August 15th: Flight from Moscow to Murmansk.
Our expedition will fly to Murmansk from Moscows Sheremetyevo-1 airport. Comfortable buses will be provided in the airport of Murmansk to take us to YAMAL nuclear-powered ice-breaker. Later in the evening we shall depart from the port of Murmansk.

August 16th: Travelling in the Sea of Barents.
During that day, on the way towards to the Land of Franz Josef Archipelago, we shall have time to relax and to explore our astonishing ice-breaker. In the lecture hall our scientists and field naturalists will brief you on the unique wild life of the Arctic region, on geology, glaciology, oceanography and the history of polar exploration. The ice-breakers captain will accompany you to let you watch navigators at work, brief you on the operation of navigational instruments and on the general principles of handling the vessel in arctic ice and operating the engine roomÒs unique machinery. Youll also be given a safety briefing on proper use of helicopters and rescue facilities and will read the environmental regulations imposed on the tourists visiting the Arctic region.

August 17th: We reach the Land of Franz Josef Archipelago.
We shall cross latitude 80- north and enter the world of perennial pack ice, towering volcanic mountains, icebergs and glaciers. Most of the archipelago, discovered only as late as 1873 by the Austrian expedition led by Tegethoff, still remains relatively unexplored. During these days we continue watching the polar bears, walruses and killer whales, enjoying the breathtaking aerial views of glaciers, icebergs and steep volcanic plateaus. We shall visit the places of historic interest dating back to the early days of Arctic travel by helicopter.

While making a trip to the Tikhaya ("Tranquil") Bay we'll stop to admire the Rubini rock which gives shelter to numerous colonies of kittiwakes, guilllemots and other arctic birds nesting there. If the conditions allow, we shall approach a vertical basalt rock. Well see some enourmous glaciers cave in and collapse into the bay.

We also plan to visit the so-called Nansen's Cape. Fritjof Nansen, the famous Norwegian polar expolorer, and his fellow traveller, Helmar Johansen, spent the winter of 1896-1897 there, after a bold attempt to reach the North Pole and a courageous passage through the ice. They survived by hunting polar bears, seals and polar foxes. The remnants of their wintering camp (which stands as one of the milestones of polar exploration) had been considered to have vanished until 1990, when its location was discovered by a joint Soviet-Norwegian arctic expedition.

Our look-outs will continuously watch out for polar bears wandering around on ice in search of their prey. Surprisingly, these wanderers would often ignore our ship, which will give us an excellent opportunity for taking photographs and video taping. Seals are frequent visitors in that area of the archipelago, too.

August 18th-19th: We shall be heading to the North Pole.
As we advance strictly to the North, we shall encounter pack ice, a kaleidoscopic array of drifting ice blocks, clear water areas and passages. Our staff lecturers will continue delivering their fascinating stories aided by demonstration of slides and assist in keeping track of polar bears, seals and polar birds.

Well split into smaller groups and board helicopters to enjoy the spectacular aerial view of our vessels advance and then to land on ice. Then the helicopter will land on the oceans ice-froze surface, and we shall have a refreshing walk on perennial arctic ice. The open doors policy followed by the vesselÒs personnel lets us observe the crew at their work practically around the clock.

As soon as we reach the point we have been craving for, we shall descend on ice from where anyone of us can get in touch with the civilized world by means of special communication facilities. Here, at the top of the world, we gaze at the silvery-azure landscape and realize what heroic efforts must have been applied by the pioneers of arctic exploration to achieve this goal. While the ice-breaker's crew are busy with final arrangements for the celebration which will include a picnic on ice, we start our spectacular fiesta. The balloons, the helicopter with skydivers and the paramotors will soar up in the skies; scuba divers will dive beneath the ice-frozen ocean surface; whereas the most daring members of the expedition may parachute-jump in tandem with an expert skydiver, go up in the skies in a balloon basket or dive into the Arctic Ocean.

August 21st - 23rd: Southbound course.
Heading south,"YAMAL" will break through tall embacles and huge, close ice blocks typical of perennial ice. Precise heading south will depend on the local conditions. As always, our helicopter pilots are ready for reconnaissance flights and passenger outings. Small groups of participants are invited to visit the ice-breaker's control centre and engine room. Meanwhile, our lectures are continued. Magnificent white polar gulls join us as we advance southwards.

August 24th - 25th: We reach the Novaya Zemlya Archipelago.
We plan to approach the north-western part of the archipelago to enjoy the splendid sight of the famous Maka glacier. Here we can watch enormous blocks of ice break off the glacier and slip into the ocean. Polar bears, dolphins, killer whales, walruses and seals are frequent visitors to these areas.

August 26th - 27th: The Sea of Barents - Murmansk- Moscow.
On the way back to Murmansk we shall review our amazing journey full of unforgettable impressions and adventures. After breakfast we'll drive to the airport of Murmansk to depart for Moscow.

Note: The above is only a tentative itinerary/travel plan. Our expedition programme may be altered so as to take full advantage of the polar weather conditions, condition of ice and the opportunity to watch the wild life. Our basic goal is to reach the North Pole.

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