The indigenous population were the first settlers in the Kamchatka Oblast. Ittelmen, who occupied the most southern parts of the region, were called Kamchaidal. The Koryaks occupied the north and their lifestyle was based on reindeer herding.

Famous Russian Explorers such as Simon Dezhnev explored the peninsula in the middle of the 17th century. It was, however, Vladimir Atlasov, head of the Anadyr settlement, who picked up on the interest in Kamchatka and first came to settle the area accompanied by 65 Cossacks and 60 Yukagir.

Atlasov was a brutal man who established a system of subjugation of the Ittelmen and the Koryaks. He, perhaps in turn, was murdered by one of the tribesmen in southern Kamchatka, and from that moment on Kamchatka became a self-regulated nation. The pillage of indigenous people changed the future for the Ittelmen and Koryak population forever.

Stephan Krasheninnikov, who was invited on Bering's second expedition, describes early life of the indigenous people in his book "Explorations of Kamchatka 1715-1741". This book also includes notes from George Steller, also on Bering's expedition, who spent some time on the Komandor Islands after Bering died and who describes the natural history of Kamchatka.

Vitus Bering was commissioned by Tsar Peter the Great to investigate whether Asia and America were linked. He set out on his first expedition in 1725. Due to bad weather he was never able to accomplish his mission. In 1732 he was granted another try, this time a more extended expedition. In the autumn of 1740 his ships, St. Peter and St. Paul, sailed into Avacha Bay, which marked the foundation of the city of Petropavlovsk.

In order to settle this newly discovered land, Russians were urged to move to Kamchatka with subsidies by the federal government. These newly arrived Russians also brought with them diseases which further eliminated a large part of the indigenous population. By 1812 there were only 3200 natives left.

In 1854 the port of Petropavlovsk was attacked by English and French ships. Even though the defense force was small, only 1,000 men, their bravery and extreme heroism won them the war. Many monuments in Petropavlovsk still display the history of that battle.

During and after World War II, Kamchatka began to develop as a military region. Submarine bases and boarder patrols stretched along its borders. This is one of the reasons why Kamchatka was long closed to foreigners and Russians alike. Only in 1991 did it cautiously open its borders.

Ecology/Environment

Kamchatka is a region of intensive volcanic activity with about 150 volcanoes, 28 of which are active, including Avachinsky, Koryaksky, Kluchevskaya, Viluchinsky and others. Klutchevskaya Sopka, the highest volcano in Asia (4750 m), with its perfect symmetrical slopes, stirs the imagination. It is comparatively young -about 5,000 years old- and has been known to erupt some seven hundred times.

Three volcanoes - Avachinsky, Koryaksky and Kozelsky - are located within sight of the city of Petropavlovsk and are fondly called home volcanoes. Numerous tourists climb Avachinsky throughout the year. Its summit commands a picturesque view of a typical Kamchatka landscape with snowy peaks of mountains glittering in the sun's rays and the azure blue of the nearby ocean. The latest eruption of Avachinsky occurred in 1991, when the residents of Petropavlovsk could watch puffs of gas, steam clouds and red hot streams of lava flowing from the slopes.

Kamchatka abounds with rivers and lakes. The rivers are a great potential source of hydroelectric power. The water in many of the lakes and rivers is transparent, and for this reason, good for salmon spawning - the most valuable species of fish.

The longest and biggest river is the Kamchatka River which is more than 700 km long. It is a vital waterway navigable for small ships and barges practically along its entire length. Other big navigable rivers are the Bistraya, the Apuka, the Bolshaya and the Tigli.

The largest of the mountain lakes are Kurilskoe and Kronotskoe, the latter, for instance, in some places is more than 100 meters deep. Lake Kurilskoe, situated among the mountains, is Kamchatka's best salmon spawning ground surrounded by magnificent volcanoes and, not surprisingly, many bears.

