ZIMNIK, winter road, husband. 1. A road that is used only in winter and which cannot be driven in summer (region). “Here he is on the winter road along the river... with a cart to the mill.” Saltykov Shchedrin. 2. Sleigh run (region). 3. A peasant coming to the city for the winter for... ... Ushakov's Explanatory Dictionary

ZIMNIK, huh, husband. A road laid straight through the snow for winter driving. | adj. winter road, oh, oh. Ozhegov's explanatory dictionary. S.I. Ozhegov, N.Yu. Shvedova. 1949 1992 … Ozhegov's Explanatory Dictionary

Noun, number of synonyms: 10 winter road (1) wind (262) December (8) ... Synonym dictionary

Drive. Kar. Walk in search of money, earnings. SRGK 1, 365 ... Large dictionary of Russian sayings

winter road- A temporary road laid in winter on virgin snow, river or lake ice. Syn.: snowy icy road... Dictionary of Geography

M. 1. A road that is used only in winter. Ott. Sleigh path. 2. A small warm hut in which they live in winter. 3. A dugout or structure for overnight stays for lumberjacks, hunters, fishermen, etc. (usually in winter time). Ephraim's explanatory dictionary. T.F... Modern explanatory dictionary of the Russian language by Efremova

Our country is large, the distances are vast, the roads are long. Some roads exist only in winter; they are called winter roads. I recently returned from a motor rally in the Arctic Circle, drove from Moscow to Naryan-Mar and back, there were ice crossings along the way, and part of the way passed through winter roads. Due to the closed winter road, but now I want to talk about how winter roads are made.

2. Winter roads - roads made of frozen snow and ice. Most often they are laid along ponds, river beds or wetlands. Sometimes the winter road looks like a barely noticeable road in the middle of an endless white field. To make it clear where you can go, poles are installed on the sides. White on the left, red on the right.

3. In order to arrange a winter road, the snow is compacted, raked and ice is frozen. Now I’ll show you in more detail how this happens.

4. A pipe structure called a guitar is attached to the tractor, with the help of which the snow is smoothed and compacted.

5. On the way to Naryan-Mar we passed a winter road at night, and on the way back we saw a lot of tractors.

6. After several tens of kilometers, camps for workers and heating points are set up on winter roads. Right there, on the rivers, there are water intake points where water is pumped into tanks.

7. Tanks drive along the winter road and spill it, wet snow it is leveled again by tractors with drags and turns into ice. Please note that the tanks are insulated, the frosts here are serious.

8. After compacting and leveling, a smooth and hard coating is obtained.

9. According to the standards, winter roads must have two lanes with a width of at least three meters each. In places with difficult conditions relief, one lane 4.5 m wide is allowed, with sidings at least 50 meters long and at least 8 meters wide.

10. The length of the winter road on the Kharyaga-Naryan-Mar section is just over 70 kilometers, but the road itself is longer; in strong winds and snowfall, it, like the winter road, becomes impassable.

11. The road from Naryan-Mar to Usinsk is often called the “road of life”; along it you can get to the mainland in winter. In summer there is a much longer and more expensive option by ferry. But during the spring and autumn thaw, when there is no ice and ships no longer sail, the only way to get there is by air. During such periods, the cost of products increases greatly.

12. The condition of the winter road is monitored by the Ministry of Emergency Situations. At the exit from Naryan-Mar there is an LED display indicating the condition of the winter road. Often, movement on the winter road is limited for passenger vehicles not all-wheel drive. All our cars were 4x4.

13. On the way back we were lucky with the weather; the winter road was open. There were no big changes, we walked the entire section without incident, although right in front of us one car turned around and went back.

14. Some drivers prefer to drive on winter roads at night. There are several factors here: during a thaw at night, the winter road holds up better, and the relief is better visible in the headlights.

15. To make it clear what a winter road covered with snow looks like, I’ll post a photo taken on the way “there”. There were areas where half a meter of snow fell in a matter of minutes. If anyone hasn't read how we stormed the winter road...

16. Overall, we had an absolutely gorgeous trip. We also learned the essence of winter roads.

Chronicles of the motor rally “Drive for the sake of drive” (Moscow - Naryan-Mar - Izhma - Moscow):

The Federal State Institution “Center for the State Inspectorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia for the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug” recommends observing safety measures when driving on winter roads.

