Solo in Norilsk - Russia's Most Polluted Closed City

In summer 2022 I went to one of my most desirable travel destinations - Norilsk. Norilsk is a closed city in Russian arctic which is famous for being one of the most polluted cities in the world. Norilsk is one of the most remote towns on the planet, located deep in the northernmost parts of Siberia, within the Arctic Circle. Accessible only by air, there are no roads to connect it to wider Russia, making it highly closed-off from the outside world. The town was built during the 1930s, as the site of a Gulag labour camp. Most of the housing blocks and main buildings were built by prisoners, who were forced to work all hours of the day in gruelling sub-zero temperatures. According to archives, it is estimated that 16,806 prisoners died under these cruel conditions, between the years of 1935-1956. The Norilsk Nickel corporation is in many ways a de facto governing body over the local population, employing a large percentage of residents and exercising tight control over the rights and rules of Norilsk town. Riding a freight train from Norilsk to Dudinka: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKEXxl4vrCw ( Edited text from https://www.skratch.world/post/norilsk-the-isolated-russian-town-dubbed-most-depressing-on-earth ) Content: 00:00 - Introduction into Norilsk 01:36 - Landing in Alykel Airport (NSK) 02:20 - Introduction into the history of Norilsk Railway 03:32 - Disappeared town of Alykel 05:20 - Narrow-gauge steam locomotive 06:20 - Kayerkan district 12:49 - Grocery prices (July 2022) 13:47 - Former Nadezhda Airport 14:34 - Norilsk in the evening 16:17 - Oganer district 18:19 - Talnakh district 19:57 - Trainhopping to Dudinka 20:10 - Dudinka 23:53 - Abandoned trains in Kayerkan 27:21 - Hopping on a random train 31:12 - Disappeared railway station 32:45 - Across Putorana Plateu by swamp-buggy 35:53 - Norilsk industrial zones (1) 39:21 - Former coal railway and epic ore passageway 42:58 - Golgofa: the memorial to the victims of political repressions 44:17 - Tundra station, hitchhiking a freight train 47:26 - Norilsk, the city center 49:17 - Norilsk Museum 50:27 - Soviet mosaic in Norilsk 50:45 - Norilsk industrial zones (2) 51:34 - Sneaking into a diesel locomotive 52:34 - Collecting berries in tundra 53:03 - Derailed trains near Norilsk 55:38 - A lot of mosquitos You can contribute to the production of new videos via: PayPal: [email protected] Donation Alerts: https://www.donationalerts.com/r/vagabongg Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vvagabond Crypto (Etherium): 0x9931db2f59a333799c99e3b85aacab57b1446cf8 YouTube Memebrship: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCO8MMsO_XRjO7X4iGCuKdwg/join Instagram: @vagafuckabond