decided to drive a Lada (Russian car)
from Chita to Blagoveshchensk and
with this in mind, the Russian Fed-
eral Ministry for Road Construction,
asphalted the last unpaved section,
about 2000 km. The risks of riding
the Trans-Siberian route had been
reduced in many ways, yet the adven-
ture remains.
The highway passes through the
territories of 12 regions, 5 territories,
2 republics and 1 district, crosses 16
large rivers, including such giants as
the Volga, Kama, Yenisei, Amur and
Irtysh.
Beyond the Urals, many sections
of the road were of very poor quali-
ty and there were practically no ser-
vices where you could repair. Today
in all major cities there are BMW
dealers. Near Omsk, Chita and some
other cities there are still parts of the
old Siberian track, through which
you can ride and understand how the
road looked beyond ten years ago.
Pits, potholes, large cracks, sections
without asphalt.
Ride past Chita five years ago and
the road basically ended, the begin-
ning of the 2000km if rough, almost
non-existent track, without infra-
structure (where Putin traveled in
2012).
Although the infrastructure is still
sparse, compared to what it was, it's
much better. Cellular communica-
tion is still not everywhere, but bet-
ter than none at all. Considering that
this is a territory of permafrost and
the weather here is forever changing
dramatically, passing through this re-
gion in those days was for the bravest
of traveller.
The lucky ones who reached
Blagoveshchensk where often crimi-
nals from the far-east. I was told by
truckers and locals that in Khabarovsk
local bandits would often take money
from travellers to provide ‘permis-
sion’ to pass through ‘their’ city. This
is now a thing of the past yet there is
still an air of danger, of excitement.
Bandits would steal fuel and wheels
from vehicles stopped overnight.
This meant transport companies
would not use this route, the risks
were far too great. This is gradually
changing, it is now considered safe
to travel here during the day. I ques-
tioned this when stopped by the local
Chita police and was warned to be
careful, the lieutenant telling me, it’s
where “wild places” begin.
As I said above, today the situa-
tion has changed for the better. At
least there is infrastructure and a
good road which, means that almost
everyone can make a trip along the
Trans-Siberian Railway route. It’s
an adventure, yet needn’t be too ex-
tremely.
I travelled the TransSib twice in
one year and came to many conclu-
sions.
Most people, travellers, don’t know
how Siberia and the far-east look.
They can’t imagine what a big and
beautiful territory it is. The moun-
tains, forests, fields and meadows.
The rivers and lakes. The taiga is
something they have never heard of,
let alone, discovered its beauty and
massive expanse. They have no idea
what the far-east of the country really
TRAVERSE
40
looks like.
The people of Siberia are friendly,
inquisitive, kind. Whenever stopped,
they approach to wish luck. They en-
joy having their photograph taken.
They’re welcoming and often invite
to visit their homes. The quality of
a trip is not measured by the kilo-
metres travelled but by the people
you meet, the friends that you make.
People along the way offering their
homes, their meals, their wine. Too
many to thank but I’m sure we will
meet again, soon.
I travelled this route twice and
have only just scratched the surface.
There’s many more routes, north,
south and in the middle. Many more
interesting places to discover. I’ll be
back, next year, finding new routes,
discovering new places, meeting
new people. I hope I can inspire you
to come along and experience the
Trans-Siberian route. AN
If you like the idea of riding Siberia,
with a local who knows the region
and enjoys riding it himself then con-
tact Alex through -
www.rusmototravel.com