Evgeny Novitsky
Russian Bazaar №25(687) June 18 - 24, 2009
The two most popular ways to get into the United States without documents are to cross the US-Mexico border and take a boat to the coast of Florida. The first method is successfully used by millions of Mexicans, and the second by Cubans, Dominicans, Guatemalans and Hondurans. And both are opposed by thousands of representatives of the National Guard (National Guard) and the immigration police ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), who are well aware of all the methods of illegal entry into the country.
Few people know about this, but there is a third loophole that allows you to enter the territory of the United States - this is the Bering Strait, which separates Russian Chukotka and American Alaska. The smallest distance between the two continents is only 55 miles, which theoretically can be overcome in an hour and a half on a motor boat.
“One can only guess at the number of illegal immigrants who enter the United States through the Bering Strait on fishing boats, inflatables and motor boats,” said Charles Kozik, an activist with the Coalition Against Illegal Immigration (CAII). “Over the past ten years, we have not received a single comment from the ICE leadership on this issue ...”
Kozik and his associates call Alaska "a state without borders", since its territory is practically not guarded by border guards - neither with the help of helicopters, nor with the help of ships, nor with the help of foot soldiers.
Last year, a backpacker (backpacker - a traveler with a backpack) Joseph Havaniez from Washington state alone covered the distance from Chukotka to the American town of Teller. The journey took a day, and on his way the "defector" did not meet a single person. “I bought all the necessary equipment at an ordinary travel store, spending $650,” Havanes admits. - Any hardy person can get to America from the Russian mainland ... "
It should be noted that electronic compasses, night vision devices, binoculars, super-warm jackets, ultra-light inflatable boats, sprays to scare wild animals - all this is on free sale, both in Russia and in the United States. Therefore, it is possible to prepare thoroughly for the “taking of the Bering Strait”. In the end, the legendary American athlete Lynn Cox managed to swim across the strait, which means that nothing is impossible for a potential illegal immigrant.
It is important to say that Alaska police officers are indifferent to travelers who have arrived from the west, unlike their counterparts from Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, who stop almost every Hispanic who finds himself near the Mexican-American border.
A few weeks ago, rumors leaked to the Korean press that fishing schooners were making a living transporting illegal immigrants to the shores of America. Allegedly, for a decent reward, anyone can be lowered on a rubber boat in relative proximity to Alaska.
“In late July and early August, when the temperature in Alaska reaches 70 degrees Fahrenheit, the trip turns into an exciting hike,” says one such illegal immigrant. “First you get to the roadway, then you catch a car and after a few hours you find yourself in a hotel...”
Many readers will probably ask themselves: why move to Alaska if living conditions in this state are fundamentally different from living conditions in the same New York or Los Angeles? What is the point of living without documents in a "snowy meadow" sandwiched between Canada and Chukotka?
The answer is simple: you can go from Alaska to anywhere in the United States without having an immigrant visa in your hands. Since this state is considered an American territory, any flight to California, Texas, New York or the Hawaiian Islands is considered "domestic". Therefore, the requirements for documents are completely different. American laws say that to fly within the United States, you need an air ticket and a photo ID, that is, a regular ID, a green card, an American passport or ... a foreign passport.
With the last document, illegal immigrants can go anywhere. Although in practice it happens that airport employees still find fault with the lack of a visa in the passport. However, everything here already depends on the personal qualities of the officer to whom you will get. Perhaps he will take a quick look at your passport, or perhaps he will immediately contact the ICE division that is at every airport.
There are a huge number of stories on the Internet about overcoming the Bering Strait by natives of Russia, China and Korea. In particular, one of the users boasts that on a three-seat inflatable kayak, you can get to Alaska in two and a half hours. The main thing is that all passengers are good rowers. “The success of the trip depends on the physical fitness of its participants and technical means - a compass, a GPS system and a scanner that determines the location of ships,” adds an unnamed illegal immigrant.
A user under the nickname Hans generally claims that he got to New York through Alaska and Canada without documents. He crossed the US-Canadian and Canadian-American borders on foot under cover of night. He moved with the help of suburban buses, trains and taxis.
