehicles on low pressure wheels. Due to the low pressure on the ground, they do not fall into the swamps. In addition, they move along the tundra on caterpillar all-terrain vehicles, leaving deep and long-lasting traces.
The tundra near Anadyr is a monument to human mismanagement. A lot of rusty barrels, the remains of some mechanisms and machines that have remained here forever. The pinnacle of this is the abandoned tropospheric communication station on St. Michael's Hill. The grandest building!
It is necessary to say a few words separately about the tropospheric communication system. The system was created in the late 60s in order to provide communications to the regions of the far north.
Huge distance, permafrost and harsh climate did not allow laying cables. Conventional VHF communication operates at a distance of no more than 80 km. Satellite communications at that time were still poorly developed.
Therefore, the system of tropospheric over-the-horizon communication "Horizont" was developed. Range 250 -425 km. The principle of operation of this system is the property of reflection of radio waves from the upper layers of the atmosphere. The problem was that the reflected signal came very weak, in addition, it could be significantly shifted.
To solve the above problems and ensure a long communication range, it was necessary to build giant antennas with a mirror size of 20x20 meters, or 30x30 meters. Two antennas for each direction.
And now, at the top of the hill of St. Michael, there are six huge antennas (the station worked in 3 directions) and several smaller ones related to some other communication system. This is the former station "Yukon" - part of the tropospheric radio relay line (TRRL) "North". The station is equipped with diesel generator sets and could operate autonomously for a long time.
A network of such stations was located along the line of the Arctic Circle throughout the north of the USSR.
With the development of satellite communication systems, TRRL became significantly inferior to them. The system was eventually shut down permanently in the late 90s. Yukon Station ceased to exist in 2003.
Now only the wind walks among antennas, technical cases, cables beginning to rust. One of the antennas has already fallen, the others are still standing. A few more years will pass and the rest will not withstand the pressure of the elements, burying the memory of one of the grandiose projects of the USSR.
Talking about Chukotka, one cannot fail to mention one of its main riches. Along with gold, gas, oil, this is red caviar. Spawning starts in August and ends in early September. This is the most fertile time for fishing.
They fish, of course, not with fishing rods, but with nets set along the shore of the estuary. On an industrial scale, the Anadyr fish factory is engaged in harvesting. Everyone else needs to purchase licenses to fish.
Fishing is prohibited on Monday and Tuesday. An exception was made for the indigenous people - the Chukchi. They will gladly sell you both raw and already cooked caviar. It is not worth taking ready-made caviar from them. It is completely unknown under what conditions it was prepared. But raw caviar in ovaries can be taken.
Yastik is a thin but strong film that forms a bag-shell, which contains salmon and sturgeon caviar. Raw caviar costs 300-350 rubles per kilogram. Feel the difference! In our stores, a kilogram of red caviar costs about 1,700 rubles. True, the finished caviar from a kilogram of raw will be somewhat less, but nevertheless ...
Preparing caviar is quite simple. The first thing you need to cook brine. Brine is a solution of table salt, usually close to saturation. The water is brought to a boil and salt is gradually added to it. You need to add it until it dissolves. Another way to test the readiness of brine is to use raw potatoes. If it does not sink in the solution, then the brine is ready.
Before salting, caviar must be separated from the ovary. This process is called rumbling. If there is not enough caviar, then you can get by with an ordinary spoon, but this is extremely inconvenient and not very high quality. The best is to use a badminton racket. The ovaries open and rub against the rocket, while the caviar separates and falls down.
After the screening is completed, the caviar must be washed. This is done on gauze. Everything, now the caviar is ready for salting. We lower it into the brine for a period of 5 to 10 minutes. After a short drying caviar can be eaten or laid out in jars.
Caught fish during the spawning period of the Chukchi are often simply thrown away, so if you need fish, they will gladly give it to you completely free of charge. They themselves, of course, also prepare fish for themselves. The fish is cut and hung for drying in small sheds, which literally strewn the entire coast near the village of Tavaivaam.
There is an opinion that the indigenous peoples of the north are now actively drinking and degrading. I don’t know ... Maybe it’s true, of course, but some global process degradation is not noticeable. No, there are of course among the Chukchi those who actively abuse. At the same time, they look and live, of course, accordingly. However, most, it seems to me, are perfectly integrated into modern life Anadyr and the way of life do not differ at all from the Russian population.
