5.4 KOLYMA HIGHWAY (Eastern Siberia).

The infamous Kolyma Hwy, aka Road of Bones due to the Gulag labor used to build the road. From all prisoners (arriving alive!) few survived the winter while clearing trees for the road. Lack of food, proper housing, clothing for the winter and 14 hours of labor, made sure that by next shipment enough bunks were available in the camps. The word is that the bodies were simply dumped in the fill and that the road was constructed on top. An estimated 2 million Stalin-era Gulag prisoners came through the Gateway to Hell (Magadan).

On 14/09 we left Yakutsk and crossed the Lena river with the ferry, I zeroed the odometer because we heard that the RoB was 3000 or 2500 or 2700 km long.

Daily progress: Yakoutsk (A) - Borobul (B) 14/09, Khandyga (C) 15/09, in the mountains (D) 16/09,
17/09 start snow - driving from early morning till 22:00 close to Susuman (E),
18/09 somewhere in the mountains (F), 20/09 Magadan (G). 

Tanker unloading and a fast shuttle between banks on the Lena.

We slept the first night on a little hill next to a chapel, with a grave from a guy who was born also on 14 September, and not far from Borobul. A delegation from Borobul was present, with a cameraman, to commemorate the deceased. We were filmed for the local TV and the « director of the museum » shook my hand and held a speech in front of the camera. Afterwards a lot of pics were shot. The director thought that our presence on that special day was a sign and promised to visit us in Belgium ...

We slept very well at this location and in the morning we discovered that the temperature was – 3°C. Horses were grazing nearby and the grass scintillated in the sun. We wanted to stay another day, but were a bit in a hurry because of the weather.

Local dignitaries with a delegation from Belgium.

Frosty.

More horses on the back of the picture.

So we were driving happily along the road towards Khandyga when all of a sudden our jaw dropped to the floor. Two bicycles with a little trailer each. A man and a woman, Pablo and Olga, 29 and 33.

« We are from Spain and you ? »

« We travel since 18 months and were all over Europe, Asia, Pamirs, …

« We sleep in a tent and are on a budget of 10 €/day and go also to Magadan. »

« We want to cross to Alaska and then travel for another 2 years in America and Canada. »

« We do 70 to 80 km on a good day and 50 to 60 on a bad day and everyone can do this. Easy. »

Olga told us also that not doing this journey would have felt like a punishment.  No wussies these kids.

Pablo & Olga: Los Conquistadores.

After a second ferry and the depressing town of Khandyga we entered next day into the mountains. We saw an elk standing on the road. What an animal/sight (for me anyway: my first). On the first pass the mountains were snow topped and we refueled at a station in the middle of nowhere. No village, to be seen for 100 km. This people must be paid very well or barking mad. The fuel office is a silver painted fuel reservoir and has a lot of stickers of overlanders on an « expedition ». I forgot to take a picture !

First mountains after Khandyga.

Ferry for Khandyga.

Aren't we there yet?

The foundations of the first (?) bridge still in the water.
On the right: the wooden bridge in use.
On the top: the new steel bridge under construction.
(crane blocking the bridge, to lift concrete for the new bridge)  

First snow in the mountains.

Typical sight on the Kolyma (pic from the internet).

Next morning (17/09) we woke up with snow on the car.

Sleeping in the car: no problem.
Getting out of the car is the problem.

"Office" at fuel station. www.askyakutia.com

"Kafe" at the fuel station. www.askyakutia.com

Inside the "Kafe" with the owner. www.askyakutia.com

It powder-snowed the whole day and the scenery became gradually awesome and the towns/villages as from Khandyga became more and more depressing. In super-depressing Ust Nera we refueled again. I kept the tanks topped up because these remote villages/towns can run out of fuel (in Susuman : no more petrol and in another place no diesel because the pump broke down.). Also the fuel can be of a lesser quality in some stations and mixing smaller quantities with the rest of the content of the tanks should be less harmful for the engine. A wise advice from Alexy.

Compressed and slippery snow on the left of the car.

Half empty Susuman.

Tire repair in a workshop in Susuman.

On 18/09 our adventure started. By now all snow was compacted by the loaded trucks (no more town cars around) and had become extremely slippery. The second time the car started to slip I could not regain control and we ended up in the ditch on the left side of the road and facing where we came from. We were extremely lucky that we did not end up in the gorge/ravine on the right side of the road. While waltzing over the ice track we both thought that this was the end of our trip.