By the way, the story of Hans is quite similar to the truth. The border between the United States and Canada is, by and large, a passage zone, where for several tens of miles there is one checkpoint, in which there is one officer. It is understandable: there are too few people who want to move illegally from one successful country to another.
"Smile, European appearance and knowledge in English- these are the three main means against the immigration police, Hans admits. “During the six weeks of my extreme journey, not a single person suspected me of illegally crossing state borders.”
One Internet forum user called illegal immigrants making their way to America through Alaska "desperate adventurers." In my opinion, a very accurate definition. Judge for yourself: Alaska became part of the United States in 1867, and the authorities still have not recorded a single mass arrest of illegal immigrants from Korea, China and Russia, who, according to unconfirmed reports, enter the continent by the thousands.
"Some people don't know what's going on at the border, while others prefer to keep quiet," says Alaska native Pete Bogarsky, a resident of the coastal town of Alakanook. “Today, many foreigners want to get into America, and if there is a demand, then there will be an offer ...”
However, it is unlikely that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the ICE immigration police will ever want to take control of the border of the largest state under their control. There are too few facts of illegal entry into the territory of Alaska, and for effective bills and innovations at the federal level, a high-profile precedent is needed ...
Many people think that the minimum distance between the US and Russia is measured by the width of the Bering Strait - approximately 86 kilometers. If you count the distance between the continents - everything is correct.
But the border between our states can be calculated differently.
In the area of the Bering Strait, which connects the Arctic Ocean (Chukchi Sea) with the Pacific Ocean (Bering Sea), the distance between the United States and Russia is only 4 km.
2. 
3. The Bering Strait, which separates Asia from America, was first crossed by the Cossack S. Dezhnev and F. Popov during a fishing expedition. Then in 1728 the strait was reopened secret expedition V. Bering, whose name is named.
The width of the strait at its smallest point is 86 km. However, almost in the center of the strait are the islands of the mini Diomede archipelago: Krusenstern Island (USA) and Ratmanov Island (Russia).
4. On the island of Kruzenshtern there is an Eskimo village (about 130 people).
From the island of Ratmanov, the civilian population was relocated to the mainland. The easternmost border outpost of Russia is based here. The distance between the countries is about 3700 meters according to Wikipedia and 4160 meters according to the sign located at the outpost (about 5 bus stops).
5.
Periodically, from the end of the 19th century to the present day, at the level of specialists, and sometimes even governments (mainly Russia and the USA), the feasibility and possibilities of building a tunnel or bridge across the Bering Strait to connect Chukotka with Alaska are discussed, but for various reasons both technical and economic in nature, none of the ideas has yet been brought to implementation.
One of the experts on the history of the issue writes: “Ratmanov Island (formerly Big Diomede) is the easternmost land of Russia. It has an irregular shape (about 9 km long, 5 km wide) and an area of about 10 square meters. km; practically it is a large rock with a flat top. Just 4 km 160 m is the island of Kruzenshtern (formerly Small Diomede), with an area of about 5 square meters. km, which belongs to the United States. There is also Fairway Rock. The name of Diomede was given to this archipelago by Vitus Bering, who on the boat "Saint Gabriel" approached big island August 16, 1728 on the day of St. Diomede. But even before this name, Ratmanov Island already had a name - Imaklik (translated from Eskimo - “surrounded by water”), which was given to it by the Eskimos who lived on it for more than two thousand years. By the way, the Eskimos called the island of Krusenstern (former Little Diomede) Ingalik, which means "opposite".
6. Ratmanov and Kruzenshtern Islands. A picture from space. 
“The story of getting the island named after Ratmanov is as follows. In 1816, the famous navigator Otto Kotzebue, while exploring the Bering Strait, mistakenly counted not three islands in the Diomede archipelago (as it had been mapped since 1732), but four islands. He decided to give the “newly discovered” island the name of his colleague, naval officer Makar Ratmanov, with whom he took part in a round-the-world expedition a few years earlier. When the mistake was discovered, they decided to leave the name of Ratmanov on the map, and from the middle of the 19th century, Big Diomede changed its name.