One of the traditional folk crafts in Chukotka is bone carving. Jewelry made from walrus tusks is truly magnificent! Moreover, many of them are real works of art with a corresponding cost, which can reach up to 100 thousand rubles for individual copies! Expensive. Yes, it is expensive, like all life in Chukotka. On average, food prices are at least twice as expensive as in Moscow. The cost of gasoline is 1.5 times higher!
This is due to the fact that the region exists solely due to products and goods brought from the mainland. Once a year in the summer, during the northern sea delivery, the bulk of products and goods are delivered. Perishable products such as vegetables or fruits are delivered only by air. Their prices will shock an unprepared person.
Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
The Chukotka Autonomous Okrug occupies the most northeastern part of Eurasia, it covers a piece of continental land, the Chukotka Peninsula, the Ratmanov, Wrangel, Ayon, Herald Islands and several others. Here is Cape Dezhnev, which is the extreme point of the mainland in the east. The lands of the district are washed by three seas belonging to two oceans. The Chukotka peninsula cuts like a wedge into the world ocean, separating the waters of the Pacific from the waters of the Arctic.
On the territory, which occupies more than 720 thousand km 2, which could accommodate France and Great Britain, only about 50 thousand people live, of which about a quarter are indigenous people - the Chukchi. Almost half of the lands of the Chukotka Okrug are located beyond the conditional border of the Arctic Circle, and the entire territory is considered the Far North. Paradoxically, it is true that part of the easternmost region, the Chukotka Peninsula, is located in the Western Hemisphere.
The Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is adjacent to two other subjects of the Russian Federation - and. About eighty kilometers separate the region from the American peninsula and the state of Alaska, with which the border runs along the waters of the Bering Strait, so the district is considered a border area.
There are 3 cities, 15 settlements and about 45 villages in the district. The administration is located in the central city of Anadyr with a population of about 15 thousand people. It is located on the coast of the Gulf of Anadyr, which belongs to the waters of the Bering Sea.
Traces of human habitation in Chukotka since prehistoric times are numerous and eloquently indicate that Alaska and Chukotka were once a single continent, part of which went under water about 10 thousand years ago. Scientists dubbed the hypothetical continent Beringia. They suggest that the settlement of Chukotka went precisely through the sunken isthmus, since many finds on the land of the peninsula indicate that they lived there even before the Chukchi - Indians, Aleuts, Eskimos. In the 17th century, Semyon Dezhnev explored Chukotka, declaring it a Russian possession. He also built the first prison, demolished later. At the end of the 19th century, Grinevsky founded the border post, which was then called Novo-Mariinsk. The renaming to Anadyr took place already in 1923, after the establishment of Soviet power. The district with the status of "national" was formed in 1930. It became an independent subject of the federation in 1992.
Relief and climate Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
The relief of the district is characterized by an abundance of lowlands, hills, uplands and ridges. In the west, there is the Ush-Urekchen mountain system and the Oloy Range; the center with the Anadyr plateau crosses the Anyui ridge with the volcano of the same name. The east is occupied by the Chukchi Highlands, and the southeastern part of the peninsula is occupied by the Koryak. The south is the Anadyr lowland. Most of the hills located in the east have a rounded shape and are hills, the picture of which from the sea has become the hallmark of Chukotka.
75% of all land is occupied by tundra, about 7% by forest tundra. The rest of the territory of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is located in the zone of Arctic deserts. The lowlands of the district are swampy, there are many lakes, the water of which is so pure that it can be drunk without fear. The deepest is Lake Elgygytgyn with a depth of about 170 meters, and the largest is Krasnoe, occupying about 600 km2. The longest river in Chukotka is the Anadyr - it stretches for 1117 kilometers. Among the largest rivers, Anyui, Omolon, Velikaya, Amguema are noted. Reservoirs of Chukotka sleep under ice for almost 8 months. Rivers of Chukotka autonomous region characterized by stormy and abundant floods.
The East Siberian Sea is filled with the coldest waters, the water of the Chukchi Sea is slightly warmer, but autumn storm winds raise waves up to 7 meters high there and form 5-6-meter hummocks. The Bering Sea is the warmest and most suitable for navigation.
The relief and climate of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug have become the reasons for the sparsely populated region. If the mainland is characterized by an arctic climate, then the coast is sharply continental, maritime. Windy and frosty winter lasts up to nine months. The blizzard can last for weeks. Summer is cool and rainy. Not everywhere during the summer period the snow on the surface of the earth has time to completely melt, and in its depths the permafrost never melts.
