Whale Alley, Chukotka Peninsula. Whale Alley (Chukotka) Whale Alley

Whale Alley is an ancient Eskimo sanctuary, an archaeological complex and the main attraction of Chukotka, located on the island of Yttygran. However, they learned about this unique and mysterious attraction only recently.

Whale Alley fascinates with its extraordinary beauty and attracts travelers not only from Russia, but also from other countries, being not only a sanctuary, but also a fantastic picturesque place. Located on the edge of our country, the whale alley gives its visitor the feeling that he is on the edge of the world, where life and the development of civilization have stopped. A truly stunning spectacle appears before you - a building of enormous size, from the bones of bowhead whales in two rows, about 500 m long. One row of whale skulls, each of which is 2 m wide and 1.5 m high, and this is only the part that is located on the surface of the earth. The second row consists of massive pillars of jaw bones up to 5 m high. Between the rows there are 150 meat storage pits, where food is stored even today. Next comes a stone path about 50m long and a round platform surrounded by boulders with a large flat boulder in the center and a fireplace with traces of ash. Scientists suggest that this place was previously the central sanctuary of a large community that once lived on the shores of the Senyavin Strait.

Opening of Whale Alley

The discovery of Whale Alley happened by chance in 1977 thanks to an archaeological expedition. Scientists believe that in the 14th century, when whaling flourished, the alley was used either for sacred rituals or for competitions and feasts. There is an opinion that ritual meetings of hunters were held on the island of Yttygran for two centuries, but due to a sharp cold snap, whales disappeared from these latitudes and whaling came to naught. Local residents have no information about the origin of the whale alley, and to this day research continues in this mysterious place.

Tourists are eager to visit this place, but many are deterred by its inaccessibility, and this is not due to the prices for tours and cruises. Whale Alley is located on a desert island, and the closest one to it locality 30 km. Depending on what time of year you decide to visit this archaeological complex, you will have to get there by helicopter, skis, all-terrain vehicle, etc.

How to get to Whale Alley?

It is best to plan a visit to Whale Alley in July-September, but it is worth taking into account the climate of the Chukotka Peninsula, where snow can fall in the middle of summer, and the temperature does not rise above +14? C.

As previously mentioned, Whale Alley is located on Yttygran Island in the Beringia National Natural and Ethnic Park. Head office address: Chukotka autonomous region, village Provideniya, st. Dezhneva Embankment, 35, apt. 2. Phone: 42735 22559. You can get to the village by plane from Anadyr.

Next, you need to get to the island, which can be done from the village of Yanrakynnot by whaleboat, helicopter or all-terrain vehicle in the summer (this is 85 km from Provideniya). In winter, you can walk to Whale Alley on ice, but you will have to walk 30-40 km, going around the uninhabited island of Arakamchechen.

The inaccessibility of Whale Alley poses a challenge to travelers, and they accept it, setting out to conquer this amazing place. After all, victory over difficulties will bring incomparable pleasure and a sea of ​​impressions from contemplating the extraordinary beauty of this place.

Have a nice trip!

Whale Alley - an ancient Eskimo sanctuary on Itygran Island (Chukotka), an archaeological complex consisting of two rows of huge bones of bowhead whales dug into the ground. The complex was opened in 1976 by a group of researchers from the Institute of Ethnography of the USSR Academy of Sciences under the leadership of M. A. Chlenov.

Northeast of Providence Bay, in the Bering Strait, on Yttygran Island there is a unique archaeological complex - Whale Alley. Nowadays, Whale Alley is one of the most famous attractions of Chukotka, but until recently no one knew anything about it.

Let us turn again to the materials of the first scientific expedition that studied this unusual architectural structure. It was not by chance that the monument was called “Whale Alley” by researchers. Its main components are two rows of huge bowhead whale bones dug into the ground. One row is formed by skulls. Each of them reaches a width of at least two meters and rises one and a half meters above the ground. Fifteen groups of skulls are located along the shoreline. (The builders of Whale Alley used the remains of at least 50-60 adult individuals). The second row, running parallel to the first, consists of massive pillars of jaw bones. Their diameter is about half a meter and the height of each pillar is almost five meters.

In the space between the rows of bowhead whale skulls and jawbones there are food storage areas - meat pits - and artificial structures in the form of stone rings. At the end of the complex, on the slope of the hill, a man-made stone road 50 meters long has been preserved. The road leads to a flat, round area. The site is surrounded on all sides by boulders. In its center there also lies a large flat boulder, and not far from it there is a hearth made of small stones and filled with ash.

