Inhabited island. Paramushir, Severo-Kurilsk
Mikhail, RA1ALA will be active from Paramushir Island, Kurile Islands(IOTA AS-025) 10 - 19 July 2016 as RA1ALA/0.
It will operate on the bands 40, 20, 15, 10m.
QSL via home callsign direct.
Kuril volcano country
Is it possible to see with your own eyes boiling springs on volcanic slopes and hot lakes in volcanic craters? Or is this just from the realm of fantasy? Not at all, master nature created an extraordinary miracle, giving earthlings unique corner, where there are 23 volcanoes, and as many as six of them are active. This amazing place is located in the north of the Kuril Islands. We are talking about the island of Paramushir, the area of which slightly exceeds the 2,000 mark square kilometers. The second largest land area among the Kuril Islands is washed by waters Sea of Okhotsk in the northwest and Pacific waves in the southeast. Paramushir is a paradoxical combination of beautiful sea air and wonderful nature on the one hand and a constant feeling of anxiety and fear due to the threat of earthquakes or tsunamis on the other.
This island territory stretches only about 120 kilometers in length, but the width of the island is very small - 30 km. Paramushir has the status of the most mountainous island of the Kuril Islands. The name “Land of Volcanoes” suits the island like no other!
Chikurachiki, Paramushir Island, Kuril Islands. Photo by Mayuki.
Facts from the island's distant past
Paramushir has long been considered the property of the Russian Empire. According to archaeological scientists, natives lived on its territory, whom the first explorers called “shaggy Kurilians” (their beards and mustaches were very surprising). The islanders themselves called themselves “Ainu” (noble people).
Since 1875, the island, among 18 others, was transferred to Japan. In accordance with the Treaty of St. Petersburg, Russia received the right to own Sakhalin. The result of the active development of the island by its new owners was the founding of the city of Kashibawara, which received the status of the main port of the island.
Since 1945, the island again passes to Russia (as a result of the battle between Soviet landing forces and the Japanese, the city of Kashiwabara was occupied by the Red Army on August 23). Its name was changed only in 1946 to Severo-Kurilsk.
This island territory is considered the most sparsely populated. The population indicator does not go beyond 3,000 people. Moreover, they all live in the only city on the island - Severo-Kurilsk.
The year 1952 went down in the history of the island as the blackest date, which brought a huge tragedy to the entire city of Severo-Kurilsk. An earthquake originating in the Pacific Ocean caused a huge tsunami, the height of which reached 18 meters. More than 18 thousand human lives were carried away by the monstrous force of the water. The city was completely washed away, and the life of the island was divided into periods before and after.
The location of the new Severo-Kurilsk is completely unsafe, because the port city is in the path of the mud flows of the Ebeko volcano, and it still cannot sleep (the most active volcano in the Kuril Islands).
Cedar elfin wood, Paramushir island, Kuril Islands. Photo by Kirill Voloshin.
Paramushir: a world of amazing shocks
At first glance, the island is associated with harsh living conditions. What is so remarkable about this island territory?
The purity and freshness of the sea air brings incredible ease of breathing.
The uniqueness of the Kuril tan does not wash away until the new season brings the opportunity to sunbathe.
The abundance of flowering fields of irises and fireweed does not at all fit with the severity of the climate, but simply amazes the imagination.
The taste of lingonberries, princelings, blueberries and shiksha, which you can enjoy here, cannot be forgotten.
The most large river Tuharka Island, which is only 20 kilometers long, serves as a special spawning place for pink salmon, sockeye salmon and coho salmon (the taste qualities of these representatives of the salmon family are rightfully considered unsurpassed).
The island territory is the special home of the brown bear (more than 100 individuals), fire fox, ermine and a particularly rare animal - the Paramushir shrew.
The presence of mineral springs brings certain benefits to human health.
The city of Severo-Kurilsk has a sea pier and a place for landing and departure of helicopters.
Paramushir Island, Kuril Islands. Photo by Antario Formalgaunti.
The highlight of Paramushir Island
Those wishing to visit Paramushir do not count on special recreational opportunities. After all, in a single settlement (Severo-Kurilsk) there is only one hotel, one restaurant, one hospital and one museum. But here you have the opportunity to see real wonders of nature! Imagine what it's like to climb the slopes active volcano Ebeko, look back and see the azure surface of the coastal waters from above. What does it mean to come up and look at least for a moment into the crater and see at the bottom a hot lake from which steam emanates? The appearance of snow on the crater walls located above the shores of the lake is completely beyond interpretation. Fans of extreme sensations can go down to the lake and swim in it.