Average January temperatures fluctuate by regions and fall in the range from -15°C to -39°C, and in the west of the region, the maximum cold mark reaches -60°C. In July, the average temperature in the regions varies from +5°C to +10°C. Sometimes there can be separate hot days. The absolute warmest record was +34°C.
Roads - Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
Due to the vast territories, harsh climate and low population density, building roads is a very expensive undertaking. Travel over long distances is carried out by sea or air transport. Railways in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, except for departmental narrow-gauge railways, they are absent.
Chukotka's international airports are located in Anadyr and the village of Proveniya. From there you can fly to Anchorage or Nome in the US state of Alaska. The federal airport is also located in Pevek. From these airports you can fly to Moscow, Khabarovsk or Magadan. Local airlines connect these airports with each other and each of them with remote villages of the district.
Sea communication, hindered during freezing, connects five ports of federal importance: Egvekinot, Beringovsky, Conduction, Pevek, Anadyr, and each of them - with the "mainland".
The roads of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug are for the most part rolled snow strips or winter roads, which can only be driven by snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles or off-road trucks. Hard surface have only roads in cities and suburbs.
The federal highway is only about 30 kilometers long and connects the Anadyr heliport with the Ugolnye Kopiy airport. The eight-kilometer section of this route runs right through the ice of the Gulf of Anadyr. A highway is under construction that will connect the center of the region with Kolyma via Omsukchan and Omolon.
Recreation - Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
Life in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is not easy and requires courage, perseverance and calmness from local residents, and even more so from visitors. But those who dare to challenge the harsh climate are rewarded with the hospitality of the Chukchi, vivid impressions from the northern landscapes that have not changed for centuries, and from the originality of the lifestyle of the indigenous people.
Living in a real yaranga, taking part in a walrus hunt, pulling a fish out of icy water - a traveler in Chukotka is waiting for a lot of new, previously unexplored sensations. Recreation in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is possible both in short, bright summers and in cold, snowy winters, although with varying degrees of extremeness.
The district has developed water, cruise, scientific, ethnographic, expeditionary, historical and event tourism, and all these types do not exist on their own, but in close connection with each other.
In the waterways of Chukotka, tourists raft in inflatable boats or kayaks in July or August. Cruise ships from America, Britain and Kamchatka ply along the shores of the Providensky and Chukotka regions. Tourist liners make stops to explore the Whale Alley, ethnographic villages on Capes Dezhnev and Nunyamo, and plunge into the hot Lora springs.
Summer sea cruises are organized from Anadyr along the coast, to Onemen Bay, to the Kanchalan or Anadyr estuary, to the mouths of the Velikaya or Anadyr rivers. Travelers watch the bird colonies of Alyumka Island, the game of white whales and curious seals.
Scientific tourism in Chukotka is represented by numerous expeditions of scientists different countries who study the unique life of small peoples, their languages, crafts and ways of survival. Ornithologists come to study birds, of which there are about 220 species, and oceanologists to study the resources of the northern seas.
Historical tourism is based on about five hundred archaeological sites, which completely change the established ideas about the development of civilizations: Chukotka was inhabited by people who knew how to work metal, when there were no Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome.
Ethnographic tourism in Chukotka allows you to get acquainted with the customs, art and life of the Chukchi, Eskimos, Koryaks and Evenks, who greet guests with traditional hospitality and hospitality. Event tourism is associated with participation in colorful national holidays: the festival of sea hunters, folklore festivals, thanksgiving rites, holidays of the whale, young deer, first calf, canoe stingray and many others.
Extreme and expeditionary in Chukotka can be any long hiking or skiing trip, in which participants discover hard-to-reach places, their reserve capabilities and strength of mind.
Outdoor recreation in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
The most remarkable sights of the Chukotka District are worth seeing in natural conditions, despite the harsh climate. Only archaeological sites number in the hundreds. Among them are the northernmost petroglyphs in the world - drawings on the rocks on the banks of the Pegtymel River, which stretched for several kilometers. To the south of Cape Dezhnev, archaeologists have unearthed "Arctic Troy" - an Eskimo settlement that serves as confirmation of the existence of an ancient unique civilization - original, ideally adapted to life in the conditions of the north.
Guests of Chukotka may be interested to get acquainted with the protected treasures of Wrangel Island, the Lebediny federal reserve, the Beringia ethnopark, and seven district natural, ornithological and zoological reserves.
The unique lands of Wrangel Island are known for numerous walrus rookeries, Arctic dolphins and whales swim in their coastal waters, musk oxen and domestic reindeer brought there live. Polar bears come there for childbirth, thousands of seabirds and white geese nest.
