Cliffs of Wrangel Island, a photo from Chukchia, Far East

Photographer's Note

71°15'N 177°29'W
Air temperature: 3°C

Zodiac cruise around Cape Litke on the eastern coast of Wrangel Island.

The sun burns steadily through the clouds. The fog curtain lifts slightly and we can see mountainous terrain in the distance. It is a crisp, beautiful morning.

Swarms of birds fill the air, as we approach the land and its jagged profile of high peaks and great folds of rock jutting into the water. We are looking at cliffs of limestone, which were formed beneath the sea and then fractured during uplift, providing the ledges on which the birds nest.

We slowly move along the cliff face, cutting the motor often just to sit amidst this extraordinary natural scene.

desman, jhm, singuanti, Rockyboy, maurajn, adipos, Temenuzka, cfreire, v_vicky, federico has marked this note useful

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desman (2222) 2005-04-13 3:56

Voici une île bien mystérieuse (avec un Rhinocéroce au fond :o).
J'aime beaucoup l'atmosphère, bravo et merci

jhm (211734) 2005-04-13 8:43

Dear Nikolay,
Very happy that the fog disappear, with these small zodiac in the cold water, but the rocks is very spectacular on the foreground, the large rocks give a lovely image of this part of earth.
Well seen Nikolay!
John

trip (860) 2005-04-13 21:32

Very dramatic photo, you have beautifully captured immensity of the scale.

singuanti (15250) 2005-04-13 21:59

Wow Nikolay! This is obviously a most dramatic and rugged landscape. I find the black rock fascinating as I've never seen limestone that dark, usually it's a medium gray. At any rate I like the cropping which includes those birds high in the sky. Clarity and sharpness seem excellent to me. Very impressive work Nikolay.

danyy (0) 2005-04-14 3:31

Bonjour Nikolay,
Un paysage qui n'a pas l'air trop accueillant, mais qui donne bien sur la photo, avec cette brume légère qui ajoute une atmosphère de mystère.
C'est très bien vu.
Merci pour le partage.
Daniel.

Steft (6109) 2005-04-14 13:46

Very nice photo of the far east of Russia, which I don't know at all, to be honest, not even from television or whatever, but nice to see here on TE.

Very impressive nature. The colours are maybe a bit flat, you could maybe increase the contrasts a bit, but not too much, otherwise you get a white spot to the left. I like the birds in the sky and the composition gives a nice feeling of freedom.

mikhalych (1319) 2005-04-14 14:43

I can only envy you. Great place to visit, unfortunately too far :)

Solid compo and nice tonal perspective.

Rockyboy (20598) 2005-04-14 15:48

3°C, This is a not very touristic region of Russia you show us here, I think... Anyway, the landscape is very nice and I like this rock on the water. Well done, Nikolay!

jrj (34843) 2005-04-18 3:21

Very interesting presentation Nikolay. Sure not the most urbane place around, but of course very interesting to see. There was just a TV series from this island here in Norway following a photographer staying on the island for a year with one Russian friend.

maurajn (902) 2005-05-07 0:18

Nickolay, this is breathtaking scenery. I'm surprised at home much it looks like parts of our Canadian arctic as the regions are not adjacent. From the distant fog, to the beach and gulls in the foreground, subtle but varied details.

miguel (899) 2005-05-10 0:20

Hi Nikolay. It's a stunning seascape. The fog in the background gives a mysterious atmosphere. Thanks for sharings photos of this region not very known.

kolesn (591) 2005-07-08 15:35

Декорация к сказке!
Белая зависть.
Супер!

rajhema (1873) 2005-08-17 12:50

Fog does bring little haziness. But the wild rocks and the water is captured very well. Its a very good picture Nikolay

krakowiak (4762) 2006-03-07 12:20

Beautyful scenery Nikolay,
and very good composition!
Maybe this cloud in the distance is too white for me :) anyway very interesting shot

Kind Regards,
Pawel

agbonavita (0) 2006-05-13 11:48

it remembers a lord of the rings scene!

Good work!

river_14 (166) 2006-08-30 20:08 [Comment]

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ChrisNorman (415) 2007-04-23 16:10

I have always wondered about this place and now you bring it to my home in Scotland; really dramatic cliff scenery and intriguing geology

well done

Chris

Orion90 (75) 2007-06-08 20:30

beautiful shot
i love the rocks in this capture, thank you! keep up the great work!

maredeniz (1016) 2007-06-26 15:39

oh my got
what a wonderfull...
congratulations
Deniz

Traveller (672) 2007-07-10 22:40

Oj, kak zdorovo, kakaja ona, okazivaetsya, krasivaja, Chukotka! No "golaya" - skali. Mne nravyatsya letayuschie ptitsi. A chto znachit "zodiac cruise"? V smisle, vokrug?

Ria_M (115) 2008-06-25 8:28 [Comment]

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v_vicky (1037) 2008-09-18 15:11

Hello Nikolay,
magnificent landscape...what a view!!!
It's like a mystery place in a dream :)

My best regards
Vicky

federico (6109) 2009-04-14 19:30

hi nikolay, this is a very nice shot in a very incredible place..so far from everywhere, thanks for sharing
best regards fred

Photo Information

Copyright: Nikolay Murenets (Kolyamour) (1760)
Genre: Places
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2003-07-18
Categories: Nature
Exposure: f/5.6, 1/640 seconds
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): Places I hope to travel to..., My favorite photos (16) (Gatti Matti) [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2005-04-13 2:55
Favorites: 10 [view]