Jewel of the Russian Far East
Trip Details
The eastern seaboard of Russia dominates the North Pacific but few have experienced its beauty. This is one of the last undiscovered regions of the globe; its isolation protecting its wilderness and wildlife. Your voyage begins in Anadyrskiy Bay and follows routes ploughed by 18th century explorers, across the lower reaches of the Bering Sea before heading along the wild Koryak coastline. Traverse the deep ocean trench off the coasts of the Kuril Islands, where whales come to feed in the rich waters and finally finish your journey almost at the tip of northern Japan.
Itinerary
Day 1: Nome, Alaska
For those departing Nome, Alaska, your adventure begins with a flight across the Bering Sea and the International Date Line, to the remote port of Anadyr.
Day 2: Anadyr, Russia
Explore Anadyr, the administrative center of the Chukotka region, before getting to know your fellow voyagers and crew on board the Spirit of Enderby.
Day 3: Anadyrskiy Bay
Weighing anchor early morning, you are invited to join the expedition staff and crew on the bridge for introductory briefings as you sail toward the Bering Straits, through the Anadyr Estuary famed for its Beluga Whales.
Day 4: Yttygran, Nuneangan and Aarakamchrchen Islands
Yttygran Island is home to the monumental ancient aboriginal site known as Whale Bone Alley, where you make a landing. Constructed from immense whale jawbones and skulls to form arches, the site is of international archaeological importance. On the lookout for Grey Whales, you also cruise by Nuneangan and Arakamchrchen Islands where seabirds nest and Walrus can be found.
Day 5: Anadyrskiy Bay
You spend the day at sea, crossing Anadyrskiy Bay to the jagged Koryak coast. Experience first-hand the work that goes into running your expedition vessel, listen to entertaining lectures from your experts or relax in the shipÂ’s bar or library.
Day 6: Cape Navarin
With an early-morning landfall on the north side of the Cape you should have ample time to explore the lagoon for waterfowl and waders. Once forming a land-bridge to North America, this fertile area enjoys an abundance of food and sightings of Grey Whales and seabirds are common.
Day 7: Bukhta Natalia
Along the Koryak coast there are many beautiful bukhtas (or fiords) but none possess the dramatic allure of Bukhta Natalia in the low sun of autumn. A Walrus haul-out guards the entrance and you make a landing to explore the hinterland, surrounded by imposing mountain landscapes and verdant tundra.
Day 8: Tintikun Lagoon
This spectacular lagoon is situated on the Lorran Peninsula state reserve where a large population of Brown Bears should be hunting the wild salmon thronging the rivers.
Day 9: Verkhoturova and Karaginskiy Islands
Your landing on Verkhoturova Island should yield great colonies of puffins, guillemots, auklets and Pelagic cormorants. View rocky islets that are home to the rare StellerÂ’s Sealion before landing again to explore the wetlands and forests of larch and alder with their carpets of mossy shrubs and wildflowers.
Day 10: Ossora
Today, you enjoy the hospitality of the people of Ossora whose lifestyles remain largely untouched by the modern world and who survive by Reindeer herding, hunting and fishing.
Days 11-12: Commander Islands
Once a bustling colony of seal hunters and fur traders, these islands were first discovered by Vitus Bering and became his last resting place after being shipwrecked; you visit his grave and the museum in the village of NikoiÂ’skoye, the one remaining settlement. Explore the remote and forbidding bays where seals and over a million seabirds live amid a backdrop of folded-block mountains, volcanic plateaus and sea arches.
Day 13: Zhupanova River
An expedition upriver by Zodiac takes you amongst valuable ecosystems that support an immense diversity of wildlife. While Brown Bears feed on the wild salmon, you might see the rare StellerÂ’s Sea Eagle nesting as well as waterfowl, gulls and terns.
Day 14: Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy
Explore this historic city nestled in one of the worldÂ’s most spectacular natural harbors and dwarfed by the colossal snow-topped Koryaksky Volcano.
Day 15: Atlasova Island
Sailing south along KamchatkaÂ’s singular coastline with views of the many volcanoes that dominate the peninsula, you land on a black sand beach to investigate dune lakes for wildlife and take time to explore the eerie remains of an abandoned Soviet gulag.
Day 16: Onekotan Island
Through wetlands and diverse wildlife habitats you walk to Black Lake, which lies in the shadow of Volcano Nemo. Later you cruise the rugged coastlines looking for puffin and Northern Fulmars.
Day 17: Yankicho and Simushir Islands
Take your Zodiacs right into the flooded caldera of this extinct volcano and there are surrounded by thousands of auklets and guillemots, wheeling and diving for fish. You also take time to see geothermal pools and an abandoned Cold War submarine base that nature is gradually reclaiming and where Arctic Foxes can sometimes be found.
Day 18: Iturup Island
Landing at the village of Kurlisk you travel to Rubakov Volcano to soak in some thermal pools and enjoy the spectacular panorama across the region.
Day 19: At Sea
Crossing La Perouse Strait, dividing Russia and Japan, signals the end of your expedition which is marked with a farewell dinner tonight.
Day 20: Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk
You land at Korsakov Port and transfer to nearby hotels or to the airport for onward flights.