The headwaters of the Anadyr River are adorned with a geological monument - Lake Elgygytgyn - one of the three lakes in the world that have an absolutely regular circle shape. The area of 110 km 2 is filled with the purest water to a depth of 174 meters. It is assumed that water fills either an ancient volcanic crater, or a funnel from a meteorite fall.
Outdoor recreation in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is often associated with a visit to the iconic point of Chukotka - the intersection of the Arctic Circle with the 180th meridian, from which a new day begins. Passing under the arch, symbolizing the Arctic Circle, travelers approach the pillar with distance indicators to the South Pole (17408) and Moscow (10468 kilometers). Those who wish can visit the northernmost cape of Chukotka Shelaginsky with a lighthouse and an unexplored natural monument - Plitovaya Alley, a six-meter chain of granite walls.
Tourists are definitely invited to visit one of the Russian wonders - Whale Alley, located in the Bering Strait, on the island of Yttygran. In a rocky bay, on the gentle slopes of hills covered with tundra herbs, there are numerous white pillars, which, upon closer examination, turn out to be the bones of whale tusks with the nasal parts of skulls dug into the ground. On the way to the Whale Alley, travelers visit the fjords of the Bay of Conduct - the most beautiful natural places in Chukotka.
In the Providensky district, thermal Senyavinsky and Novochaplinsky springs gush out of the ground, in the hot water of which you can swim in equipped pools all year round. On the eastern coast of Chukotka, on the healing thermal Lorin springs, a balneological resort complex has been opened.
Tourism - Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
For tourists and local residents, active recreation in Chukotka consists of hiking and skiing, multi-day summer trips on ATVs and winter trips on snowmobiles, mountain skiing, river rafting, winter and summer hunting or fishing, climbing small hills. Tourists watch national amusements - races on sleds drawn by dogs or deer, whaleboats or canoes, and sometimes take an active part in them or learn to throw zakidushki, chaat or harpoon.
The rivers of Chukotka attract fishermen, sportsmen and extreme sportsmen. Water tourism in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is active in July and August, when the rivers are full and the weather is more or less favorable. The most popular are rafting on inflatable boats or kayaks along Amgueme, 310 kilometers long, Ekittyki - 94, Chantalveergyn - 150 and Anadyr - about 300 kilometers. Motor boats can be rented in Anadyr, the villages of Ust-Belaya, Makarovo, Egvekino, Amguema.
On a trip to Cape Navarin, tourists find themselves among hundreds of thousands of birds soaring everywhere on the ocean, covered with dense clouds. On the cape, called the Cape of All Winds, because storms often fall on it, and wild winds constantly walk around, travelers get after a 250-kilometer hike or by combining hiking with water crossings.
On trips on ATVs along the coasts of two oceans, tourists overcome mountain ranges, cross dozens of Chukotka rivers, cross the Arctic Circle and the 180th meridian.
A trip on ATVs with a hike to the Dionisy and Komsomolskaya hills, about half a kilometer high, has not so much a sporting as an aesthetic meaning, since the panorama of the Golden Ridge, Onemen Bay and the Kanchalan Estuary opens from the hills. In almost any trip, tourists are given the opportunity to drive on reindeer or dog sleds.
In winter, tourists are offered to take part in a multi-day snowmobile trip across the whole of Chukotka, and in summer, a mixed route (on foot, by car and by boat) to Cape Dezhnev with visits to many tourist sites and natural monuments, such as a waterfall falling from a cliff right into Bering Strait. The most courageous thrill-seekers can go to the North Pole on a dog sled.
Alpine skiing is popular in the Chukotka District. All conditions are created here on the slopes with ski lifts and rental points on the slopes of the hills of Portovaya and Pionerskaya near the villages of Provision and Egvekinot.
Hunting and fishing - Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
Fishing in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
The region is known for large-scale marine fishing, and amateur fishing in Chukotka is famous for salmon - chinook salmon, chum salmon, sockeye salmon, coho salmon, pink salmon and others. Fishing in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is carried out not only on the seas, but also in lakes and rivers.
Here it is difficult to draw a line between sea hunting and fishing, when St. John's wort is engaged in the traditional hunting of walrus, seal, seal, and lahatka. Only in the Bering Sea there are more than four hundred species of fish, which represent 65 families. About fifty of them can become objects of fishing. Crabs, cephalopods, squids are harvested from sea delicacies.
