Turtle Expedition

The Russian Adventure: An Introduction

The Idea------The Problems

In the beginning, it was innocent enough.The idea to drive across Russia had lurked in the back of our minds since my participation in the 1990 Camel Trophy. The Turtle Expedition, Unltd. has always been fascinated by extremes. Now, there was Russia! One sixth of the Earth's surface!! Eight million square miles; 7,000 miles across eleven time zones stretching halfway around the planet! Russia is 2 1/2 times larger than the U.S.! Her doors were now suddenly, and perhaps only temporarily, thrown open to adventurers for the first time in over seventy years. Could this unique opportunity be missed??

A year of research and preparation had served only to show us how unprepared we were, uncovering many unsolved problems which lay ahead. For starters, there was no all-weather road across the Russian Far East, (Eastern Siberia). A vast wilderness of forest and swamps in the south stretches north across unbridged rivers, high mountains, and frozen tundra to the distant shores of the Arctic Ocean. We could find few foreigners or Russians who had ever crossed Siberia with a vehicle, and those who had invariably resorted to the Trans-Siberian Railway in the South, with its Pacific terminus in Vladivostok, or the BAM Railway from Tynda. Other routes involved the use of river barges for hundreds of miles, down the Aldan from Khandyga and up the mighty Lena to Ust Kut.

It seemed to us, that using trains and barges just because there's no easy road,---other than simply to get across unbridged rivers or oceans,--- is like using a helicopter to climb a mountain. That brought us to the only possible answer: Winter Roads.

Winter Roads are not a new invention. Russian Cossacks and trappers, and before them, the Paleo-Siberian and Altaic tribes, including the warriors of Genghis Khan and the Tatars, roamed the forests and valleys of Siberia for millennia, following these frozen tracks.

We began to realize that if we were to actually drive across Russia, timing would be critical. Winter comes early in the Far East. A September snow is normal, and major rivers freeze in November, when the inland mountains and valleys begin to suffer some of the coldest temperatures in the World. If the average is minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit (-40°C), weeks can pass when the mercury never climbs above -60°F! There are documented lows below -100°F!! At sixty below zero, metal can crystallize and snap, and plastics---like photographic film and the vinyl sides of our Four Wheel pop-up camper---can become as brittle as a potato chip. Tires and fan belts can freeze and crack like glass and a 5-15W Arctic oil turns to heavy jello. Gear oil becomes solid.

Our own safety was of paramount concern. The human body, with its built-in internal heater, is far easier than a truck to keep alive in such extremes, but frostbite can occur in minutes at temperatures below -50°F. Our Northern Outfitters Expedition Series EXP II Clothing Systems would protect us down to -100°F in a worst-case scenario.

The Turtle Expedition Team:

Gary Wescott
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Gary Wescott studied photography and journalism at the University of San Diego, and began traveling in 1969. He created The Turtle Expedition, Unltd. in 1972. Since then, his photographs and articles have been published in fifteen countries in ten languages on six continents. His unique style has drawn the praises and a loyal following of four-wheel drive and travel enthusiasts around the World.

Monika Wescott
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Monika Mühlebach Wescott was raised and educated in Switzerland, graduating from the University of Zürich with a degree in teaching. Joining The Turtle Expedition in 1977, she began to develop her skill as a photographer and editor. Speaking five languages fluently has helped to open doors wherever The Turtle Expedition goes.