An unforgettable experience will be left at the sight of the Rusalka fumarole, from the opening of which a stream of gas with a temperature of 100°C bursts out. The fantastic opportunity to hear the roar of a steam boiler created by nature will not leave any tourist indifferent. The desire to come closer cannot be restrained! The sight of a rising column of stones and dust to a height of several hundred meters is simply breathtaking.
The mountains and volcanoes of Paramushir Island look picturesque from space, but the view from land and sea is no less impressive. Paramushir is the most mountainous and most “volcanic” of the large Kuril Islands. Of the 23 Paramushir volcanoes, 18 have become quiet Mountain peaks, but five still can’t calm down and erupt regularly. The best volcanic landscapes are in the south of the island: numerous peaks either nest in groups, then stretch out in lines of short ridges with jagged ridges, or rise in majestic single cones...
The name of the island was given by the Ainu - translated from their language “Paramushir” means “wide island”. Purely subjective and ground-based perception: Paramushir from space looks like an elongated sausage about 120 km long and only about 30 km wide. But whoever came first was the one who called.
Previously, there were more people and settlements on Paramushir. Fresh water There is enough here for both locals and newcomers. You can live. The name of the island has a second translation from Ainu: “crowded island.” Ainu, Russians, Japanese, after 1945 - Russians again...
After Iturup, Paramushir is the second largest of all the islands of the Kuril ridge (area 2053 sq. km), but in terms of area it is the most sparsely populated. The population of Paramushir today does not exceed 3000 people, and almost all of them are residents the only city, Severo-Kurilsk.
Severo-Kurilsk
The city of Severo-Kurilsk is the only permanently inhabited locality on the huge island of Paramushir. The area of the city is only 6 square meters. km, the population does not reach 2,500 inhabitants. All the city streets can be counted on one hand, and the life of the city is concentrated on one (main) street - Sakhalinskaya, where everything that the locals and the few visitors need is located: the administration, the only museum, the only hospital (they say it’s not bad), the only hotel (not too bad). heated), the only restaurant.
“The only thing” in Severo-Kurilsk is the “only thing” on the entire island. Here are the only heliport and sea pier in Paramushir (by the way, recently renovated). So Severo-Kurilsk is not just a small town, but the main “gate” to Paramushir and quite major port on the way from Vladivostok and Korsakov to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
Severo-Kurilsk is economically and historically associated with the production of fish and seafood - navaga, flounder and pollock, crabs and squid. Here they process such a delicacy as scallop. In Severo-Kurilsk there is a fishing port (the base of the seining fleet) and 4 fish processing enterprises. There is a lot of fish here, so in the evening you can come to the port where fishing boats are unloading and simply ask to “wrap the fish.”
There are no special recreational opportunities in Severo-Kurilsk, but there are mineral springs, and around - 2000 sq. km of untouched nature of Paramushir, with its mountains and volcanoes, bears and shrews.
The port city of Severo-Kurilsk is located on the Pacific “storm path”, as well as in a zone of increased seismic and volcanic danger.
In Severo-Kurilsk, the expression “living like on a volcano” can be used without quotation marks. The Ebeko volcano, located seven kilometers from the city, comes to life from time to time and releases volcanic gases. In calm conditions and with a westerly wind, they reach Severo-Kurilsk - it is impossible not to smell the smell of hydrogen sulfide and chlorine. Usually in such cases, the Sakhalin Hydrometeorological Center issues a storm warning about air pollution: it is easy to get poisoned by toxic gases. Eruptions at Paramushir in 1859 and 1934 caused mass poisoning of people and the death of domestic animals. Therefore, in such cases, volcanologists urge city residents to use breathing masks and water purification filters.
The site for the construction of Severo-Kurilsk was chosen without conducting a volcanological examination. Then, in the 1950s, the main thing was to build a city at least 30 meters above sea level. After the tragedy of 1952, water seemed worse than fire.
Secret tsunami
The tsunami wave after the earthquake in Japan this spring reached the Kuril Islands. Low, one and a half meters. But in the fall of 1952, the eastern coast of Kamchatka, the islands of Paramushir and Shumshu found themselves on the first line of disaster. The North Kuril tsunami of 1952 was one of the five largest in the history of the 20th century.
The tsunami, which was later named after the destroyed city - the “tsunami in Severo-Kurilsk” - was caused by an earthquake in the Pacific Ocean, 130 km from the coast of Kamchatka. An hour after the powerful (magnitude about 9.0) earthquake, the first tsunami wave reached Severo-Kurilsk. The height of the second, most terrible, wave reached 18 meters.