While studying the pebble spit on which a significant part of the monument is located, the expedition members noticed numerous whale bones - mostly skulls - lying under a thick layer of pebbles at the very edge of the surf. In the past, they were undoubtedly also part of the Whale Alley, and it thus represented an even more grandiose complex than in the days when the first scientific research began on Yttygran.

Whale bones, boulders and stone slabs have long been used by Arctic sea hunters in the construction of dwellings and outbuildings, however, nothing similar to Whale Alley was discovered either in Chukotka or beyond its borders. Not only the size of the monument is amazing (its total length is 500 meters!), but also the structure architectural complex. Whale Alley is unique in the truest sense of the word.

Such unique places, like Whale Alley on earth a little. At first glance, the structures seem strange and even unearthly, but when you take a closer look, and most importantly, after learning the history, you are amazed: the ancient Eskimos were able to surprise the world more than the ancient Hellenes!

This is perhaps the most northern monument ethnic culture located on the territory of Russia, it is located on a peninsula with an unpronounceable name - Yttygran, in Chukotka. On the seashore, from afar, cabalistic, strangely shaped pillars are visible, sticking out of the ground in one order known to them. The picture continues for almost half a kilometer along the coast. These are nothing more than the bones of bowhead whales! Surprised? And you will probably ask why they are here, and who dug them in. It's simple: this is how the ancient Eskimos built their prayer houses. Well, where could they, the poor fellows, get building materials for this in the bare tundra? Stones and whale bones were used. The bones are arranged in two rows. The ones closest to the shore are formed by whale skulls - huge bone forms up to two meters wide and one and a half meters high. In one place 2-4 skulls are grouped. There are 15 designs in total.

The second parallel row is embedded with gigantic (up to 5 meters in height) whale jaws. Half a meter in circumference. Scientists have calculated that there are at least 5-6 dozen adult bowhead whales on the bone coast. About 150 large holes were dug between the rows, lined with stone inside. These are storage facilities for whale meat. Oddly enough, some still have leftover provisions. A stone-paved road leads from the ancient Eskimo “village” to the hills. Only 50 meters. The man-made path leads to a round arena. The arena is surrounded by boulders, and in its very center there is a round flat boulder, next to a stone hearth. Archaeologists identified this place as an ancient sanctuary of the Eskimos; here they conducted their rites and rituals. Among other knowledge obtained by ethnographers, there is information that one of the largest communities was located here, and neighboring settlements flocked on holidays.

Whale Alley was discovered in 1977! It is surprising that until then not a single archaeological expedition had found an ancient settlement, which was no less than six centuries old! Now, Whale Alley is included in the list of tourists and cruise routes. But scientists are still puzzling over many mysteries left by the northern people.

Researchers are inclined to believe that the settlement was founded in the 14th century and attributed the monument to the period of the Punuk culture. It was at that time that the whalers experienced the heyday of their people. Although scientists do not exclude that the age of the settlement is even older. The ancient Eskimos lived in communities and fishing groups; it is clear that killing a whale in the sea and mastering the prey of a dozen people would not be enough. Apparently there were several hundred of them. The community was led by elders and respected hunters.

Whale skulls may have served as moorings for boats. Rituals were supposedly held at the whale pillars, and perhaps competitions between whalers for strength and dexterity took place. In the upper part of the five-meter jawbones, through holes were punched; prizes that needed to be obtained were probably hung there. Since there is a fireplace in the stone arena, it can be assumed that feasts took place here. Ethnographers did not find any reliable evidence for their assumptions!

It is strange that neither the Chukchi nor the Eskimos preserved a single mention of the object in their folklore. Therefore, scientists can only speculate and give versions, of which there are many today. One of them tells that this was a shamanic place, inaccessible to mere mortals; shamans kept strategic reserves of meat here. Perhaps the ancient shamans even knew how to fly, because there is a legend that a battle between two of the strongest flying shamans took place here. That is, the place is definitely mysterious. A small-town northern miracle.

Now Yttygran is uninhabited, it is cold and there are no whales. Winter lasts 8 months a year, and summer is rainy and cold - the temperature here never exceeds 14 degrees. Therefore, even tourists are infrequent guests here.

Whale Alley (Russia) - description, history, location. Exact address, phone, website. Tourist reviews, photos and videos.