The lakes of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug and other reservoirs of Chukotka are home to about forty fish species, but the main ones are: smelt, char, salmon, whitefish, white salmon, grayling, burbot, pike. On the Red Lake, you can fish for pike, pink salmon, chum salmon (outside the spawning ban), nelma, broad whitefish, whitefish. After the ice melts, the white whale comes to the lake. Sockeye salmon and white fish live in large quantities in Lake Pekulneyskoye, and char and char in Elgygytgyn, but this lake is one of the water bodies prohibited for fishing.
The catch of whitefish and Pacific salmon is carried out on permits. From the last day of June, for three months, there is a ban on spinning salmon fishing in the rivers flowing into the sea and their tributaries, except for lure using fishing line up to 0.3 mm thick and a hook with a distance between the tip and the forearm up to 7 mm. There are length restrictions on the catch of various types of bioresources. We have to release kunja, anadromous Dolly Varden, lenok, burbot shorter than 45 centimeters, nelma and taimen less than 70, broad whitefish - 40, catfish, pike - less than 50 and so on in accordance with the rules of fishing.
The rivers of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug of the Kolyma basin are known for their catches of whitefish, two species of whitefish, peled, vendace, and valka. The reservoirs of the Mainypilga system and the region of the Anadyr estuary serve as places for catching a large number of chum salmon. Often organized fishing in Chukotka is carried out during river rafting.
Hunting in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
Hunting has always served the aboriginal peoples of the region as a means of subsistence. Sea fur hunting along with bird hunting, polar bear or deer allowed them to survive in arctic conditions.
Hunting in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is carried out on lands spread over hundreds of square kilometers. Slaughter of animals is allowed: elk, wolverine, lynx, brown bear, fox, squirrel, arctic fox, muskrat, wild deer, wolf, mink, ermine, otter, hare, sable. From birds, you can get white-fronted geese and bean goose, partridges, ducks, stone capercaillie.
From animals it is forbidden to shoot weasels, polar bears, black-capped marmots, bighorn sheep, but if the minimum population level is exceeded, a license can be issued for any of these species. From birds it is not allowed to shoot swans, black geese, barnacles, mallards, white geese, eiders, shovelers, pebbles, teals, cormorants, gulls, sandhill cranes, owls, woodpeckers and a number of other useful birds. Of the marine mammals, it is not allowed to catch narwhal, humpback, fin whale, sei whale, blue and gray whale and minke whale.
Commercial hunting for wild deer in Chukotka allows satisfying the population's need for dietary meat. Of the birds, the white partridge is distinguished by the largest stocks, for which the season opens on the third Saturday of August and lasts until the end of February.
And one more unique tourist offer for active travelers who want to see Chukotka. Journey to the Cape of All Winds, Cape Navarin.
This journey is variable: it can be done by boat or on foot. How it will look like read below.
Region: Chukotka, Anadyrsky district
Arrival dates:
August 27 (arrival in Anadyr) - September 12 (departure from Anadyr)
September 12 (arrival in Anadyr) - September 27 (departure from Anadyr)
Number of participants: up to 10 people (m minimum number of group members 5 people)
Difficulty level: when traveling by boat - minimum experience in hiking, when traveling on foot - mandatory experience in participating in multi-day hikes.
Movement type: motorboat, on foot, by car
The nature of the area: mountain and shrub tundra, sea coast
Mileage: when traveling by boat:160 km. by motorboat + 50 km. on foot.
when traveling on foot - 250 km.
Settlements of Chukotka that we will visit: Anadyr, the village of Coal Mines, the village of Beringovsky and abandoned settlements: Beringovsky-1, Zarechensk, the weather station Gavriil Bay.
Description of the trip: Journey to Chukotka begins in Anadyr - the capital of the Chukotka Autonomous Region. Anadyr amazes guests with colors - a fabulous city, colorful, small, cozy. Anadyr has everything for the most whimsical traveler: comfortable hotels, numerous restaurants, a cinema, a museum, the world's largest wooden Orthodox church built on permafrost, the world's largest monument to St. Nicholas the Wonderworker and much more. But of course, not for these benefits of civilization, you will fly by plane for almost 8 hours.
We are going to the north of the Koryak Highlands, to the village of Beringovsky. The Koryak Upland is one of the most picturesque travel destinations in Russia. Autumn in these parts is a real firework of colors. For people tempted by hiking romance, the walking route will bring real pleasure. Mountain rivers and tundra are picturesque and fantastically landscaped, especially when you find yourself on mountain lakes. We will overcome the 100-kilometer route to the Gabriel Bay, where the abandoned polar weather station is located, in 5 days.