A bit like these guys, but with a Toyota and facing the opposite way.
Picture from www.askyakutia.com

The front bumper was slightly damaged by a rock hidden in the ditch under the snow and we were shaken, not stirred, and therefore we forgot to take a picture. The Toyota crawled out of the ditch on her own in 1^st low and by locking the central differential and rear axle. No one around. From then on we proceeded in low with all 3 locks on, at 30 to max 40 km/hour for the better part of the remaining 625 km. With only the central lock, I felt that the car was still prone to another walz over the icy track. Not very reassuring looking down a steep gorge on one side of the road.
On the other hand I thought that it was no good idea to switch on the central lock and the rear axle lock only. This would leave the front axle "free", while the rear axle kept pushing forward and therefore probably create another scary moment or disaster on the ice. I did not try this.
I thought: better to lock all differentials and have a mechanical breakdown on a shaft or a differential than ending at the bottom of precipice. The steering was a little heavy in the tight curves, but I was confident that the slippery ice was erasing all tensions in the drive train. The car was like on rails for the rest of the journey.
I got a lot of comments (by "experienced" people in their couch ...) on the way we were proceeding (all locks on) but according my experience at that time and conditions, this was the only safe way to continue the road.

Picture from www.askyakutia.com
Euuh, ... where are the wheels?

Road blocked by trucks being pulled out of the loose snow.
Others could not proceed due to the slippery conditions on the road.

We saw two trucks that had to be pulled away from the edge of the precipice, a Toyota Tundra with a squashed roof and another damaged car. Nobody had chains on. All seemed surprised by the first snow. In an attempt to avoid more snow in the mountains, we drove at snail pace till 22:00 hours and halted on a « parking » for some rest. The trucks continued till 02:00 in the morning and in the mean time a Pajero and a small truck were pulled up the parking lot by a huge 6x6 Kamaz. A parking in the mountains is nothing more than a locally widened road with a 200 liter oil bin for the garbage. In the morning we saw fox traces in the fresh snow at the litter bin.

Ust Nera town sign.

On 19/09 we had to make it to Magadan. Only 265 km. After 5 km while going out of the way for an on coming truck, we got stuck. With all locks on, the car was sliding towards the ditch in forward and in reverse. A Kamaz from the opposite direction stopped and the driver said with a smile : « No Ruski hé ? ». He pulled us out and reversed his 6x6 semitrailer loaded with building materials in the snow to let us go by. After another 10 km with no traffic on the road, we were stopped by trucks pulling other trucks. The road was completely blocked by the action and 12 trucks were waiting on the road and adjacent parking lot. Only 2 had chains on and one of these was pulling the unfortunates. Most of the trucks were hauling fuel for the remote towns in the mountains. The reason why Susuman ran out of petrol?

Part of Ust Nera.

Once the trucks out of misery, only 3 or 4 trucks continued the road and the rest of the truckers seemed to have fun, some vodka and some food. We were waved through and while driving around the still blocked trucks (no chains and the road to slippery to proceed) we got stuck in the high snow again. 3 men came to push us out and after that we were part of the fun. Christine gave them some candy and in return we received the double in chocolate and 2 CD's with Russian pop ! Spasiba guys ! At 10:00, a grader came through and scrapped most of the snow of the road. The truckers must have known about the machine and said : « Filieeeep, now ok ! ». I stepped on the dirt road and it seemed to me that nothing had changed. The grader had barely touched the dirt under the snow.

Slippery road. See the ditches on both sides?
Me neither.

The following few times we had to move out of the way for climbing/loaded trucks, we managed to get out of the snow by ourselves. The thing to do is : drive in the high snow to go out of the way and reverse with all locks in the same tracks, do not try to bulldozer your way forward or do not move in the high snow once off the road. Logic, but with no experience in knee deep snow and no problems in the knee deep snow on the parking lot where we slept … or were we just lucky ?

Rivers of this size seem to be roaring monsters
in other days (look at the uprooted trees).

We started driving (still in low with all locks) and at noon stopped to prepare soup. It was rather warm outside the car and the thermometer showed +8°C ! We were still at 800 m above sea level and the snow was melting. Two Kamaz trucks, heading for the mountains, stopped to take the chains off. Now being a (gray) veteran I advised not to do so and the truckers put their chains back on !

The end of the snow covered road and all locks off.