The tsunami arrived at night, after strong but not too frightening tremors (we had time to get used to the seismic activity). The earthquake subsided, the houses stood firm, the lights came on. And in the Pacific Ocean, 200 km from the coast, a wave was born and went to the shores of the Kuril Islands.
After 40 minutes, the wave entered the bay and licked away the city with thousands of people, as if it had never existed. On November 5, 1952, nature seemed to rebel... Three huge waves hit Paramushir in a matter of minutes, destroying both the port of Severo-Kurilsk and several fishing villages. A third died, and according to unofficial data - half of the then population of the island, about 3,000 people.
The Severo-Kurilsk Museum has data on civilian casualties, calculated by various researchers: adults - 6,060, children under 16 years old - 1,742; total - 7,802 people.
It seems that no less military personnel died. Official documentation from 1952 calls them “Urbanovich’s people”, “Gribakin’s people”, after the names of the commanders; there is no general figure.
The total number of victims is estimated to be 13-17 thousand people.
There are oral data about 50 thousand; It is this figure that is still used in legends in Kamchatka and the Kuril Islands.
The city of Severo-Kurilsk was destroyed. The Kuril and Kamchatka villages of Utesny, Levashovo, Reefovy, Kamenisty, Pribrezhny, Galkino, Okeansky, Podgorny, Major Van, Shelekhovo, Savushkino, Kozyrevsky, Babushkino, Baykovo... All were swept away coastline neatly entered into the martyrology:
“.. Utesny village, 7 km from Severo-Kurilsk. Excluded from the registration data as a populated area by decision of the regional executive committee
.. Levashovo fishery, at the exit from the Second Kuril Strait. Excluded from the registration data as a populated area by decision of the regional executive committee
..the village of Rifovoye, the center of the village council of the same name in Rifovaya Bay. Excluded from credentials..."
and so 11 places where people lived.
In the fall of 1952, the country lived a normal life. The Soviet press, Pravda and Izvestia, did not get a single line: neither about the tsunami in the Kuril Islands, nor about the thousands of people who died.
The picture of what happened can be reconstructed from the memories of eyewitnesses, rare photographs and 25 seconds black and white chronicle- miraculously removed and miraculously preserved.
Many destroyed villages were never rebuilt. The population of the islands has decreased greatly. The port city of Severo-Kurilsk was rebuilt in a new location, higher up. Without carrying out that same volcanological examination, so as a result the city found itself in even more dangerous place— on the path of the mud flows of the Ebeko volcano, one of the most active in the Kuril Islands.
The city was rebuilt in a new location, but the villages devastated by the elements and abandoned by people remained ghosts - on maps, where they still exist with the mark “uninhabited”, and in reality - on east coast their half-rotten skeletons appear gloomily through the thick fogs of Paramushir...
This is such a “crowded island”. But here there is freedom for animals - on the island, rich in water and fish, hundreds of brown bears, many almost unafraid foxes and the mysterious animal “Paramushir shrew” have freely settled.
History, legends and facts
On the site of Severo-Kurilsk there was once the largest Ainu settlement on Paramushir, and the island itself was part of the Russian Empire. However, in 1875, Russia ceded all 18 Kuril Islands to Japan (including, of course, Paramushir) in exchange for full ownership of Sakhalin (the so-called “St. Petersburg Treaty”).
The Japanese began active development of the island, and on the site of the Ainu settlement they founded the city of Kashibawara, which became the main port city on Paramushir. In addition to fishing, the islands were of key military importance for the Japanese - during the 20th century, Japan and Russia clashed 5 times in armed conflicts in various territories.
On Paramushir and on the neighboring island of Shumshu, the Japanese military garrison numbered 23 thousand people, and a powerful anti-landing defense was created (the ruins of Japanese fortifications are still visible in the vicinity of Severo-Kurilsk). There were four airfields on Paramushira, one of them was in Kashiwabara (the other three were Kurabu, Suribatsu, Kakumabetsu).
On August 18, 1945, Soviet airborne units landed on Paramushir, and the fighting lasted five days. On August 23 at 15:30, Red Army troops occupied Kashiwabara.
The city retained its Japanese name until 1946, then it was renamed Severo-Kurilsk.
The mountains and volcanoes of Paramushir Island look picturesque from space, but the view from land and sea is no less impressive. Paramushir is the most mountainous and most “volcanic” of the large Kuril Islands. Of the 23 Paramushir volcanoes, 18 have turned into calm mountain peaks, but five still cannot calm down and erupt regularly. The best volcanic landscapes are in the south of the island: numerous peaks either nest in groups, then stretch out in lines of short ridges with jagged ridges, or rise in majestic single cones...
