Stop 6: Chukchi People, Eastern Tip of Russia
The Chukchi are a very interesting people, and live just outside Anadir, an old Russian settlement inside the Arctic Circle! What is interesting about the Chukchi, is that they are nomads, and are the direct descendants of those who populated the Americas. The climate here is extremely cold, snowy and can often reach below -60 degrees farenheit. The Chukchi traveled to Russia about 20,000 years ago, during the coldest period of the Ice Age, So how are they able to survive the conditions? Due to the conditions here, only about 9 people live in the group and rely on reindeer as a life line; providing food, warmth, transportation and even shelter. Something allows them to adapt to the below freezing temperatures, as they have shorter, legs, arms, fingers, and toes and are shorter than the average man. This allows them to decrease their surface area, and conserve body heat.