WHAT IS A WINTER?

For many regions of Russia, winter roads or winter roads are the only means of communication with remote settlements. This is due to the fact that the tundra and swampy open forests of the Russian North in the warm season are an insurmountable obstacle for wheeled vehicles. Typically, winter roads begin to function in November and traffic on them continues until May, until the soil finally freezes. This is what happens in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. They are equipped according to industry requirements road standards. Not every car is capable of driving on snowy highways; only SUVs can do this. The fact is that no matter how well the condition of the winter road is monitored, after each snowfall a well-compacted road turns into a section sports off-road. The surface of the winter road is usually below the level of the surrounding snow cover. And snowfalls or strong wind very quickly they fill up the road, making it completely indistinguishable from the surrounding snow fields. After each snowfall, a large number of road equipment, mainly K-700 tractors (Kirovets), they drag behind them special drags, which, depending on the shape, clear or compact the snow. For the convenience of equipment operation, as well as for vehicles moving along an uncleared winter road, the road is marked with special poles equipped with reflective tapes. Thanks to them, even a swept road is easy to read and all-wheel drive vehicles can move without the threat of going astray. The length of winter roads varies from tens to hundreds of kilometers. On long winter roads, road equipment bases are built every fifty to one hundred kilometers from which vehicles go out every day to work to maintain the winter road. Often, at such bases, rest centers for drivers are set up, consisting of several heated vehicles. There you can spend the night, eat and make light Maintenance. Also at these bases there is radio communication and drivers of cars traveling on the winter road are noted in special logs for recording traffic movements, as well as similar logs in mandatory available on checkpoints located at the entrances and exits of winter roads. The northern region is harsh, bad weather and frosts, constant companions of a harsh winter, sometimes in a matter of minutes can turn a calm movement along a winter road into a battle for life, and therefore it is very important to know the location of road users at any given time. The more car depots and rest points there are on the highway, the easier it is to calculate the location of a car in trouble. Traffic on winter roads is usually carried out in dark time days. In the light of the headlights, the white road takes on relief due to the play of light and shadow, but during the day, opposite, the road merges with the surrounding snow and you can easily slide onto the loose side of the road.

Features of winter roads

Snow is the most difficult and unpredictable surface of all existing ones. The point is not so much that the even cover conceals the relief and masks the hillocks and ditches; its main danger lies elsewhere. Japanese scientists closely studying the properties of snow have counted about seventy (!) varieties of it in Russia. Depending on the temperature and density, the snow cover can change its properties to the opposite. For example, at temperatures close to zero Celsius, snow is very sticky and heavy, while its rolling resistance coefficient is so high that it is not inferior to loose dry sand. As temperatures drop, the properties of snow change. Minus ten to twenty degrees, coupled with high humidity, typical for such temperatures, turns it into “semolina”, the snow freezes into small granules and becomes a serious obstacle for wheeled vehicles, cars skid out of the blue - they have nothing to grab onto. At temperatures below minus thirty, the moisture freezes out, the snow again changes its properties - now it is the smallest snow dust. Compacted by a strong north wind, it looks like a real highway; an adult can easily move along it, without even leaving a trace. But the apparent hardness is deceptive; as soon as you turn the wheel, the snow partes and the car, having fallen through, is immobilized, with virtually no chance of getting out on its own. But these are not all the surprises that snow brings to us. When temperatures change, a crust forms. The more often the mercury of the thermometer jumps, the more layers of crust freeze. Snowfalls and weather changes turn the snow cover into a layer cake. Usually the crust is not thick enough to support the weight of the car, so it breaks and the car finds itself in the situation of a steamship bound by ice. The only way to get out of such a trap is to break the crust around the car and pull it back to a solid place. Strong northern winds pose a great danger when moving across the tundra. The fact is that when constructing winter roads in the tundra, the highway is laid along the hills, where the soil freezes drier and faster, but this is a problem, since the road as a result is open to all winds and strong winds, which are a common occurrence in the North, raise snow and sweeps it across the road. Firstly, barriers are formed that interfere with movement, and secondly, visibility drops to several meters, which makes movement at speed (required to pass the barriers) impossible. But you can't stop either - standing car instantly becomes covered with snow. If you cannot continue driving, you should stay in the car and wait for help if your movement on the winter road is known road services or wait until the end of the snowstorm to go for help. Under no circumstances should you go on foot in a snowstorm; it is life-threatening.

