Magadan, Magadan Oblast, Russian FederationThe Logistics of Visiting Pevek.... Dire Consequences of a Cancelled Flight
It may have been a lovely balmy evening when Alex and I wandered around the shores of Chaun Bay, but all through the night the wind howled mercilessly, rattling our sturdy double glazed window panes and keeping us awake for hours. It was not of course the sound of the wind which concerned us. It was the dire consequences of having our coming flight to Bilibino cancelled.
During our stay Alex had explained why Kutkh Travel had been so reluctant to include Pevek as a destination in our itinerary. Apart from being astounded that we actually wanted to return to Pevek, their main concern was the logistics of getting us in and out. They were as we found out, valid concerns. Being in a sensitive military Closed Zone, the Border Guards had a vested interest in getting us more OUT than in! And after all, our Special Chukotka Permits were only valid for the dates of our intended stay.
Because of its high latitude, proximity to the polar north and being located right on the Arctic Ocean, Pevek town is subject to wild weather fluctuations. At Pevek's Apapelgino Airport, there is absolutely no protection from surrounding mountains or even land distance from the coast. It is in fact a sitting duck for the very worst Arctic weather possible. At the drop of a hat, a flight can be delayed or even cancelled for safety reasons. And flights as we found during our March visit, can be delayed for days or even weeks.
To further complicate our situation, our Russian Tourist visas were valid only for the time frame we had planned to be in Russia. The rule of only granting visas for the exact time you are in the country applies of course to all foreigners travelling in Russia and we have witnessed some very stressful situations for friends when flights have been delayed or cancelled. And whether it is true or not, there are some scary stories around about people who accidentally overstay their visas, being detained.
As it happened, we were very nearly in that situation in Azerbaijan in 2015 when our two onward flights from Baku to Moscow and Moscow to Shanghai were both cancelled. And wouldn't being detained in Moscow and not being able to speak the language, have been fun?
Our forward itinerary was to fly from Pevek to Bilibino where we would stay overnight before catching the once per week flight out to Magadan. After a few days in Magadan meeting up with friends we would catch a flight to Khabarovsk, stay for just one day before flying onto Shanghai via Seoul.
As our visas expired the day after we left Khabarovsk, missing any of these connecting flights would be disastrous.
So far we had caught some 13 flights without cancellations. We knew we had been extraordinarily lucky. With another three flights to go, we figured the odds may well be against us. In saying all this however, we accept that we do take considerable logistical risks travelling to this part of the world. And although most people are aghast at our chosen destinations, in our opinion it is well worth the trauma. Well, maybe not at the time.....!
A Late Taxi, a Death Defying Trip to the Airport and a Cancelled Flight....
We woke to torrential rain. The wind had eased somewhat but it still looked dodgy as to whether our flight would proceed. Alex had warned that as a rule of thumb for these small aircraft, wind speeds in excess of 15 meters per second (54 kilometers per hour), mean an almost definite flight cancellation.
It's only when you are there that you realise from indoors, wind speed in places like Pevek is almost impossible to gauge. There are no trees to use as reference points and even the spindly grass barely moved in the wind. There was not even a flag pole or flag in sight. Only sound belied the intensity of the wind speed.
Apapelgino Airport is some 18 kilometers from Pevek. The road is unsealed and rough, with the journey taking around twenty minutes or so. In the rain, it could take considerably longer.
Alex had booked a taxi for 8:30 am to take us to the airport. Knowing the tiresome bureaucracy of Russian airports, particularly those in Closed Zones, it seemed a bit late to us for catching a mid morning flight. Angelika at the reception however was more than concerned. She was actually freaking out about what she considered to be far too late a departure. Furthermore, she insisted that she keep our rooms available "just in case our flight was cancelled".
We were sorry to be leaving Pevek. We loved the town and we were very fond of the friendly staff at the Pevek Hotel. We had bade our farewells to Lilia, Marguerite and Oksana the day before, leaving our contact details and links to our travelogues. We joked with them that they would all "star" in my blog. Oksana, who spoke perfect English was interested to read my travelogues and also to be Friends on Face Book. I laughed how I lucky I was. And I genuinely meant it. After all, not everyone in the world has a "Friend in Pevek".
Our taxi was more than 15 minutes late when our driver arrived breathless and distressed. His car had a puncture on the way and of course he had to change the tyre. It was entirely understandable but it didn't help our already well honed levels of anxiety.
As our poor driver gunned his old vehicle along the muddy, heavily potholed and rutted road I couldn't help but think we could well have another puncture. I felt sorry for the driver. Deeply apologetic, he had made an outstanding effort to get us to the airport in time. It was our fault. We really should have booked for an earlier time.