Those who do not like multi-kilometer crossings will go to Gabriel's Bay on a motor boat. The most picturesque shores, sheer cliffs with numerous bird colonies, the Coast of Broken Ships, in the area of the Cape of Military Topographers, will not leave anyone indifferent. This is a unique and amazing sight. Upon reaching the weather station, the group will spend a few days at the lodge waiting for the walking participants, enjoying the breathtaking views and watching the whales migrate.
Further, our joint path lies on Cape Navarin, the most stormy place in Russia. We will visit the lighthouse built 30 years ago, which is magnificent in its location, we will see and fish in the rivers of salmon going to spawn.
But all this splendor is just a prelude to a truly enthralling spectacle. The peninsula extending deep into the sea ends with Mount Heiden. The five-hundred-meter mountain, gently sloping from the mainland, breaks off to the sea with vertical rocks. Lying on a ledge of a rock, you can watch the flights of birds for hours and look at the deafening sea surf. "Between heaven and earth" - this is the most accurate description that a person experiences in these places. For the sake of a few hours at Cape Navarin, it is worth driving and walking hundreds of kilometers. A person who is completely far from ornithology and birdwatching, in this place will be able to realize all the beauty of their free soaring, because the birds are everywhere here: from above, from the side, from below, it seems you just need to reach out and you will get them.
No less spectacular is the ocean covered with thick clouds, in which the tops of distant capes stick out like islands. This journey can be safely called a journey to the country of beauty.
Unique features:
- see the largest wooden Orthodox church built on permafrost (in Anadyr)
- take a picture near the world's largest monument to St. Nicholas the Wonderworker (Anadyr)
- visit the most stormy region of Russia, Cape Navari (Cape of All Winds)
- catch grayling and char on spinning
- visit the southernmost polar weather station "Gavriil Bay" (abandoned)
- see one of the largest bird markets in Chukotka (up to 1 million birds) near Cape Navarin
- make a trip on sea motor boats along the coast of Chukotka, see the Coast of Broken Ships (for those who go the route on motor boats)
- watch bears, black-capped marmots, whales
- take a picture near the only locomobile in Chukotka
Cost of participation: 120 thousand rubles for participants of the walking route and 160 thousand rubles for those traveling by boat. The cost of the tour includes the purchase of tickets on the route Anadyr-Beringovsky-Anadyr, expedition meals, accommodation in Anadyr, Beringovsky settlement, tourist equipment: tent, emergency communications equipment, campfire and other equipment, rental of sea and road transport.
The price does not include payment for tickets to Anadyr, meals in Anadyr and Beringovsky settlement.
The terms of participation: Application for participation must be sent by e-mail: [email protected]
After submitting the application, it is necessary to make an advance payment in the amount of 50% of participation in the trip. Prepayment must be made before April 1, 2016. This is a prerequisite, because during this period it is necessary to redeem tickets for local flights. You pay the rest of the cost upon arrival in Anadyr.
Question: What should I do if I have decided on the desire to travel after April 1, 2016?
Answer: You have the opportunity to get on the trip, but the cost of participation increases by 20%.
Question: if I made an advance payment, but in the future I have to refuse to participate in the trip?
Answer: the amount of the prepayment will be returned to you, minus 10% of the cost of the tour, which is an organizational fee.
Question: can the trip be cancelled?
Answer: maybe if the number of participants is less than 5 people. You will be informed about the cancellation of the tour at least 30 days before the start of the tour. In this case, the deposit will be fully refunded.
Question: How to get to Anadyr?
Answer: Anadyr can be reached by a direct flight from Moscow - the UTair airline, as well as by flights from Khabarovsk, Yakutsk and Magadan - the Yakutia airline. The last three directions are subsidized and a ticket from Khabarovsk, Yakutsk and Magadan to Anadyr costs 8,000 rubles. Thus, it is sometimes cheaper to fly connecting flights from Moscow via Khabarovsk (Yakutsk or Magadan) to Anadyr.
In addition to these questions, you will have a lot of other questions, including equipment, weather, food, etc. things. All these questions will be answered in detail by e-mail.
When you fly over Europe, you see a scattering of lights, cities, ribbons of roads. The flight over the expanses of Siberia creates an amazing illusion: the planet seems uninhabited.