The animal world of Kamchatka is diverse with numerous species; brown bear (the biggest in the world), fox, polar fox, hare, sable, mink, lynx, snow ram, otter and others. Among the sea mammals in Kamchatka we find whales, fur and other seals, sea otters and walruses.

Bird life on the peninsula is also quite diverse. Some of them - partridges, swans, pigeons, crows and magpies - stay on the peninsula throughout the year, while others - geese and ducks, for instance - come to this remote place every spring for nesting. On the coastal cliffs and rocky islands are sea-gulls, cormorants, puffins and others.

More than thirty species of fish can be found on the Kamchatka rivers, lakes and seas. Among them are herring, flounder, halibut, cod, sea perch and many other species of salmon.

It is of special interest that some species of wild animals and birds, widely spread over similar zones of the mainland, are not found at all in Kamchatka. To this group belong, for example, snakes and frogs. Neither has the peninsula storks, herons or swallows. This can be partly explained by the isolation of the peninsula and by its rigorous climate with its long snowy winters.

The Kronotsky Preserve, located on the east central coast, is a mountainous wilderness of nearly 2.5 million acres. The Valley of the Geysers is a small ravine in the Kronotsky Preserve and is alive with about 300 geysers. The largest geyser (Velican) sends steaming water up to the sky as high as 100 feet every 2-6 hours. Smaller geysers spout every five to six minutes.

The Valley was discovered by geologist Tatyana Ustinova in 1941 and was only recently opened for visitors and is closed during certain time periods to protect animal life.

Wooden walkways protect the natural environment from tourists who visit the Valley. The Valley is only accessible by helicopter and only forty tourists are allowed at one time.

The Kronotsky Preserve was established as a wildlife refuge, primarily for its concentration of sables. The refuge became a full nature preserve in 1934. In recognition of its great biodiversity, the United Nations established it as a World Heritage Site.

Nature Reserves

The Kronotsky Reserve

Petropavlovsk

About 300,000 of the 500,000 people living in Kamchatka live in Petropavlovsk. The oldest parts of town are located on the Avacha Bay and include many wooden buildings, some of which are uninhabited. The hills surrounding Petropavlovsk are dotted by new Soviet style communities featuring rows of drab apartment buildings.

The center of the city of Petropavlovsk is very small and all its activities take place between two streets, Leninskaya and Sovietskaya. Lenin square is where most of the government buildings and drama theaters are located. On the other end of Leninskaya is the Gum. The regional museum is located only a few blocks from the Gum on the corner of Leninskaya and Sovietskaya. The museum depicts the various expeditions originating from Kamchatka and has a very good display on the various indigenous people. There is also a very interesting gallery which displays original art by both indigenous people and local artists.

The area of Paratunka, approximately 45 minutes away from Petropavlovsk, is probably of more interest to the traveler. There are various pools fed by hot springs, some of which have been modernized and resemble regular swimming pools. The area is surrounded by mountains, and some smaller hotels have been opened to cater to the more adventurous traveler.

Ethnic Groups

The Even

The Even originally were part of the Evenki group of indigenous people who lived mostly in Siberia in Yakutya and Buryatia and were descendants from a mixture of Tungus and Yukagir cultures. Ancient Tungus were nomads and absorbed a great deal from the Yukagir culture. By the 18th century one group of these people, the "Lamut Yukagirs" migrated towards the Sea of Ohotsk and became known as the Even. Part of this group also resettled in northern Sakhalin. In Kamchatka the tribe split into two factions, each know for their activity, the "Lamuts" lived alongside the seacoast and the "orochi' were reindeer herders.

Even clothing is different from that of the Koryak, Itelman or Chukchi. While their clothing is made of one piece, such as shirt and trousers, Even use clothing that are open garments such as our sweaters and coats. A complete set of men's wear, for example, consists of a short knee-reaching reindeer parka with lapels, trousers, a chest apron put over the parka, knee protectors, fur stockings and boots made of reindeer skin with soles of bearded seal skin. Women clothing is decorated with beads.