Equipment moving on winter roads

These are mostly all-wheel drive trucks, Urals and KamAZs. Often meets tracked vehicles, it poses the greatest danger to passenger vehicles. While driving in the cab tracked all-terrain vehicle It is very noisy and drivers use noise protection headphones. The lighting technology of such devices also leaves much to be desired, and they develop a very decent speed, so there is a considerable chance that you simply will not be noticed, especially if your car is light in color and the headlights are covered with snow. Passenger transport It is extremely rare, usually such vehicles are hitched to trucks or tractors, or after passing a hard cleared area on their own, they stop at a crossing and wait for a passing all-terrain vehicle so that they can cling to it and pass through the dangerous area.

Traffic rules winter roads

When driving on winter roads, you should follow all the rules. traffic. Special attention It’s worth paying attention to traffic signs, believe me, somewhere, but on winter roads they are installed for a reason. There is an expression “The rules of the road are written in blood,” and so it is especially true on roads such as winter roads. Therefore, we strongly recommend that you follow their recommendations. Also, winter roads have their own rules, for example, on a slope, a car moving upward has an advantage. And if, upon approaching the descent, you see a car approaching from below, stop, leaving room for maneuver at the exit and wait until the oncoming car finishes the climb and passes you, only then continue driving. After all, climb the slippery snowy road far from just special heavy vehicle and if, due to the fact that you, without thinking, drove out to meet him, he loses speed, then quite a lot may arise dangerous situation, in which a truck parked on a slope can tip over when backing up.

Also, under no circumstances should you drink and drive. Driving in difficult situations road conditions this in itself is a serious test and not every driver is able to cope with driving a car even when completely sober and focused, not to mention drunk.

Practical advice

Driving on winter roads requires certain skills. The main rule is not to drive beyond the restrictive markers, or if there are none, do not drive off the compacted surface. As soon as one wheel of the car gets caught in soft snow, the car is instantly pulled off the road and it falls through. It is very difficult to get out without outside help. Even if a winch is installed on the car, this does not change much since there is absolutely nothing to hook the hook on in the tundra. Therefore, you should not travel alone on winter roads; traffic on northern roads cannot be called intense, so you can spend several hours waiting for help.

Ice crossings also pose a great danger. Despite the fact that they are usually specially frozen so that they can withstand the weight of heavy vehicles, caverns occur on them, often by drivers of heavy vehicles. heavy equipment they don’t pay attention to the signs at crossings with tonnage restrictions and heavy vehicles break through the ice with their wheels. Therefore, if the ice crossing is not visible under the snow or due to uneven terrain, it is better not to regret a couple of minutes, get out of the car and carefully inspect the place where you are going to pass, believe me, this can save you a lot of time and nerves. If at a crossing there is a pole sticking out in the middle of the road, this means that the ice in this place has been broken and you should not drive near this place.

Also, when going out on the winter road, you should understand that fuel consumption in difficult road conditions increases many times, so you should stock up on it, because in harsh conditions of the Russian North, combustibles are life. Even if you expect to spend a couple of hours on the road, you should have a supply of water and food in your car, this is exactly the case when God protects the careful. The car must have a good shovel and a reliable tow rope. Skis or snowshoes will not be superfluous.

If the winter road is heavily covered with snow, it makes sense to lower the drive wheels, the contact patch will increase, and the rolling resistance, on the contrary, will decrease, the car will slip less and be controlled better. If your car does slide off the road into loose snow, do not rush to change gears and press on the gas. First, you should get out of the car and see how deep it has sunk, believe me, you can see it from the outside much better than from the inside. Before you get back in and try to drive out, it’s worth digging up the car, removing snow from under the bridges and the bottom. Regardless of whether you are trying to drive out on your own or the car is being pulled out on a cable, you need to get back out along your own track; this is the simplest and most effective way. When driving along a winter road covered with freshly fallen snow and when passing through crossings, try not to allow the wheels to slip; if you feel that the car is losing speed and the end of the snowy section is still far away, it is better to stop, carefully back up, get out of the car and measure the depth of the snow cover. Then make a decision based on the situation. Never be lazy to go out and look, it doesn’t take much time, much more is spent on eliminating the consequences of rash actions.