We are accustomed to treat time zones purely practically - they are important when traveling and long trips. Forgetting about the time zone, you can be late for the flight and just "get lost in time." Time zones are counted from Greenwich - a conditional zero line in the "plus" (to the east) and to the "minus" (to the west). But, since the Earth is round, there is a place where the time zones converge, where "today" and "tomorrow" meet. This place is called the "Date Line" and it runs through the Pacific Ocean.
You can cross it using the flight "Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky - Anchorage" of the airline "Yakutia". Since you are flying not as usual, through Europe, but “in the opposite direction”, then you arrive in the USA as if on a day already lived. When you fly back to Kamchatka, you “return” to the future.
Recently, I myself managed to make such a journey through time together with the Yakutia airline.
1.
On July 11, at 5 am, I flew from Novosibirsk to Yakutsk on a Yakutia flight. The longest day of my life has begun. After 5 hours, transfer to a flight to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and from there to Alaska.
2. Flights to Anchorage operate every week on Mondays, but only until August 29th. This binding to summer is connected with the weather - July and August in Kamchatka and Alaska are ideal for tourists.
3. The head office of Yakutia Airlines is located in Yakutsk. It performs regular flights to all regions of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), many cities of the Russian Federation, international scheduled and charter flights.
4. Smooth takeoff from Yakutsk.
5. The air fleet of Yakutia Airlines consists of 15 aircraft. On the flight to Anchorage, 4 comfortable Boeing 737-800s fly. It's the only one air route, connecting the Far East of Russia with the former Russian territory, and now US state- Alaska.
6. The cockpit.
Cloudiness is low in Kamchatka, but during the roll during the landing course, a volcano is visible.
7. In general, there are two active volcanoes near Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky - Koryakskaya and Avachinskaya hills.
8. The aircraft is landing in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky on the shores of the Avacha Bay of the Pacific Ocean. It is the easternmost city in the entire northern hemisphere with a population of more than 100,000 people.
9. There is a crew change in Kamchatka.
10. While the plane is refueling, I check in for an international flight to Anchorage.
11. The flight to Alaska is late in the evening and everyone on board is asleep. Except me. I'm waiting for that very moment of crossing the border of time zones.
12. Here it is!
Phone at the porthole. At the 172nd longitude we cross the international date boundary.
13. It would seem that July 11 should have ended, and I should see the dawn of a new day - July 12, but no! This is the dawn of a day already lived - the 11th.
14. The real Groundhog Day, all over again.
Then, however, nature will take its toll and I will have to return this day to the universe, but that will be later.
15. Pilots, by the way, are guided only by Greenwich (the mean solar time of the meridian passing through the former location of the Greenwich Royal Observatory near London), so they simply do not notice such “jumps” in time.
Landing in Alaska at Anchorage International Airport. On the same day and at the same time, I landed in Yakutsk.
17. Alaska has its own time zone - Alaska Standard Time (AST).
Anchorage time is 1 hour behind West Coast time, 4 hours behind East Coast time, 12 hours behind Moscow time, and 17 hours behind Yakutsk time.
18. Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport is Alaska's main airport and the fifth largest in the world in terms of cargo traffic.
19. About 870 passengers use this flight a year, one board is about 170 people. The direction, although not massive, is in stable demand among Russian and American tourists, hunters, businessmen, as well as transit passengers.
20. Anchorage is the largest city in Alaska.
42% of the entire state's population lives in Anchorage, only New York City has a larger percentage of residents living in the state's largest city.
21. Unlike any other city in Alaska, Anchorage has never been a fishing or mining center.
22. The city owes its origin to a combination of circumstances. The site where present-day Anchorage is located was chosen to establish a railroad center there. This center in 9 years built the Alaska railway. It was there that Anchorage was founded on November 20, 1920.
23. Alaska is not only the largest US state in terms of area, but also the richest in terms of tourism. Here is located 23 national parks and a reserve. This is more than any other state in the country.
24. You can not only fly to Alaska, but also sail on a cruise ship.
25. And they like to travel around Alaska on special tourist trains. In such trains there are special cars with an upper observation deck.
