Yakutsk

Sottintsy

Bus and minivan transfer to the Open Air Museum «Druzhba». On foot tour with a guide around museum territory. Spare time on the beach.

This is the place where Peter Beketov, Russian Cossack, primarily founded Lensk stockaded town, but spring river floods made him change the place for the future city of Yakutsk. This fact gave occasion for a historic-architecture open-air museum called Druzhba (Friendship) founding. The Museum presents samples of ancient wooden architecture in traditional Russian and Yakut styles. Expositions of wooden home utensils, national Yakut clothes and monuments of Russian Orthodoxy are of great interest. Wonderful landscapes and interesting historical excursions make the museum visit both informative and pleasant.

The Lena Pillars

Famous Lena Pillars are majestic cliffs with the height of 100-200 meters. These cliffs spread over the Lena Rivers’ right bank. The spread is 40 kilometers. Lena Pillars are situated 200 kilometers above Yakutsk city and made of Cambrian limestone. The beginning of rock formation made this natural landmark is dated by the early Cambrian period (560-540 mln. years ago). The formation of Lena Pillars as a landform is dated by a later period-about 400 thousand years ago. Time, fall-out, river water and wind gave the cliffs strange and magic forms. Lena Pillars National Nature Park was based in February, 1995. The square of park is 485 thousand hectares. Lena Pillars were included in the list of UNESCO world heritage in June, 2012. You can see traditional welcoming ritual with the cleanup ceremony and make hill climbing where you will admire a beautiful sight on the Lena River and its wonderful neighborhood.

Run

Dapparai

Dapparayi is situated on a very picturesque place, on the high right bank of the river. High spreading spruces grow here; forest is full of berries and mushrooms.

The Ura River

Bell and Stone Cliffs are shown beyond Chapaevo village. The Ura River makes its way from the gorge to the Lena River. River transport workers gave the river such a name because of its uncontrollable rage. There is a beautiful waterfall ten kilometers far from this place. The waterfall falls down from the height of 30 meters. The Ura River divides the Lena River into two equal parts from the headstream to the estuary. That’s why river transport workers called its estuary as Lenskii equator. They usually stop there to have a rest after a difficult northern campaign. Young sailors are let into river transport workers here.

From the motor ship broadside you can see a picturesque panorama of the Lena and Ura Rivers in the multicolor magnificence of Yakutian taiga.

Lensk – Mirny

– Lensk

Early departure. Lunch box breakfast. City tour, Observing platform "Mir”, visiting Kimberlite Museum. Lunch. Departure to Lensk.

The city of Mirny was named after the kimberlite tube "Mir” which was opened in 1955.

In 1957 an open mining of diamonds began and lasted 44 years until 2001. To the year of 2001  the tube was 525 meters deep and 1200 meters wide becoming the largest in the world.

Mirny is a  center of diamond mining ALROSA corporation. Diamonds are excavated in Mirny, Anabar, Njurba districts of Yakutia.

Major social and cultural buildings have been erected by ALROSA corporation and belong to the latter.

One can visit a unique museum of kimberlites, the manufacturing history museum,   the sortation center. In the sortation center tourists can see pictures made from diamonds. 

One of the beautiful sightseeings of Mirny is Svyato-troitsky Church. The Childrens’ Sports Center, the Stadium with Ice Rink "60 year anniversary of the Victory”, the memorial of the Viluisk Circle, Theater and Movie Hall "Yakutsk” have been built lately.

Vitim settlement

Vitim is an urban-type settlement in the Lenskii region. The population is 4406 persons (2013 year). Vitim is situated on the Lena Rivers’ left bank against the Vitim River estuary. It is 3 kilometers far from the border with the Irkutsk Region. Settlement was based in 1621. In 1863, after the opening of gold fields on the Bodaybinka Mountain River, Vitim became a staging area for the mine supply. Vitim supplied it by everything necessary for the gold production and prospectors’ artels sustainment. In the 19th century Vitim was ahead of the other places in the social and cultural development because of its nearness with road transport schemes of the Eastern Siberia. A technical sector of the waterways was opened in Vitim after war. This technical sector included navigable basin of the Lena River in the middle reach. There are small airport and sawmill in the village. Vitim got the status of an urban-type settlement in the 1958. As a result of Talakanskii oil and gas field exploitation the building of town is planning in the future.