As with all the other indigenous cultures in Kamchatka, the Even suffered when Russians invaded their territories. Disease and alcoholism lead to a rapid decline of the Even population. Forced collectivization also brought dramatic changes. However, the Even north of Ohotsk proved very difficult to collectivize, because of their isolation. Many of them only came in contact with Russians during their summer migration. When gold was discovered in the region, Even moved even further away from civilization.

Political changes have not made major changes in the lives of the Even. Concerns of economic, cultural and environmental issues remain a stumbling point. There are still many small families practicing reindeer herding in the area of Esso. It is possible to visit these reindeer families for one day or more. Life is extremely harsh for these people and yet they remain in the taiga moving from place to place. Visiting with them makes you realize that perhaps a spirit greater than humankind is guiding their lives, extremely harsh, but governed by a resilience that is hard to find in our present world.

The Itelmen

The name Itelmen comes from itenme'n-itelmen which means "inhabitants of dry land'. The first sign of Itelmen in Kamchatka was approximately 6 to 7,000 years ago when they moved there from the mainland of Asia. At that time, the Itelmen were subdivided in three different groups: the northern, southern and western Itelman. In the middle of the 18th century they were renamed by the famous writer Krasheninnikov as Kamchadals, coming from Kamchatka, a name given to them by the Koryak people. At that time, there were approximately 12,680 Itelmen living in Kamchatka. an amount that dwindled to 9,448 people due to many armed conflicts with the Cossacks over the despised fur tax, epidemics, tribal hostilities and alcoholism. The Kamchatka indigenous peoples were the fiercest fighters. Even then many Cossacks married Itelmen women and the process of association with Russians brought rapid changes to the Itelmen social structure. However, this association did not changes that fast on the west coast of Kamchatka where the Itelmen preserved their native origin and many elements of their traditional culture. Administratively the Itelmen are part of the Tigil District of the Koryak Autonomous Territory

Anthropologically, the Itelmen together with the Koryak belong to the Mongoloid North-Asian race. They are short and rather stocky. Wide faces with prominent cheekbones are characterized by the Mongolian fold. They have dark skin, dark eyes and dark brown or black hair.

The Itelmen language is quite unique and belongs to the Chukchi-Kamchatka of Paleo-Asiatic languages, it has the same linguistic roots but the words have different meanings. The influence of Russian into their language is persuasive.

Traditionally the Itelmen were river fishermen, sea mammal hunters and gatherers. And they are considered the best herbalists among the Nordic people. Gathering included up to one hundred edible species of plants, berries and medicinal herbs, nuts and Siberian pine.

Itelmen settlements were located along riverbanks, near the mouth of rivers. Until soviet times Itelmen lived in extended family communities in single or several subterranean dwellings housing up to 1,000 people. all close relatives. Summer dwellings housing only one family, were grass covered pyramidal-shaped shelters of twigs and or thin poles set on a tall platform. They were called "balagans". Communities that were blood related lived along the same rivers and shared their fishing grounds. The community took on the name of the river they lived on. The head of each community was an elder. The elder made all decisions in the community and all celebrations were held in his or her house.

The Itelmen believed that everything in the world, every rock, every animal, every natural event was a symbol of a living spirit. The reverence to any spirit is directly proportional to the degree of the spirits importance for the well being of the human spirit, for example, the guardian spirit of the Sea would provide food - fish. A celebration of cleansing the sea spirit always takes place in November. Itelmen believe the world and the human souls to be eternal. The creator of the Earth and the arch-ancestor is believed to be the Raven. Shamanism existed but the shaman did not possess knowledge nor wore special clothes or attributes. Life was governed by many rules, for example, it was forbidden to dismantle fishing huts were invested with "fish moth" in spring, because the fish would be scared and leave the river. Under no circumstances was it allowed to save those who fell into the water or who were buried by an avalanche - the spirits of water and mountains should not be deprived of what was rightfully theirs.

