Icebreaker expedition to Franz Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya

In the morning, you will receive your first briefing at the hotel, where we will share with you important information about your upcoming trip.

Shortly after our meeting, we will leave for the Atomflot base, and in the afternoon we will board the real working nuclear icebreaker 50 Years of Victory.

The big land will remain astern. Ahead lies the Barents Sea and the path following in the footsteps of those for whom the North was not just a direction, but a life's work.

Here, amidst the cries of seagulls, the salty wind and cold water, you can feel especially clearly: we are already beyond the Arctic Circle.

The Barents Sea met and saw off the great polar expeditions. Today we will hear stories about the most heroic of them.

During the lectures of our polar experts, the usual routes on the map will turn into the lifelines of those who went to where the world they knew ended.

The coming days are the heart of our expedition.

Several times a day on Zodiac boats we will go out to the rocky shores, explore the islands during hiking routes and take helicopters into the sky to land at the best panoramic points of the archipelago.

Franz Josef Land is uninhabited, but we are not alone here: in the coming days we will see huge walrus rookeries, famous bird markets and, of course, polar bears - the rightful owners of these places.

We will follow in the footsteps of real expeditions and hear archival recordings where they were once written.

In the coming days (5-9 days of the expedition) we will explore the main pearls of the archipelago and the real wonders of the Arctic nature.

One of the days we will land in the legendary Tikhaya Bay. This is a truly iconic place.

In 1912-1914, the expedition of Georgy Sedov wintered here, the events of which formed the basis of the famous story "Two Captains". Later, the first Arctic scientific station was opened here under the leadership of Ivan Papanin.

We will literally touch the historical era of the great Arctic explorations! You can also send a postcard from here — from the northernmost post office in the world.

One of the most unusual places on Franz Josef Land is Champ Island, famous for its spherical nodules — stones of almost perfectly round shape up to several meters in diameter, the origin of which is still controversial among scientists.

Hayes Island is one of the key points of the archipelago, where there is an active polar weather station. Polar explorers are still working here today, observing the weather, ice and life in the Arctic.

This is a rare opportunity to see a real station on the edge of the earth, feel the rhythm of life in high latitudes and look at the Arctic through the eyes of those who explore the North every day.

We continue to explore Franz Josef Land.

We continue to explore Franz Josef Land.

We are leaving the archipelago and heading for Novaya Zemlya.

One chapter of the expedition is coming to an end, but a new one awaits us — no less bright, strong and beautiful in its own way.

This sea crossing is a time to reflect on what you've seen, hear new stories on board, and prepare to encounter an archipelago that opens up the North from a different perspective: even wilder and more impressive.

The 10-11 days of the expedition are dedicated to the Novaya Zemlya archipelago (Cape of Desire, Oran Islands).

Novaya Zemlya is the culmination of our route and a completely different Arctic.

Polar caps and ice domes cover a significant part of the archipelago, descend to the sea and form powerful glaciers.

On the Zodiac boats we will get closer to the ice labyrinths and see how icebergs are born before our eyes.

One of the key points of the route is Cape Zhelaniya, where the Barents Sea meets the Kara Sea. Here we will see a historical lighthouse and a mothballed polar station from the 1930s - traces of human life on this Arctic frontier.

The 10-11 days of the expedition are dedicated to the Novaya Zemlya archipelago (Cape of Desire, Oran Islands).

The next point on our route is the Great Orange Islands. This is one of the main natural wonders of Novaya Zemlya: on the Zodiac we will walk along the harsh shores and see one of the largest walrus rookeries in the western Arctic region.

If the weather conditions are favorable, we will also have landings and hiking routes around the islands.

These days we are summing up the results of our journey. These moments of peace, tranquility and satisfaction from achieving a goal are remembered forever.

We will watch a film about our journey and relive the most vivid and touching moments.

A pleasant end will be a dinner with the captain and live music.

We're going back to the Mainland. Days among the ice, two great archipelagos and the route of legendary Arctic expeditions remain astern.

During the trip, the icebreaker became a whole world for us, and the people on board were not just fellow travelers, but participants in one big Arctic story who were close in spirit.

The expedition is coming to an end, but the North remains with us forever — in the shots, conversations, memories and the feeling that we have all become involved in something more.