Preparing the car for driving on winter roads and off-road

The main guarantor high cross-country ability are special large-sized mud wheels with deep tread. American Super Swamper Irok tires with dimensions of 38*14 inches are best suited. For achievement maximum effect the pressure in the wheels is reduced to 0.3-0.5 atmospheres. In order to install such wheels on a car, a slight modification of the body (lift and cutting of wings) and significant changes in the suspension and transmission are required; with the help of a lift kit, other springs or springs or special spacers, the suspension travel is increased and the car itself becomes significantly higher. Because the wheels bigger size increase the load on the vehicle transmission change gear ratios(by installing other main pairs in bridges).

The body kit also undergoes major changes. In place of standard bumpers, special ones are installed power structures capable of withstanding a blow against an ice parapet or tree. At least one winch with an electric, hydraulic or mechanical drive is installed on the vehicle. To avoid engine water hammer when passing through fords, the air intake is placed on the roof of the car. For uninterrupted operation engine conditions low temperatures is installed autonomous stove(running on the main fuel of the car) to heat the coolant. Also to maintain comfortable temperature an autonomous stove is installed in the car interior.

Additional lighting equipment is installed on the machine to provide sufficient visibility in poor visibility conditions. The car is also equipped with a set of equipment for satellite navigation and radio communications.

Before the trip, each car is supplied with maximum complete set the most important spare parts, a full set of tools, a set of off-road equipment, including a snatch towing rope, a high rack jack, a winch cable extension, a anti-corrosion sling for climbing, ladders for passing through ice cracks. Also, each car is equipped with canisters so that the total off-road range is at least five hundred kilometers.

Everything described above is professional training and is not at all necessary, and often not necessary, for driving on winter roads. The main thing is to clearly calculate your strengths and the capabilities of the car. By driving your car wisely and carefully, you have every chance of driving on a winter road in a completely standard four-wheel drive vehicle. And if any unforeseen difficulties happen, drivers of passing cars will always help you. Helping your neighbor is the law for the North, and God grant that it remains so in the future.

Driver be careful and remember!

Drivers Vehicle, during severe frosts, refrain from long trips along highways, the operation of which is possible only in winter conditions, at sub-zero temperature(winter roads)! Such trips are not safe.

If it is not possible to postpone your trip, you must follow a number of simple rules:

- going to long journey, always tell your loved ones, friends or neighbors where you are going and when you plan to return;

- study the route on the map in advance;

- before the trip, make sure you take it with you mobile phone with a fully charged battery;

- take a whistle with you. If you have to call for help, your voice will not last long - the cords will quickly get tired and you will become hoarse. But you can signal your location using a whistle for quite a long time, and without any noticeable harm to the body;

- take a backpack or bag with you, which should contain a compass, knife, flashlight, matches or lighter in a waterproof package. You need to take a pot, food, water, and warm clothes with you;

- those who constantly use medications, and this primarily concerns older people, need to have medications with them;

- it’s better to travel with fellow travelers, not in one car, but at least in two, one after the other. Children should not be taken on such trips.

If you get lost on the road or find yourself in extreme situation, find an opportunity to report this, call 112.

Following these simple recommendations will help you make long trip, do not get into an extreme situation.

Spanish Senior State Inspector for Small Vessels of the State Fire Service FKU "Center of the State Inspectorate of the State Inspectorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia for the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug" Bakhtin V.V.

We offer you a report from a capital journalist who made a voyage from Vladivostok to Moscow, about the difficult trials that await a newly-made car owner driving his japanese car from Vladivostok.

The plane lands smoothly. A few more minutes - and we are already trampling the soil of Primorye at Artem airport. Vladivostok is about fifty kilometers away, there are no problems with transport: bus, minibus or private owner. We choose the latter, fortunately the prices are reasonable, and we get straight to the place. Already from afar, cars appeared, lined up along the road leading to the local car market called “Green Corner”. It was located on both sides along the roadsides, in some places even in two rows. This abundance of foreign cars is simply dizzying.

