PY9 New year Expedition to the Pole of Cold!

Expedition to the Pole of Cold - the place on earth where the lowest temperature has been registered - is not a usual tour, and it is definitely not for everyone.

This is an ethnic expedition for those who are open-minded and are not afraid to find themselves in a remote world, where people live their daily lives in unthinkable conditions, where every day is struggling for survival, where rituals are delivered to the Nature spirits, and where help to anyone next to you is a vital centuries-old rule.

We are inviting you to the Pole of Cold, where the frost makes people close to each other, where you re-appreciate small joys of life and where comes a different understanding of values.

Day 1

Morning arrival in Yakutsk by a night flight from Moscow. Meeting the guide in the airport, transfer to the hotel, check-in.

After a short rest to accommodate the jet lag, leave for a complex Chochur-Muran located in the picturesque surroundings of the lake Ytyk-Kyuel, next to the sharp-peaked Chochur-Muran mountain.

As the arrival of the guests is the case that requires in Yakutia the implementation of a traditional ritual Algys, a traditional ritual of blessing and purification with praying to the Upper Spirits, lighting the fire and sprinkling with milk, it will be performed to welcome you. Lunch in the restaurant of Chochur-Muran.

Take your time looking at ice sculptures on the territory of Chochur-Muran (this kind of art is very popular in Yakutia, and Yakutian artists always take prizes in the festivals of snow&ice sculptures).

Visit the dog farm where Yakutian huskies (blue-eyed Alaska husky descendent) are raised and try out riding in the dog sleds. Go snowmobiling on the frozen lake or up the hill. The temperature will allow you to do that no longer than half an hour at a time, but this is enough to feel the joy of the power and speed and challenge your skills.

Get a feel of Yakutia through visiting the Kingdom of Permafrost arranged in the glacier insides of the mountain located just next to Chochur-Muran complex, with an exhibition on Chyskhaan, the Lord of the Frost, and paleonthology. Return to the city and visit Treasury of Yakutia, which is famous worldwide for its gold and diamonds.

Dinner and night in the hotel in Yakutsk (double-basis).

Day 2

After early breakfast in the hotel, check out. Today we start our way to Oimyakon, the Pole of Cold. A day-long ride (420 km, 8-10hrs) by 4WD mini-bus to Khandyga. We are crossing the Central part of Yakutia and heading northwards, across the Lena river and its right inflow the Aldan river.

Around lunchtime we will stop in Cherkekh, where the museum of the political exile is located. Depending on the time availability, we can have a guided tour of the museum (extra-charge on the spot), walk around its collection of wooden buildings of the 17-19c brought from the nearby villages of Yakutia – churches, houses, gers where the exiled used to live.

Further stops – for lunch in a roadside cafe (at your own expense), next to the Shaman trees or at Serge, the ritual poles for tying the horses, will be upon the tour participants desire and request and time available.

Arrival in Khandyga, check-in at the private simple apartment-hostel.

Dinner cooked by your guide and with the help of the tour participants). Night in the private apartment in Khandyga (double basis).

Day 3

We advise you to take an opportunity to enjoy the shower in the hotel this morning, as further along the itinerary there will be no running water. Breakfast (the help of the tour participants is very wlecome).

Our destination for today is Oimyakon (appr 500 km) - we will complete our travel to Oimyakon today. We will pass by mini-bus the Verkhoyanski mountain range and go further along Kolyma tract called “road on the bones” due to the price it was built at by the prisoners of GULAG during the Stalin repressions.

We will make stops at the shaman-rivulet (or Rivulet of Separation as it was called by the political prisoners), a never-freezing source of drinking water in the beginning of the day itinerary 130 km away from Khandyga, and in a roadside café for snacks. Lunch cooked by the guide as a field meal next to the meteorological station Vostochnaya.

Arrive in Oimyakon late in the evening. Accommodation in a private hostel. Here you will have opportunity to experience the conditions locals live in (there is no drainage system in the houses, so all the inhabitants are using outside WC facilities). Dinner and night in Oimyakon (in rooms for 3-4 persons).

Day 4

This is the day to explore Oimyakon, the place where the lowest temperature in the Northern hemisphere was registered. After breakfast, we will have a tour of Oimyakon, with algys and a short folklore programme. The mayor of the settlement will hand out to us the Certificates of attending the Pole of Cold.

After lunch, we will have a trip to the local horse farm, where a special race of horse – Yakutian horse is bred. This unique type of horse is not afraid of the most severe frosts and grazes freely open air all through the winter. We will see the habitat of Yakutian horse and get acquainted with the life of the horse breeders. You can take a ride on the horse (one after another), though it is unlikely you would be able to enjoy the ride over 20 minutes for the reason of the temperature outdoors.

Hot excellent banya (Russian steam sauna) in the evening.

Dinner and night in the private hostel (rooms for 3-4 persons).

Day 5

We are not in a hurry today. After a late breakfast, go try your luck in ice-angling. You will learn the local way of angling and taste “stroganina”, a local specialty – fresh fish immediately frozen outside of the water hole and sliced thinly.

Today – provided the temperature allows it - we will have another opportunity to practice snowmobiling, this time trying to cope with the veteran of snowmobiles - a Russian-made and locally very appreciated Buran. The terrain is flat, so you will have an excellent possibility to develop and enjoy a high speed.

In the afternoon, have fun participating in the short but stunning entertainment programme - diverse practical experiments on the cold & frost. For example, do you know if one can hammer a nail with a banana? Of course, if you are at the Pole of Cold – check it out yourself!

Dinner, rest and night in the private hostel (rooms for 3-4 persons).

Day 6

After breakfast, checkout. Today we are starting a way back to Yakutsk, our destination is the already familiar Khandyga – but also today is a way towards new discoveries.

100 km after Tomtor, we will stop in Yuchugey village, the settlement of Even reindeer breeders. Typically the herders live in mobile tents and are migrating together with the herd.

We will meet the people, get acquainted with their lifestyle and culture. We will enjoy deer sledding – first in sleds tied one after another behind the sled of the local musher, and then – provided that you have desire and confidence in your skills – you can try coping with the 2 deer in your individual sled on your own. Our hosts welcome your participation in harnessing and taking care of the deer.

After the lunch of the national cuisine, we depart for Khandyga.

Dinner cooked by the guide and your help, night in the already familiar apartment-hostel (double-basis). Small and simple joy – there is a shower!

Day 7

After breakfast (the help of the tour participants is very welcome), we continue our way to Yakutsk – along ride of 430 km awaits us, with a stop for lunch in the roadside café (at your own expense). Arrive in Yakutsk in the evening, check-in at the hotel.

Farewell dinner in Yakutian complex Ytyk-khaya, with an obligatory traditional ritual of thanking and saying good-bye to the guests.

Day 8

Breakfast in the hotel, transfer to the airport and departure from Yakutsk for Moscow in the morning.