Day 1 – Fri 1st Aug – getting to Mukhrino

Due to our very early arrival into Khanty-Mansiysk, we slept until midday and then had an excellent brunch of soup, bread and Russian style meat pastries quite close to our Bridie! We then travelled by minibus through Khanty-Mansiyk and across the Irtysh River, to a tributary where we awaited travel to Mukhrino Field Station by speedboat.

Paul on the boat

Due to our numbers and luggage this took a few trips but we were re-united in the afternoon at the field station. Mukhrino is about 30 km from the city but is a very isolated area with no vehicle roads in, so it is enough to make you feel completely away from everything. It is a beautiful wooden structure, with thick walls and large stoves in all the rooms – completely cosy and very spacious. As I was one of the later arrivals by speedboat, I did not explore my outdoor surroundings just yet. On the first night we had a dinner with ourselves and all the staff and then shared some single malt whisky!