The name of the island was given by the Ainu - translated from their language “Paramushir” means “wide island”. Purely subjective and ground-based perception: Paramushir from space looks like an elongated sausage about 120 km long and only about 30 km wide. But whoever came first was the one who called.
Previously, there were more people and settlements on Paramushir. There is enough fresh water here for both locals and newcomers. You can live. The name of the island has a second translation from Ainu: “crowded island.” Ainu, Russians, Japanese, after 1945 - Russians again...
After Iturup, Paramushir is the second largest of all the islands of the Kuril ridge (area 2053 sq. km), but in terms of area it is the most sparsely populated. The population of Paramushir today does not exceed 3,000 people, and almost all of them are residents of the only city, Severo-Kurilsk.
Severo-Kurilsk
The city of Severo-Kurilsk is the only permanently inhabited settlement on the huge island of Paramushir. The area of the city is only 6 square meters. km, the population does not reach 2,500 inhabitants. All the city streets can be counted on one hand, and the life of the city is concentrated on one (main) street - Sakhalinskaya, where everything that the locals and the few visitors need is located: the administration, the only museum, the only hospital (they say it’s not bad), the only hotel (not too bad). heated), the only restaurant.
“The only thing” in Severo-Kurilsk is the “only thing” on the entire island. Here are the only heliport and sea pier in Paramushir (by the way, recently renovated). So Severo-Kurilsk is not just a small town, but the main “gate” to Paramushir and quite a major port on the way from Vladivostok and Korsakov to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
Severo-Kurilsk is economically and historically associated with the production of fish and seafood - navaga, flounder and pollock, crabs and squid. Here they process such a delicacy as scallop. In Severo-Kurilsk there is a fishing port (the base of the seining fleet) and 4 fish processing enterprises. There is a lot of fish here, so in the evening you can come to the port where fishing boats are unloading and simply ask to “wrap the fish.”
There are no special recreational opportunities in Severo-Kurilsk, but there are mineral springs near the city, and around 2000 sq. km of untouched nature of Paramushir, with its mountains and volcanoes, bears and shrews.
The port city of Severo-Kurilsk is located on the Pacific “storm path”, as well as in a zone of increased seismic and volcanic danger.
In Severo-Kurilsk, the expression “living like on a volcano” can be used without quotation marks. The Ebeko volcano, located seven kilometers from the city, comes to life from time to time and releases volcanic gases. In calm conditions and with a westerly wind, they reach Severo-Kurilsk - it is impossible not to smell the smell of hydrogen sulfide and chlorine. Usually in such cases, the Sakhalin Hydrometeorological Center issues a storm warning about air pollution: it is easy to get poisoned by toxic gases. Eruptions at Paramushir in 1859 and 1934 caused mass poisoning of people and the death of domestic animals. Therefore, in such cases, volcanologists urge city residents to use breathing masks and water purification filters.
The site for the construction of Severo-Kurilsk was chosen without conducting a volcanological examination. Then, in the 1950s, the main thing was to build a city at least 30 meters above sea level. After the tragedy of 1952, water seemed worse than fire.
Secret tsunami
The tsunami wave after the earthquake in Japan this spring reached the Kuril Islands. Low, one and a half meters. But in the fall of 1952, the eastern coast of Kamchatka, the islands of Paramushir and Shumshu found themselves on the first line of disaster. The North Kuril tsunami of 1952 was one of the five largest in the history of the 20th century.
The tsunami, which was later named after the destroyed city - the “tsunami in Severo-Kurilsk” - was caused by an earthquake in the Pacific Ocean, 130 km from the coast of Kamchatka. An hour after the powerful (magnitude about 9.0) earthquake, the first tsunami wave reached Severo-Kurilsk. The height of the second, most terrible, wave reached 18 meters.
The tsunami arrived at night, after strong but not too frightening tremors (we had time to get used to the seismic activity). The earthquake subsided, the houses stood firm, the lights came on. And in the Pacific Ocean, 200 km from the coast, a wave was born and went to the shores of the Kuril Islands.
After 40 minutes, the wave entered the bay and licked away the city with thousands of people, as if it had never existed. On November 5, 1952, nature seemed to rebel... Three huge waves hit Paramushir in a matter of minutes, destroying both the port of Severo-Kurilsk and several fishing villages. A third died, and according to unofficial data - half of the then population of the island, about 3,000 people.
The Severo-Kurilsk Museum has data on civilian casualties, calculated by various researchers: adults - 6,060, children under 16 years old - 1,742; total - 7,802 people.
It seems that no less military personnel died. Official documentation from 1952 calls them “Urbanovich’s people”, “Gribakin’s people”, after the names of the commanders; there is no general figure.