26. Small aircraft here are sometimes metaphorically referred to as the "circulatory system of Alaska." Small planes deliver urgent cargo, transport people, search for missing people in hard-to-reach areas. This is because it is unprofitable to build roads in a mountainous country with lakes and dense forests.
27. In Alaska, it is not difficult to get a pilot's license and you will not surprise your friends here by buying an airplane. For example, thanks to small aircraft, you can visit the most high point North America - Mount Denali.
28. This is the most high mountain in Alaska and North America. When I was in school, it was called McKinley, after one of the American presidents. On August 28, 2015, the mountain was renamed Denali.
29. Denali is the historical name of the mountain. Translated from the language of the Indians, Athabasca means "Great."
30. The plane lands on a glacier at an altitude of 2000 meters above sea level.
31.
32. 100 km from Anchorage is located national park Kenai Fjords National Park. The park represents unique glaciers, snow avalanches, sea bays, mountain gorges and icebergs. The total area is 2833 sq. km.
33. The Kenai Fjords National Park has existed since 1980 and was created in order to protect the Arctic territories from the negative human impact.
34. The inhabitants of the park are polar bears, seals, walruses, whales, the coastal zone is rich in exotic marine flora.
35. The three main natural attractions in the park are the Disappearing Glacier, the Harding Icefield and the coast.
36. Here you can see with your own eyes how huge blocks of ice break off icebergs and fall into the sea.
37. Falling ice opens deep valleys carved by glaciers. Filled with water, they form fjords of unique beauty, which have a large length and rather steep slopes.
38. Waterfalls.
39. More than 200,000 tourists visit Kenai Fjords National Park each year for glacial wildlife cruises.
40. ski resort Alyeska Ski Resort is 45 kilometers from Anchorage.
41. Yukon river.
She often featured in Jack London's stories about the Gold Rush in Alaska.
42. The city of Nome was founded in 1888 as a settlement of gold miners.
This city "fell in love" with filmmakers. The film The Fourth Kind, starring Milla Jovovich, takes place here. The film tells about cases of abduction of people by aliens. And the diphtheria epidemic of 1925 in Nome became the basis of the plot of the full-length cartoon "Balto".
43. Of course, I did not miss the opportunity to fulfill one more of my dreams - I visited the Bering Strait, where the Arctic and Pacific Oceans meet.
44. Russia is only 85 km from here - about the same as from Sheremetyevo to Domodedovo.
45. In the foreground you can see Cape Prince of Wales, the westernmost point of the US mainland, in the background - Cape Dezhnev, the easternmost point of Russia. There are two islands between them. The smaller one is Small Diomede (USA), the larger one is Ratmanov Island (Russia). There are only 4 km between these islands, but they are located on different days.
46. The city of Wales is located here. It is located at the westernmost point of the American mainland at the tip of the Seward Peninsula, 1001 km from Anchorage. As of 2010, the population of the city was 145 people.
47. The skeleton of a whale in the yard of a residential building.
48. Very strong and atmospheric place!
49. Apart from the westernmost point, I visited the most northern city North America - Barow (Barrow).
In this small town there is permafrost and on a July day it is -2⁰С and the wind is 30 m/s - such a "resort".
50. Cape Barrow itself is located at a distance of 14 km from the town of the same name. In this weather, walking is quite boring and cool, so I called a taxi. And what was my surprise when a real Thai came for me! The man has lived most of his life in a country where temperatures rarely fall below 20⁰C, and moved to the northernmost city in the United States. Why he did this, I have not been able to find out.
51. This is the 71st latitude. View of the Arctic Ocean. The place where the Chukchi Sea and the Beaufort merge.
52. Way home. Check-in at the Yakutia Airlines counter.
53. The shortest day of my life begins - July 18th. It's time to pay back the universe :)
It turns out that I left Anchorage at 7:30 in the morning on July 18, and arrived in Yakutsk at 8:15 in the morning, but already on July 19. The day of July 18 had to be given up.
54. Flight R3-510. Course 15. Separation.
55. A ticket from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky to Anchorage and back costs $850, from Anchorage to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and back - $1080.
56. On the return flight to Russia, my fellow travelers are mostly American fishermen. For them, fishing in the wild places of Kamchatka is exotic.