However, I have a specific goal: I know exactly what kind of car I need. And that’s why it’s easier for me. If you haven’t planned in advance what you want to buy, then you can walk around the market all day long. It will still seem later that that red Mitsubishi was better than the chosen Nissan. We enter the market gate. With excitement in our souls, we examine the sea of ​​cars whose homeland is Japan.

On the site - full order. No need to run through the aisles looking for the car of your dreams. All of them are grouped by brand: Toyota, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Honda and others stand in their own ranks. All you have to do is calmly walk through the row and choose what you like. I need a Toyota-Corolla 4WD diesel.

Out of hundreds of different Toyotas, in the end, I can single out only three Corollas: a ’93 station wagon, manual, price $5500, a ’93 sedan, automatic, $5500, and a ’94 sedan, manual, price $6600 - naturally, all 4WD and diesels ( prices last winter). Upon closer inspection, the station wagon was immediately dropped: the interior is very simple and rather worn out, the mileage clearly does not match appearance. The ’93 sedan has a reasonable price and a luxury interior, but I’m not happy with the automatic transmission. 94 Corolla remains manual box gears, full power accessories and a wonderful interior. It's just that the price is high. I ran through the rows near the market for orientation. Prices are the same, but more interesting option Have not found. I return to the owner of the car I liked. After a lot of haggling, I manage to save $200, but get a radio in addition. They shook hands, and half an hour later I was already holding the car keys and all the documents.

The cars offered for sale here are 100% customs cleared, have a title with Vladivostok registration and transit numbers. When purchasing, I advise you to pay attention to the date until which transit numbers are valid and it is better to immediately renew them at the traffic police. Otherwise, you will pay a fine at every checkpoint.

I'm in no hurry to leave the gate. There are many stalls selling spare parts in the market. I choose a set of winter studded tires on rims, oil, filters, belts. All this is two times cheaper than in Moscow. Driving a car without studded tires is simply dangerous. IN as a last resort You can buy at least two of these tires and re-adjust the tires on the drive wheels.

The first acquaintance with the right-hand drive leads to a slight shock: the hand automatically, like on a Zhiguli, looks for a gear change on the right, but it is on the left. On the steering wheel, all the levers are also in reverse: the brushes are on the left, and the light is on the right. Switching the lights, I turn on the wipers. Otherwise, I quickly get used to the car, and after just a few minutes of driving I feel quite confident.

During the day there are few cars in the city, so you can easily get used to the controls. I buy food for the whole trip at the grocery market: I won’t have time to go shopping along the way. In the time remaining before dark, I arrange a tour of the city. It would be stupid to leave without seeing Vladivostok. There are four of us, we all meet at the hotel in the evening, each praising our purchase.

Early in the morning, consisting of: Toyota-Vista, Toyota-Corolla, Toyota-Tercel and Mitsubishi-Lancer, we leave the city. I want to warn you right away: if you don’t have at least five years of experience driving a car all year round, it’s better not to risk it and send it by train.

The Vladivostok-Khabarovsk highway is magnificent, we drive it in one breath. In the evening we cross the Amur on the ice. There is no road bridge here. In summer there is a ferry, and in winter there is a road right along the frozen river. Khabarovsk uses notoriety in terms of crime, especially the crossing, so we rush through everything without a single stop. Before the city of Svobodny there are small areas with crushed stone in decent condition. Gas stations there are a lot of them, both government and commercial. Winter diesel fuel and 92-grade gasoline are always available. Behind the village of Tygda dirt road unimportant, narrow and broken, the last asphalt we see is in the city of Skovorodino. Here is the last state-owned nuclear power plant before Sretensk.

Fill in full tanks and canisters. The city has a telegraph and long-distance telephone - you can still contact the mainland. After Skovorodino the road to in every sense this word is missing, a narrow, knurled strip of dirt begins across the frozen swamp. It stretches along the railway embankment. A real winter road with deep potholes and crushed ruts (speed is as much as 20 km/h). Movement is only in one direction. It is impossible to pass oncoming traffic. But he’s not there. We only saw two cars the whole day. Everyone is driving single file, we don’t even dream of overtaking. There is a traffic jam ahead: one car hangs on its belly like a turtle, its wheels spinning in the air. A dozen people were enough to pull her off the ice mound. We look back, there are twenty more cars lined up behind us. By evening it was a continuous river of cars, which slowly flowed in one direction. In our “four” one Toyota was on summer tires. It so happened that our friend was inattentive when buying studded tires: he took 14-inch ones, but needed 13-inch ones. Now we are all paying for it.

