Kolyma: Jack London Lake and Aboriginal Peak

Today our difficult and long journey will continue. Approximately at 5:00 we will arrive at the beginning of the route.

After breakfast, we will load into the shift and cover 70 km off-road to our camp. 

We will stop periodically to capture the beautiful views of the Kolyma Highlands in memory and in photos. 

The camp "Combat" is located in a gorge on the shore of the lake of Dancing Grayling between two low but steep hills. 

Previously, it was a children's health camp, which the children affectionately called "Jack". Now there are several wooden buildings left from the camp in good condition, a dining room, a sauna and even some kind of local club. 

We will arrive at the camp in time for lunch, we will devote the second half to preparing for the walking part of the route and relaxing: we will go to a field bath with a bridge from which you can jump into the lake, arrange evening gatherings and get to know each other better.

Bus: 70 km.
Walking distance: 2 km.
Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner.

After breakfast, we will head to the nearby Yuntur hill. 

Despite the short length of the climb, the climb will be almost 400 meters, so our journey in one direction will take several hours. 

At the request of the group and depending on the weather conditions, we will be able to meet the dawn there and see how this harsh land wakes up.

The hill really offers stunning views of the Bolshoy Anngachak ridge and three small lakes: Dream, Anemone and Gray Gull. 

All the lakes were formed as a result of the melting of ancient glaciers and are located in a small depression surrounded by mountain ranges.

Upon returning to the camp, dinner and rest, because tomorrow we will have the first running day.

Walking distance: 15 km.
Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner.

Today we are leaving our base and with all our belongings we are heading along the shore of Jack London Lake to the rangers' parking lot.

Jack London Lake is the calling card of Kolyma. 

The water surface with a gentle and indented coastline on the background of slender ridges and a fiery forest will not leave anyone indifferent. The landscape resembles the famous Norwegian fjords. 

It is worth overcoming any distance for this.

When we reach the rangers' parking lot, we load our belongings into the boat and go to the Unknown Creek. 

This is where our transition towards Aboriginal Peak begins. 

After lunch, we will go out into the valley of the Unknown Stream. It seems that this is a completely different world! Here it is — the realm of the "Lord of the Rings". 

Inaccessible mountain ranges, many lakes and streams that literally cut through the entire space, the fiery colors of the swamps, and wild life boils in all this. 

After admiring the beauty enough, we will continue on our way to our destination — Lake Invisible, from where the famous Saw teeth and Ram Peak are clearly visible.

Walking distance: 10 km.
Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner.

Today we will continue our journey. 

We have to get to a small lake, which is located under the Trident Mountain. 

There are practically no trails, we will make our way through the thickets along the overflowing stream everywhere. It is likely that you will have to walk almost all the way in the hills. 

All our suffering will pay off with a vengeance when we get to the parking lot on the lake. 

Here we are waiting for the unreal beauty of the views, for two whole days we will observe them, opening our tents in the morning.

Walking distance: 12 km.
Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner.

Aborigen Peak (2,286 m) is one of the highest peaks of the Magadan region. 

Due to an error in determining the height, the peak was considered the highest peak of Kolyma for a long time.

The name first appeared on geologists' maps in the 30s of the last century. Aborigine is Latin for "original inhabitant". 

Indeed, the mountain stands out sharply from others in this mountain system. And the mountain system itself, of an Alpine type rare for these places: sharp stones, difficult-to-pass madder, vertical walls.

Climbing to the top (climbing 1200 meters) is technically difficult and, depending on the weather, may require the use of climbing equipment (helmet, cats), therefore it is not an obligatory part of the program. 

We will act based on the level of training and condition of the band members, as well as weather conditions.

If we have the desire and the opportunity, we will make the ascent. 

Otherwise, we will be able to take an equally exciting walk to the foot of the Saw and to the Festival and Baranye lakes.

Walking distance: 10 km.
Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner.

No matter how much we would like to stay, today we have to return to Jack London Lake along the Red Plateau. 

The leaves of blueberries, Arctic birch and other shrubs change their color at the first frost and turn red, yellow, orange and burgundy. 

This gives a unique rich range to the whole area. 

We will go down the partially familiar road past the necklace of lakes Aquarium, Invisible, Neighboring.

We will set up our camp at the mouth of the river.

Walking distance: 12 km.
Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner.

Today we go to the confluence of the Unknown Creek in Jack London Lake, where we will be transported by boat to the Biologists Spit — a long sandy strip along the lake. 

It was named after scientists whose research station was once located near the lake. 

The spit is curved and closed from the winds by ridges, so fogs often creep here in the morning — an unforgettable sight, for which it is worth getting up at dawn.

Walking distance: 6 km.
Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner.

Biologists Spit is one of the most popular places on the lake due to the sandy beach, equipped places for a tent camp and a campfire, as well as a sauna, which anyone can use. And we will be no exception.

Today we are not in a hurry, we walk light, admire the beauty, and after lunch we will heat a hot bath and relax after hard days of hiking.

Walking distance: 5 km.
Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner.

Today we are returning to the camp on the lake of Dancing Grayling. 

The lake got its name back in 1932 during the first geological campaigns. 

A huge amount of grayling flocks to the evening feeding, the water turns a bright golden color. The fish jumps out of the water completely vertically, stretching out to the string. 

There are so many of them, and the jumps are so frequent that a person is not able to see the individual phases of the rise and fall of the fish. 

Our eye captures a single whole picture — the gold of the water boiling from the fall of many fish, and the silvery, curving bodies of grayling standing on their tails. 

Having put on our brodniks, we will carefully cross to the other side through the stormy channel of Options with large boulders. 

It connects Jack London Lake and Dancing Grayling Lake. 

The active part of our route has come to an end. 

We will spend the last evening at the camp, go to the sauna, arrange evening gatherings and share our impressions of our trip.

Walking distance: 15 km.
Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner.

The water in the rivers that we cross on cross-country vehicles on the way to the lake can rise very much as a result of a large amount of precipitation. 

In this case, we will have to wait for the water to recede or walk part of the way to the camp. 

If we don't need this day, we can have a day at the lake and take a little more walk.

Early rise. 

In the morning we say goodbye to our camp and the entire Jack London Nature Park. 

After breakfast, we load into an all-terrain vehicle and set off along the already familiar Kolyma Highlands road to the highway (about 70 km). 

A comfortable bus will be waiting for us on the highway, which will take us to Magadan. 

The path will run along the Kolyma highway, known as the "road on bones". 

This is 500 km of harsh but picturesque valleys and passes, cut by many rivers and streams. 

This is the only land road in Kolyma (there is no railway connection), and therefore a very important transport artery connecting the region and the "mainland". That's what the locals call the rest of Russia, considering themselves essentially islanders. 

It is on the way back in the daytime that we will be able to assess its scale.

Upon arrival in Magadan, we check into a hotel / hostel.

Bus: 600 km.
Meals: breakfast, lunch.

Today there is an opportunity to take a walk along the embankment and the city, if you did not have time to do it before the start of the route, visit local museums, theaters and cinemas, go for a boat trip, choosing one of the many nearby islands, arrange fishing, buy souvenirs and fish. 

You definitely won't be bored!

Meals: on your own.

Today we say goodbye to Magadan. Flight home. 

We recommend that you purchase tickets no earlier than in the afternoon, so that you have enough time in case of unforeseen circumstances, as well as take into account additional personal plans.