Fedor in his diaries twice recalls our acquaintance. We met in Moscow, in a very beautiful place. I then wrote the book "Man and Power" and interviewed the intelligentsia. There is such a very interesting person Anatoly Zabolotsky - this is the director of photography of Shukshin's films. When we met, he was no longer filming movies, but temples flooded in Siberia. I really wanted to talk to him about power and its proximity to man. And so I came, took a very good interview, and I had to leave, when suddenly he received a call. After the call, he ran into the room and exclaimed with delight: “Irina, stay, Fyodor Konyukhov will come soon!” I answered: “Well, Anatoly Dmitrievich, I won’t embarrass you,” and I thought that a taciturn, gloomy and reserved person would come now, since a traveler. And Zabolotsky says: “No, Ira, you stay, God himself sends him to you.” And so it turned out.
That evening he accompanied me to the subway. He turned out to be very talkative, he talked a lot about his travels, about his trip to the State Duma and to the South Pole. I recorded everything on audio and even wrote an article about him, which, however, the editor did not take. I was outraged by the fact that the government does not support travelers well.
When we met and introduced ourselves, Fedor said that he was three hundred years old. Then he clarified: “I mean, how many years have I been preparing my expeditions. Here, count: the South Pole - 20 years, Everest - 10 ... ”We calculated this in total, it turned out three hundred.
The day after we met, we had our first date, where he offered me his hand and heart. We then talked for 24 hours - the whole day and did not notice how time ran. He told everything about himself: where, what, where and, most importantly, what he wants to do. He said that he puts his projects and expeditions in the first place in his life, and warned that he would travel all his life. And in extreme expeditions too. He offered me to accept him for who he is, and I accepted. Not immediately, but accepted.
Loneliness is a conditional concept. Fedor and I, even during separation, are still together. The more we live, the more we feel it. It takes some time to live with a person to understand this law. Yes, there seems to be no physical presence, but you still feel a person nearby. Years pass - and you begin to feel your loved one at a distance. You feel everything, you even see the picture where he is at that moment. This is given if, of course, you are cordially close to this person, connected with him by prayer. Therefore, over the years, the problem of loneliness did not become. In order to get to know Fedor, I traveled with him. But this is not my calling.
Why would I ruin my life and the lives of my children? If I am a mother, then I should be with children. They must have a family hearth, and someone is forced to become its keeper. If both parents travel, what about the family, the education of children, their upbringing? There are, of course, traveling families, Fedor and I met them. Once we met a girl who has been with her parents on a yacht since birth. She crawled up the mast like a monkey. But this is an exceptional case. It is difficult for such children to be in society. It happens that parents break their lives with their way of life. We went the classical way: there should be a classical family with Orthodox traditions. Therefore, I am “on the shore”, as the guardian of the family hearth. I only travel when children can travel with us.
The problem was different: it was important that he prepared all the expeditions consciously, not to risk in vain. So that each expedition was worked out so that he was confident, and we believed in him, so that there were no doubts. It is important for the traveler's wife to see him off with faith, to wait with faith, not to doubt him - this helps him a lot. The problem is not separation, but whether we believe in this person and whether we understand that this is his calling. We want happiness for our loved ones, and happiness consists not only of the fact that we are nearby. You can be close, in the same room, but not be together and even interfere with each other, generate tension. This is what we were trying to avoid.
I had a girlfriend - the wife of a sea captain. The family celebrated each return from the flight, for the sake of which my friend took a vacation. But when he retired, they separated because they did not learn how to be together. They began to have problems, each appreciated their space.
Although Fedor and I are now parting, we know that there is our own space for two. No matter how it is, no matter how each one lives with his own tasks during the period of expeditions and separations, we understand that there is a place where we will always be together. Now he travels less. Now my youngest son and I are lucky in that he sees his father longer.
Fedor has big, big projects, but he prepares them for about a year (for example, like flying in a hot air balloon). Of course, this is new for us - life, when we are more together than apart. The lack of joint life is now being compensated, we have waited for this. But just because of the example of my girlfriend, I think that someday he will stop traveling, because he is not getting younger, but getting old. We must try to make this period become happiness, and not something unexpected, incomprehensible and alien.
We build our lives in such a way that we try not to wean from each other. Meeting after separation, we are looking for a common field of activity, a common space in which we are united. And not so that one is busy with his own business, the other with his own. That's what's important to build.
At the moment he is in Moscow, waiting for me at home. I was persuaded to stay in Yekaterinburg, but I shortened my trip for a day to see him. Now he is busy preparing for a new achievement - he wants to set a record: to stay in the air on a glider for 120 hours. Therefore, it often happens in Kislovodsk, on experimental flights.
Some wives are offended by their husbands because they do not understand them - they do not know their favorite color, favorite food, favorite flower ... Tell us! Don't wait for your husband to find out about it himself. Tell him about yourself, about who you are, and he will gladly give you your favorite flowers if you explain to him which ones you like. I try not to wait, but to go forward.
We try to be together. This means that he is not indifferent to what is happening to me, and I - to what happened to him. At the beginning of our family life, we agreed that everyday life would not be the reason for our disagreements. Of course, everyday life arises: both material problems and uneven workload during his expeditions, but this is not the main topic of our communication. We protect our relationships. When he arrives, I do not say that a pipe has leaked in the apartment or that I have no money to repair the rooms. I try to tell him what he expects from me. That's what I taught him. I didn’t succeed right away, because he is an independent person, constantly busy with projects. But gradually I told him who I am, what my needs are, what I love.
Fedor says that we have been together for thirty years, and I agree with him, although the real dates do not correspond to this. The children and I calculated that two-thirds of this period was occupied by his expeditions. One third is time together. Now the situation is changing, he is more with us. Maybe later this ratio will become fifty-fifty, and by the end of our life it will be completely opposite to what it was at the beginning. Time is not important - for thirty years we have been able to save the family and we want to be close.
Recently, the wife of a Russian traveler came to Yekaterinburg Fyodor Konyukhov. This is a nonsense man who made five round-the-world voyages, 17 times crossed the Atlantic. Residents of the Ural capital presented her book about her husband - these are diary entries for the last 20 years, made during the days of his waiting, which in total add up over the years.
The image of mother Irina Konyukhova, which I got from the Internet - a very believing and humble woman, dispelled in the first minutes, when she, having entered, took off her scarf, saying that it would be on an equal footing with me. Her attitude to her own life captivates with rationality. She bluntly says that they do not have the model of a family that they should be equal to, does not deny that she suspected her husband of carelessness and did not immediately learn to live with him. But at the same time, she always understood that she met a person with a spark that could not be extinguished.
“This is the fourth book about our family,” says mother Irina. - I wrote the first book at the request of Fedor, when we lived for three years and he went on a long voyage. Of course, I saw him off very hard, and he said: “Write letters to me, and I will write to you.” I thought about what to call the book, and remembered that when we met, he said: "I'm three hundred years old." So she called it: "300 years, 3 years of life."