His Tercel was constantly slipping and was pulled into deep ruts. I had to push. One day, on a gentle descent, the car slid onto the side of the road into a huge hole about two meters deep. Judging by the fragments of bumpers and colored fragments from lamps, more than one poor fellow has been in this hole. Subsequently, our friend flew off the road more than once.

Finally, we reached the village of Erofei Pavlovich and on its outskirts everyone stopped for the night.

The next day turned out to be the most interesting and difficult. Along the banks of the Amazar River there are huge mountains of frozen soil; in the summer, a team of miners works here, panning for gold.

We cross the river, the winter road goes into the taiga and winds among the hills. It is well rolled, smooth, almost without holes. But new obstacles arise: climbs polished by wheels to mirror-like ice. Advantage all-wheel drive my car is undeniable. Corolla easily, almost without slipping, goes up any climb. On the steepest and slipperiest slopes, a lot of cars accumulate. The whole world pushes them one by one up the mountain. There is ice on the descents. But in February still very coldy, and the water quickly freezes, forming a water ridge, without having time to flood the road. The torment comes to an end when we roll out onto the blue ice of the Shilka River. We were happy early: it was more than two hundred kilometers on ice to Sretensk. For the first eighty kilometers the winter road twists like a snake among the hummocks; we drive as if on a washboard. Then the shaking ends: a track has been cleared across the ice with separate lanes in different directions. The road runs forward like a blue arrow, sometimes we even forget that under the wheels is not asphalt, but mirror-like ice. The speedometer needle has already gone past a hundred when the wheel hits a longitudinal crack. The car was shaken violently and spun like a top. When the snow cloud settled, the Corolla found itself in a snowdrift about twenty meters from the highway. I was lucky that the snow was loose - nothing was broken. After such a lesson speed mode was reduced. Fuel trucks appeared on the ice selling fuel, but their prices were twice as high as the government ones. Coastal villages have their own business. We spent the night in a house located on the shore, there was a sign “Hot dumplings”, in a snowdrift by the road there were huge boards with arrows indicating the turn. After midnight we arrive in Sretensk, from here the road to Moscow begins according to the atlas.

The weather is beautiful. We drive along ice-bound Lake Baikal. A silent snowy desert stretches to the horizon. Local residents say that fifteen years ago in winter there was a direct road on the ice of Lake Baikal from Shanghai to Listvyanka and Irkutsk; there was no need to travel along the hills along the shore. Now Baikal is being protected. We have never seen such a number of jeeps as in Irkutsk: every seventh car is a jeep.

On the newly constructed Novosibirsk-Omsk highway, we were hit by the elements. As darkness fell, the weather began to deteriorate sharply, heavy snow began to fall, a blizzard arose, and a solid white wall stood in front of the glass. The road was covered with such snowdrifts that the car, having broken through the snow ridge, was completely stuck in them. We were saved by KamAZ trucks, which occasionally passed along the highway and pulled us, the unfortunate ones, out of the skids. It takes us two hours to travel thirty kilometers. Finally, the light of lanterns appeared ahead: it was a gas station under construction. Hundreds of cars have accumulated on the small illuminated island. We all stop for the night to wait out the bad weather.

Omsk has a choice: go through Kazakhstan (it’s shorter) or through Tyumen, across Russia. Drivers driving from the border with Kazakhstan, when asked how customs was there, swore and treated her haphazardly. They said that the Kazakhs find fault with everything in order to extract money. There is a very long detour through Tyumen (three hundred kilometers). We decide through Kazakhstan. We are lucky: customs officers are busy with the oncoming flow of transit travelers. They got away with checking documents and checking on the computer for the theft of the car.

Having conquered the Ural Mountains, we believe that we are already home. Moscow is just a stone's throw away - a day and a half drive. Beyond the Urals, however, the highway turned into something terrible: slurry of snow and mud spread evenly across the entire width of the roadway, hiding a huge number of potholes on the road. But we overcame this difficult part of the journey.

