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For most of the year, the road to Yakutsk is so frozen that the driving is excellent. In the autumn the road freezes back and becomes even better than most soil roads.
In the dead of winter there is no problem as vehicles drive directly over the frozen Lena River. Cars are allowed to drive up to 70 kmh (45 mph).
But watch out for summertime! Believe or not, Yakutsk is actually cut off from the world much of the time during the summer. In a story I read about a 2001 flood caused by the Lena, it said Yakutsk does not even have railroad! This means that in the summer when it rains, Yakutsk is virtually inaccessible except by boat or plane.
And even the boats are not much help... the Lena River is impassable for large stretches of the year when it is full of loose ice, or when the ice cover is not sufficiently thick to support traffic, or when the water level is high and the river turbulent with spring flooding.
July temperatures often exceed 90 degrees! This makes the Yakutia region among the greatest in the world for seasonal temperature differentials, helping to explain the mud road fiasco which you are about to witness. When it rains in Yakutsk, it pours! And the rains turn the road to Yakutsk into a quagmire.
Unfortunately, this major artery does not have an asphalt surface even though it is a vital Federal highway. Attempts have been made to put down a proper surface, but the road immediately turns to mush the moment it thaws making repairs impossible. Consequently, in the summer, everytime it rains, hundreds of cars become stuck in the mud.
Yakutia is the area of permafrost. The Lena Highway melts down to 1 meter every summer for 2...3 months (usually July and August) -- that makes it impossible to build usual roads (using asphalt or concrete) there. Such roads are called "zimnik" ("zima" means "winter" in Russian).
In the autumn the road freezes back and becomes even better than usual soil roads, but that is little consolation to those stuck in the summertime mud. The pictures you are about to see were made in August 2006 at the start of the problem. Ultimately 600 cars got stuck there. In other words, as bad as things are in the pictures you are about to view, they only hint at how impossible the conditions can really be.
A car can be trapped in the quagmire for days. According to witnesses, hunger and lack of the fuel are all part of these mud traps. one woman even gave birth to a child right in the public bus she was riding because no ambulance could possibly get to her.
Making things worse, people are afraid to come to the rescue. There is a report of construction teams that were afraid to appear on site when called. It turned out that during their previous visit they were beaten by people who had been stuck in the jam for a few days. So now the cars and trucks are left to fend for themselves. only in Russia.
Lawlessness is common. People often break the locks on the trucks in a search of food and warm clothing. Fuel, food, firearms and steel tow-line are needed most during the rainy days on the Lena Highway.
It seems like Russia could do something about this road. After all, America built the Alcan Highway in Alaska under similar conditions. Apparently Russia is infamous for its bad roads. For instance, the cynics insist Russia's bad roads had more to do with stopping the advance of the German army in World War II than anything the Red Army did.
Driving upon these roads in summer when the snows have melted seems like very stupid idea. But the authorities never even meant for the Lena Highway to be used in the summertime. Yakutsk can only be reached by ferry in the summer. The road dead ends on the wrong side of Yakutsk and there is no bridge anywhere in the Sakha Republic that crosses the mighty Lena.
But just because it is a very bad idea doesn't mean people don't try anyway. After all, unless you own a plane or a boat, this is the only way in and out of the city. These poor people were born to suffer.
The picture above was taken on August 30, 2006. As you can see, this is a dirt road. The ground is firm because his truck is stopped on the high ground. However the road has become impassible due to the watery conditions up ahead.
This driver probably has no idea how lucky he is that his truck isn't stuck. As you see below, others are not quite so lucky.
Have you ever seen a more unbelievable picture of a car stuck in mud?
Please note the condition of the Lena Highway before the rains came. Here the road is dry and in good shape.
Now let's see some truly horrifying pictures of a road ruined with mud.
This road resembles a river. Or maybe a 'lake' would be better description. This area is surrounded by hills on both sides and there appears to be nowhere along the side of the road for the water to drain. Instead the water just sits there.
Note the sign in the picture above on the left. 70 kilometers an hour is the posted speed limit.
That translates to 45 miles per hour.Lots of luck reaching that speed... my guess is the summertime speed is 45 miles per week.
Somehow those two trucks got to the top of the hill. As you can see from the overturned trucks, others weren't so lucky.
Did they ever think of perhaps dropping gravel on this road? You can do that any time of year.
If nothing else, they could use gravel to elevate the road and allow the rain to drain. Another idea might be to dig some trenches alongside the road to improve drainage. For example, in the picture with the yellow truck, it looks like the water has nowhere to go... the sides of the road seem as high or higher than the road itself.)
A damsel in distress. Such a pretty girl and such a pretty car. What a pity.
Two more damsels in distress. With conditions like these, no wonder so many Russian women are trying to get married in America.
Just in case you were beginning to think all Russian women were beautiful, we thought we would offer this reality check.
By the way, notice the blonde on the truck. She is actually smiling for the camera! Glad someone's in a good mood.
As for the yellow shirt person, I don't know if it is a man or a woman, but either way I bet you don't want to know.
If you study this picture closely, you realize just how hopeless this situation is. It could be days before they get out of this mess.
But the government allows it to remain this way. Surely there is modern technology to fight this problem. This is ridiculous.
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