Trail Log 1995-1997 - Lamar at Colorado State University

Russia has an 80-year old system of strict scientific nature reserves (Zapovedniki), in addition to
National Parks and other state protected natural areas. The area so protected is larger than the
U.S. National Park system, and, they claim, protects over two-thirds of the rare and endangered
species in Russia, as well as many undisturbed units of all major types of regional ecosystems.
above from blurbs on Russian Conservation News.
Vladivostock is closer to San Francisco than it is to Moscow. Lonely Planet, p. 709. Vladivostock
was closed to foreigners until 1992.
Crossing Siberia and the Russian Far East is about the same distance as New York to Berlin.
Lonely Planet Guide, p. 732.
June 17, Tuesday.
Tuesday morning. Tour around the city.
Walk in the park alongside the Amur River.
The Amur River is 4,440 km. long, forms in Mongolia, and flows east to discharge into the Pacific.
The Amur is navigable only 6 months a year and is rather shallow. It ices up sometime in
November and thaws in early May. It is a trading route, a source of fish, and a drain, full of
pollutants from all the cities and towns along the way.
Manchu Mountains in the distance, across the river, and beyond is China.
Visited War Memorial, somewhat like the Viet Nam Memorial in Washington, with 30,000 names,
which was 15% of the population in Khabarovsk in World War II (the Great Patriotic War).
Education beyond high school is difficult. One has to pay for this now and most cannot afford it.
Also, they increasingly have to pay for health care.
We visited a market place, bustling and typical.
Half the cars have the drive on the right-hand side, as many are used cars from Japan.
There is snow here from mid-October to the end of April.
KWAS - a drink, sold from big cart-cans.
We got on the train at 2.45. The train is electric powered. The name of the train is the Rossia
(Russia).
There were dire warnings from the Intourist Guide, Svetlana, about not missing the train when you
get off for a few minutes at stops along the way. Also not to get locked in the toilet, which are
locked about five minutes before arrival in each station. You can watch the waste just flush down
onto the tracks below.