The total number of victims is estimated to be 13-17 thousand people.
There are oral data about 50 thousand; It is this figure that is still used in legends in Kamchatka and the Kuril Islands.
The city of Severo-Kurilsk was destroyed. The Kuril and Kamchatka villages of Utesny, Levashovo, Reefovy, Kamenisty, Pribrezhny, Galkino, Okeansky, Podgorny, Major Van, Shelekhovo, Savushkino, Kozyrevsky, Babushkino, Baykovo were swept away... The entire coastline was neatly included in the martyrology:
“.. Utesny village, 7 km from Severo-Kurilsk. Excluded from the registration data as a populated area by decision of the regional executive committee
.. Levashovo fishery, at the exit from the Second Kuril Strait. Excluded from the registration data as a populated area by decision of the regional executive committee
..the village of Rifovoye, the center of the village council of the same name in Rifovaya Bay. Excluded from credentials..."
and so 11 places where people lived.
In the fall of 1952, the country lived a normal life. The Soviet press, Pravda and Izvestia, did not get a single line: neither about the tsunami in the Kuril Islands, nor about the thousands of people who died.
The picture of what happened can be reconstructed from the memories of eyewitnesses, rare photographs and 25 seconds black and white chronicle- miraculously removed and miraculously preserved.
Many destroyed villages were never rebuilt. The population of the islands has decreased greatly. The port city of Severo-Kurilsk was rebuilt in a new location, higher up. Without carrying out that very volcanological examination, so as a result the city found itself in an even more dangerous place - on the path of mud flows of the Ebeko volcano, one of the most active in the Kuril Islands.
The city was restored in a new location, but the villages devastated by the elements and abandoned by people remained ghosts - on maps, where they still exist marked “uninhabited”, and in reality - on the east coast, their half-rotten skeletons gloomily emerge through the thick fogs of Paramushir...
This is such a “crowded island”. But here there is freedom for animals - on the island, rich in water and fish, hundreds of brown bears, many almost unafraid foxes and the mysterious animal “Paramushir shrew” have freely settled.
History, legends and facts
On the site of Severo-Kurilsk there was once the largest Ainu settlement on Paramushir, and the island itself was part of the Russian Empire. However, in 1875, Russia ceded all 18 Kuril Islands to Japan (including, of course, Paramushir) in exchange for full ownership of Sakhalin (the so-called “St. Petersburg Treaty”).
The Japanese began active development of the island, and on the site of the Ainu settlement they founded the city of Kashibawara, which became the main port city on Paramushir. In addition to fishing, the islands were of key military importance for the Japanese - during the 20th century, Japan and Russia clashed 5 times in armed conflicts in various territories.
On Paramushir and on the neighboring island of Shumshu, the Japanese military garrison numbered 23 thousand people, and a powerful anti-landing defense was created (the ruins of Japanese fortifications are still visible in the vicinity of Severo-Kurilsk). There were four airfields on Paramushira, one of them was in Kashiwabara (the other three were Kurabu, Suribatsu, Kakumabetsu).
On August 18, 1945, Soviet airborne units landed on Paramushir, and the fighting lasted five days. On August 23 at 15:30, Red Army troops occupied Kashiwabara.
The city retained its Japanese name until 1946, then it was renamed Severo-Kurilsk.
Hiking tour on Paramushir island
Gone interesting route on Paramushir Island (Kuril Islands) 414.4 km, 27 days. Also, in the remaining time we covered 100.4 km in Kamchatka, 5 days. Paramushir Island is the second largest island in the archipelago after Iturup. From the language of the Ainu (indigenous population) it is translated as “wide island”. The island is about 120 km long and up to 30 km wide. Neighboring islands: Shumshu, Alaid, Antsiferova, Onekatan and several small rocks. Administratively, Paramushir is part of the North Kuril urban district of the Sakhalin region of Russia. Problematic passenger connections are only available with Kamchatka. In the north of the island is the city of Severo-Kurilsk, whose livelihoods are connected with the fishing industry. On the site of Severo-Kurilsk there was once the largest Ainu settlement on Paramushir, and the island itself was part of the Russian Empire. However, in 1875, all the Kuril Islands were lost to Russia. The Japanese began active fishing and military development of the island. On Paramushir and on the neighboring island of Shumshu, the Japanese military garrison numbered 23 thousand people. On August 18, 1945, Soviet airborne units landed on Paramushir, and the fighting lasted five days. On August 23, Red Army troops occupied Kashiwabara, later renamed Severo-Kurilsk.We walked around the island of Paramushir clockwise, entering its internal parts. The route line was built to cover all the significant sights of the island - Cape Okeansky, Cape Vasiliev, various waterfalls, the hot river Yuryev, volcanoes Karpinsky, Fuss, Tatarinov, Chikurachki, Vernadsky, Ebeko, etc. Since there is only one inhabited place on the island point Severo-Kurilsk, autonomy was complete. Several more people live in 3 different parts of the island. The interior areas of the island were traversed on a first-ascent basis - there were no descriptions, and those that were did not cover the required areas. Paramushir is interesting for its volcanoes, animals and flora, hot springs, old Japanese fortifications and equipment, and, of course, the lack of people. There are very few trails and roads on the island. We walked mainly along the coast, along rivers and along the tops of ridges where there are no dwarf trees. During our hike through Paramushir we did not meet a single tourist group. It was not possible to make it to the islands of Shumshu and Atlasov due to transport reasons (although we planned to).
