August 28, 2020

Kamchatka or Bust


Kamchatka or Bust
What our Alaskan readers see off their front porches. Козинцев, Wikimedia Commons

Now's your chance to check out a part of Russia you might only know from a game of Risk.

Kamchatka, a peninsula in the Pacific ocean, is set to become the next big ecotourism hotspot. Russian authorities are making plans to revamp roads, ports, and other infrastructure to draw tourists to this area, along with stringent environmental protections for tourist-magnet natural wonders.

Reportedly, ecotourism currently makes up only 2 percent of Russia's tourism sector. Kamchatka, and its Alaska-like scenery, could be Russia's ticket to environmental fame. Sights like Three Volcanoes Park and Avacha Bay have already seen some development.

Somehow, though, we just don't see ziplines, nighttime jungle tours, and rural hostels taking off.

You Might Also Like

The Battle for Kamchatka
  • December 01, 1995

The Battle for Kamchatka

Alaska Airlines has been serving the Russian Far East for 20 years, but lately it has faced some new difficulties.
Kamchatka: Where the River Runs Hot
  • August 01, 1996

Kamchatka: Where the River Runs Hot

The wilderness of Kamchatka provided Andrew Tarica with stunning volcanic scenery and a lifetime best day of fishing. In this issue's Travel Journal, he tells the story.
Kayaking Kamchatka
  • March 01, 2001

Kayaking Kamchatka

Remote, wild and pristine, the Kamchatka peninsula is an adventure traveler's dream. We join Christine Seashore and her husband while they kayak the coast of this amazing region.
Duck Devil and Little Wolf
  • January 01, 2002

Duck Devil and Little Wolf

It's not every day one is invited on a pilgrimage by a Siberian shaman. Which is how Christine Seashore and John Turk ended up roaming Kamchatka's frozen tundra in search of an elusive pack of reindeer. Oh, and then there is the interesting bit about the mountain bikes...
The Lure of Kunashir
  • July 01, 2003

The Lure of Kunashir

Off limits for eight decades, the Kurile islands are a treasure trove of natural history and geological wonders. We travel to the southernmost island, which is just a stone's throw from Japan.
The Wonders of Kamchatka
  • July 01, 2006

The Wonders of Kamchatka

In the first of a two-part series, we explore the villages, geysers, volcanoes, flora and fauna of Russia’s wildest peninsula.
Bears in the Mist
  • November 01, 2006

Bears in the Mist

Exploring the wilds of Kamchatka, home to an amazing concentration of bears, geysers and natural beauty.
Realm of the Sacred Raven
  • November 01, 2003

Realm of the Sacred Raven

In the second installment of Ilya Stogoff's travels in the Russian Far East, the author explores the steamy side of Kamchatka.
Koryak Cultural Loss
  • March 01, 2013

Koryak Cultural Loss

At the furthest edge of the Russian Far East, in a quiet bay near the very top of the Kamchatka Peninsula, a tiny community of Koryaks struggles with the loss of its traditional culture.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.
Chekhov Bilingual

Chekhov Bilingual

Some of Chekhov's most beloved stories, with English and accented Russian on facing pages throughout. 
Woe From Wit (bilingual)

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
A Taste of Chekhov

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.
Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
The Samovar Murders

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.
Moscow and Muscovites

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955