57. Service on board at the European level.
58. Food is unusual for a Russian passenger.
59. On the way back we fly past the main volcanoes of Kamchatka.
60. Passengers in awe of the spectacle stick to the windows.
61. We return to Yakutsk - the journey through time is over.
62. Fly as often as possible - it gives an unforgettable experience!
I thank the airline
Few people know about such a curious fact that the distance from Russia to the United States is approximately 5 bus stops.
It is interesting, but often people do not even think about the fact that the distance from Russia to America can be calculated through the Bering Strait in the Pacific Ocean, where Alaska is within easy reach.
Many people think that this distance is measured by the width of the Bering Strait - about 86 kilometers. Quite a bit, isn't it? In fact, it is even less. The distance to the United States is only about 4 kilometers from Ratmanov Island, owned by Russia, to Krusenstern Island, owned by the United States. According to the agreement on the sale of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands (1867), the border between Russia and the United States runs in the middle between the islands. And the distance between the islands is just over 4 km.
Periodically, from the end of the 19th century to the present day, at the level of specialists, and sometimes even governments (mainly Russia and the United States), the feasibility and possibilities of building a tunnel or bridge across the Bering Strait to connect Chukotka with Alaska are discussed, but for various reasons, both technical and economic nature, none of the ideas has yet been brought to implementation.
Running errands in Alaska
So the map of history lay down - in 1867 Russia sold Alaska to the USA. The United States bought it, but for a long time did not know where to attach this, as it seemed to many then, “a suitcase without a handle.” From 1867 to 1959, the territory of Alaska was first called “County of Alaska”, then “County”, then simply “Territory”, and only in 1959 Alaska received the status of 49 US states, and the natural resources explored there - gold, gas, oil, bioresources have made every single Alaskan almost a millionaire. Russian America (as Alaska was also called) is located in the extreme northwest of the North American continent, in the east it borders on Canada, in the west on a small and narrowest section of the Bering Strait - with Russia.
Pictured below is the Diomede Islands. On the left is Kruzenshtern Island, still the United States, on the right is Ratmanov Island, already Russia.
The distance between the islands is 4 km. 160 m. Between these islands is the Russian-American border, as well as the international date line. The Eskimo village of Ingalik and a unit of the Alaska National Guard are located on Kruzenshtern Island. A Russian frontier post is stationed on Ratmanov Island. Composer Serafim Tulikov and poet Mikhail Plyatskovsky, having visited Ratmanov Island in their time and impressed by what they saw, wrote a border incorruptibility, the uncomplicated refrain of which sounds like a hymn to those harsh lands:
As if from a flashlight
The dim light of the moon trembles in the sky.
And stretches for the island, for the island of Ratmanov
A streak of silence.
If you ask - which city is the capital of the state of Alaska - many will answer - Anchorage. And they will be wrong and surprised that such an honorary title in Alaska is occupied by the small town of Juneau with a population of just under 40 thousand inhabitants. In general, in America there are many small towns with the status of state capitals, and cities with a population of one million take everything else for themselves - fame, popularity, recognition. So, you can only get to the capital of Alaska by sea or by air. This is not only the only US state capital with no road connection, but also the only state capital that borders on another state, i.e. with Canada. And what about Anchorage, the most inquisitive reader will ask?
Anchorage is a separate song from Alaska. This is the most Big City largest US state. It is characteristic that today Anchorage is twice the size of New York, although only a little more than 370 thousand people live there with its agglomeration. Being the center of the entire road system of the state, the city simply could not help but become one of the main tourist routes in Alaska, and the presence of the only international airport secured for him the status of the second capital of Alaska. Here it is appropriate to mention another local Anchorage attraction - Lake Hood - which is the largest water airfield on the planet. Thousands of hydroplanes, indispensable in local conditions, have found shelter on this water surface, and their enchanting “water procedures” during takeoffs and splashdowns make numerous tourists distracted from their direct duties - visiting the local attractions of Anchorage! So the panorama of the city, as if crowned with a jagged crown of snowy mountains, is complemented by the magnificent parks of Chugach and Ertkwijk, and Far North and Delaney amaze everyone with the purity of wildlife. In general, in order to explore Anchorage and its environs, we advise you to contact the representatives of the Novosibirsk One-Time Errand Service, who live in Anchorage and who will gladly fulfill any of your instructions, not only related to tourism.
