ALASKA & RUSSIAN FAR EAST T R AV EL GU I DE CONTENTS INTRODUCTION Journey Into The Wilderness 1 Regional Highlights 2 REGIONS Chukotka 4 Kamchatka 4 Sakhalin & Kuril Islands 4 Inside Passage 5 Aleutian Islands 5 Nome 5 Katmai National Park 5 Kenai Peninsula 5 ON BOARD & ASHORE Born of Reindeer: The Eveny People of Siberia and the Russian Far East 6 Meet the Locals 7 Royal Geographic Society 8 Experts by Your Side 9 Silversea's All-Inclusive Lifestyle 10 luxury Meets Adventure 11 An Explorer's Heart 13 Yankicha Island, Russian Far East JOURNEY INTO THE WILDERNESS Realms of fire, ice, and remote splendor There are few places left on Earth that feel truly untouched by human hands. On this voyage, we’ll introduce you to two of them. A journey to Alaska and the Russian Far East is an adventure worthy of Jules Verne or H.G. Wells. This is where millennia of isolation, the timeless efforts of Mother Nature, and even centuries of polarizing politics have combined to create fantastical landscapes of untamed and primal beauty. It’s a region that’s been a more welcome home to whales, bears and puffins than it ever was to man. From the Ring of Fire to the Arctic tundra, it’s a world of breathtaking extremes. Welcome to Alaska and the Russian Far East. 1 Yttygran Island Proliv Senyavina Hot Springs SIBERIA Cape Kuyveveem Anadyr Nome RUSSIA Provideniya Anastasiya Bay ALASKA Cape Navarin Gabriela Bay Meynypilgyno College Fjord Bogoslav Island Hall Island Pavel Bay Peter Bay Seward Cape St. Elias Yegrineyskaya Bay Hubbard Glacier St. Matthew Island Talan Island Tymlat Homer Skagway Okhotsk Lavrova Bay Chiswell Islands Haines Zavyavialova Island Yuzhnaya Glubokaya Point Adolphus Ushki Elfin Cove Juneau St. Paul Island Larsen Bay BERING Kodiak Island Tracy Arm Iony Island Castle Bay Sergius Narrows Endicott Arm SEA Chignik Aghiyuk Island Sitka Petersburg Semidi Islands Sail Island Wrangell Narrows SEA OF Ketchikan Behm Canal The Haystacks Metlakatla Rudyerd Bay OKHOTSK Unga Village Petropavlovsk Triple Islands Prince Rupert Attu Island Seguam Island Dutch Harbor Opala River Kekurnyy Point Utashud Island Kiska Harbor Atlasova Island Pine Island Piltun Lagoon Vancouver Shumshu Island NORTH PACIFIC Johnstone Strait Seymour Narrows Tyuleniy Island Nemo OCEAN Nanaimo Krenitsyna Point Korsakov Yankicha Island Chirpoy Island Otaru Kushiro Hakodate Aomori Tokyo REGIONAL HIGHLIGHTS The combined population density of TOTAL LAND AREA Few other voyages in the world offer more geological diversity Alaska and the Russian Far East is + or abundance of exotic wildlife. Much of the Russian Far East roughly 0.5 people per square km 2m Km lies along the Ring of Fire, the most volcanic region on Earth. Kamchatka alone is a geological wonderland of snow-capped peaks, active volcanoes and bubbling geysers. In Alaska, the There are roughly over 100,000 haunting beauty of the Arctic ice, roar of calving glaciers, and glaciers in Alaska, covering about ancient coastal forests beckon. The creatures of these lands have COVERED4.5% IN GLACIERS 4.5% of the state spun mariners’ yarns and shaped local folklore. In the Sea of Okhotsk, colonies of seals and seabirds await. On land, caribou abound. And the mighty brown bear roams through forest and The United States purchased YEAR PURCHASED tundra. Look to the skies and rocky promontories for seabirds Alaska from the Russian Empire for ranging from the colorful Tufted Puffin to the majestic Steller’s sea $7.2 million which is equivalent to eagle. Culturally, this sparsely populated world is often at odds around $120 million today 1867 with its identity. Alaska lies less than 60 miles from the coast of Russia, while Petropavlosk is closer to Tokyo or even Vancouver There are about aproximately than it is to Moscow. The indigenous people of this region have 390 volcanos between Alaska and clung to the land for generations, weaving a tale of tenacity, ≈ the Russian Far East endurance and harmony with their fierce surroundings. 390 2 Utashud Island, Russian Far East REGIONS Alaska and the Russian Far East present some of the most inaccessible destinations in the world and, consequentially, among the most biologically rich areas on the planet. Follow in the wake of legendary explorers Vitus Bearing and Captain James Cook as you travel from the near-uncharted Sea of Okhotsk, across the Bering Sea and to the waterways, islands and coastal towns of Alaska’s famed Inside Passage. CHUKOTKA Arctic fox on Yankicha Island, Russian Far East The Northeastern-most territory in the Russian Far East, part of Chukotka lies along the Bering Strait. On a clear day, you can see the Alaskan shore from its coast. Tufted Puffins, Black-legged Kittiwakes and other seabirds frequent the rocky crevasees of the towering granite cliffs that define spectacular Cape