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Whale Alley is perhaps the most mysterious attraction of the entire Chukotka region, a gigantic monument of ancient Eskimo culture, a sanctuary and simply a fantastically beautiful place, captivating at first sight and forever. Located on the edge of the “Russian” world, where our country ends and sometimes it seems that everything ends - life, warmth, civilization, scientific achievements and modern technologies, an alley of huge mammals, underwater leviathans and the smartest non-homosapien inhabitants on the planet, it is practically inaccessible, but incredibly attractive. And the point is not at all in the high cost of tours to Chukotka or cruises in the “northern seas”, but in its location - on an uninhabited island, 30 km from the nearest village, where the path, depending on the season, lies through helicopters, skis, whaleboats or all-terrain vehicles. Alluring, inaccessible, ancient and somewhat sacred, Whale Alley is a challenge for every traveler, and visiting it is akin to the feeling of a won battle: intoxicating, sweet, long-lasting.

Before talking about its unexpected discovery, it is worth saying a few words about appearance alleys. It is a structure dug into the ground from two rows of bones of bowhead whales. The dimensions are amazing: Whale Alley stretches for about 500 m along the shore of Yttygran Island. The row closest to the water contains whale skulls, 2 m wide and reaching a height of 1.5 m (and this is only a part, the rest is underground). Parallel to them is a second row of massive pillars of jaw bones up to 5 m high. Scientists believe that to create such a colossus, the ancient Eskimos had to gnaw at least 50-60 animals. But that’s not all: between the rows there are almost 150 meat storage pits, some of which store food to this day. From the pits along the slope of the hill you can walk along a man-made stone path almost 50 m long to a flat, round area. Surrounded by a ring of stone blocks, it contains a large flat boulder in the center, and next to it is a hearth with traces of ash. This, according to researchers, is the central sanctuary of a large community or intercommunal association that lived on the shores of the Senyavin Strait many years ago.

Whale Alley was opened in 1977 completely by accident. Routes pass here to this day sea ​​cruises, and at one time the island was often visited by teams of visiting boats, and there was a village next door. None of those who visited the whale bones thought about the purpose of this place: the Eskimos fired rifles at the pillars of the alley, and the sailors tied ropes from their ships to them, thereby knocking down a couple of pillars.

Located on the edge of the world, where our country ends and sometimes it seems that everything ends - life, warmth, civilization and scientific achievements, the alley of huge mammals and underwater leviathans is practically inaccessible, but incredibly attractive.

Fortunately, the archaeological expedition that came across the alley of gigantic bones immediately appreciated the scope and historicity of the monument. Scientists attributed it to the late period of the Punuk culture and dated it to the 14th century: the heyday ancient culture whalers of the Bering Strait. If you believe their research, then Whale Alley could be used for two reasons - in rituals, competitions and feasts, as well as in sacred rituals at the stone sanctuary on a round platform. It is believed that the island of Yttygran was a place of ritual meetings of hunters for almost two centuries, until by the 16th century, when it became sharply colder, whales stopped appearing in local latitudes and whaling began to decline, it was abandoned and forgotten. Neither in the folklore of local tribes, nor in memory local residents There are no mentions or information about Whale Alley.

Research on this mysterious place continue to this day, just as the thin stream of tourists rushing to see the ancient Eskimo miracle with their own eyes does not subside.

There is no point in talking for a long time about the Chukotka climate - it is harsh, the weather here is bad 9 months a year, and perhaps all residents of our country have an idea about this. Let us clarify just a couple of details: even in the middle of summer it can snow on the Chukotka Peninsula, average temperature January here “jumps” from -18 to -42°C, and in July it rarely rises above +14°C. Respectively, best time to visit Yttygran Island and the mysterious Whale Alley - from July to September.

Coordinates

Whale Alley is located on the island of Yttygran (Itygran), which is on the territory of the recently formed national natural-ethnic park “Beringia”. The head office of the national park is located at: Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, village. Provideniya, st. Naberezhnaya Dezhneva, 35, apt. 2. Telephone/fax: 42735 225-59. Planes fly to the village from Anadyr. Further - more difficult.

Since the sanctuary is located on an island, the easiest way to get to it is by whaleboat from the village of Yanrakynnot (85 km from Providence by all-terrain vehicle on a dirt road, by helicopter or in the summer by whaleboat), on the shore of the Senyavin Strait. In winter, you can walk to Yttygran and Whale Alley directly on the ice, which is what the local Chukchi do, sending their reindeer herds there (the path, however, is not short, it’s 30-40 kilometers around desert island Arakamchechen).