Not that in the end it mattered at all. We arrived to a completely empty airport. Our flight had been delayed and a decision as to whether it would fly would be made within the next hour. Obviously the other passengers knew, I thought bitterly. Why didn't we? Then I realised that we had flown into Pevek with just five passengers. Perhaps the three of us were the sum total of the flight? It was no wonder, with such low passenger numbers, they cancelled flights so frequently.
It was a long hour and a half of waiting, followed by another hour before we were informed the flight was cancelled. The flight would "probably" proceed the following day we were told. But the awful reality set in. Even if it did fly, would it land us in Bilibino in time to connect with our 3:00 pm Magadan flight?
Dejected, we called for a taxi to take us back to Pevek but none was available. Alex then tried Edik's son Alim but he was tied up for an hour. By the time we arrived back at our hotel, it was well past midday.
Angelika bless her, had ordered for our rooms not to be cleaned but just tidied. It was just as well she had kept our accommodation as the hotel was almost completely booked out that evening, as it was for the rest of the week. And being the only decent hotel in town, we were more than grateful.We consoled ourselves. We were fortunate to have accommodation in a good hotel in a town we liked very much, and with any luck we would make both our flights the following day.
Alex Falls Sick & We Undertake a Shopping Adventure
We decided to lunch at the Arabika Cafe. It was close and convenient - and none of us was particularly hungry. Alex however was looking quite green. His head flopped on the table, there was no way he was able to eat his meal. Not long after he headed back to the hotel. And when the always hungry Alex didn't eat, we knew he was really sick. Yes, Alex had succumbed to the same "bug" we had suffered from for the last few days. We knew exactly how he felt and were very sorry for him, especially with a probable flight the following day.
Alex rang us late in the afternoon. He was too sick to go out for dinner and would we be able to cope on our own? Neither of us was feeling like eating out so we decided instead of going to a restaurant, we would shop for - yes, some more bread and cheese. Alex spelled out very clearly how I was to ask the shop staff in Russian for the goods we wanted. It would, he affirmed be very good for my language practice. I was not so sure....
"It's easy Wendy. All you need to say is 'Я хочу купить хлеб (Ya khochu kupit' kleb or I want to buy bread - or cheese or butter or whatever....)". I can't tell you how many times I practised my pronunciation before we left the hotel. I was especially worried about saying "bread" as the Russian letter "х" is a gutteral sound like "kh" that Australians find particularly difficult to pronounce. I said it many times through Google Translate which surprisingly seemed to understand what I was saying. Anyway as Alan said, we could always use the iPad and translate it through Google. But it wasn't the point. It was important for me to use my tiny bit of Russian language. After all, why try to learn if I wasn't able to use it?
We decided to shop at our favourite general store where on previous occasions the staff had been very friendly. On entering on our own without Alex, I noticed the staff stiffen.
A charming woman finally came forward to serve us. Hesitantly, I said as best as I could in my halting Russian "Excuse me, I want to buy some bread, please". To my delight, the woman smiled and immediately showed us the bread she had for sale. I'm sure she was relieved too. There are not many English speaking tourists in Pevek.... And all went just fine from there, with us being able to buy just about everything we wanted.
Just as we left the woman called me aside and said something of which I had no idea. It was clear however, that she wanted me to go up an adjoining flight of stairs - and was coming with me whether I liked it or not. As it happened, she was directing me to a type of souvenir shop. Clearly the owner was rarely visited as he literally fell on us, offering to show me various post cards, refrigerator magnets, coffee mugs and tea towels. It suited me fine. I needed some gifts. He needed customers. And everyone was happy.
THURSDAY 13TH SEPTEMBER - HOW WE WERE FERRIED OUT OF PEVEK IN AN Mi-8 MILITARY HELICOPTER....
"Man, I'm Just Fry'n Ma Brain..."
Thursday 13th September 2018 is a date neither of us are likely to forget.
We woke to an overcast but otherwise seemingly fine sort of day. The wind had subsided and we were feeling elated about what we thought would be a certain flight to Bilibino (actually Keperve'em Airport some 50 kilometers south of Bilibino). And with any luck we prayed, it would connect with our flight to Magadan. But if it didn't.... Well, it didn't bear thinking about. Anyway, we were positive we were flying.
Alex was not so sure. Still pale and peaky, he had spent most of his night being sick. As he trudged into our room, he told us that he was unable to get a clear statement from the airport as to whether our flight would be proceeding. And for the next hour he spent waiting on the phone trying to get some sort of answer.
The Border Guards then rang to ask what Alex was doing with his tourists if the flight didn't proceed. Exasperated, he turned to us "Man, that's not my fault if the flight doesn't go! I've no idea what we do!". And that was true but it didn't solve our predicament if we missed our Magadan flight. The long and short of it would be that because of the lack on ongoing flights from Magadan to Khabarovsk, we would overstay our visas and be in well, all sorts of trouble.
