Yakutsk on the Lena River is the largest city in the Republic of Sakha, the coldest region in Russia. The city’s history dates back to the time of Russia’s expansion into Siberia and the Far East, and it originated as a small fort built by Cossacks. The fort was wooden and one of several in the region. It was built in 1632 on the right bank of the Lena, and in 1642, after floods, the fort was moved to the left bank and thereby to the present location of Yakutsk. In the city’s first century, Yakutsk was a small town where Russians and exiled prisoners lived. From the middle of the 18th century, Yakutsk also increasingly became a city for local Yakuts who moved here.

Yakutsk has over time been the starting point for exploration of Siberia and Far Eastern Russia, and on their journeys both Vitus Bering and Ferdinand von Wrangel stayed in the city. In 1822 Yakutsk formally became a regional administrative city, and in 1851 Yakutsk became the administrative capital of the newly created Yakutja region. At the end of the 19th century, more than 7,000 people lived in the city, and at the beginning of the 20th century, many modern facilities were built in the city.

After being in the hands of the Whites in 1918-1919, Yakutsk became part of the Soviet Union, and the city was expanded with educational institutions and industries, and mining formed a large part of Yakutia’s economic growth. In 2011, the railway reached the city of Nizhny Bestyakh on the eastern bank of the Lena, and Yakutsk, with today’s population of over 300,000, was thereby integrated into the Russian railway network.

Today, Yakutsk is a city with several sights in the center, where you can start a stroll on Lenin Square/Площадь Ленина. Here you can see a statue of the head of state Lenin in front of the former Supreme Soviet, which was the government building of the Soviet Union. Across the large square runs the main street, Prospekt Lenina. Along the street are many of Yakutsk’s well-known institutions. You can, for example, visit the State Academic Russian Drama Theater/Государственный академический Русский драматический театр and the Sakha Academic Theater/Саха академический театр.

From Lenin Square you can go south-east, where the promenade along the Lena is located. Here you can see the city’s cathedral, the Transfiguration Cathedral/Преображенский собор, which was built between 1826 and 1845. Opposite the cathedral and along the promenade stands a pillared monument dedicated on the occasion of the 375th anniversary of Yakutija’s accession to the Russian state. If you walk along the promenade to the north, you will come to several places along the Lena. You can take a walk on the town’s beach during the season, and from the boat terminal Retjnoj vokzal/Речной вокзал you can take tour boats on the river.

There are also several interesting experiences and museums in Yakutsk. On the northwestern outskirts of the city is the Kingdom of Permafrost/Царство евченкой мерзлоты, where you can experience the area’s permafrost in tunnels in the ice. The tunnels are beautifully lit and contain several ice sculptures. In the central part of the city is the Yakut State Museum of the History and Culture of the Northern Peoples It is a good place to learn about large parts of the region’s development. Close by, you can visit the city museum of local history, Muzey Istorii Goroda Yakutska/Музей истории города Якутска.