Gradually the snow disappeared and at 120 km from Magadan the sealed road started. The concrete had passed a few times through the strong hands of king Winter, but was a delight and in a way an anticlimax. The end of an adventure and the end of the solidarity/complicity/camaraderie of the truckers. These guys are in my book heroes since they provide at the risk of their lives (no bull!) food and fuel to the villages in the mountains and food on the table at home. I will remember the expression : « Filieeep, is nooormal, is Russia !» followed by a raucous laughter from too many cigarettes and vodka.

If you plan to do the Road of Bones in September, take chains with you especially in the second half of September. I had BF Goodrich Mud 265/75 R16 with the M+S sign under the car and this is not enough. Only in low and with all locks on, it was relatively safe to proceed. I do not know what the UAZ vans do, but they seem to have no problems, … or is it experience ? (I later learned the UAZ vans had studded tires.)

The Kolyma is 1.910 km long (give or take 10) from the point you enter the Kolyma on the opposite side of the Lena at Yakutsk, till the center of Magadan and is a two way road all the way, except when snowing and both directions drive on the same track and except in places where the rivers scoured half the road. Sometimes you spot the remainder of the older or original Kolyma and the bridges.

Abandoned Kolyma Hwy bridge.
Pic taken from the new concrete bridge.

You drive through half abandoned towns like Susuman and completely abandoned villages in ruins. We did not drive the « old summer road » since we were alone and because of the decaying weather. Some years ago, a lone Turk got stuck for two or three days on the o.s.r. and a lone biker activated the « Help » button on his Spot because his bike broke down in the middle of nowhere. The Turk phoned with this sat-phone for help and the biker was airlifted.

 

100 clicks from Magadan.

Petrol and diesel is available every 200 to 300 km's, but keep the tanks topped up in case a station cannot provide you with fuel. The diesel price on the RoB is around 50 Rb/liter (2013). In the rest of Russia max 35 Rb/liter. Olga from DVS-Tour told us that for 2014 the fuel prizes will raise.

Take the warning for bears serious, but do not exaggerate. A lot of the road is in swampy area and in July – August it must be hell due to the bugs and mosquitoes. Keep your eyes peeled for wildlife. We only saw an elk, a fox and a big black bird (turkey size).

We often asked ourselves how Pablo and Olga would do with the bicycle in knee deep snow on the side of the road or on the extremely slippery compacted tracks from the trucks. The tent in the cold ...  They coming through at the end of September / beginning October and the weather will be worse.

Magadan.

We arrived in Magadan on Thursday 19/09 afternoon. As we arrived we had both the anticlimax sensation. We went straight for an ABTOMONKA (car wash) to prepare the car for the mechanic. The tiled floor was covered with the mud and gravel from the RoB and the guys had a second job when we went out.

Lenina street facelift.

We checked in at the hotel and next day at noon Andrey preceded us to his garage, to check the car. Mobile Andrey : 89148659994. His garage is on the climbing road for the Mask of Sorrow at coordinates : N 59° 35,217' & E 150° 49,192' (WGS84). Ewan Mc Gregor (The Long Way Around), Greg Miller from Sandy – Utah and a lot of other nationalities were also there to service/check the cars after the fun. Andrey loves Toyota's but has no problems with other brands. In fact he boosted a Nissan Fairlady up to 700 bhp.

Both left wheels from our Cruiser had some play and the mirror, a drunk Mongol biker smashed to pieces, was replaced. The front drive shaft with both the universal joints was replaced. An old problem solved in Europe, but clearly not for the road conditions of the last months. The car was more « fluid » afterwards. Oil levels, grease, air filter, …

The garage of Andrey (3 green doors).
Do not expect fancy showrooms/workshops, but
miracles are happening on a daily basis in there.

We met Olga, manager with DVS-Tour, Prospect Lenina 3, office 368, mobile 89148528221 and made arrangements for the shipment of the car to Vladivostok. Olga & Vladimir were very efficient (and you better exercise in the morning to be able to follow her). On Monday morning the car was parked at the bow of the ship and all paperwork done in about 90 to 100 minutes. We paid the shipment invoice via the bank.

Fed up with hotels after 3 days, we both wanted to drive and sleep in the Cruiser again but the ship sails for 5 to 6 days and this meant minimum another week in the hotel in Vladivostok.