— And why 300 years?
- He prepared all his expeditions for a long time. Each is like decades of life. After mine, we published two books under his authorship - "The Road Without a Bottom" - this is his period of the race in Alaska on dog sleds. The third book is called The Rower in the Ocean. Then he set a world record by crossing the ocean in a rowboat. He said: “Wait for me 100 days”, but came in 43. This is a phenomenal result. Naturally, those of his and my diaries were of interest to the publisher. After the third book, I decided to take a break. I considered that it is necessary to live for some time before having the right to share experience, I wrote novels, short stories, even published novels. Fedor continued to write his diaries. Last year we thought about our anniversaries: he turned 65 years old, I'm 55. And he asked me to write another book about him. By that time, I had accumulated a lot of diaries - it's been 22 years since I wrote a little. I decided to collect them, it turned out a thousand pages. The book ended up with 300 left to make it easy to read. Another reason why I decided on this publication is that since 2010 I have become a mother, and they really liked the short stories that I gave to the parishioners. They asked: “Mother, do you have anything else?” Then I thought that the best book is a story about yourself, because you write it with your heart.
- In one of your interviews, you said that when you first met, Fedor said that he did not promise you either prosperity or peace, but he promised to love all his life. Can love exist when there is no peace?
“A person is arranged in such a way that he lives in a state of development, and development cannot be at rest. A family is development together. Each of us has our own path, and you never have to think that everything will be the way you imagine. But the more interesting it is to live not according to some patterns. A family is a lot of work, spiritual, psychological. I don't like the word "sacrifice". Here another is the knowledge of oneself through the family.
- Your family life is just beyond any patterns. Surely those around you have tortured you with questions about how hard it is to live when your husband is constantly away from home?
- Do not look at our family as a role model. Definitely, the classic family should be different. If all families are like ours, then chaos will arise in the world. But it happens that a person has a calling - he is a polar explorer, a geologist, or, like my husband, a traveler. Such people are forced to be away from the family for a long time. And then there is another model of relations. In it, the role of the wife increases. And her task, in the absence of her husband, is to compensate for this absence with a story about him. Teach the family to live his life. We have learned this. Fedor's expeditions are family projects. This is not positioned in the press, and it is not necessary. We both understand that the core of family life is a different model. Therefore, where possible, we are together. We see him off, we meet him. In August we will have a family expedition, we are going to the Altai Mountains, and in addition to our family, three more families with children are going with us. I dreamed about this for a long time.
Honeymoon trip. Photo: from personal archive
- When you met Fedor, did you understand his position in life, did you know that travel came first for him?
- Yes, he honestly warned that this is the main thing.
- Nevertheless, did you understand that you could build such a model of life?
- Not right away. There was a moment when I realized that I needed to think about it. For me, his declaration of love and his honest conversation that he would be engaged in his projects all his life were unexpected. It so happened that after meeting and a stormy month of dating, he left for six months. During the expedition, I did not catch the connection. I had to make a choice: connect with him and, of course, get married, or try to live a different destiny. Six months gave the answer to the question. Of course, a man and a woman concluding an alliance should agree on the shore, sincerely talk about what their desires and needs are. If they hide something from each other or think that they will redo the second half, this is the deepest delusion. Hence all the conflicts.
Is marriage important?
- Important. For those couples who are really determined to always be together, this helps to keep the union. Heaven is holding you. On the one hand, you are given more trials, on the other hand, in difficult times God always holds you and warns you against rash acts.
- How to distinguish a test of strength from the situation when people need to disperse?
- To women who come to me, I give this advice: "Learn to live with an open heart." Then it will prompt you. And at the moment when you doubt whether to be with this person or not, imagine that he is not on this earth. If you are in pain and cannot imagine life without him, this is a clue that you need to do everything possible to keep this love. Everyone has their own tactics: someone breaks up for a while, pauses in a relationship. It's OK. Thoughts are still together.
- You are a doctor of sciences, a teacher of international law, and you had a good career. I read that you were forced to turn down good job offers for the sake of your family.
— I had such a test. I met my husband when I was in the prime of my career. After working in Switzerland on a contract basis, I had job prospects in the OSCE, UNESCO. But at the moment when I had to sign a contact for work, which meant I was deprived of a certain freedom, trouble happened to Fedor. He almost died off the coast of Australia and sent me a letter in which he said that he would leave the fourth unfinished circumnavigation, he was waiting for me in Australia and asked me to stay with him for a month, because he wanted to think about his future. That expedition was very quickly and impulsively prepared by him. He made a mistake and admitted it, but I had to abandon this project and of course I chose it. I prepared another project for him and me. We flew to Paris, where I worked with graduate students at the Sorbonne, and he began to paint canvases at the Cite Desars art center. He revived himself as an artist, he had time to recover, to reflect. I don't regret doing so. It was a test of our family's strength. Such is life that we will always be given a choice, there is no such thing that everything is perfect at once and the heavens distribute it, that today you fly to a conference, and tomorrow you meet your husband.
How long was his longest expedition?
- The longest one is a year. The hardest part for the two of us was his fifth circumnavigation when I was expecting a baby. He found out about it a week before departure, and returned two weeks before the birth. I felt that it would be a boy, and we gave him a name in honor of Nicholas the Wonderworker - Kolya . We have five common children, ten grandchildren. The youngest son is 11 years old. He studies at the Moscow Suvorov School.
- How does he feel about the fact that dad is often not around?
“Like the other kids. At that moment, when he reached a conscious age, a small rebellion was ripe. Then there was my story about dad. Then I suggested that Fedor take him on his expeditions. So before school they had a men's expedition to the Shantar Islands. This is a very dangerous region - bears, killer whales. They got over on a rubber boat, and they almost turned over. There they built a chapel, put up a cross. Nikolai felt the spirit of his father, and since then he stopped rebelling, began, like me, to pray, wait and rejoice at the success of Fyodor. Not without tears and suffering, but already consciously.
Did you have a moment of your own rebellion?
- Was. Especially when there were impulsive projects that did not take place, but took a lot of strength. I feel with my heart and speak frankly when he is in a hurry with the expedition. There was such a moment ... when I saw him off on his fourth unfinished voyage, my legs gave out. He was shocked by what happened to me. But it was a premonition of what might happen. After that expedition, he became more cautious, and over the years we have less and less contradictions.
Silk Road, 2002. Photo: from personal archive
- How detailed are you immersed in the preparation of his projects?
“He really likes it when I personally pack the food in boxes on the yacht before the expedition. We put gifts, surprises, letters between them. Especially when he sails on a yacht for a long time and captures Christmas, and his birthday, and New Year. It is very important that a piece of our warmth be present with him. Together with him, we hang icons and photographs on the yacht, we create a mini-house for him. Collecting him on an expedition is part of the project, the key to its success.
How long did it take you to understand this man?
- I understood it right away. On my first date, I was fascinated by the fact that he is a very open person. He told everything about himself: about his family, about his childhood, about his plans. And to learn to live with him in such a way that it would be harmonious for him and for me - this came over the years.
- How did you meet?
We met in a beautiful place, in the house Anatoly Zabolotsky - film director Shukshina . At that time I was writing the book “Man and Power”, and I was interested in the opinion of the intelligentsia, especially the one who joins the faith. At that time, Anatoly Dmitrievich no longer made films, but he did such an ascetic thing - he removed the flooded temples in Siberia. I myself am from Siberia, and it was very interesting for me to talk with this person. When I heard that guests were to come, I hurried to leave, and Anatoly Dmitrievich said: “Stay, Irochka, God himself is sending you Fyodor Konyukhov.” I remember these words. I thought a gloomy man would come. But when Konyukhov appeared at the door, I understood what Anatoly Dmitrievich meant. It was love at first sight.
Konyukhovs with children and grandchildren. Photo: from personal archive
How does your life change when Fedor is around?
- We have a rule: the first three days, when he returns from the expedition, we are only together. I don't plan anything for these days. It happens that with his return we leave for Sergiev Posad, sometimes we stay at home, meet with children and grandchildren. Then we go somewhere together. Now Fedor has become a priest. We have a house in St. Alexis Hermitage. After each project, we build a chapel, put up a cross, thank God for letting him live. Very often on expeditions, he makes a vow to build something. When he flew in a hot air balloon, he made a vow to build a chapel Fedor Ushakov .
Is Fedor at home now?
- He flew in yesterday, but I could not refuse the Ekaterinburg diocese to come here, and he understands this. He flew in from Kislovodsk, where he did training flights on a glider. He wants to set a record - to climb to a height of 11 kilometers. We will meet for one day, and then he flies to Germany, also on a glider project.
- Was it not such that during the long separations you weaned from each other?
- This is a very correct question, because separation also has a point of no return. When you are just learning to wait, your family has more experience of physical communication than spiritual, you need to be very sensitive to this moment, you should not underestimate it. Therefore, we agreed with him that we will not cross this point of no return, reach the point where everyone is already living their own lives.
Fedor Konyukhov with his son and wife in Mongolia, 2009. Photo: from personal archive
“This is the experience of every family. We agreed with him that we would not part for a time longer than his trip around the world. Plus, we communicate every day if there is a connection. I'm flying to see him off, to meet him. And all this creates a feeling of greater closeness. In my first experience, when he left for a year, I flew to him for stopovers. These meetings were very important, because doubts were gone, strength arose to continue to live and wait. Therefore, I advise everyone to be more careful about separations - this is a very delicate issue.
- The material side of life was once a stumbling block?
- Of course, there were such periods. It is more difficult for young couples starting from scratch, we were already mature people when we met. And I was a widow, so I had already learned to live on my own. We agreed from the outset who and how bears the financial burden. And we constantly communicate about this and solve some problems. But the main thing, in which we have always been united, is that everyday life should not become the reason for our disagreements. To be honest, at one time I had a big financial burden. Now Fedor is beginning to participate in financial matters, he does not have the material problems that he had before. Somewhere it becomes easier for me. The main thing is not to suspect each other of carelessness and irresponsibility, and if you suddenly suspect this, it must be said. Don't hold grudges.
"And you didn't suspect him of carelessness?"
- We had a dialogue about this. But they didn’t get to the point where a person keeps it inside and it destroys the marriage.
- What do you think is common between you and the wife of some serious leader?
- The wife of such a person should live in his world, such a woman should be a believer, then she will feel that her husband has a spark that cannot be extinguished. At the same time, such a woman should have her own personal interests. Then she will understand what realization means. And, of course, she should do charity work - to thank for the fact that with such moral stress she is given this blessing.
- There are things in the family that are of fundamental importance to you. Let Fedor not be around for a long time, but at the same time he gives you something most important.
It's his indifference to his family. His devotion and gratitude. If indifference to the family will arise, I will never accept it.
– Based on the experience of your parishioners, can you say what, in your opinion, are the main mistakes of modern women?
- The problem of feminization, of course, is. But here men also have a wrong understanding of the modern woman. A woman of the 20th century and a woman of today are two different people. She should not be regarded as an enemy of a man in the family, on the contrary, she is an assistant. She can understand her husband better because she has a profession. She knows well what it is to earn money. Men should give freedom to a woman, then she becomes a companion, and not just a beloved wife. As for a woman, she must return to her nature and remember that her scales are unequal and always outweigh family and home. You need to be frank with your husband, talk about your dreams. And the husband should get used to listening, and not just talking about himself. This is the basis of a family boat that will survive in a hurricane.
FRIDAY TALK
In parting, he handed us an icon - putting his lips to each:
- This is Nicholas the Wonderworker. Written according to my sketch. The same went into space.
He held it out with tenderness. In one hand, the Wonderworker held a sailboat, in the other, Cape Horn, conquered by Konyukhov.
In his old book every year is marked by an event: “1953. The first time I smelled hay. 1971. The first time they wanted to kill me. 1977. For the first time alone spent the night in the taiga. 1982. For the first time I painted nude…”
There are different interpretations about Konyukhov. We went to him armed with quotes. Among them is a replica of the famous yachtsman Viktor Yazykov: “Fyodor is a unique personality, heaven forgave him for the lack of professionalism. This can only be explained by one thing: he is blessed. You don't have to copy it."
They did not begin to remember her - falling under the spell of Fyodor Filippovich. And you would have. And you would forget all the bad things. Konyukhov has transparent eyes. They say people like that never lie.
His workshop, not far from the Paveletsky railway station, adjoins the chapel. Bronze naval commanders at the entrance. St. Andrew's flag right on the tree. Tablets with the names of the dead travelers.
Konyukhov himself, who was ordained a priest in December 2010, met us in a cassock with a mighty cross. There is picturesque chaos in the room - backpacks, icons, unfinished paintings. Yacht drawings.
He spoke like no one else, as if dipping every word in oil. “Lie down”, “go”, “know”. “Apartment”, “sausage”, “dangerous”. Directed by Cameron, ahead of the dive to the bottom of the Mariana Trench - for him "Cameroon". Maldives - "Malvins". And there's nothing to be done about it. Everything about Konyukhov is somehow special.
Last Monday, 60-year-old Fedor Konyukhov flew off to conquer Everest, which he first climbed twenty years ago.
* * *
- So what is your name - Father Fyodor? Fyodor Filippovich?
- Fyodor Filippovich. If you take pictures, I'll take off my cassock. It is not necessary to paint that I am a priest. We do travel. Sports. Correctly?
- Well, yes.
– If you were from an Orthodox newspaper, you would have to take permission from Vladyka for an interview. As for expeditions, I don't ask anyone here.
- You are going to Everest. And, it seems, you won’t appear in Russia for two years?
- Maybe two. Maybe more. My whole life - today I arrived, tomorrow I left. I forgot what Red Square looks like! The other day I remembered - what is she like? Haven't been there in ten years.
- And in the Mausoleum?
- Still a pioneer, in the 60s.
- Recently you passed the medical examination. Any surprises?
- Not yet. God bless. And then they could not let them go to Everest. He does not forgive the sick. The Chinese require a certificate from anyone over sixty.
- You once mentioned that you run 54 kilometers every day.
- I don't have much time to run. My daily prayer is all I have. But when I run, I fit in at 7:10. It's not very fast. Yes, trot.
How many people your age have climbed Everest?
- Three people. I went there for the first time in 1992. Rising from Nepal, Himalayas. And now I will go from Tibet. I am often asked: “Why do you need this? What are the goals, objectives?
- What do you answer?
- Yes, I just love Everest! Missed him. Twenty years ago I was an athlete, but now everything is different. I like it - I'm going. If I don't like it, I wouldn't go. Such an age that I submit to the Lord God alone. My TV does not turn off - I watch documentaries about Everest day and night.
- Are you getting ready?
- Yes. Here is this film about the team of the New Zealand guide Russell Bryce. He is my age, 11 ascents of Everest.
- In September, I will cross the Gobi Desert from east to west on camels. Two and a half thousand kilometers in eighty-five days. We will have six camels with a friend from South Korea. On two - we, four more with luggage. In April 2013 I will go to the North Pole on dogs.
- On a large scale.
- After that, I hope, in three months we will cover the whole of Greenland from north to south. So did the great Japanese traveler Naomi Uemura. And in the autumn I will sail across the Pacific Ocean in a rowboat.
“Ten years ago you crossed the Atlantic in a rowboat. What is the difference?
- Before the boat was seven meters, now it is ten. The Atlantic route is three thousand miles, the Pacific Ocean eight thousand. Then I managed in forty-six days, in the Pacific I will sail one hundred and sixty. If a general sponsor is not found, the boat will go to the private funds of my friends from the Chelyabinsk region.
- What kind of friends?
- Amateur travelers. Romantics. And the expedition to Everest is financed by the Modern Humanitarian University, where there is a wonderful rector. 76 years old, geologist by education. He can no longer get up on his own - so he decided to support me. The money is given for a scientific program - they are interested in how my heart will feel. They will be hung with sensors, and all information will automatically begin to flow to the university laboratory.
- What is the insidiousness of Everest?
All mountains are treacherous. Everest must be respected. As in Holy Scripture: "If you are here in body, but you are not in spirit, it is useless." When I hammered hooks into this mountain, it dawned on me: I need to mature spiritually in order to knock on it with a hammer. So that you have the right to drive a hook into Everest.
Everest - is it alive?
- Of course. The whole world is alive. It used to be difficult for me, when I was young, to travel. Too much vanity. I could hardly bear the loneliness. Try to go a hundred days without communication. Or two hundred, as in my first trips around the world. There was nothing harder than loneliness! And today I realized: there is no loneliness on the globe. Everything on earth is alive. The same ocean - whales in it. Mountains are alive. Desert. The Lord God is with you in the desert. And the saints you pray to.
- We thought that after a hundred days of loneliness you start talking with an oar.
“This has never happened to me. I have been a believer since childhood, I feel God's presence. What can I say with an oar? It's a matter of attitude. If I were thrown into the ocean for who knows how long, the roof could really go.
- How to tune in?
“I have always looked forward to more. Here they were building my first rowing boat - I was preparing for a hundred days in the ocean. Although there was a premonition that I would manage in seventy days. And he stayed forty-six. It's the same with a yacht. I know that the globe is spinning, twenty-seven thousand miles in it. In two hundred days I will close the circle and return to the people. Everything!
– You wrote in your diaries that madness creeped up at times.
- It happened. But you fight, you get away from madness ... Diaries are a frank thing, that's why I wrote it.
- Do you drink vodka?
- No, she's bitter. I would like something sweet - champagne, wine. On expeditions I usually take cognac diluted with alcohol and add honey to make it sweeter. And now I will definitely buy a bottle of cognac and whiskey in duty free. It is dangerous in Kathmandu - there is dirt all around, unsanitary conditions. Before breakfast, be sure to use a stack. I did the same in Ethiopia.
- If you roll high in the mountains, will it probably blow you off the stack?
“No one drinks there anymore. You can hardly even pour water into yourself. And she is nasty, nasty, turns you out. There is nothing to say about food at such a height. There is not enough oxygen - and the body refuses to take food. It is not digested - it lies like a stone. Therefore, when you go to the last assault, you take a candy in reserve with you, and that's it. I am generally a hardened, unpretentious person. When in 1989 we went to the North Pole and ran out of food, we ate snow! I convinced myself that there are some nutrients in it. Again, it all depends on the mood. When I was young, I drank sea water.
- Ugh, what a mess.
- So helpful! Vitamins! From the same food, as well as from distilled water, you get tired. I want variety. On a long journey, a sip or two of seawater won't hurt. You can also add it to soup.
* * *
“They say there are a lot of corpses on Everest.
- He's full of them. The bodies do not decompose - they turn into mummies, dry out from the sun. They lie blackened. There is no heat on Everest, minus 20 in summer, minus 40 in winter. No flies.
“Why don’t they remove the bodies?”
It's so hard - you have no idea! We need a special expedition, colossal money. The person himself barely rises - and still someone to drag on himself?
- You are experienced. Do you immediately understand why this climber died?
“They die on Everest because of the heart. Breathing, pulmonary edema.
- Few people break down?
Yes, breakdowns are rare. Such a route that professionals go. At some point, what climbers call the “death zone” begins. At a height of eight - eight and a half thousand meters, you don’t know how the body will behave. If you go ahead of time, without acclimatizing, it’s bad. Overstaying is also bad.
- How is it right?
- It is not worth staying at the height for more than two days. Units withstand about four. By the way, I met with our climber, who returned from Everest. I will not name my last name. He asked: “Why don’t you become the first woman in Russia to climb 14 eight-thousanders?” She grinned: “Fyodor, I got up once - and I already vaguely remember some of my friends in my notebook. And after 14 ascents, I will stop recognizing my husband and children ... ”
- Was she kidding?
- Not. With a lack of oxygen, brain cells die. And at eight thousand meters and above, oxygen is in trouble. The head “floats” a little, and memory problems after Everest are a common story.
- Did you feel it too?
- Of course. Gradually everything is restored - but not completely. You remember the names, but some poems are completely forgotten. In general, the air on Everest is very heavy. Tasteless. You go on a yacht in the ocean or on skis to the pole - even the North, even the South - and breathe deeply! The air is fresh and clean! And the mountains smell of death. Not literally, of course - at a similar temperature, a putrid smell is excluded. It's just the situation, there are a lot of dead around ...
Did people die before your eyes?
- Not once. I built a chapel next to the workshop in memory of my dead friends - sailors, climbers, travelers. Thirty-two names are listed there. I always pray for them, for those who go on new expeditions. Everything is in the hands of God. For example, we are standing together, less than a meter between us. Suddenly, a stone flies from the cliff, which both cannot see. He hits a friend and he dies. And I don't have a scratch. You think: “Why him and not you? Why am I better? Nothing! On the contrary, he is more handsome, younger, stronger, he has more kids…” How did Valera Kondratko die? In Chukotka, after the expedition, I was the last one on the plane, closed the door and sat down on the nearest seat. "Corn" was overloaded so that it collapsed immediately after takeoff. Tail hit the ice. Neither the pilots nor other passengers were injured. And Valera, the handle from the door entered the temple.
- Fate.
The man was amazing! Dreamed of space. He was preparing in the cosmonaut corps ... Or Sasha Rybakov. That expedition to the North Pole was painful. Aviation did not support, they dragged everything on themselves. The day came when the food ran out. Then for the first time I really felt what hunger is. That's where the snow ate. But Sasha's body could not stand it. He died in my arms. I hugged him, freezing, trying to warm him somehow. But he was tired, looked over. I wake up - Sasha is dead.
Has the expedition been cancelled?
- Not. Let's move on. And they arrived! And the plane took the body ... Or take our ascent to Everest with Zhenya Vinogradsky in 1992. We climbed eight thousand meters - the weather deteriorated. Went down back. A week later, another rise. And during this time there all our tents were blown away by the wind. There was no way to install new ones. The expedition was on the verge of collapse. But then they saw the only tent that miraculously survived. When we climbed into it, we understood the reason for the “miracle”.
- And what is the reason?
The tent belonged to a Spanish climber. He died - and pressed his body so that the wind could not tear it off. We spent eight hours in this tent. They leaned on the corpse - and remembered their whole life, wondering if they would be able to return home. Periodically they pushed each other in the side: “Don't sleep!” You can’t sleep - there is a great risk of not waking up. When climbing Everest, it is believed that every third person dies. I say to Zhenya: “Maybe this Spaniard is the third one - who has already died for us?” It probably was. Everything went well. And on May 11, 1992 at 13.15 we were at the top.
Was there at least one priest on Everest?
- I do not know. Vladyka Joseph, my boss, asked: “Will your children be there?” Yes, I answer. “Then you must go. At the foot of Everest, bless them. And since they go to the top - and you go up." There are many priests in my family. I myself studied at the theological seminary and dreamed of becoming a priest. I thought it would happen by the age of 50, but I put it off, put it off - and became at 58.
– You turned 60 in December. Do you believe it?
- I do not believe! I feel like I'm about 30 years old!
- I look at what I have managed over the years - well, is it possible to do so much by sixty? Doesn't fit! And somehow the number three hundred sunk into my head. Here it is suitable.
- Did you get a pension?
- Yes, as expected. I get on the subway for free. My pension is 6355 rubles.
- Something is not enough.
- They don't pay me additional "Moscow" ones. I work part-time at two institutes, professor. I teach the safety of ship navigation at the Transport Academy. If I quit, I will receive nine thousand.
- Do you travel around Moscow by metro?
- Yes, it's more convenient. Although the car is.
- Which?
- Patriotic. UAZ-Patriot. Give acquaintances from the dealer company. I return after two years. But he rarely drives. I almost never visit Moscow either.
* * *
– Once upon a time, you planned to dive to the bottom of the Mariana Trench in 2012. But someone got ahead of you.
- I was happy for Cameroon ...
- For James Cameron, the director?
Yes, Cameroon. Such a non-standard person. The bathyscaphe took seven years and seven million dollars. Adequate amount. There is no limit in Russia - if they started a project, they would start with a hundred million ... I sat and thought: our Bondarchuk would not have sunk. And Cameroon would have built it with his own money.
“After Avatar, Cameron will build anything.
- And we could build. What is seven million? And his bathyscaphe, in my opinion, is made of carbon fiber. Lightweight, small. Looks like a torpedo.
Have you watched Avatar?
- Yes. As an artist, I like it. I watch all films through the eyes of an artist. The plot does not matter - I'm interested in how it is staged. What picture. How mounted. What colors. Here I look at Picasso - not everything touches me. Or Nicholas Roerich.
- What is Roerich?
- I love him very much as an artist, writer, traveler. But the philosophy of Nikolai Konstantinovich does not touch me.
- So your idea with the Mariana Trench is alive? Or after Cameron and do not want to?
“And it doesn’t matter to me to do something first. Three people have visited the Mariana Trench so far. It would be great if Cameroon flew to the moon! I'm sure I would. Moreover, he would have flown in a private way - as he did with the Mariana Trench. Here's what I want to tell you. In the 70s and 80s, singles were not taken seriously. They said that such a person does not fit into our way of life. Or he should be taken to a mental hospital. Uemura changed everything.
- How?
- In 1978, he opened the era of singles. He proved that a loner is able to do what you cannot do as a team. One climbed Everest, one went to the North Pole. The whole world marveled at him. But for a long time no one dared to repeat. Only in 1986 Frenchman Jean-Louis Etienne reached the North Pole alone. And in 1990 I already went.
- There are many legends about you. Someone thinks - you are not a rich person. Someone thinks that Fedor Konyukhov is a millionaire.
- I'm very rich! I allow myself what few millionaires allow. This is a huge wealth. I sit and think - in a few days I will see Everest! Then I will walk on dogs along the path of Uemura, my dear teacher and ideal! Then I'll swim across the entire Pacific Ocean! Once I had one governor, a billionaire. Cameroon is nothing compared to it. Something said: “We will also go down ...” And I see that you will not go down anywhere, my dear. Money overwhelmed you, you won’t give seven million for a dream.
Do you feel sorry for these people?
- Yes. I think: so the whole life and blabbed. Here was Zelenin, the former governor of Tver. Oligarch. At that time, I could build the yacht that I dream of - to circumnavigate the world in eighty days, set a world record. Make Russia an ocean power. It was only about 10 million euros.
What does Zelenin have to do with it?
- He was then the president of the sailing federation. Did not do. Now he is not the president of the federation, and not the governor. And Cameroon did! How can you disrespect such a person? You guys are probably visiting the oligarchs more often than me. Are you visiting?
- It happens.
- There is no happiness in the houses on Rublyovka. And it can't be. Wealth is boring. I am praying for these people. As the Scripture says, "Pray for those who offend, curse, and hate you." I do not offend and do not curse. So we need to pray for them all the more.
- You took rich people as partners - on a commercial basis.
- There is such a thing. But these are friends. Here I have a yacht in Australia, it passed Antarctica. It is clear that it is necessary to distill to Europe and repair.
- Expensive?
- 130 thousand dollars. So I gathered friends from medium-sized businesses, eight people chipped in for 15 thousand. We swam, passed Cape Horn together. And one said to me: “I am so happy - I saw all this! And before that I was in the Malvinas ... "
- Maldives.
- Yes. I was at the Malvinas with my wife. I laughed. He nodded: “That's right, Fedor, you're laughing. We rested for two weeks, spent the same money, and all the time in quarrels ... ”
- Funny.
- Otherwise, it is impossible in the Malvinas. So that with his wife for two weeks - and not quarrel. A person begins to toil from idleness. And my expeditions are inexpensive. Let's go outside - there are such jeeps! They are bigger than a rowboat! What is a jeep? They hit him once, smashed him - and that's it. I don't have a jeep.
- Gold words. You once said that you return from every expedition with debts.
– The expedition cannot be without debts. For example, the academy pays the Chinese for my ascent. But I’ll get there, and it will start - flashlights, batteries, food ... I don’t need any salary from a sponsor. It is a sin to receive awards or medals for Everest. Everest itself or Cape Horn is already a reward. This is how debt accumulates.
Do you change your passport every year?
- This is a funny story. I recently had a curious expedition to India. They were going to pass through Roerich's house, the false tomb of Jesus Christ in Kashmir. The passport is returned from the Indian embassy - they opened a visa for everyone, except for me. No, they say, places where to put. The passport is still valid, but the pages are all used. The guys left, I stayed.
* * *
- You work brilliantly with sponsors. Rejections are rare.
- I'll teach you. In the 70s he went to the fishing port of Nakhodka. Something asked for an expedition. Before me is another petitioner. The director asks him: “What did you come on? What car?" - “Japanese” - “And I have a Soviet one. And still have to help you. There Fedor wants money - so he came on foot ... "
- Reasonable.
- I remember it. If you ask for money for an expedition, you should not stand out. Yes, and look - is there luxury around me? I do not live for my own good - for the sake of expeditions. For a dream. For ideas. I can't do without it. Why then live? To have a car, an apartment, a sausage, a beer? The same job from nine to six? God, what a bore! I always live in the future. Future expedition, future meeting with friends. Future paintings. Books. Plans. I don’t like to live in the past: “But you remember ... But it was ...” I’m not interested anymore. Well, it was. It is better to think about what lies ahead. I even like the pictures most of all those that I have not painted yet. But they are created in my head. Drawn means expressed himself. And then you walk, think, anticipate, at any second you can change something. It's the same with expeditions.
You have a family, kids. Do you hear reproaches from your wife?
- Never! Unless before the next expedition he says: “It’s bad that you are leaving again for a long time.” Irina - Doctor of Sciences, Professor. We don't die of hunger, though. I teach in two places, paint pictures, plus a pension. And I don’t need a mansion, I can make a workshop out of any basement. I used to have a basement, good-o-shen ...
Why did your first marriage fail?
- Lyuba has been living in America since the 90s. The town of Bellingham is twinned with Nakhodka. She is also an artist, she has her own gallery. She married a rich man. In those years, many went abroad. And I was offered to stay in the USA, Australia. However, I can't imagine myself outside of Russia. Judge for yourself - well, what kind of American am I? Or an Australian? In addition, she is terrified at the mere thought that I will die abroad. I don't know if my first wife thinks about it? And I'm really scared that they'll take it to a churchyard in foreign lands. Let me sit on the porch - but on my native land. Where my ancestors lived, believers, Orthodox people. I'm not against other religions at all. Not a man created them - so, apparently, it is pleasing to God. Because if there was only one religion in the world, people would go rogue!
- Do you think?
- Of course! There would be no limiting factors. Imagine if everyone became a Christian. Yes, we would be so ungirdled! And so that this does not happen, the Lord sends sickness. Oh, what would people do without them! We would eat everything in a row, we would fight, fight ... And diseases pacify us in their sinful desires.
- The relics of St. Andrew the First-Called are with you now?
- They are always with me. Right here, inside the cross. The cross, by the way, is special - Nikolai Konyukhov. My grandfather's brother, he was a priest. In 1918, the Bolsheviks tortured him to death. First, in the cold, they poured water over them, and then they put a bullet in the forehead. The cross was torn off - they probably thought that some valuables were hidden in the reliquary. Relatives saved - and handed it to me. You see, they used to wear large crosses - now they make smaller ones. Priests complained - they say, it's hard to wear. Before, for some reason, they were not afraid of this, they did not draw the cross ...
It's hard to imagine you without a beard. When was the last time she was shaved?
- At the age of 25. A new passport photo was required. And under the Soviet regime, for this it was necessary to shave off the beard. A photograph has been preserved in the family archive - a one-year-old Oscar, and me without a beard. The son laughs: “At least I saw what a chin you have.”
– The most famous person who bought your painting?
- Bob Hawke, Prime Minister of Australia. Here the question is what - my paintings are usually bought by collectors. A collector knows art, he will not overpay. You will ask a lot - he will laugh: “Speak, speak, but don’t talk ...”
- Did the Prime Minister come here?
– I had exhibitions in Australia.
- What did you choose?
– Graphics, northern work. Or the slope of Everest, I don't remember... A long time ago, at an exhibition in Canada, one of the vice presidents of McDonald's approached me: “I like the pictures, but I would like to see your sketches. Has the travel notebook survived?”
- AND?..
- I had a diary with sketches. Here he is, look. Cigarette paper. I bought it in Kathmandu, climbed Everest with it. I saw a yak - I drew it. Here I describe how we cross the bridge, the degree is such and such ... The Canadian leafed through and leafed through, then was inspired: “I'm buying!” And I felt so sorry for this album that I didn't sell it. I didn't even want to bargain. And how much would you give for it? $500, 800?
– Record – how much did your painting sell for?
- 7-8 thousand euros. The last work was put up at auction for one and a half thousand dollars, and sold for 90 thousand rubles. With this money I bought equipment for Everest. Just enough.
- What is the picture?
- Mount Aconcagua. A person who is far from art, my paintings will not be touched. He is interested in something else. For example, this picture began to be painted at the foot of Aconcagua, then it was carried by muleteers. She's all shabby. There is no frame. Does a person from Rublyovka need such a picture?
- Are you offended if they do not want to finance your expedition?
- Never! Son confirms. It means that we are doing something wrong if people are not interested. Dead project - and it is useless to move it.
- Eighty days around the world under sail - the project is not dead?
- It is not possible to build a yacht yet. It turns out that the country has not matured. Like the Mariana Trench. Here my French friends on a trimaran went around the world in forty days - I rejoice for humanity. As Uemura said about himself - "expanding the bar of human capabilities." I went to the Pole - oh, how hard it was for me. I’ll fall, I have no strength, the sky above me is all in the stars - and I think: “But Uemura reached it thirteen years ago. He was the first, and the equipment is worse ... ”I get up and walk on.
- The sky is in the stars. So romantic.
- I remember that in the 50s they will launch a satellite into space - and my grandmother exclaims: "Oh, the oil has flown." It was broadcast on the radio - the oil was put into orbit. They checked what would happen to him. And my grandmother decided: since it is not in stores, they will grow it in space. Reminds me of this recently.
- Was there a reason?
- Sailed around the world on a yacht. I have a GPS, I lie down, study my coordinates - and I think: “Uh, grandmother, you were wrong. We did the right thing by launching oil into space.” Due to space, I will also be able to talk by satellite phone from Everest.
– Where are the most beautiful sunsets?
- Very beautiful in the desert, polar ice, Antarctica ... On the same Everest. Often there was a desire, like an artist, to stop the moment. Yes, and in Moscow they are beautiful - but we do not see this, we are busy with other things. In the first round-the-world trips, it was impossible for me to miss sunsets.
- Why?
- Only on them the weather predicted the next day. As the sun sets, so it will be. Until now, out of habit, I look, check the weather forecast that was sent to me.
* * *
Have you encountered Somali pirates?
- It happened. The first time was when the yacht of Vadim Tsyganov, the husband and producer of the singer Victoria, was driven from the Seychelles. We were escorted by a warship, plus there were three Marines with weapons on board. But the pirates, who now actually keep the entire Indian Ocean at bay, still tried to board the yacht.
- How does this happen?
“A warship can't go right next to us. The engine is warming up. We have a speed of 5-6 knots, he has twice as much. So he'll overtake ten miles, turn around, come back. So he went in circles. Moreover, before Oman, they could not throw infantrymen on board in any way - there were continuous storms. They transplanted when they entered the port for repairs. They have machine guns, light machine guns and "flies" - grenade launchers. And so, at two o'clock in the morning, the ship's commander announced on the radio: “Fyodor, do you see five points on the locator? They're coming towards you." And I have a small locator. Take a closer look - indeed. Three boats are roaring on one side, two on the other. And the ship, as luck would have it, is far away. But from there they began to shoot with tracer bullets - to attract the attention of the pirates.
- And the foot soldiers?
- They also fired from a machine gun and a grenade launcher. But the law forbids them to immediately shoot at people. Even the pirates. First we need warning shots. So they were hollowing over their heads. True, they did it with such fury that in a couple of minutes the entire deck was filled with shells.
Did the pirates return fire?
- Abstained. Seeing that they were snarling at them, they turned around and left. The second time I saw them was in Ethiopia, which borders on Somalia. We walked through the desert on camels, accompanied by sixteen armed men. Two of them are from the protection of the Ethiopian president. The peasants there are simple, if anything - they immediately beat to defeat. No warning shots. Therefore, the Somalis to meddle with us quickly changed their minds.
- Do animals attack you often?
- Not without it. The hardest thing was in 2009, when a tick bit in Mongolia.
- Encephalitis?
- Even worse - borreliosis. I have been treated for a whole month. Was on the edge. But it worked out again.
– Kirsan Ilyumzhinov told us how he met aliens. Have you not met?
– I think Ilyumzhinov really saw them. But he is a Buddhist. And I am Orthodox. I believe that everything that surrounds us is created by God. Including UFOs and other phenomena that have not yet been solved. Nothing, the time will come - we will all find out. Two hundred years ago, people had no idea what lightning was...
- From the last - what struck you?
– In 2010, the Ethiopian Patriarch took me to a unique temple. It has no roof - but not a single drop of rain gets there. Three hundred kilometers from Addis Ababa, mountain valley. It has been standing since the 13th century, and before there were other temples on the same place, the most ancient - even before our era. Here's how to explain? Outside the wall it pours like a bucket, but inside it is dry. Either the place is prayed for, or initially, for some reason, precipitation never happens there. People saw it and decided to build a temple on that piece of land. Where is the edge of this miracle? However, there is no need to talk much about such topics.
- Why?
“People perceive things differently. Here Ilyumzhinov decided to speak frankly about contact with aliens - and some laugh. Although, I'm sure someone even knows more about this - but is silent.
– Do you know the former president of Kalmykia?
– Yes, we met during a camel expedition along the Great Silk Road. We arrive in Elista, they tell us: "At four in the morning - for an appointment with Ilyumzhinov." I thought I misheard. I clarify: “At four o’clock in the afternoon?” “No, no, morning.”
- Original.
- All right, the alarm clocks were set in the hotel, we arrived - and the reception room is full of people! They are waiting for Kirsan Nikolaevich. He saw us, took us to his place, gave us tea. He said: "A plane will arrive at eight in the morning - and I will go to England." It turns out that this is a standard schedule for him. He could receive people all night, and fly somewhere in the morning. I think: “When does he sleep?!”
- According to Ilyumzhinov, four hours of sleep is enough for him. And you?
- Not always. I don't sleep much though. I don't go to bed before twelve. From two to four I wake up to pray. At home, they have long been accustomed to this. Then I’ll take a nap, and from six o’clock I’m already on my feet.
Yuri GOLYSHAK, Alexander KRUZHKOV
The famous traveler Fyodor Konyukhov was born in the Zaporozhye region in 1951. The boy grew up in a large family, there were five children in total. The Konyukhov family lived in a village, and therefore Fedor grew up and learned physical labor from childhood. Fedor Konyukhov, the family lived just on the shores of the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov, which always attracted and fascinated him. The desire to fish and swim arose quite early, and at the age of 15 he crossed the sea on a boat on his own.
Konyukhov's father, Philip, was at the front during the Great Patriotic War, told many stories of that difficult time. Fyodor's grandfather was also a lieutenant colonel in the tsarist army, who happened to serve together with the famous explorer Georgy Sedov.
Traveler education. He graduated from the nautical school in Odessa, then studied at the polar school in Leningrad. Further, Konyukhov is studying at the theological seminary. When he graduated from the intelligence school in the city of Kaliningrad, he was called to serve in the ranks of the Soviet army. Among other things, Fedor has served in such hot spots as Singapore and Vietnam.
In Belarus, Konyukhov received the specialty of a carver-instructor, having graduated from the Bobruisk Art School.
Priest Fedor Konyukhov, personal life, biography
He made his first trip to the Pacific Ocean in 1977. He came and lived for some time in Chukotka, where he learned the possibilities of his body, and also learned the basics of driving with a dog sled, with the help of which he was able to cross Chukotka in 1981.
- He skied from the USSR to Canada with an international expedition (1988).
- 1990 - went and reached the goal at the North Pole alone, on skis.
Further, there were many achievements of Fedor Konyukhov, many ascents, which can be talked about for a long time. The most memorable events in the life of a traveler - the adoption of a priest in 2010, crossed Greenland in a record 15 days and 22 hours. In 2012, he became the first clergyman of the Russian Orthodox Church to climb Mount Everest. He is the first Russian who managed to conquer the seven peaks of the world. He is also the first person in the world to reach the five poles of the planet.
Everyone knows the traveler and explorer Fedor Konyukhov. The personal life, biography of this person is of interest to many, like any public person. Although no, it’s more likely that the views of the public are riveted to the personal life of Fedor Konyukhov. Everyone is interested in how this amazing man lives at home, everyone is interested in his family. The personal life of the researcher has developed quite interestingly. He has been married twice and has three children.
Fedor Konyukhov and wife Irina Umnova
For the first time Fedor Konyukhov and Irina Umnova met in 1995. At that time, Irina was working on her doctoral dissertation, working for the Federation Council, and had a law degree. As the couple say, they fell in love with each other at first sight. Relations began to develop rapidly. Fedor did not delay, and the very next day after they met, he invited Irina on a date. By the way, the famous traveler came on a date with flowers and a backpack on his back. According to Irina, on the eve of the meeting with her future husband, she prays in the temple that the Almighty sends her beloved. At the time of meeting Fedor, Irina already had two sons, whom she raised herself. Having tied the knot, the couple traveled together. For family well-being, Irina decided to quit a successfully developing career. And she didn't regret it.
Fedor Konyukhov and Irina Umnova wanted children, but their attempts were in vain. Then, once surviving a storm while sailing on a yacht, the couple asked God to give them a child. A few months later, Irina became pregnant.
Children of Fedor Konyukhov
In his first marriage, Fedor had a son, Oscar, and a daughter, Tatyana. There is a three year difference between them. The son built a career as a sports manager. Tatiana lives in the United States. With his second wife, Fedor had a son, Nikolai, in 2005. Irina admitted that during pregnancy it was hard for her, as her husband was constantly absent, but she understood and supported him in every possible way. Also, Irina Umnova told a touching story about the birth of a long-awaited baby, about how her husband was present at the birth, saw the child first, and cut the umbilical cord. Fedor Konyukhov, children, family have always been of interest to the press and the public, but there are many photos of a traveler on the net, but children are rare.
Fedor Konyukhov, in addition to traveling and climbing, made a significant contribution to science, wrote many books. In breaks, he painted pictures, selling which he earned for equipment and other necessary items for wanderings and discoveries. Fedor Konyukhov is an amazing person, a vivid example of a man who sets goals for himself all his life and does everything possible and impossible to achieve them. Fedor did not want to live a quiet and peaceful life, have an ordinary job, and in the evenings sit in a chair at the TV, this man chose a different path, the path of self-development, discoveries, knowledge of his own strengths and capabilities. There is no person in our vast country who does not know or has not heard about him, and everyone admires him. At 65, he is not going to stop, but wants to conquer all the big peaks and, no doubt, will surprise us more than once with his achievements and discoveries.
On his account, as many as four round-the-world voyages, made in splendid isolation.
How to cross the ocean
The first time is always the hardest, especially if you are a teenager. The future famous traveler decided to conquer the sea at the age of fifteen. The place for the experiment was the Sea of Azov, and the instrument was an ordinary fishing boat equipped only with oars.
True, according to the original plan, Fedor was going to cross the sea in a boat of his own making. But then an angry parent intervened and took away the homemade product. But the young traveler did not lose his head and "borrowed" a fishing boat from the village council. Konyukhov claims that he then swam across the Sea of Azov.
Later, he realized that for serious travel you need a good one. And after the end of the service, he went to work as a sailor for the Baltic rescue fleet, later he went on fishing trawlers.
Most likely, Konyukhov did not forget his youthful adventure with a boat in the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov and decided to conquer the ocean in the same way. The traveler successfully implemented his idea, and even repeated it in two oceans. He began in 2002 with the conquest on the boat "Uralaz".
The development of a seven-meter vessel was entrusted to Philip Morrison. The body was made of carbon fiber and Canadian cedar wood, and a figure of a sponsored Ural car was attached to the nose.
The navigation point was equipped with a stationary and handheld GPS device, an automatic positioning system, an electronic compass and a radar warning of the approach of ships. The life support system was powered by two batteries powered by solar panels. Also provided the opportunity to replenish stocks at the expense of rainwater.
In October 2002 Konyukhov started off and went solo across the Atlantic by way of Columbus. He reached the island in record time, spending a little more than 46 days crossing the ocean.
Without a sail and without a motor, armed with only two pairs of oars, Fedor Konyukhov managed to cross the Pacific Ocean. Preparing for the trip, he independently created sketches of a unique boat and entrusted its creation to English specialists. Initially, the ship was named "K9", but later it was renamed "Turgoyak".
The nine-meter carbon fiber boat was divided into two parts: a compartment with a miniature galley and a navigation unit (equipped with the latest equipment) and a living compartment, in which part of the area is reserved for navigation equipment. Electricity for household needs was generated by solar panels, and a water desalinator also worked from them.
According to the plan, Konyukhov's boat was supposed to travel from Chile to in six months, without calling at ports or stopping. "Turgoyak" left Konkon on December 14, 2013 and rushed to the waters of Peru. Along the way, he contacted the support group several times. In mid-January, Konyukhov survived a storm, but was able to continue his journey.
From Peru, the traveler went to the Australian city of Mululaba, the end point of a solo expedition. The whole journey was completed in 160 days, the boat withstood all the tests of bad weather, and its owner considers that he was lucky to get to his destination so successfully.
On the way, he caught squid, saw a coconut and tried to get rid of the annoying one. He also set a world record for the fastest crossing of the Pacific Ocean and became the first citizen to make such a journey.
Round the world and regattas
In this circumnavigation Konyukhov discovered the wonderful world of the oceans, rounded Cape Horn and the Cape of Good Hope. Closing the planetary circle, the traveler brought the yacht back to Australia in June 1991.
Konyukhov's second circumnavigation began in March 1993. For this trip, he built the Formosa yacht in Taiwan and immediately set off. The voyage took seven months, and in 1994 the traveler gave up at the launch site.
In 2004, the indefatigable Fedor Konyukhov started from Falmouth, England, paved the way for the island of Tasmania and returned to Falmouth in 2005. His large yacht, the Scarlet Sails Trade Network (85 feet long), was the first vessel of its class to sail around Cape Horn. From December to January of the following year, he sailed on the same ship, but with a Russian crew on board.
In addition to single round-the-world voyages, the traveler took part in single regattas. His name can be found in the list of participants in the round-the-world regatta "Around Alone", held in 1998-1999.
Konyukhov went to the start on an Open 60 class yacht "Modern Humanitarian University". This flight is considered the third circumnavigation of the famous Russian traveler.
Konyukhov also competed at the helm of the same yacht in the French regatta. The ships had to make a round-the-world passage without stops and calls at ports.
It took Konyukhov one hundred and two more days to circumnavigate Antarctica, participating in the Australian competition "Antarctica Cup" in 2007-2008. He took part in these races on his large yacht "Scarlet Sails Trading Network".
Fedor Konyukhov is constantly making new plans and developing new sea voyages. For 2017, he planned not just a regatta or a round-the-world trip. The traveler swung at the Mariana Trench, he plans to sink to the bottom in a bathyscaphe and spend several days there all alone.