Ep 24: Dyatlov Pass Part 2

Podcast:

“An unknown compelling force should be considered the cause of the hiker’s deaths.”

– Lev Ivanov, Lead Prosecutor, Dyatlov Pass Incident

Background:

Part 2 of our Special on Dyatlov Pass: On January 27, 1959, a group of outdoor enthusiasts, known as “tourists” in Russia, consisting of seven men and two women, mostly students and graduates of the Ural Polytechnical Institute (which is now the Ural Federal University) left the village of Vizhay in the northern Ural Mountains on a two-week ski trek, through a region called Sverdlovsk Oblast, the “gateway to Siberia” in Russia. In Russia a “tourist” is a serious outdoorsman. The goal was to reach Otorten Mountain at the end of their journey. Their planned route would rank as a “Category III,” the most difficult classification for a hiking expedition in winter, which if successful, would qualify them as “Masters of Sport.” On February 1st as they started to move through a mountain pass on their last leg of the trip, bad weather and decreasing visibility forced them off course, and the group decided to make camp on the eastern slope of a small mountain called Kholat Syakhl by the indigenous Mansi peoples, which translates to “Dead Mountain” due to the area’s lack of wild game. Sometime during the night of February 2nd, the group suffered an unimaginably terrifying ordeal, sealing their fate. When they hadn’t been heard from by February 20th, a search party was formed to look for the missing youths. On February 26th the search party reached their camp and what they found would bring more questions than answers. It appeared as though something had scared the hikers so badly, that they panicked and ripped a hole in the side of their tent in order to escape, shoeless, into – 20º F (-29º C) snowfall. It was determined by Soviet authorities that the group had met with a “compelling unknown force” causing them all to flee and ultimately die of exposure with some also suffering significant internal injuries such as broken ribs and fractured skulls. There have since been many theories put forth as to what this force actually was, but we may never know what was so horrific that it caused this group of experienced adventurers to take leave of their senses and take their chances in the deadly wilderness. Following the incident, the mountain pass was named “Dyatlov Pass” in honor of the group’s leader, Igor Dyatlov.

 

Location:

“Dyatlov Pass” on the slopes of Kholat Syakhl in the northern Ural Mountains of the Russian Federation.

Photos:

A mysterious photo that was the last shot taken on a film roll from one of the hikers, which appears to show a bright, out-of-focus light, possibly in the sky.

A photo that is often associated with the Dyatlov event but which researchers believe was not taken by anyone from the party. It appears to show an aerial explosion which might be connected to a military exercise taking place in the region, possibly around the same time.

Another photo that is often associated with the event but is not believed to be from the film shot by the Dyatlov party. The mysterious fireball might be connected to a military exercise taking place in the region, as locals reported seeing large bright orbs in the sky during the days around the incident.

A final image found on a roll of film from the hikers which either shows one of their group dressing humorously portraying a type of Yeti creature, or shows as some believe, an actual Yeti

The Dyatlov hiking party

Zinaida “Zina” Kolmogorova appears to be making a type of “portyanki” outer-covering for their boots

The group rests at a local cafe to check their route

26 January 1959 – the group leaves Ivdel and gets a ride in a Russian GAZ 63 truck to the 41st Kvartal (Quarter)

The setup of the tent used by the Dyatlov party, but not at the scene of the incident, where it would later be cut open from the inside to escape

Rear view of the Dyatlov tent

Condition of the tent as it was found by rescuers on February 26, 1959. It had been cut open from the inside to escape quickly.

Left to Right: Nicolai Thibeaux-Brignolle; Lyudmila “Lyuda” Dubinina; Semen (also written as “Semyon”) “Alexander” Zolotarev; Zinaida “Zina” Kolmogorova

Yuri Yudin clowning around

Semen “Alexander” Zolotarev in the foreground as the group takes a break

The group lining up in preparation to trek

Reference Links:

• “9 Russian Adventurers Mysteriously Froze to Death. A New Theory Explains Why” by Matt Simon on Wired.com, 1-28-2021

• Archive of a very comprehensive website about the whole Dyatlov story

• Supplemental documentation and analysis of the incident

• Dyatlov Pass on Wiki

• Terrific archive of all the photos from the group, in English and Russian

• Forum on the Dyatlov incident - in Russian - you'll need a browser that can translate

• Donnie Eichar's "Authors at Google" interview about his book, "Dead Mountain"

• Book Review of "Dead Mountain"

• Song: Pixies "Wave of Mutilation" from the album, "Doolittle"

• YouTube vid about Dyatlov - text pulled from Wiki entry but has good photos

• Interesting story about a family living isolated for 40 years in Siberia

• Russian Yeti at Dyatlov?

• Snowboarder Bigfoot Incident

• Nazi UFO's

• Foo Fighters

• More on the Foo Fighters

• Even more on Foo Fighting

• The Actual Foo Fighters (Because you were expecting that right?)

• SONG: "Memorial" by Explosions in the Sky http://bit.ly/1ZVvl5U

Related books:

Mountain of the Dead: The Dyatlov Pass Incident

By Keith McCloskey

Buy on Amazon

Journey to Dyatlov Pass: An Explanation of the Mystery

By Keith McCloskey

Buy on Amazon

Dead Mountain: The Untold True Story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident

By Donnie Eichar

Buy on Amazon

The Lighthouse: The Mystery of the Eilean Mor Lighthouse Keepers

By Keith McCloskey

Buy on Amazon

Credits:

Episode 24: Dyatlov Pass Part 2 produced by Scott Philbrook & Forrest Burgess; Ryan McCullough Sound Design; Research Assistance by Tess Pfeifle. Copyright Scott Philbrook & Forrest Burgess 2015, All Rights Reserved.