A Life Spent on the Baikal-Amur Mainline.

Filming a large open pit coal mine in Neryungri, Yakutia, Russia.

Neryungri is a long way from anywhere... from nowhere. Yet, 40 years ago, hundreds of enthusiastic, many young, people rushed to the far reaches of the Siberian taiga to build the greatest of all railways. The idea was to create 14 industrial centres and connect them to the world with rails. But, what looked good to bolster the Communist ideal of a "Светлое Будушие," a brilliant future, didn't pan out in the real world. Only one centre was built, making many concider all the effort to naught... the railway to nowhere.

Raissa Petrovna shows me pictures of her garden,
her family and of her trip to China.

To the individuals who built the railway it remains the greatest of all railways. Raissa Petrovna, originally from Bielorussia, came to join the efforts in construction with her husband and newborn child, Dima. "Sixty degres below zero in the winter, but we still worked," reminisced Raissa. "People from all nationalities worked together. Everyone helped everyone." When the railway was built, Raissa stayed on to work accompanying the train to Moscow and back... a journey of 5 days, one way. Recently, and suddenly, her husband passed away. Tears were in her eyes when she showed me a picture of him on the balcony of their house, giving her a kiss on the cheek. 

The north shores of Lake Baikal, where one fifth of
the world's fresh water lies.

Her son Dima, grew up in Siberia and went on to study social work in university. But, there isn't much other work here except for the railroad. Dima also works on the same train as his mother, taking on the night shift.

There are plans to create a BAM 2.0 to help exploit Siberia's riches. But, it probably won't be done in the same idealistic spirit which drove Raissa Petrovna and hundreds of others like her. Their's is a story of passion, toil and family, of simple pleasures and great dreams. BAM is Raissa's life and is her greatest railway.