Chukotka, Bilibino: photo, how to get?

In our country there is an amazing place - Chukotka. Bilibino is a city located in this region with a continental climate. For this area cold, up to -40, winters and warm, up to +25, summer are characteristic. It is difficult to live beyond the polar circle, but it turns out that it is possible. And in Soviet times it was even prestigious. People were attracted to Chukotka. Bilibino is a city where people came to earn money, houses and cultural institutions were built here. What does the city live in our time? We will tell in this article.

Wonderful land

A place where, according to some, live well - Chukotka. Bilibino too must be a heavenly place. After all, there are gold mines and this precious metal is extracted more than in other regions of Russia. And the first placer was discovered in 1955.

Geologists settled on the river Karalvaam. The settlement, which spontaneously arose in this place, was given the name in honor of one of the employees of the reconnaissance expedition - Yu. N. Bilibin. The deposit proved to be so rich that additional power was needed to ensure uninterrupted mining of the precious metal.

The USSR Council of Ministers decided to build the first and only nuclear power plant in the permafrost region. Chukotka (the city of Bilibino) was the place where gold was mined in huge quantities. For example, in 1969, the Bilibino ore mining and processing enterprise produced 14 tons. Of course, the nuclear power plant had to be serviced, for this, people who created human conditions were needed. They built schools, a liaison office, a library, a cinema.

End of story

Such prosperity ended in 1997, when the plant ceased its activities. Loss of attractiveness for those who want to earn extra money and Chukotka. Bilibino lost his dignity in the form of jobs and wages, and even payments to employees ceased. Residents of the city, especially young people, began to leave in search of a better life. As a result, the population declined by almost 10 thousand from the former 16.

Now the mining and processing plant does not exist both legally and physically. From the rich enterprise there were only ruins.

The remaining residents work at the nuclear power plant, at the gold mining mine "Karalveem", in stores, in budgetary institutions that remain in the city, in the taxi service.

There are almost no personal cars here. And it is difficult to imagine how they are delivered to Bilibino (Chukotka). How to get there? Through the air. The nearest airfield is in Magadan and Anadyr. You can fly from them to Kiperveem in three hours. And from there to Bilibino will only have to overcome 40 kilometers by road.

There is also a winter road that runs along the route Magadan - Zyryanka - Bilibino and has a length of 2500 km. It is interesting that some romantics come here in search of adventure, despite the hard way and the cost of the flight, which is about 20,000 rubles.

What can I visit?

You can get to the Nuclear Power Plant with an excursion if you register for it in advance. Those who want to inspect what is inside, you need to wear special sneakers, and when entering the room with an atomic reactor generally take off your shoes. Inside, everything looks pretty clean and neat. Everything works and is in its place.

It is noteworthy that on some instruments you can see icons. Of course, it is desirable that God kept Mr. Bilibino (Chukotka) from dangerous incidents and even more so from the explosion of a power plant.

sights

In such a small town, located away from civilization, it turns out that there is something to show the visiting guest. Sites include the Museum of Local Lore. G.S. Glazyrina. What's the most interesting thing about it? Of course, these are artifacts telling about the northern life, including mammoth tusks, one of which was found near the city. In the museum, they also sell walrus bone products, deer antlers, as well as works of folk artists, paintings of artists, printed products.

The local library is equipped quite modern, has many interesting books, it even has an electronic catalog.

Here they are always happy to help pass a long, unoccupied evening. You can dispel boredom in the local House of Culture. It hosts various events, performances by creative groups, discos for young people.

There are monuments, stelae and other important places in the city. One of them, of course, is a bust, installed in honor of the geologist Yu.A. Bilibin. There are many interesting places in nature, from where you can enjoy stunning views.

What do local people eat?

In the food are purchased products and what can be obtained from their farms. Prices in the city are very high. Apples cost about 400 rubles., Eggs 180 rubles., Bananas and lemons from 400 rubles. Up to 700 rubles., Beef 300 rubles.

And fruits and vegetables are much more expensive than meat. Because there is no way to grow the latter in permafrost conditions, and the local residents breed cows, and deer meat, seals and fish are cheaper here, because for people living here this is not exotic.

What are the buildings in Bilibino?

They live in a city in high-rise buildings and private houses. The area "Arctic" looks best. Houses standing on stilts, as it should be in the northern conditions, are painted with cheerful, colorful stripes and look quite strong. Bilibino (Chukotka) is a city in which there are many abandoned appliances and empty buildings. Taking out all this from here is expensive.

Interestingly, construction is still underway, various facilities. For example, in 2011 an Orthodox church was built. There are many children's playgrounds in the city, and the children themselves are still there. Even in such conditions, people want to create families and get kids.

Previously, there was a swimming pool, the building of which could not withstand frost and cracked. But in September 2014 a new modern sports and recreation complex was opened. To visit the pool, located in it, you need, as elsewhere, to get a medical service and buy bathing accessories. They carefully monitor the composition of the water and even installed a boiler so that the building always had something to wash in the shower. As in all northern cities, there is a bathhouse in Bilibino where you can warm yourself.

A lot of interesting people will see a tourist in the city. A remote, but wonderful place and a favorite place for local people is Bilibino (Chukotka). The photos that can be seen in this article show that people want to live everywhere.

The city, in principle, is not going to die, although it seems that soon it will still have to do it if the nuclear power plant is closed, which is already in the plans of the state.

In general, Bilibino (Chukotka) is a picturesque place. There is a mountain, a forest, and a river. Some residents are so used to their city that they do not want to leave anywhere from here. And others simply have nowhere to go.