9. My first days based in the 'Tourist capital': Esso
"Kamchatka Peninsula" by Bike and Kayak
Fri 27 Jul 2012 06:49
Esso is an interesting little village, the closest I have seen to anything resembling close to a tourist village. The one Bystraya river which is actually two rivers with the same name is a major land mark in the town cutting the village into two with it's size and rapid flow.
The village is famous for being the finish point for the current, 1000+ km, annual Beringia dogsled race, that starts way up north and crosses much of the Northern Kamchatka peninsula.
There is a surprisingly high quality museum next to the Bystraya river, that covers a bit of the race, but also shows a lot about the traditional natives, and how they lived.
I only found two cafes / restaurants in Esso, and both were mediocre, and never any customers inside. There is no restaurant / eating out / café culture, I guess it's about affordability, priorities, and the attraction of home cooking and one's home environment.
One of the highlights for me was the natural thermal spring 'swimming bath at the end of one of the village roads. All for free, open 24 hours a day, I enjoyed getting down there around 6am with the coldish outside air, mystical fog environment, and then warm 50 C water to wallow in. Just the opposite of what my Kalk Bay / St James friends must be experiencing in the Indian Ocean tidal pools at the moment!
All in all, I'm really glad I took the time out to make the detour visit.