During the night Alan had chewed over this possibility. If our flight was delayed again, our only course of action would be to try to fly to Moscow where we would have to travel all the way back to Shanghai, forgoing our stay in Magadan and Khabarovsk; a detour return flight of some twenty hours to say nothing of the huge cost involved. Needless to say we would need at least one night in Moscow to connect with a return flight to Shanghai.
It sounded like an onerous journey but one we had no option other than to consider. And actually there was a flight out of Pevek to Moscow that day. It was probably booked out but if we didn't hear soon about our Bilibino flight, then perhaps we should try to make alternative arrangements?
What we really needed was hard information. But in the Russian Far East, that is not always easy. If the flight to Moscow was booked out that day, when did the next flight leave? What flights left at what time from Moscow to Shanghai? What hotels would available at Moscow's Shereyetmevo Airport that evening? And what would happen if we had problems with timing travelling to and from Moscow? As Alex was heading back home to Anadyr, we could well be on our own in Moscow with no visas.
To add to our frustration, our computer would not connect to the internet so we had to leave it all to Alex. Were we stressed out? You bet....
Alex had understandably retreated to his room. We waited and waited, hoping for some resolution at least about our Bilibino flight. At least if we knew it was cancelled again we could go all out to catch a Moscow flight. At 11:00 am I crept upstairs to find a very stressed out Alex on the phone to Vladimir, Director of Kutkh Travel. "What's happening?" I ventured cautiously. "Man, I don't know. I'm just fry'n ma brain!!" To my horror it seemed like Terminal Inertia had set in. I couldn't get any answers. No one seemed to have clue what was going on. Certainly we didn't. And time was getting on. I went back to our room where a frustrated Alan was also "frying his brain". We sat together and waited...
At 11:30 am a very agitated Alex came flying downstairs to our room. "Quickly, quickly. You must go now. Get your bags together. Our flight is leaving at midday!". At midday? Was this some sort of joke? After all, we knew it would take us a good twenty minutes just to drive there, even if we could get a taxi. And of course, that was another problem. Being Moscow Flight Day, the few taxis in Pevek were all booked out. More brain frying....
By some miracle Alex managed to book a taxi that was returning from dropping off passengers for the Moscow flight. It was in fact the same driver who had taken us the day before and had a puncture before he arrived. Greeting him like a long lost friend, we were highly relieved to see him and his passenger friend arrive within minutes of Alex's call. And in no time we sped to the airport, arriving on the dot of midday.
A Wonderful Flight to Bilibino's Keperve'em Airport
What a difference a day makes! From the bare clinical surrounds of the airport interior the previous day where we saw not one single passenger, the place that day was seething with literally hundreds of people. I guess like Lavrentiya, the once per week flight from Pevek to Moscow is a big affair and all the passengers looked like they had brought their entire families with them. We looked at each other and nodded. There appeared to be no way we could have squeezed on the Moscow flight....
Our elation turned to despair as we realised we would have to join the endless queues to the check in counters. It was already five minutes past midday and our flight may have even departed. At the very least they surely would have closed the boarding gates.
"Come with me. Quickly!" hissed Alex. Three women officials appeared from nowhere, urgently signally that we were to follow them - and quickly. We were then rapidly guided through a side door which to our surprise opened out onto the airport tarmac.
We could not believe our eyes. Our aircraft was indeed a military Mi-8 helicopter; one of those bright orange aircraft we had seen so often ferrying the military personnel. Like our hairy helicopter flights in Kamchatka, I tried not to notice the oil spewing out of the engine or the tell tale signs of dripping fuel....
We boarded along with two other passengers, and plonked down on bare plank seats. Two pilots and a crew member came in next and within minutes the engine started and the rotors were in full bore. Alan and I smiled at each other, then virtually collapsed with relief. And here is our take off from Apapelgino Airport: https://youtu.be/7OJvY-4LMPo
I certainly hadn't understood what was going on between Alex and Vladimir when I visited Alex in his room that morning. Far from what I thought was "Terminal Inertia", Vladimir must have been working overtime with his contacts to ensure we left Pevek that day. And we never really found out how our evacuation was organised as at Keperve'em we parted different ways with Alex. All we could hear through the roar of the helicopter engine was Alex yelling "Vladimir told me to hold on before we organised a Moscow trip as he was making plans with the officials. They are going to hold the plane for you at Keperve'em. But not for me. I'll just have to take pot luck and hope my flight is late".
God, the Border Guards must have been desperate to get us out before our permits expired. Whatever Vladimir did it worked brilliantly. And we were very grateful. For Alex however, the news was not so bright. His flight back to his home town of Anadyr which left early in the afternoon, operated only once per week. If he missed it, he would have to stay in Bilibino for another six days. And we knew he was missing his fiancee Sveta.