Anadyr
The first thing you notice at the airport is a small, dirty pile of snow that hasn't melted yet. And it's summer!
The airport is located only 10 km from the city, but the path from the gangway to the hotel is unusual. It is impossible to get to Anadyr by land: planes land and take off on the other side of the huge Anadyr estuary. When this water surface is ice-bound, minibuses run along winter roads, turning their wheels over a multi-meter water column. You can also pay extra for a seat in a helicopter that picks up wealthy polar explorers from the airfield. As for our flight, all its passengers were transported upon arrival by small river boats.
At one of them we met Stepan Selezny from the Chernihiv region. It turned out that he was on his way to work, and has been working in Chukotka for many years together with a team of builders, in which almost all of them are from Ukraine. Working hands are needed in the North, they pay well here, so even Turks and Canadians work. But Ukrainian workers are not entirely legally employed - at least some of them.
In Anadyr itself, the accentuated diversity of house coloring is surprising: modern five-story buildings here stand on piles, as if on needles - these are special foundations for permafrost, and local buildings are made up of multi-colored blocks - blue and burgundy, brown and green, yellow and blue ... Tones muffled, dim, and this is understandable: the general background of the leaden sky is no longer so pressing on the eyes. Sometimes a huge photograph flaunts on the entire wall - a portrait of an Evenk beauty, flying birds or sailboats in the sea.
Weather in Chukotka
Chukotka was not lucky at all with the climate: neighboring Alaska is much warmer and sunnier. The fact is that the northern winds blow exactly on the local shores, which makes the winter even more severe. Summer is hot, but always very short.
There is often a strong, simply incredible wind on the coast, so everything here is fixed, tied in knots. The most common detail of the outfit, both male and female, is the hood. Be sure to take care of this whim of the local fashion for yourself. The wind can rise suddenly, its record gusts reach 80 m / s. You need to fasten tightly, up to the throat, to the top button.
The wind can end just as suddenly. Only a slight tinnitus remains. And if you go deep into the continent, on one of the proposed tours - on all-terrain vehicles in summer, on reindeer in winter - you will be pleasantly surprised: there, behind the wall of hills, the wind is like wind, quite familiar to a European.
Governor of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
A doctor from Moscow, with whom we flew to Anadyr, told a curiosity similar to a joke about the Chukchi realities. According to him, local residents who are not very educated consider the oligarch Roman Abramovich ... a living god! This was allegedly even recorded in one of the sociological surveys conducted in Chukotka.
During Putin's rule, Abramovich was twice appointed governor of this region. Subsequently, President Medvedev terminated his powers ahead of schedule with the wording "of his own free will", but after a few days the businessman was elected to the local legislature, where he won with a truly record number of votes (96.99%) and then he was unanimously elected to the post of chairman of the Chukotsky Duma autonomous region.
The trick is that the things and phenomena brought here personally by Roman Abramovich, in some way really resemble the gifts of higher powers. It was with his arrival that the local people learned what mobile communications are, plastic cards for salaries, charter flights and much more.
Oligarch Abramovich remains the speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Chukotka to this day... Although he lives in London himself.
Polar Star
People in Anadyr are still well settled: the city is located 200 kilometers south of the Arctic Circle. This circle is just the latitude on the globe. There is no definite feature on the terrain like the Great Wall of China, although there are signs, monuments and arches on the tracks - mainly for tourists.
The ancient Greeks first reached the border of the Arctic, and they were not at all surprised that the summer sun in the Norwegian Sea was not going to hide behind the horizon. Since 100 years before their significant trip, one of Plato's students proved the existence of this phenomenon on his fingers.
At the latitude of the circle, the polar day lasts only once a day, on June 21-22, that is, the sun does not set once a year. And in the northern regions of Chukotka, daylight reigns for about a month, in June-July. And in winter, the daylight does not rise at all.
"How do you live in the middle of the polar night?" We were surprised many times. “Just like on a polar day,” the locals shrugged their shoulders. - I woke up - it means morning. The working day ends - evening.
It was not possible to admire the aurora borealis, since it is extremely rare during short summer nights and is more typical for autumn and spring. But the maid in the hotel, the Evenka girl Tinil (she allowed to call her Tatyana), spoke about another related phenomenon that happens to people in these northern regions. It is spoken "call of the North Star", or simply "meryachka". It happens that a whole team of builders will suddenly wake up at night, get out of the wagons into the street and also go into the tundra without opening their eyes. Or the Chukchi will all move out of the camp and go towards the ghostly fire.