Kuyveveem. Farther northeast lies Yttygran Island and its haunting natural monuments of bowhead whale bones. Beluga whales are a common sight in the surrounding waters. In Anadyr, capital of Chukotka, learn about the region’s culture, with important landmarks such as the Cathedral of Divine Transfiguration and the Chukotka Museum. KAMCHATKA Nature and the Cold War have both shaped Kamchatka. Because of its proximity to the United States, the peninsula held great strategic value for the competing superpowers. As a result, Russia restricted access to this territory to foreigners and Russians alike. Its isolation bears rich fruit today for visitors. Of its more than 150 volcanoes, Klyuchevskaya Sopka is the largest active volcano in the Northern Hemisphere, and Kronotsky is considered one of the most beautiful on Earth. Its famed Valley of the Geysers is a hotbed of geothermal activity, from boiling springs to mud volcanoes. And the locals include reindeer, brown bears and nearly one-third of the world’s Pacific salmon population. SAKHALIN & KURIL ISLANDS On Ushishir in the Kuril Islands lies Yankicha, a caldera that has been breached and then flooded by the sea. You can enter the caldera in a Zodiac and land on a beach to access a stunning walk to the rim of the Yankicha volcano. When tide and weather conditions are right, you can see the Pacific Ocean on one side and the interior of the caldera on the other, with its calm water and steaming ground stained yellow by sulfur. Atlasov Island, also part of the Kuril Islands, is dominated by one of the most spectacular volcanoes in the world. And in Sakhalin, you can visit dark-sand beaches or spot rare gray whales near Piltun Lagoon. Kamchatka 4 INSIDE PASSAGE Katmai National Park, Geographic Harbor, Alaska Named by early explorers who were looking for the Northwest Passage (found much farther north), the Inside Passage is a dramatic tapestry of wildlife-filled fjords, ice floes dotted with seals, the thunderous snap of calving glaciers, mountains carpeted with forests rising from the sea, and remote villages hugging the coastline. This popular route, found on itineraries from Seward to Vancouver, includes ports of call at Juneau, a capital city inaccessible by road, and Ketchikan, known for its colorful totem poles and lush landscapes. ALEUTIAN ISLANDS From the southwestern end of the Alaska Peninsula, the archipelago of the Aleutian Islands stretches across the Pacific towards Kamchatka. The islands were part of the theater of war in the Pacific during World War II, with Japanese soldiers invading Kiska Island and Attu Island in 1942 (just six months after the bombing of Pearl Brown Bear, Kukak Bay, Alaska Harbor). These were the only two invasions of the U.S. during the war. The Japanese also attacked Dutch Harbor on Unalaska Island. A visit today includes a step back in military history, along with hikes to verdant volcanic landscapes. NOME Located on the edge of the Bering Strait, where the Pacific Ocean meets the Arctic Ocean, Nome has long been a gateway to Alaska. The history of this rugged outpost dates back 10,000 years, to a time when the Inupiaq hunted and gathered here. The most famous gold rush town in the state, Nome was host to the last great gold stampede of the American West. Panning for gold is still a popular activity, as is watching to see who crosses the finish line in the famed Iditarod Sled Dog Race. KATMAI NATIONAL PARK The 15 volcanoes and almost alien beauty of Katmai National Park has it sitting atop many “Best of Alaska” lists. Brown bears can be found digging for clams, munching on berries, or fishing for salmon in Geographic Harbor and Kukak Bay. In the waters around the harbour, you can spot otters, whales, and an abundance of seabirds. Beneath the waves, halibut, cod and rockfish lure thousands of anglers each year. Holgate Glacier, Kenai Peninsula KENAI PENINSULA Home to some of the most populous areas in Alaska, including Seward and Homer, Kenai Peninsula is famed for its glacier- capped mountain range, much of which lies within the Kenai Fjords National Park, a living remnant of the Ice Age. The park’s famous Holgate Glacier is a spectacularly active river of ice set against a dramatic portrait of rugged mountains. Surrounded by the park’s mountains, the Chugach National Forest, and Resurrection Bay, the picturesque city of Seward is a railroad town with absolutely breathtaking scenery. 5 BORN OF REINDEER: THE EVENY PEOPLE OF SIBERIA AND THE RUSSIAN FAR EAST Selena Hoy, Author In the beginning, there was only the sea. One day, a maiden came down from heaven to the water. She was riding on an eight-legged reindeer, and tufts of reindeer fur that scattered on the surface of the sea became a raft. The reindeer gave their body to become earth, mountains and forests.