Adventure Travel in Kamchatka Russia

Kamchatka is one of the most remote places on the earth. A frozen wonderland that defies description. The indians of russia's wild east live in Kamchatka. Kamchatka has been closed off for a long time and has been largely unexplored. Even by Russian standards, Kamchatka is remote. It is a land of volcanos and permafrost. It is a peninsular thrusting towards Japan.

Petropavlosk is the capital of Kamchatka and was once a sleepy fishing village and was transformed into a top secret soviet military base and was where the submarine fleet was based. Kamchatka was an off limits exclusion zone. Korean planes were shot down for flying over Kamchatka air space. Since the collapse of the soviet empire, the Kamchatka economy has gone into decline.

But before recorded history the indians crossed from russia to america and the indians still live here in Siberia and Kamchatka. There is only one road in Kamchatka and the further you go the less it looks like a road. at the end of the road is Anavgay, population less than five hundred. Grizzly bears when they emerge from hibernation are very hungry and grumpy. Transport in Kamchatka is by snow mobile. When you go out into the wilderness you have to depend on what you bring, so pack carefully. If there are any mechanical malfunctions with the machinery you have to fix it yourself because it is a long way to the shop.

Few westerners haved dared venture into the icy wilderness of Kamchatka. Spring in Kamchatka in the russian far east still has lots of snow and temperatures can drop well below zero. The Even reindeer herders have close links to the American indians. People still live in the forbidden zone. The even indians are nomadic and wander around Kamchatka with their reindeers. They have hundreds of reindeers but life for these reindeer is not easy. Wolves wait to pick off the young and the weak. The reindeer herd must be protected by a herder. The herd is a even tribal collective now that communism is gone. There are only about fifteen hundred Even tribesmen left in Kamchatka. The Kamchatka cowboys even rope the reindeer and they kill them to eat to survive in the cold wilderness.

The Even tribesmen live in a yurt which is similar to an indian teepee. Reindeer meat will be cooked but the tribesmen get scurvy because they do not have any fresh fruit or vegetables. The only link with the outside world is a hand cranked radio.

Kovran is on the west coast of Kamchatka. Another form of transport is by converted tanks in Kamchatka. They carry supplies around the inhospitable country to isolated communities. Crossing rivers can be an extreme adventure just in itself. Helicopters are still another way to get around in Kamchatka but they do not have a great safety record. From up high you can see the volcanos and there are more than two hundred volcanos in Kamchatka and there is somewhere a volcano that is erupting.

Some Kamchatka tribe's origins are a mystery. Few ever come this way and Kovran would have to be the most isolated place in the world. Only 1400 of the Itelmens tribe are left in Kamchatka. The soviet government forced them to settle in Kovran and now their culture is re-emerging. They have shamans that communicate with the spirit world and heal people. They are reviving the old Itelmens dances that are similar to american indian dances.

You will have to go on a dog sled ride when you are in Kovran. There are six dogs to a sled and they are just like the ones in Alaska. The Itelmens make very strong and light sleds. Camping out in the forests of Kamchatka involves putting your tent on top of a wooden platform to protect yourself from hungry bears. Kamchatka has the world's highest concentration of grizzly bears. The Itelmens spirit poles are a mystery and no-one knows about their origins. They have some sort of relationship with north american indian totem poles.

.