And now I must take time to describe our Mi-8 aircraft. To say it was basic would be a gross understatement. From the inside the ancient beast just looked like a heap of scrap metal riveted together with over sized bolts, housing some hard metal seats down each side. In the middle was the most outrageous yellow fuel tank which slid up and down the "aisle" as the helicopter dipped and swayed. The pilots' cabin door was left open so we could easily see their rather rudimentary looking controls and radio gear. It didn't look all that reassuring...
Even more concerning was that there was no toilet. To my horror, Alex who had been so sick with his gastric bug, ate snacks for the duration of the trip. We didn't dare look at even a dry biscuit. We agreed Alex's stomach must have been much more resilient than ours....
But we were airborne and on our way at least to Keperve'em. And it was tremendously exciting to have been ferried out on a military helicopter! Alan looked over to me and smiled. I knew he was also thoroughly enjoying the ride.
Our route took us over the gleaming coastline of the beautiful Chaun Bay. In near perfect conditions our low flight enabled us to see the wonderful detail of the coastline, the unusual web of hundreds of lakes and spits and even some of the tiny settlements nestled along the bay. We could even see quite clearly the paved road to Rytkuchi which we followed until we flew right over the tiny gold mining village.
Some ten minutes into our flight, our "flight attendant" appeared and asked us to put on our seat belts. He then proceeded to put "seat belts" around the huge fuel tank, presumably to stop it zapping up and down the helicopter cabin. It was all most amusing. I am sure if the thing crashed, the seat belts would have been of no help whatsoever. And if that big fuel tank went up in flames, then....
But no-one seemed to be a bit concerned. The other two passengers were apparently mining managers. One worked at Komsomolsky. They were friendly and smiled but under the roar of the engines, there was no way anyone could converse. Of course, there were no protective ear muffs provided.... And I guess for these guys who did this trip quite often, it was no different from any other flight. But for us it was a real adventure. Even Alex was looking excited - and thankfully, not quite so sick...
For the next hour or so, our journey took us south-west across wide expanses of wetlands, lakes, rivers and bare mountains. Huge rivers dissected massive flooded plains, their convoluted journeys forming complex and highly colourful braids against the cream-grey dullness of the tundra. Such foreign scenery literally took our breath away; there was not a single tree nor a clump of vegetation in sight. Who lives in these wilds? Arctic foxes, bears, hares, ground squirrels? And if so, what did they or their prey live on?
And in the very distance, some 30 minutes out of Keperve'em we could just make out the outline of the Aluchin mountains; a young volcanic range comprising a group of four cinder* volcanoes. A lone volcano towered splendidly high above the undulating tundra plains. There was no doubting, the scenery was quite magical.
*Cinder volcanoes as the name suggests, are steep conical hills or mountains comprising piles of loose pyroclastic - or laval matter that is formed by fast moving gas, with speeds up to some 700 kilometers per hour. They are the simplest form of volcano and are mostly ejected from a single vent.
As we flew closer to Keperve'em, some clumps of sparse vegetation became apparent on the more sheltered sides of the valleys. The closer we came to land, the more dense the trees became. And although it was only early autumn, most had completely defoliated, ready for the brutal harshness of an Arctic winter.
Keperve'em is located at the confluence of the Bolshoy (Big) Keperve'em River and the Maly (Small) Anyuy River, both of which are surrounded by dense taiga. Strange as it may sound, after a week in the tundra surrounds of Pevek, it was quite an odd feeling to see trees and vegetation again. But there was now no time to sit and absorb the scenery. we were landing within minutes at Keperve'em Airport.
A Frantic Run For Our Flight
Plunging from complete inertia to full on panic had become the name of the game during our travels in Chukotka. It had been so pleasant to sit and watch the fascinating geography toward Bilibino and now we were once again in full personal flight mode.
"You must run." hissed Alex. "The plane is already on the tarmac". Well, it was actually Alex's aircraft not ours but we ran obediently until we nearly died of breathlessness. It was one hell of a long way across the gravel runway.
There was of course no time for thanks or fond farewells. Alex was fortunate that his plane was running late and he managed to board just before the doors were closed. I did wonder later however, as to whether the flight had waited a little extra time for him. One would hope so.
With Alex safely aboard his flight, we could then walk to the Keperve'em Airport terminal. Guided by the same friendly woman official who had escorted us over the snowy runway in March, there appeared to be no real sense of urgency. To our pleasant surprise, the staff and even the passengers at the terminal were most friendly and helpful, showing us where to collect our baggage and check in for our Magadan flight. We even could sit down for twenty minutes before our flight boarded. And we sure needed it. It had been a roller coaster series of events.
And we knew we had only just got out of Pevek by the skin of our teeth.... Here is our landing in in Keperve'em: https://youtu.be/MEhDfkRhz3E
2025-05-22