Some interesting things to note are the following. The beautiful coast of the island, with bays, capes, landslides, pressures, outcrops, arches, mirror beaches, stones, waterfalls falling from cliffs, numerous seabirds, seals, sea otters and small rocky islands near the coast. In many places there are various mechanisms and containers, large gears of unknown purpose lying around. You need to ford the river regularly; there are 32 crossings along the route. There were 26 climbs and canyons of varying difficulty along the route. In addition to the usual obstacles, there are special ones that cause quite a few problems - Japanese trenches, which are at times well preserved and have vertical walls 2 m deep, densely overgrown with elfin wood and shelomyk - they are not always visible. I think their total length on Paramushir is enormous: 200-500 km. There are tunnels in the capes that were intended for defense. There were also pillboxes, many overgrown with elfin wood. The weather at altitudes above 500-1000 m is usually good, but at sea level it is almost always fog or rain. This explains the fact that there is snow even at sea level, and, in my opinion, there is even less snow on the tops of the ridges.
Black lakes on Cape Ozerny. Walking around the clamps along the alder and cedar dwarf trees on capes Levashev, Rybachy, Baklaniy and others. The ruins of the Soviet outpost of Galkino. Warm spots along the coast, where hunters and fishermen come by boat or on snowmobiles. Cute, light bears. During the trip we saw more than 20 bears, not counting cubs. The remains of the Japanese military airfield and fortifications of Suribachi on Cape Okeansky - the skeleton of a hangar, parts of aircraft, rusting airfield equipment, an overgrown concrete runway, a 58-meter-high mound, pillboxes, bunkers. Wooden whaling ships thrown ashore by the tsunami in 1952 - after the war there was a Soviet whaling plant, from which parts of the foundation and iron remained. The tsunami in 1952 was catastrophic - the wave height was 18 m, destroyed almost all the villages on the island, including Severo-Kurilsk, killing half of the island's population - 3000 people. Severo-Kurilsk was rebuilt, and the remaining villages were abandoned. On capes Rybachy, Kurochkin and others there are columnar formations, not the same as on Kunashir, but still worthy of attention.
Hospitable hosts in Podgorny - a former outpost, at the lighthouse on Cape Vasiliev and in former village Shelekhovo. In Podgorny, 4 people maintain the functionality of the navigation system for submarines. Ruins of an abandoned outpost. Nearby are the ruins of a whale factory with tanks, ovens, a canned food production line, and, as everywhere else, a stranded, rusty ship. Dead killer whale on the shore. Wind, raging ocean and constant rain. Bright flowers, wet, green grass. And, as usual, red fish. There are many interesting things to see at Cape Vasiliev. Large Japanese pillboxes with seaweed lining, stalactites and steel doors, a Japanese airfield in the Baykovo tract with a collapsed hangar and some buildings. Abandoned Soviet military equipment on the runway, a Stalinets tractor, a rusty aerial bomb, a working lighthouse, a gun nearby and a bunch of all sorts of ruins. Wehrmacht 1942 fuel barrel, abandoned radio beacon, car skeletons. One of the pillboxes “fell out” of the hill and slid into a hollow - now it stands crooked. Cape Cabbage with mountains of seaweed. Large stone arch near the Buiny stream.
