There has been no internet along the M56 to Yakutsk so I am some days behind in my regular journal posts. So I decided to do a quick update to let friends and family know where we are and what is happening and I will come back and fill in with a more complete record over the next few days. We are in Yakutsk, we are safe and sound but we have a significant mechanical issue with the vehicle and for the moment we are unable to travel. Over the next few days we will assess the options available to us for fixing the vehicle and do some sightseeing things as well.

Yesterday afternoon at around km marker 1020 our travels came to an abrupt halt. One of the places where the camper or house attaches to the truck frame broke and the camper box tilted up at a very worrying angle. Fortunately for us our friend Validimir in Vladivostok has a friend Alexander in Yakutsk and he organized for some of his family/friends to come and help us. After a brief inspection of the trouble our rescuers quickly sized up the situation and proceeded to produce what I would call a "field fix". The repair is certainly only a temporary fix but allowed us to continue traveling very slowly towards Yakutsk. After the repair we made only about 30 km before finding a spot beside the road to spend the night and tried to relax after the stress and agitation of the afternoons experience.

This morning we continued north to the village of Haptagay where we met Alexander and parked the truck at the house of his mother-in-law. Here we were treated to a wonderful Yakutia breakfast and an opportunity to see inside one of the more traditional Yakutia houses made of squared logs. While having a rustic feel the house was cosy and comfortable with all the mod-cons.

After some inspection of the vehicle some plans were made for fixing the vehicle and we headed off to the city of Yakutsk (where Alexander lives and were we will stay for the next few days). This short trip turned out to be amazing. Why amazing; well to get to Yakutsk we had to cross the Lena River which right now is still iced over but the ice is too weak for road transport. But because of the ice, ferries are not yet running. The Russian solution to this problem is a fleet of small hovercraft that ferry people and small quantities of cargo across the river.

Anyway that is enough for the moment or this will cease to be a quick update.