History
Yakutsk was founded by Pyotr Beketov in 1632. A detachment of cossacks under his command founded the city as the Lenskii fort, on the right bank of the Lena River the tenth longest river in the world, which grew into and changed its name to Yakutsk in 1647.
As one of the most important Russian outposts in eastern Siberia, Yakutsk became the economic and administrative center of the regionâa base for probes and later scientific expeditions into the Far East and the extreme North.
In 1822, Yakutsk was officially designated a city, and in 1851 became the official administrative capital of the Autonomous Republic of Yakutia. Today Yakutsk is a major administrative, industrial, cultural, and research centerâstanding out as one of the most dynamic and fast-developing cities in the Russian Far East.
Climate
Yakutsk is situated at the extreme latitude of 62°N. Its climate is definitively continental, leading to summer highs in the 90s +32° Celsius, and extreme winter lows in the negative 80s -64° Celsiusâthat's a range of over 100° Celsius! The average temperature in January is around -45°-42°C; in Julyâ+66° 19°C. The ideal time to visit unless you're traveling here purposely to experience the extreme cold is from March to July. The sunny spring months will allow you to enjoy winter sports like skiing, ice-skating, dog sledding, ice sculptures, etc., under temperatures permitting outdoor human life. The average March temperatures, of course, are still cold at an average of -8.5° -22.5°C. The summer months of June-July are great for the opportunities to see the Northern wilderness in its full glory, to enjoy the White Nights when the sun never sets, to set off on adventures along the Yakut rivers, and to experience the Yakut national holiday "Ysyakh."