Climbing Karpinsky Volcano - we climbed out above the clouds, the view is stunning - sun, sea of clouds with the tops of volcano islands! Karpinsky Caldera in snow patches, steep slopes, screes, multi-colored rocks, yellow fumaroles, the cone of the Fussa volcano nearby. Climbing the Fussa volcano - clouds, a panorama of the Karpinsky Ridge, steep slopes, a crater with a snowfield melted from the warmth of the earth. We go back to the Karpinsky ridge - rivers, bears, partridges, flowers, beautiful lakes, fantastic clouds over the mountains. A sharp ridge in the fog, elfin wood, and again the sun is above! Tatarinov volcano with weak fumaroles, a multi-colored slope in a destroyed crater. Fresh cinder fields from the recent eruption of the nearby Chikurachki volcano. Climbing to the top of Chikurachka in the fog - knocking down wind, suffocating gases on the edge of the crater, lack of visibility. Chikurachki is one of the most active volcanoes of the Kuril Islands, highest point Paramushira - 1816 m. The last eruption was in 2008, now it is only actively smoking. Descent along the unpleasant red scree in the fog to Lake Chistoe, which is no longer clean, but a swamp. Concrete strip of the Japanese airfield, anti-tank ditch, ruins near Cape Shelekhov. 3 fishermen and the ruins of the Shelekhovo outpost. The shore is at times littered with the remains of fishing nets, logs, and ropes.
The ascent to the Vernadsky Ridge along the difficult Sokolik River - walking on water. The toothy mountain Zub and, in general, the gentle Vernadsky ridge with many volcanoes: Vernadsky, Bilibin, Kozyrevsky, Krasheninnikov. Craters, lakes, sun, views of various volcanoes on the island and neighboring islands. The crater of the Bogdanovich volcano is occupied by the beautiful, large lake Malovodnoye. On the Nasedkina volcano there is a Japanese column with hieroglyphs. An interesting Ebeko volcano - numerous fumaroles, some like pillars, multi-colored crater lakes, a smoking active crater, lunar landscapes, the cone of the Alaid volcano on Atlasov Island. Ebeko is one of the most active volcanoes of the Kuril Islands. During the last eruption in 2009, approximately 19 thousand tons of rock were ejected, a gas plume stretched from the volcano for 20 km, the removal of volcanic gases was 4600 tons/day. Beautiful gorge of the Yuryev River. This hot river carries about 35 tons of dissolved iron and 65 tons of aluminum into the Sea of Okhotsk per day. Steaming, very hot water, the sun setting next to the black cone of the Alaid volcano. Yellow stones on the seashore, clouds of birds, berries. Fortified area and resting place for North Kuril residents in Banjo. Around Severo-Kurilsk there is an interesting airfield plateau with concrete Japanese hangars for airplanes and a lot of berries. Mount Mayak with a long tunnel and a port at the foot. Fish factory with a mountain of scallop shells. Stranded rusting ships. A hydroelectric dam, etc., inherited from the Japanese. View of the volcanoes of Kamchatka from a helicopter window.
After returning to Kamchatka, there were 5 days left, during which we managed to climb the Kozelsky and Avachinsky volcanoes and swim in the Nalychevo hot springs. The loose volcano Kozelsky, sharp rocks on the traverse to the Avachinsky volcano, outcrops, glaciers, beautiful panoramas on Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the red slopes of Avacha with many people on the edge of a crater sealed with a lava plug. Fumaroles, the beautiful Koryaksky volcano. Nalychevo Park - hot springs, tundra, volcanic cones, mushrooms and berries, good trails.
/ Paramushir Island
Paramushir Island
Paramushir Island is the second largest of all the islands of the Kuril chain. Curving somewhat towards the ocean, it stretches from southwest to northeast for more than 100 km, with an average width of 19-22 km and an area of 2479.0 km 2.
From the Sea of Okhotsk side, the island is limited by steep cliffs with a narrow pebble strip at the foot, slightly indented by bays and capes. On the ocean side, the coastline is much more complex with low-lying areas of the coast, bays, steep capes and many rocky reefs extending 2-3 km into the ocean.
Of all large islands ridges about. Paramushir is the most mountainous. Its majestic volcanoes are somewhat shifted to the west, so it descends steeply to the Sea of Okhotsk, and the Pacific slope gradually turns into flat spaces and into the low-lying southeastern Cape Kurabu, also called Cape Vasiliev or Henry.
The mountain range is higher in the north and south, and in the middle part it is somewhat lower, forming a kind of flat saddle with many peaks.
The “pile of mountains” (Snow) in the north of the island rises with the cone-shaped peak of Arakawa up to 1053 m and the Levashova volcano up to 1006 m. The sharp peak of Omaru (727 m) is noticeable here for its shape, just like the truncated cone Hagiya (522 m) and the saddle-shaped Kuraga ( 799 m). The spur of Mount Eboshi (923 m) with the rocky Cape Hirita moved to the north further than all other mountains. In the south, the volcanic peaks are either grouped into “nests”, or stretched out in lines of short ridges with jagged ridges, or rise in majestic single cones and are generally more impressive than the mountain group of the north.
