Poseidon Arctic Voyages - Chukotka-Wrangel

Anadyr, Chukotka - Wrangel Island - Anadyr

Duration: 11 days, 10 nights

Dates for 2008:

11.08 – 21.08

  Real treasures of the Nature of our Planet are always concealed: pearls are hidden in shells and ocean depths, diamonds and gold are to be extracted from the depths of the Earth... The wise nature cares for its values; nothing is precious if it is open for everyone, the impressions from touching treasures can not be bright and memorable if there are no difficulties in gaining them…
   We call these lands “non-pacific in the Pacific” and it is absolutely true. It is not only because of the abundance of active volcanoes on Kurils and Kamchatka, making this area a part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. Foggy and rainy, these regions are protected extremely from easy access. But the Russian Far East, Chukotka and Wrangel Island are undoubtedly the places worthy of exploration. The emotions and memories you’ll bring from this trip will be the best reward for all the challenges we may encounter on our way.
   Our Expedition Team is highly motivated to make each expedition a success - but, please, remember that Captain and the Crew together with us have to beat up against the wind, the fog the swell and other weather conditions in order to meet all your and our expectations.

Day-by-day Itinerary

Day 1

Our independent arrival at Anadyr airport is followed by a short city tour. We then board the “Marina Tsvetaeva” and set sail in the afternoon.

Day 2

Depending on weather conditions we plan a landing either in Egvekinot settlement, Zaliv Kresta Bay or Cape Achen.
In Egvekinot Bay, Zaliv Kresta we will witness our first bird colonies, whilst in the village we have great opportunities to discover national culture and history in the local museum.
46 km from Egvekinot settlement there is a unique place where the 180th meridian meets the Northern Polar Circle. There are only 3 such places on the whole planet, and only this Chukotian one is placed on land.

At Cape Achen dramatic bird cliffs tower over Achen Lake, the unique place for spawning of several valuable fish species.

Day 3

We hope to have a clear morning to land on Yttigran Island where the impressive “Whale Bone Alley” is one of the masterpieces of Arctic culture. The bones of Bowhead Whales are laid out along the beach, the huge jawbones and ribs creating fantastic arches.

Arakamchechen Island is another possible place for a landing or zodiac trip to enjoy the mountain landscape and wildlife. The island is remarkable for its numerous walrus breeding sites.

If the islands are inaccessible today we’ll try our landing in Janrakynnot famous for its thermal springs.

Day 4

We are at Cape Dezhnev, once called “The big Chukchi’s Nose”. The Cape is the easternmost point of Eurasia and has several interesting sites, some of which we plan to visit if weather is on our side:
The Weather station
The Monument to the Russian explorer Semyon Dezhnev, who discovered that Eurais and America were separate continents and was the first man to sail through the Bering Straits
The Chukotka Ethnographic Complex

If we have enough time and good weather in the afternoon we’ll visit a small Uelen settlement to discover carvings and other traditional crafts in the local museum.

Day 5

If the weather doesn’t interfere with our expedition plans today we’ll visit the stunning Kolyuchin Island, the gloomy, abandoned weather station enlivened by the tireless cries of thousands of nesting Puffins, Murres (Guillemots) and Cormorants.
If Kolyuchin is inaccessible, we will attempt our landing in Vankarem, remarkable for walrus breeding sites.

Day 6-7

We plan to visit Wrangel Island. The Wrangel Island Nature Reserve has a unique and rich biodiversity which is atypical of the Arctic. The island flora and fauna include about 40 endemic species, some of which are relics of the last Ice Age, when the island amazingly escaped glaciation. Many of the endemics are endangered species.
Wrangel is the main breeding place of the polar bears in the Russian Arctic, though when we are here it is more likely to meet bears on the ice than on the island. The Wrangel’s fauna species include walrus; lemming found only on the island, Russia’s only breeding population of Snow Geese, and Musk-ox which were brought here in 1974.
Our plans for Wrangel Island are highly dependent on the weather: should it be fine we have a number of sites to visit. In the vicinities of Krasin Bay we might have a chance to observe musk oxen, reindeers, and take a walk to a Paleo-Eskimo site. Predatelskaya Lagoon offers us some interesting opportunities: birdwatchers might witness some interesting bird species whilst history-lovers may walk to the historical sites.
Draga Bay, Cape Warring is remarkable with wildlife: musk oxen and Snow Geese might be witnessed here.
Cape Florance, Sovetskaya and Gusinaya rivers, Gerald Island, Somnitelnaya spit – all these places are excellent for zodiac operations and explorations. Expect some of the landings to be active; we might have to take quite long nature walks to get to some interesting places.

Day 8

At sea.

Day 9

Early in the morning we plan to approach Inchoun settlement. If the weather approves of our plans we’ll land on the shore to observe walrus rookeries and to visit the village.

Lorino, the settlement we hope to visit in the evening is a very traditional Chukchi village. We will be greeted by typical cultural events on the beach - national dances, a sled dog demonstration and, perhaps, umiak racing. The umiak is the local boat, made of walrus skin.

Day 10

At sea.

Day 11

Anadyr. In the morning we disembark the vessel and start our journey home.


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