On our Soviet Arctic Frontier tour to Barentsburg and Pyramiden, we spend two days in the famous Russian mining town – located barely 1000 kilometres from the North Pole. Here is how we spent two nights in this semi-abandoned city last August.
What is Barentsburg?
First thing first, if you’re not familiar with the 1923 Svalbard Treaty, who may wonder why there is a Russian city on a territory administrated by Norway. The northernmost inhabited land of the world, Svalbard, in a unique territory: even though it’s administrated by Norway, it officially doesn’t belong to anyone and any of the signatories of the Svalbard treaty is free to come here to exploit natural resources.
Many European companies tried to come here in the early 20th century and went bankrupt: only the Soviet Union and Norway actually managed to set up viable operations.
Grumant was the first Russian mining town on Svalbard, founded in the beginning of 20th century. It was linked to another town called Colesbay by a narrow railroad used for the coal transportation. The Soviets also set up shop in Barentsburg and the ghost town of Pyramiden; while the Norwegian mostly developed Longyearbyen, the biggest city in Svalbard.
What is there to see in Barentsburg?
Our Svalbard tours start in Longyearbyen, the only city in Svalbard linked to the rest of the world by an airport. After a night there, we take a small 9-seat boat to travel to Barentsburg.
On the way, we see the remains of Grumant from the see and – weather permitting – we land at Colesbay. There we can explore the area, including the railway’s gallery and the hut of Vladimir Rusanov, who was exiled from Russia due to his Marxist activities and died in 1913 while searching for the north-east passage.
Coles Bay area has a history of Norwegian trappers dating back to 19th century, but the buildings and ruins we see today dates mostly from the 50s to the 70s, when it was quite a successful Soviet mining town.
After exploring Colesbay, we continue sailing to Barentsburg.
Barentsburg is the Russian “capital” of Svalbard. Russian and Ukrainian miners left their mark here, since the settlement has been under control of the Russian State Trust Arktikugol since 1931. At its peak, it had up to 2000 inhabitants, but only 250 remain.
Our tours are planned to take us there for Miner’s Day, that happens on the last weekend of August. There are ceremonies around different mining towns across Russia, with awards, dances and songs from locals.
We also do a tour of the town, seeing the most interesting buildings. The oldest ones date back to the 50s, as the settlement was totally destroyed during WWII. Most of them, including the impressive canteen, are now abandoned. The places still retains its Soviet feeling, with a Lenin bust overlooking the port and propaganda signs, such as the iconic “Our goal: communism” slogan still standing in front of one of the few apartment blocks still in use.
Can you visit the Barentsburg mine?
Yes! Our second day in Barentsburg starts with a visit of the mine: it is the only operating coal mine in the world that is open to the public.
Our 1.5-hour tour sees us walking along almost 2km of tunnels, out of the 55 km that the mine has. The mine goes to a depth of about 600 metres, but the deepest we go is 180 metres. Nowadays, there are only 20-25 miners there, out of 100 people working in the facilities. The mine used to produce 250,000 tons of coal per year, but it’s now down to 80,000 tons, and the plan is to mine 40,000 tons in 2032.
Arktikugol has operated at a deficit since the 1990s and it is theorized that the Russian government continues funding its operations in order to maintain a foothold in the Arctic, not out of an actual need for Svalbard’s resources.
Who lives in Barentsburg?
As the city is slowly going out of business, it went from 2,000 to roughly 230 inhabitants. Most of them are not Russian, but Ukrainian: the mines in Svalbard are considered to be the most dangerous in the world, this is why for generations, all the miners here have come from Donetsk. The techniques used to mine here are the same as in the Ukrainian oblast.
The elephant in the room is, of course, the Russian war against Ukraine. This is a taboo subject here: some Ukrainians left the town at the beginning of the invasion and the remaining inhabitants have a tacit agreement not to mention it. In such a small settlement in the middle of the Arctic, it’s probably best!
Are there bars in Barentsburg?
Not only there is a bar, it also brews its own beer! The Red Bear Brewery is the place to go. They produce different kinds of bear, but only for domestic consumption: you can find it only in Barentsburg and Pyramiden.
To visit Barentsburg, join us next August on our Svalbard Soviet Frontier: Pyramiden & Barentsburg Arctic Ghost Towns Tour
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