Arctic
Hiding from the strangers within the small Yaranga. — at Gilmimyl, Chukotka.
This field hut on Wrangel Island, no bigger than a garden shed, sleeps 6 people if required.
The white man's customs go the way of the mist. The world of newspapers, business, telephones, ballot-boxes, and jazz seems in memory no more real than his dream does to the sleeper awakened. Is it possible that somewhere there are people even now being ostracised by their kind for eating olives with a fork or peas with a knife? People who judge a man by his grooming, his bank account, or his ancestry? Our new world has stripped us to the fundamentals; and it is a salutary, if not a little humbling, to reflect that these fundamentals-intelligence, character and health-are not peculiarly human, that they are the same with men, with horses, with dogs, and with the ants.
Most of the time, much of the beauty of Wrangel Island is hidden by mist, fog or cloud. High in the mountains the wind ensured that we had a mixture of sun and clouds. — at Wrangel Island.
The bravest Musk Ox of all. This animal let us approach to approximately 25m away until following the rest of the herd running away. — at Wrangel Island.
A little bit more social than Polar Bears, Musk Oxen will stay in herds of 8-20 during the summer. However, once mating season arrives the dominant male will establish a harems of 6-7 cows and their offspring, driving the other males away. — at Wrangel Island.
A little bit more social than Polar Bears, Musk Oxen will stay in herds of 8-20 during the summer. However, once mating season arrives the dominant male will establish a harems of 6-7 cows and their offspring, driving the other males away. — at Wrangel Island.
One of the border guard houses at Cape Dezhnev, built in 1963 this house has taken a beating in the harsh environment.
Penguins? Nope, these flipper birds can fly.
(Common Guillemot) — at Wrangel Island.
If you hear a chirp whilst climbing up the mountains in Chukotka chances are it is coming from a Pika hiding in the rocks. If you sit still long enough, these little animals from the rabbit family will come out of hiding, but you have to be quick! — at Yttygran Island.
For some reason the wildlife usually doesn't run and jump towards the ship... at Wrangel Island.
Polar Bear near Wrangel Island.
At this abandoned polar weather research station, several of the buildings remain standing, some have burnt to the ground or fallen down.
The building on the right housed a kitchen, bedrooms, cinema, and film storage room among others. — at Колючин.
The Professor Khromov at sunset off the coast of Cape Florens.
After a morning of whale watching the zodiac's headed towards the bird cliffs on another small island. On the way we found a few Red-necked Phalaropes sitting in the water.
Squirrel! (Arctic Ground Squirrel) — at Cape Dezhnev.
Summer Days. It may be 3ºC outside, but with the sun shining and no wind, it is totally t-shirt weather. — at Wrangel Island.
"Hey ladies" - Tufted Puffin — at Kolyuchin Island.
Tufted Puffin — at Big Diomede Island.
A town with no stop signs or traffic lights, welcome to Uelen, Chukotka.
A production of traditional Chukchi dances in the Uelen town hall.
A production of traditional Chukchi dances in the Uelen town hall.
A Walrus pup swims with its mother and another Walrus.
Safety in numbers. A small group of walrus hanging out an ice floe. — at Wrangel Island.
Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads. — at Wrangel Island.
A few whale rib bones remain standing from a time when rituals were performed by local Chukchi people at Whale Bone Alley.
A few whale rib bones remain standing from a time when rituals were performed by local Chukchi people at Whale Bone Alley.
Polar Bear near Wrangel Island
A white rainbow off the coast of Wrangel Island. — at Wrangel Island.
Glaucous Gull at Cape Florens.
The Wooly Lousewort — at Wrangel Island.
Only a few rangers and scientists remain in the village of Ushakovskoye on Wrangel Island, with the rest of the residents moving back to the mainland in 2003.
Not quite the same as the lighthouse in Round the Twist, this lighthouse at the end of Doubtful Spit sits next to a couple of cabins for scientists to conduct research from or hide out from harsh weather.
Like many of the lighthouses in the Arctic, this one no longer operates. — at Wrangel Island.
Evidence of human occupation in the Arctic is littered around most of the places we visited. The Russian government has a programs of work to clean up some areas, but the funding comes and goes. The rangers on Wrangel Island have done a lot of work to move most of the rubbish to settled areas of the island. — at Wrangel Island.
When planning a meteorological station, something a little further away from water is probably a good idea. To the right is what remains of the bridge. — in Ushakovskoye, Wrangel Island.
What remains of the playground at Ushakovskoye, the average summer temperature is 4ºC.
In spring the 1400 rivers of Wrangel Island come alive from the melting snow and permafrost, however, by mid summer they have dried up enough to walk/drive through. — at Wrangel Island.
Snow Geese take flight over the tundra on Wrangel Island. Building up strength before their migration south a few weeks later. — at Wrangel Island.
Sunset at Cape Florens, Wrangel Island. — at Wrangel Island.
When the fog lifts, and the sun is setting in the sky, the colours are just amazing. — at Wrangel Island.
The landscape of Wrangel Island in mid-August shows the changing of the seasons, there are still a few summer flowers around, but Autumn is in the air.
The old community hall at Ushakovskoye on Wrangel Island has been re-purposed into a workshop for the islands rangers. — at Ushakovskoye.
"Marty! We've got to go back!" The island on the right is Big Diomede Island with a time zone of UTC+12, the island on the left is Little Diomede Island, with a timezone of UTC-9. Welcome to yesterday. — at Big Diomede Island.
A young female Polar Bear watching us as we slowly crawl towards her. She had just been digging to try and find a Lemming snack. — at Wrangel Island.
Looking out over Gilmimyl. The hut in the bottom right corner is where the family that left the reindeer herders now lives. Not much else around here... — at Gilmimyl, Chukotka.