In general, Alaska is famous for its independent disposition and extravagance of its inhabitants. For example, the town of Talkeetna, with a population of just over 800, is famous for electing a cat named Stubbs as its mayor. In this case, everyone was satisfied: - the voters that the kote keeps neutrality in relation to party affiliation, - the entrepreneurs that the kote does not interfere in business affairs, - the owner of Stubbs that her store has become enormously popular among tourists - and Stubbsik that that everyone cherishes and respects him!
By the way, Juneau's sister city is Vladivostok. But, judging by the grandiose international project that can be implemented in the next decade, Juneau needs to make friends with Anadyr, the capital of the Chukotka Territory. The USA, Russia and other interested countries are already considering the narrowest point of the Bering Strait (about 86 km) for laying a tunnel under it, which will connect America and Asia. For the project to work, a 1,200 km long highway will have to be built across the territory of Alaska. to Fairbanks, and on Russian territory such a route will have to be pulled from the tunnel exit to land for 1600 km. to Magadan. It also provides for the construction of alternative national railway crossings. So, very soon (by the standards of the universe) no one will be surprised by the route of travel from London to Los Angeles by car or steam locomotive, with stops, for example, in Novosibirsk or Magadan.
It is impossible to describe everything that Alaska is famous for in one small article. But still, the main wealth there was and remains strong and courageous people who conquer this harsh land with their work and perseverance. Together with the Americans, rolling up their sleeves, the Russians, of whom there are about 6 thousand people, are taming Alaska. Recently, many young people have come to study or work from Russian Far Eastern cities - Vladivostok, Khabarovsk, Magadan, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. There is no doubt that the Russian-speaking population in Alaska is even larger - we must not forget that the Russian language was native to almost all citizens of the republics of the former Union. So there will always be work for our One-Time Assignment Service, both in the United States and in Russia. I would like to believe that the instructions of our customers will be kind and warm, despite the fact that Alaska is washed by the cold Arctic Ocean and the harsh Pacific!
wondering how many km from russia to usa, first of all, you need to consider from what and to what place this distance will be measured. After all, both the United States and Russia are large countries, with a huge extent of territory. Let's say America stretches from the shores of the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans. Therefore, it is necessary to consider various options.
How many kilometers from Russia to the USA with a report from Moscow
Traditionally, the distance between countries is reported from the capital to the capital. It’s more convenient, especially since these are the most popular routes for tourists, businessmen, and so on. From Moscow to Washington in a straight line - 7.8 thousand kilometers, to New York - 7.5 thousand kilometers.
The term "direct" in this case means the length of the "air" path, that is, exactly as much, how many km from russia to usa must be overcome by plane. Distance to other cities is:
- to Chicago - eight thousand kilometers;
- to San Francisco - 9.5 thousand kilometers;
- to Los Angeles - 9.7 thousand kilometers.
The plane journey between Moscow and Washington will take more than ten hours. In time, the difference between our countries is ten hours in summer time and eleven in winter time (we are talking about the Pacific coast of America).
Path through the Bering Strait
Many do not think, but how many km from russia to usa, can be determined by calculating the distance through the Bering Strait in the Pacific Ocean, from which it is very close to Alaska.
There is a generally accepted opinion that this distance is about 86 kilometers, that is, equal to the width of the Bering Strait. Although it is even less.
Just four kilometers how many km from russia to usa, if you take the path from Ratmanov Island to Krusenstern Island, which belongs to America. According to the contract for the sale of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, signed in 1867, the border between Russia and America runs in the middle between the above islands. And the distance between them is just four kilometers. They say that when the weather is clear, there are no clouds and fog, the American coast can be seen even without binoculars.
By the way, since the end of the nineteenth century, the expediency and possibility of building a tunnel or a bridge across the Bering Strait, which would connect Chukotka and Alaska, was discussed between governments. But so far, for various reasons (financial, technical), this idea has not been implemented. Although such a tunnel could become a real "window to America."