(Lenskiye Shyoki)

Lena Cheeks are one of the most beautiful and famous places of upper Lena. They are situated 172 km up from the Vitim river estuary. These three quaint gabled forested cliffs of 200 meters high tower are situated above the river and present a narrow canyon with sharp turnings. This is the narrowest place of the Lena, the span is less than 200 meters here. For navigation safety this length of the river is time-adjusted and has one-way movement. Lena Cheeks length is 4 km. In the end of the ravine there is the forth stone grey cliff – "Drunk Bull” ("Pyanyi Byk”). As the saying goes, in the 19th century karbasses with alcohol crashed into the cliff. Ample quantity of this alcohol was caught out by residents of the nearest Bykovskaya village, which later became Pyanobykovskaya village.

Lena cheeks due to its unique curves also create ideal conditions for a multiple echo.

Lensk

It is administrative center of Lenskii Region. Lensk is the fifth-largest town of Yakutia, situated on the bank of the middle Lena. Its population is 24322 people (in 2013). It was estableshed on the place of Mukhtuy village, appeared in the middle of the 18th century. Its second birth was in 1956, when it became a staging area for diamond miners of Mirnyi. Lensk as a town was founded in 1963. Nowadays Lensk is the gates of a diamond region and it’ll become oil and gas extraction capital of the republic in the future. The key economy industries are also river and road transports. In 2001 Lensk experienced destructive floods. The Lena rose to 20 meters and covered the whole town. In the course of reconstructive work during three summer months more than 400 000 square meters of living space were built –the yearly programme of a multimillion city. An orthodox church of St. Innocent is a sightseeing of the town. It was crafted in the tradition of ancient wooden architecture.

The origin of Olyokma supposedly belongs to Olookhunai, the Evenki word, which means squirrel. Olyokminsk is an administrative center of Olyokminskii region. The destination from Yakutsk is 651 kilometers of a land way and 620 kilometers of the water way. Olyokminskii Ostrog was based by the Yenisei Cossacks in 1635. In 1738 this Ostrog got the status of district town. Olyokminsk was the place of political exile and a shelter for gentiles of the Russian Orthodox Church. At the present time cattle breeding, the cultivation of a grain, potato, vegetables and feeding crops are determined the economic basis of the region. Forest, timber conversional and food industry are well developed. Gypsum quarry is also working here. Main oil pipeline is passed along the territory of Olyokminsk region (317 km.). There are airport and river port in Olyokminsk. The population of 2013 year is 9 330 people.

The Buotama River Estuary

The Buotoma River is the right estuary of the Lena River. Its length is 418 km. Buotoma place is a fancied destination in Yakutia. Rafting here is also popular. Buotoma is known for its rich flora and beautiful landscapes. Besides, in 2006 a unique bison farm was opened here. The nursery area is 100 ha. A score of wood buffalos were transported here from Canada with the aim of recovery of the mammoth fauna representatives. There are difficult cripples on this Lena River length. You may see Tabaginskii Cape to the left of the board 40 km up from Yakutsk. First road and rail bridges across the river will be built here in few years.

Yakutsk is a capital of Sakha Republic and one of the oldest Siberian cities. It was found in 1632 by Peter Beketov, the Yenisei Cossack. Yakutsk is situated on the Lena River’s left side in the Tuymaada valley. The distance to Moscow is 8468 kilometers. Since foundation times Yakutsk has been a resting base for the research of the North – East of Asia. At the present time Yakutsk is a big administrative center including 14 populated localities. The number of population is about 300 000 people. Yakutsk is situated in the permafrost zone, so it is unique for its pile-supported method of stone house building. Food industry, construction engineering, energy industry and diamond lapidary industry are developed in Yakutsk. Yakutsk is also a cultural center of the region. There are Opera and Ballet Theater, Russian Academy Theater, Olonkho Theater, choreographic school and circus in Yakutsk.