This strange disease, which was studied by Bekhterev, affects people with an unstable psyche and poor health. It manifests itself in the fact that during flashes in the sky a person temporarily turns off, ceases to perceive the environment, but hears strange voices, sounds, magical singing, sees angels. So he goes towards them - always to the north, towards the radiance.
Problems of Chukotka
However, the Far North attracts many not only with a ghostly light. Having enlisted here for a year, then returning home, people sometimes do not find a place for themselves, they are drawn again and again to these parts. It's not just about the beauty of landscapes: for example, building houses, you can get a lot of money here.
In Chukotka they drink a lot - visitors and natives, and not only "to keep warm." The natives of the North have a special organism: it does not have an enzyme that breaks down alcohol. Therefore, they are very easy to drink, which the colonialists have used for many centuries. Poisoning with "scorched" vodka is one of the main causes of death in Chukotka. In settlements far from Anadyr, a “drunken Friday” has even been introduced, something like a soft dry law. This means that liquor is only sold on the last three days of the week. Another phenomenon - whether this is related to the problem of alcoholism or not, is unknown - but the growth rates of the number of sexually transmitted diseases in recent years in Chukotka are horrifying. They are several times larger than the national ones.
Permafrost
It was there that we went from the center of the Autonomous Okrug to a pre-paid tour. It included an internal flight Anadyr-Egvekinot and back. The travel programs were called in a very Soviet way: “Visiting reindeer breeders” with an overnight stay in a camp, “Visiting sea hunters” with accommodation in the Chukchi village of Uelkal. The cost of tours is $ 3-7 thousand per person, depending on the conditions of additional comfort.
A traveler in Chukotka needs a lot of patience and special endurance, where one should always be ready for extreme weather events. Of all the places I know, including the Siberian taiga, the peninsula holds the palm (or dwarf birch?) championship in terms of the number of midges. In addition to mosquitoes, it is teeming with: small midges, black flies, gadflies and God knows what flying ghouls. A smart tourist is one who is properly dressed, and this is all kinds of anti-mosquito equipment: windbreakers, encephalitis, mosquito hats, etc. and all this is in the local distribution network. But still it is worth stocking up in advance with both clothes and chemicals. It is more reliable and in many cases cheaper.
How to go to Chukotka
The Chukotka Autonomous Okrug belongs to the border zone of Russia, and an appropriate regime operates on its territory. That is, foreigners must issue a pass there, and this is more difficult than obtaining a visa to some countries. Entry permits are issued by the Federal Border Service of the FSB of Russia on the basis of personal applications of citizens or petitions of enterprises, for example, travel agencies. It is important to know exactly your future route, since movement through the territory of Chukotka takes place with mandatory registration at all (!) Points of stay.
What to see in Chukotka
Anadyr- a port city in the extreme north-east of Russia, the administrative center of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Located on the shores of the Bering Sea Bay in the permafrost zone.
Polar Lights- an optical phenomenon in the upper atmosphere, the glow of individual sections of the night sky, which is changing rapidly. Duration - from several minutes to the whole day.
golden ridge- a snow-covered mountain range on the territory of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, extends along the coast of the Gulf of Anadyr. The highest peak is John Peak (1012 m). In these mountains in 1905 they found industrial gold reserves, hence the name.
arctic tundra- treeless natural zone, extends to the north of the taiga zone.
Chukchi etiquette
Do not be surprised if at the entrance, wherever you go (shop, entrance of the house ...) you will not immediately be able to miss each other. We are accustomed to let those who leave the premises first, and then enter ourselves. Here, on the contrary, they first give a person the opportunity to get into the heat. This Chukchi trait is from long frosty winters.
polar cuisine
Traditionally, venison is served at parking lots in local settlements. Note: here you can taste it not only in its “pure” form, but also buy sausages or eat venison soup.
Interestingly, the cost of 1 kg of this meat in the capitals of the world reaches € 60-70. Chukchi reindeer herders “rent” it for 27 rubles per kilo (about 10 UAH). On the market in Anadyr, it costs 120-130 rubles.
In Chukotka, they like to eat young shoots of the polar willow, wild onion and sorrel. And, of course, berries: cloudberries, blueberries, lingonberries, rose hips.
Among the spices, we liked pupukit root - it tastes like coriander. In general, vegetable seasonings in the Chukchi cuisine, perhaps, are no less than in Indian. Pelkumret, Lemkut, Iechavtin, Ipien - these are some of the names of local roots and herbs.