Dances were an established part of every day life and folk festivals involved numerous participants. Itelmen applied art is embroidery, objects of woven or leather strings, birch bark stamping, fur appliqué and bone and wood carving. Originally they use of mythology was very strong but now has been lost.

The Koryaks

The Koryaks live in the northeast part of the Kamchatka Peninsula and in the most northern part where Kamchatka adjoins the mainland from the Taigonos Peninsula to the Bering Sea. The Koryaks are native to Kamchatka, similarly to the Itelmen. The coastal tribes, often referred to as "nymylans" 'resident or settlers' are the direct descendants of the Neolithic people, but the origin of the reindeer breeders 'chavchuans´'reindeer or with reindeer' is more obscure. The first mentioning of Koryaks, at the time referred to as nymyans. was by the Russian explorer S. Krasheninnikov in a book about his explorations.

The nymylans practiced mostly fishing with their own self-made net. In some cases, they also practiced marine mammal hunting for which they used skin covered boats called baydarkas. The skin of the animals they caught was also used for making clothing, bags and belts. The nymylans were great artists and practiced both bone and wood carving, metal crafts and making their own clothes which they adorned by embroidery.

The nymylans lived in groups, in the winter in subterranean housing, always with a fire place in the middle and in the summer in cloth covered tents.

The chavchuans practiced reindeer breeding which supplied them with everything they needed: skin for making clothes and for constructing their transportable dwellings. bones for tools and household articles and fat for lighting fires.

Spiritual focus in the traditional Koryak culture is associated with geography, like hills, a region or a place. Sprits form one place have to be separated from those of other places. A spiritual "charged" drum for shaman healing was not carried from house to house, but rather each household had their own drummer who had connections with the spirits of that specific place. Each family had their own person who was skilled in drumming and had some influence with the spirits which could heal family and friends. Scholars often refer to this type of shaman activity as "familial shamanism".

Links
Grizzlies of the Far East - www.cloudline.org

Komandorsky Islands

Travel Opportunities

The only real opportunity to visit the islands is by ship and helicopter. Weather conditions delay helicopters and other travel to the islands.

Tourism Infrastructure

Very limited.

Accommodations

Tents only.

Travel Arrangements

By helicopter from Petropavlovsk, sometimes unreliable due to weather conditions By research vessel and/or other vessel

In 1741 the crew of Captain Vitus Bering arrived here to avoid a storm. During their stay Vitus Bering died. The naturalist of the expedition, George Steller, took over, and in the course of their stay on the island, described its nature. The island was called Bering, a part of the Komandorsky Islands together with Medny, Aril Kamen and Toporkov Islands.

The Komandorsky Islands belong to the Aleutian region because they were settled by them approximately 200 years ago. The region and a thirty mile zone around it are part of the Komandorsky State Nature and Biosphere Preserve. Only a small part of the region is used for fishing and fur farming.

The Komandorsky Islands are covered by tundra. Spectacular cliffs are formed by the winds and the waves. Rivers fall into the sea like graceful waterfalls. Giant whales drift around the island.

You can find tufted puffins and fulmars on Aril Kamen and Toporkov Islands and on the closest reefs, Kamchatka jacks, sandpipers, seagulls, cormorants and parakeet auklets.

The only settlement in the region is Nikolskoi on Bering Island. It is inhabited by about 750 people. Its occupation is diminishing because of its lack of employment. This is a very harsh region which is separated from the mainland and, due to its weather, has no regularly scheduled flights. The city has an interesting museum which is supported by the Smithsonian Institute.

Bering Island has several seal rookeries which can be visited accompanied by a naturalist. The time to visit is late July when most of the babies are being born.

Medny Island also has a bird colony on its most northern point. The island has magnificent beaches where one can walk for miles and watch the seals and birds, while enjoying a most magnificent view.

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