Moscow greets you with traffic jams on the bypass and dirty dumps on the side of the road.

Let's summarize: in ten days of travel from Vladivostok to Moscow, 9,750 kilometers were covered, 650 liters were consumed diesel fuel. Losses: one broken tire.

We drove 21 thousand kilometers along the roads of Russia, but I can’t help but feel that we have only seen a small part of it. A narrow strip of civilization winds along the Trans-Siberian Railway. And to the side lie vast lands, accessible, as hundreds of years ago, only where there are rivers. And winter roads.

Winter roads are main arteries of the North, areas located off-road in the sense familiar to residents of European Russia. 65 percent of Russia's territory falls in areas with permafrost, and it is there that the mass of minerals is concentrated, from which, in fact, Russia feeds itself. A fair portion of the northern settlements are connected to the mainland only by winter roads. Every year they are built, rolled, maintained or simply driven on them at your own peril and risk. Here, for example, in Yakutia:

• almost 7 thousand kilometers of winter roads laid in Yakutia every year
• winter roads are 60% of the total length of local Yakut roads
• transported on winter roads in Yakutia 80% of necessary cargo
• 18 northern and arctic regions Yakutia is connected to the mainland only by winter roads.

Winter roads are a test for a person. Truckers' stories are no worse than Jack London's stories. Frost, remoteness from civilization, and the vagaries of nature make cargo delivery a dangerous adventure. Be sure to read notes by Albina S. on drom.ru. A keen eye and a good style. She has been driving with her truck driver husband for 12 years and has seen a lot in her time. Actually, most of the photos are what happens to cars on winter roads.

Ascent on the winter road. I couldn't manage the climb. Photo by Albina S. @ drom.ru

Every climb with a heavy load is fraught with the risk of leaving the road. they noted that many loads are hauled by vehicles that do not have enough power. Usually, in the head of such a “sausage”, which moves 20 kilometers per hour, is a KAMAZ truck, which can barely cope with the load. This “sausage” stretches for tens of kilometers, and it is very difficult to overtake it.

And on winter roads, overloaded cars sometimes simply can’t handle it.

The trailer, overloaded with cement, simply broke down on the winter road. Photo by Albina S. @ drom.ru

Judging by Albina S.’s photo, the majority of the fleet is made up of KAMAZ trucks. Apparently, the main criterion is that they can be repaired in the most remote wilderness (in fact, Ildar told us about this).

Repair of KAMAZ on a winter road. In winter, ringing keys is especially pleasant. Photo by Albina S. @ drom.ru

However, Albina notes that:

There are a lot of cars. Almost all of them are heavy-duty foreign cars, which caused a double feeling. It’s good that old cars are becoming a thing of the past and some prosperity has appeared. It was upsetting that in this mass of cars there were few domestic ones. And that the money Russians earn goes to new jobs abroad, to the prosperity of someone else’s auto industry.

Grader on a winter road. Photo by Albina S. @ drom.ru

Important winter roads are cleaned and leveled with a grader, and crushed stone is added on the slopes. However, they save money here too:

From the beginning of the winter road to the “Bur” picket we flew by in one fell swoop. It is about 200 km. Previously, this section took almost 24 hours. One thing that upset me was that the road was made narrow. They say they built two organizations. Some are six meters wide, others seven. The men who were laying the grader said that the higher organization did not allow the road to be made at least two meters wider. No money left. I feel that this saving will hit truckers, if traces of cars driving off to the side of the road are already visible.

We didn't leave on the winter road. The road is a bit narrow.

But, perhaps, I won’t tell you any more from other people’s words and show other people’s photos. Actually, I’m writing this to once again emphasize that the road we were driving along is very, very good road. And that there are many territories that are quite populated, but it is not yet possible to build a permanent road there. Of course, new technologies, the use of geotextiles and geogrids give hope for improving the situation. Here

So, for now, life in the North is a struggle for life in fairly harsh conditions. The hardening of people saves, but it’s a shame that they still save on people.

Documentary film “Winter road. Land of the Fierce"

Typical video about winter road on Yamal

Bovonenkovo ​​is a village in Yamal, where the administration of the Bovanenkovskoye oil and gas condensate field is located. This is a giant field in the center of Yamal and there are plenty of winter roads here. Photos, music, accident footage.