To the south of Tsikura are the peaks of Tomari (598 m), the pointed Minamiyama (1274 m), Onogatake (1204 m), Yake (1262 m), and Aka (1464 m).
On the eastern side of the island, in some places along the coast there are hills up to 900 m in height, but most of the area is flat or hilly and is composed of sedimentary rocks on the surface. In low-lying areas, low, noticeable single hills rise, for example, the flat-topped mountains Jiro (128 m), Tateishi (133 m), Umeki (147 m).
The runoff of precipitation and meltwater from snowfields that have been lying in the mountains for a long time is directed mainly to the east. The rivers of the eastern slope are relatively long and high-water. The largest river on the island. Todoroki (Tuharka), more than 20 km long, is made up of many streams in the mountains and flows into Otomae Bay 26 km northeast of Cape Kurabu in the form of a stream 55 m wide, separated from the sea by a rocky bar.
The Yamakami, Sakagutsi, and Ishi rivers are less abundant. Streams are rare here; waterfalls too. The rivers of the western drainage - Koshira, Kokamabetsu, Otani - are short, shallow and with a rapid current. Numerous streams cascade from steep banks, often forming waterfalls. Significant interfluve spaces are undrained and swampy.
There is enough fresh water on the island to supply many ships and villages, although some rivers are not suitable for use due to their sulfur content (Sakagutsi, Koshira). The rivers are not difficult to cross. They freeze for 4-5 months.
In the southeast of the island, the vast Lake Suebettobu receives water from many small rivers and has a drainage through the Petta River. The lake basin is apparently of tectonic origin. A small rocky island rises in its center.
Loose sediments are almost absent in the west on the steep slopes of the mountains and cover their eastern foothills like a cloak, decreasing in thickness towards the ocean coast, where low-lying capes are usually composed of pebbles and sand (Cape Kurabu).
The vegetation is predominantly herbaceous. In the valleys, cereal and mixed-grass meadows with Langsdorff's reed grass, kakalia, Kamchatka shelaminum, and palmifolia ragwort alternate with thickets of willow and alder forests.
Tundra predominates in the low-lying interfluves. At higher elevations they are replaced by cedar forests with shrubby alder and heathlands with wild rosemary, cikosha, and golden rhododendron. The alder on the slopes rises higher than the cedar forest.
Rocky placers on the mountain tops are covered with rare grass-lichen-moss lawns. There is little timber; only in the upper reaches of the river. Todoroki grows a tall willow-chozenia, suitable for small buildings.
According to its color in summer, the island is clearly divided into the eastern half, which is green, with individual dark spots of rocks, and the western half, with a dark background, with white spots of snowfields on the slopes of the mountains and with green lawns in the basins.
Among land animals there are many bears and foxes. Lots of small rodents.
A Japanese iodine plant operated for many years on the western slope of Mount Suribatsi in Suribatsi Bay. In 1934-1935 On the island, Japan launched large-scale construction work and created a strong naval post with a significant garrison. Communication with the metropolis, previously maintained by a steamship once a month, was strengthened. There was a radio station at Cape Tomari.
Near the island, especially on the eastern side, there are several small satellite islands, rocks, reefs and banks, for example: 19 km northeast of Cape Kurabu, the islands of Minamiyotsu - Okino, Hira, etc.; at the eastern cape of Otomae Bay there are Tsutsumino reefs; between Capes Tategami and Watanabe - about. Nakashima; near Cape Tomari - about. Kamomeidr.
Characteristic is the group of small islands of Torieima (Bird) in the northeast, at the eastern entrance to the Second Kuril Strait. The rocks of Togari (Ganimusir), Kotani (Kotanimusir) and Tsiri (Tsirimusir) islands form an arc open to the southeast. The first two islets are low, covered with grass and connected by a reef.
The southern island of Togari (Ganimusir) rises as a dome-shaped rock about 47 m high. Descending to the south, it ends with a tall, sharp stone. On the rocky ridge connecting the islands, there are vast fields of seaweed underwater.
All these islands are the edge of a volcanic cone protruding from under the water. Countless flocks of guillemots, puffins, fulmars, gulls and cormorants nest here and breed, using their cries to help ships navigate when entering the strait in calm and foggy weather.
The Siro stone (Kokshkher, Kokshere) is located near this group. This is a long ridge of chaotically heaped stones about 5 m high - a protrusion of the edge of the volcanic peak, heavily destroyed by the sea. There is a large rookery of sea lions here, the roar of which can be heard at a distance of about 1 km.