Boundless North

I was going to write a small report about the journey, which I visited.
Validity period June - September 2012 Purpose: the complex geological and geochemical work in the east of the Taimyr Peninsula in the mountains Byrranga. I went there with a party from the All-Russian Geological Institute with a fun, today, an acronym - just Organizational matters I will miss and go directly to the Expedition.

June 25th, we, of nine members and a large number of every kind of junk, went to the airport Pulkovo. Frankly I did not expect such a mess in this object. Huge lines of people me and so something never lacked for emotional balance, and then there is likely to have been more fun, cash register are rotated, good though close. In this chaotic queue started to move - a circus, in a word. Yeah, okay, but issued a commemorative magnets. Hardly we have booked tickets, passed the luggage and went to wait for the aircraft. Then there was first a curiosity, the woman that was with us, a geologist, I do not know for what reason, decided to take in hand luggage geological hammers. It is clear that to them it will not empty, and eventually took hammers and poor geologists polzovali one for two, as in Stalingrad.

The flight was calm, landed in Krasnoyarsk, where boarded a flight to Khatanga. I must say that in Khatanga no roads, no car or rail. As for the winter road from Norilsk I do not know - maybe there is. To get to it you can on the plane, or the sea - although it is not certain that the ships are frequent. Before flying to Khatanga Academy - 24th, stopping to refuel in the Tour. Of the village, I did not see a brick building of the airport, fenced with barbed wire and vzlёtka especially memorable - good old rustic toilet, wild, I'm sorry, zasrat.

57 photos



Khatanga.
Impressions of Khatanga, I must say, is quite gloomy. It can be connected with roads that are strewn with slag, or gray, abandoned buildings. Perhaps because of the seven days that we were there five probuhali. Prices are never democratic, palёnaya vodka 280 - 350 rubles, strong beer hunting 0, 5 liters of 80, 1.5 liter brew. Oh and food, respectively. But, thank heaven, we got out of the blue hell - for my unaccustomed to such pressures the body there was hard. Notable in Khatanga were two things: the first is a bath, otlichnenko warm up, and the second ship graveyard.
2. Hatangsky fell number six.



3. The ship graveyard



4. In spite of the collapse of the things happening around, some ships do not lose the taste for life.



5. Hatanga



6. Hatanga bird's-eye view.



Further north of the Khatanga, we flew by helicopter. Mi-8. To make stops in the tundra, to refuel, to advance brought a couple of tons of kerosene. Tundra is impressive. So it seems to be nothing but nice, dammit.
7. It is refueling released to walk the dog.



8. The view from the window of the tundra №1



9. The view from the window of the tundra №2



10. Mountain



Flew to the place of the first camp for about six hours. Unload, most remained in the camp, and a couple of people flew by helicopter to the location-based all-terrain vehicle, which came to a winter - from May to reach. But we have begun to install the tents as heard two muffled distance shot and after some time the helicopter returned, carrying attached to the chassis of a musk ox.
11.



12. Here it is the first bull killed



It must be said later, we met a lot of these bulls, but the deer was less. Meat bulls very rigid to cook it, you need to spend a lot of time, but oleninka good to prepare quick and tasty.
Construction camp and preparation for work took two days, and on the third we have entered the routes. By the way, "neighbors", the central Taimyr, only came on the ninth day.
13. Camp



14. The herd



What we were doing there. So, as I said, geology and geochemistry. Geology is a collection and writing up samples of rock material, since I do not write just formed. Couples geologists walked along the beds of rivers and streams, taking stones from the ore occurrences of pyrite, chalcopyrite, galena, and others. They also washed concentrates, this is when the wooden tray gaining sediments and "wash" as in Alaska or Siberia. A soil geochemistry samples were taken at a special routing grid. Ie went on profiles (direct route, where this is possible) and do the sampling at the picket. Picket every hundred meters, the profile of five hundred. The sample consists of a pouch of the earth weighing 250 grams - 300. After selection of the samples were dried and sieved and then - else occupation, I tell you. In general, during the expedition, we selected and screened where the 5500 - 6000 samples.
15. In the course of sampling



It will be a selection of landscapes.
16. Mountain



17. Mountain



18. Mountain



19. Mountain



20. Mountains, fog, people



21. Another mountain



The day passed something like this: rose between 8.30 and 9.00 hours, then washed, had breakfast and promoted to work. 20.00 is regained later, in some cases, come after midnight, good most of the time was the polar day, so that the work could be all day, they ate without Forces toppled sleep. Then repeat the process until the day of the screening tests. The first month, when there was a free man, remained on duty to cook. Here we were lucky with the weather, there was virtually no rain, only once had a very strong thunderstorm with blackjack and hookers with thunder and lightning. And the sun was shining, round the clock.
22. Display of free time and desire to swim



After months in the tundra to us flew a helicopter, brought the forgotten part of the equipment left in Khatanga food, just in time, and that is only one buckwheat tea without which however, has to be fed. However, instead of pasta and rice brought again our sadness buckwheat ... we managed to dispel the only message that instead of a box of vodka left us two.
23. A rare, oddly enough, the dish



A few times I was able to go on the hunt, were still trips on the lakes. We tried to fish there, but rivers were empty, which is very surprising people are already working on the Taimyr Peninsula in the central part of it. There, they say, the fish was so much that they refused to eat it.
24. The crossing of the river



Several times we changed the parking lot of the camp. Transfer by jeep across the tundra very malokomfortnoe event. Designed he was on a much smaller loads and number of passengers.
25. In a way



26. The new camp.



27. Can not think so, but I build a toilet



28. But it is ready, an option for the weather.



29. Weather sometimes show funny moent



Source: