Deadliest Journeys - Kazakhstan: Danger in the Steppe

[Music] [Applause] baby [Music] yes [Music] [Music] [Music] part of kazakhstan is at a standstill the snowstorm has taken thousands of travelers hostage [Music] the traffic jam stretches back for miles sunnybeck a businessman and his driver rustling head straight into the mouth of the [Music] beast [Music] foreign he helps foreign businesses to set up in kazakhstan in a rush to get to a business meeting on the other side of the country he forgot to check the weather [Music] the police tried to dissuade the daredevils from continuing their journey foreign [Music] after hours of discussions this tank arrives as a savior the police agree to let some travelers through on the condition that they stay behind the armored vehicle but very quickly some of the cars overtake it the businessman and his driver respect the instructions for a while but the tank is slow with a cruising speed of 60 kilometers an hour [Music] they too take the risk of leaving it behind business doesn't wait a daring choice some vehicles drive in a convoy to feel safer but the steps of kazakhstan are known for their violent blizzards the blusterous winds can make temperatures drop to -40 degrees centigrade in just a few hours [Music] [Music] sonny beck and ruslan are going to cross the steps for 1200 kilometers to reach the city of arau [Music] kazakhstan is a wild country with an unpredictable climate in a few kilometers we go from mud to ice to desert and its 40 degree temperatures for centuries the kazaks have faced these extreme climates only a few brave adventurers cross the steps attracted by the oil money that lies underground the tankers have replaced the caravans of camels from the days of genghis khan but his desire to conquer was nothing compared to that of modern man who has made an entire sea vanish [Music] danger is never far from the heart of the step [Music] as predicted by the police 40 kilometers away the storm is holding up the risk [Music] takers will have to roll up their sleeves they lend a hand but with over 30 tons to move the effort is in vain [Music] [Music] [Music] foreign the truck drivers know that they're going to have to spend the night there everybody gets ready [Music] it's minus five degrees and it's going to get even colder overnight [Music] foreign [Music] this white 4x4 is trying to be discreet and unremarkable but something blows its cover the driver's sunglasses strange in the middle of a storm [Music] the cash escort who looks like a secret agent and his colleague are transporting a small fortune in cash enough to earn them some attention [Music] but today the two escorts are safe where could any armed robbers run to [Music] zanny beck and ruslan managed to get through in the end the duo heads straight into the unknown [Music] their fate is sealed three kilometers later [Music] foreign the two associates are city dwellers and don't know much about fixing cars [Music] [Music] foreign the storm has completely cut out the telephone network and the emergency services are snowed under the tank has disappeared and a few kilometers ahead the bulldozer that is supposed to be helping travellers is also having [Music] troubles [Music] foreign the night promises to be freezing and the two men are starting to think they should have turned back they're still lucky as the blizzard hasn't caught up with them yet further ahead its force is devastating [Music] it took travelers by surprise as at this time of year the steps should be covered in grass and buds it's hard to believe but this is springtime [Music] 200 kilometers further south the contrast is striking the step is finally breathing the kazakhs nickname camels the boats of the desert on the horizon their humps of fat look like sails in the spring they're the only ones who can cross the step without any problem the others are destined to get stuck in the mud this desert isn't made of sand but of clay eventually it will thaw but before the sun dries it out the ice turns to mud [Music] and his brother have walked for 10 kilometers to get their flock of sheep out of the desert they had both left to get them water when their truck stopped dead they're going to try and get it out of the mud [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] foreign foreign mandela [Music] [Applause] oh a 300 horsepower engine and six-wheel drive are no help [Music] me [Music] is [Music] three hours later a 1 000 horsepower engine arrives to save them will it be enough [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] oh much worse the bulldozer won't save the little truck nora dill will go to fetch it in a month when all of the water is evaporated [Music] throughout the region farmers raise the only animal who is capable of withstanding the harshness of the steppe here the thermometer swings between -40 in winter and 40 in summer dromedaries and camels are the cows of the desert on this unforgiving land farmers are practically heroes [Music] when kazakhstan regained independence in 1991. at the time he was a driver for a state farm mm the biggest camels can provide up to 800 kilos of meat the reputation of his meat and his milk have won him a prize his success is not just found pinned to his chest it can also be seen on his dining table in the exotic fruits that are so hard to find in kazakhstan unlike cows camels produce a milk that is destined to keep its young alive in the most hostile regions of the planet according to the kazakhs it has medicinal powers [Music] can be found on all tables in kazakhstan yannispai and his family hope that one day they will be exporting to the whole [Music] world seven hundred kilometers away from yenisby's farm the snowstorm is not calming down if anything it's gotten stronger has engulfed the city of aktobi here we find zanny beck and ruslan who luckily haven't had to spend the night outside [Music] the two men managed to repair the car enough to get back to the city a mechanic has come to tow them [Music] [Music] open [Music] their journey is delayed but tonight they'll sleep in the warmth of a hotel [Music] room these drivers will be spending another night in their trucks [Music] according to kazakh legend the blizzard takes away the souls of the evil [Music] while they wait they are forced to dig to move forward is [Music] foreign [Music] those stranded on the road are exhausted for the time being in this cold salim jam's cargo is in no danger but his wallet is rapidly shrinking in this roadside restaurant the price of food has doubled since the drivers have been stuck the establishment is open 24 hours a day and business is booming everyone deals with the boredom as best they can [Music] it's dangerous in this temperature some don't even have enough fuel to stay warm [Music] the following morning the hopelessness gives way to a desire for rebellion it spreads from truck to truck by cb radio [Music] he still needs to get his 30-ton vehicle into the immense traffic jam [Applause] only a few meters in three hours the bad news just keeps coming foreign [Music] um [Music] serious vlogger [Music] a whole day just to travel 15 kilometers foreign greatest fear is to find his truck encased in frozen ice in the morning [Music] foreign [Music] create it snowed all night and early in the morning and although salim jan doesn't know it yet a surprise is waiting 500 kilometers further south the coastal resort of oral is celebrating the nariz festival which means the awakening of nature the spring victory against the winter and the forces of darkness [Music] [Music] the day of spring when the kazakhst forget the grudges and quarrels of the year everyone opens their house up and offers traditional food [Music] spring festival reminds the locals of fishing in spring a painful memory for the population is a port town or rather it was the sea has disappeared [Music] the harbour cranes are a reminder of the work carried out here fishing boats and commercial vessels pushed up against the loading docks [Music] how are you is [Music] [Music] um [Music] used to be twice the size of belgium its agony lasted for 45 years and started the day that the soviets diverted the river that flowed into it to irrigate supply water to their cotton [Music] fields [Music] in revenge as it was going the sea left behind a poisoned [Music] chalice [Music] foreign despite all of this his son can carry on the career of fishermen the kazakh government is trying to save the rlc by building dikes thanks to these titanic works a small sea has been saved [Music] [Music] i [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] foreign [Applause] [Music] is [Music] thanks to the dykes that hold the water back his dream could come true the rlc today spreads over five thousand square kilometers which is nine percent of its original area and it keeps increasing the dried fish sellers are reappearing on the sides of the roads hello but this morning the sun was a pleasant surprise for him he's relieved like the thousands of drivers stuck in single file over nearly 50 kilometers the road has finally opened up [Music] [Laughter] [Music] foreign kaguya the end of the journey looks like it will be more relaxed [Music] 80 kilometers further the snow has disappeared a wind of freedom blows over the step but not for everybody kazakhstan is definitely a land of contrast 500 kilometers away their car repaired we find zany bank the businessman and his driver ruslan after the snow the two associates find themselves driving through a muddy swamp [Music] the road is uneven and difficult so ruslan tries to drive on the lower side which he finds [Music] smoother [Music] [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] [Music] foreign bashed about and jolted in every direction by the potholes the four by fours transmission already seriously tested starts to show signs of weakness there are no breakdown mechanics in the middle of the step but luckily the kazaks thought to install repair bridges on the sides of the roads like in garages [Music] mr [Music] it doesn't look like zanny beck will make his business meeting [Music] the only person who benefits from the steps terrain is quandik nicknamed the taxi of the desert [Music] foreign [Music] his taxi crisscrossed the villages in search of customers but they are few and far between again and bad roads cost him a lot of money [Music] [Music] foreign he doesn't take home much pay at the end of the month in the region most kazaks like kwandak make a living wage here life is hard the men battle with the elements and nobody concerns themselves with the issues of ecology or pollution [Music] but [Music] bye [Music] the pollution in this part of kazakhstan is very high the country is the 17th biggest oil producer in the world and the 30th for gas [Music] the drilling and exploration have had disastrous effects on the step and the grass that feeds the animals [Music] noribek's family raises camels and according to him the animals are starting to suffer from all of the pollution [Music] um despite the oil money some roads are difficult to maintain because of the climate [Music] a price that kazakhs like zannybeck have to pay the businessman managed to make his meeting but he was four days late [Music] for salim jan it was seven each of the drivers wonder what adventure is waiting for them on the next journey [Music] [Music] [Music] you

Channel: Best Documentary

Views: 157,694

Keywords: documentary, roads, National Geographic, waterways, travel, Deadliest Journeys, most dangerous roads, free documentary, dicing with death, ADVENTURE, DISCOVERY, Deadliest Roads

Id: yLqVK2I0rB0

Length: 50min 42sec (3042 seconds)

Published: Mon Dec 28 2020