I’m interested in sailing in a catamaran from Petropavlovsk Kamchatskiy to St. Petersburg via the North East Passage. Anyone here willing to help me out with the details?

I’m the skipper of the Swiss sailing vessel Chamade. Last summer we cruised the far east coast of Russia and stopped at Petropavlovsk (Kamchatka). A great experience with a fascinating landscape and a very warm welcome. In Kamchatka, we were helped by Alexei. I warmly recommend this nice and reliable fellow.

But the first “sailing” thru the administration and visa system could be difficult if not very well prepared. For more information, please look at our blog http://www.chamade.ch and the page “Far East Russia cruising notes”.
Marc

SV Chamade
http://www.chamade.ch

I have been following John´s travel through Russian canals and I fully agree with Tainui, those are fantastic waters to sail on. I really appreciate the positive attitude that Tainuis´ crew had towards sailing in Russia and Russia itself. A huge obstacle seems to be the Russian-speaking pilot that is required to be on each boat.

I sailed through those canals from the Baltic Sea to the Black sea in a small Swedish boat in 1993. Me and my wife were planning to sail to the Mediterranean Sea. Since I was married to Russian and had travelled a lot through Russia, I decided to take the Soviet canal way to the Mediterranean. The bureaucracy during those times experienced some kind of vacuum as the country was evolving from Soviet Union to Russia. As we found out, there was no permission to get from any authority. I thank the Russian sailors I met who helped us with information about the canals.
On our boat, the mast is 10meters high and we sailed maybe half of the route. We only brought down the mast when going through St Petersburg and the first 20km.

I agree with John about the fact that Volga/Don is full of attractions with its size, culture and that it works like a life source in Russia. This quote perfectly presents my impression of the Volga.

“Of the Volga-Don trip, I can only say that as an Australian I found every day a quite magical experience. What wonderful rivers they are! The endless secluded anchorages, vast inland seas, rich forested shores, sparkling onion dome churches, fascinating commercial shipping, the warmth and friendliness of the local people – all are a delight.

After 40 years of ocean voyaging, I am finding my search for novelty less often requited, but this Russian voyage has been wonderful – life-changing even.” I agree that a Russian-speaking person aboard is necessary when locking and meeting authorities. To know Russian in Russia is the basis to feel the happiness and to get something in exchange in all that happens along the way.

We never had any large expenses, it was easy to dock and we met a lot of nice people (except once), and never had to pay any bribes. Sometimes we had problems buying fuel along the way, but it always got sorted out with time. This issue is probably getting better with time. I really hope these canals are visited by many and someday will become a natural way for people who want to sail to the south or north through Europe. I look forward to getting more information about the experiences of Tainui and other sailors that have sailed through Russia!

Christer E
S/Y Afrodite, homeport Norrtälje situated in Stockholm Archipelago
English version about the trip. http://oakmountain.eu/Ryss-resa-eng.htm
Mail: ce-boatmail@tele2.se