We visited in Magadan the :

• Regional Museum full with stuffed animals, fossils, minerals, crystals and a copy of the little mammoth, found in the region (also in the museums of Perm and Yakutsk). The top floor shows the history of the Gulags and the Kolyma Hwy, but sadly no English captions...
• Cathedral,
• Mask of Sorrow : concrete construction built in 1991 in memory of those who perished in Kolyma's Gulag camps,
• The bay.
• And looked at the smartly dressed people. No pics guys.

Graves in the mountains with a little metal plate
nailed to the peg.  Only a number on the plate,
no name.

Gulag labor rigging a submerged bulldozer in the icy waters.

Road construction by hand.

Magadan has a new mayor and restoration works in Prospect Lenina (main street), at all the buildings at once, are on-going 7/7. The pastel colors from the buildings and the lanterns lining the street give it an early 1900 sensation. Japanese POW constructed the major part of the town center.

Religion and gold are synonyms?

Mask of Sorrow.
Tribute to the people who died in the Kolyma gulags.

Local patriotic club for children at the entrance of Magadan.
Also guns and tanks.

We left Magadan airport under a cutting wind with flying snow and landed 5:30 hours later and about 3000 km south in a whole other world. The temperature was mild and the city lit as it was somewhere North West Europe. Magadan has this undeniable feeling of being at the edge of the inhabited world and is an island in the sea of a merciless nature, the last frontier. But Vladivostok looks like a thriving world city with a new airport, new roads, new bridges and a face lifted city center. All this thanks to the Asian Pacific Economic Conference that took place in Vlad in 2012.

In Vladivostok we booked a hotel on a hill with a view on the harbor. Nice, but expensive ! But the birthday of Christine was in sight and you do this things in style or not at all, …

Harbor from Vladivostok.

We contacted Yuri Melnikov, mobile : 89025243447 – www.links-ltd.com, 89 Svetlanskaya street, office 312, the agent to unload the car from the ship. Yuri is well known among overlanders. Each year about 70 adventurers pass his doorstep. Stickers we saw at fuel stations on the Kolyma, on river ferries, on signposts and in the workshop of Andrey - Magadan, are also on his message board. About every overlander blog or web site talks about him.

Too much of these walls of fame in the world ...
Ypres, Passchendaele, Arlington, Vladivostok, ...
Do you know of another one? Write me?

WWII submarine with a number of kills on the record.
New bridge in the back.

The ship from Magadan arrived on Monday 30 September and by Tuesday 14:00 all paperwork had to be completed in order to be able to embark on the ferry for Japan. On Monday we went to the port because Yuri received a phone call that the car was unloaded. To his and our big surprise, the car had been loaded on a second SASCO coaster in Magadan without changing the paperwork and the second ship was still anchored outside the harbor and thus not unloaded. Vladivostok has not the required quay walls to keep up with the marine traffic and therefore our Toyota was riding the waves.

Dense traffic in Vlad.

So the first ferry sailed to Japan without our esteemed presence and we re-booked the tickets from 02 October to 09 October (1 ferry/week). Boring and changing to a cheaper hotel because by now the successive hotels had burnt a black hole in our budget. In the end we were about 3 weeks in different hotels between Magadan and Vladivostok.

Vladivostok Regional Museum.
Also the other exhibits were interesting.
Stone age, Iron age and all that ...

We spotted the Toyota from Marc Mellet on the central square and met him a few hours later. In preparation of our trip, I bought his book (French & English). He did the Kolyma in 2006 in the winter at -50°C! Buy his book from his web site and follow him on his new trip to Kamchatka and Japan in the winter. www.lemondepourpassager.fr

Vladivostok started out as fortress in 1860 and became a naval base in 1872. Till to-date the successive fortresses around the city are still visible and some visit-able. You can see guns all over the city in museums and restored case-mats.

Pacific Fleet Museum.
Only the garden is open, the museum is closed for ...

Fortress Museum in a restored case-mat.

Before ...

& now.

Tsarevich Nicholas II inaugurated in 1891 the Trans Siberian railway. Belgium had the first railway on the continent in 1835 (30 km), but 60 years later the Russians had the longest : 9822 km.

1891: inauguration of the Trans-Siberian railway.

WWII: lend-lease program with the USA.
Aircraft, locomotives, guns, uniforms, motorcycles, trucks, ...
were part of the program to help the USSR resist the Nazi's.

Vladivostok railway station.

Vladivostok railway station.