KANINSKY LIGHTHOUSE

(autotranslated, could have mistakes)

The Kanin Peninsula, on the terminal cape of which the Kaninsky lighthouse is installed, separates the northern part of the White Sea from the Czech Bay of the Barents Sea.

The first inventory of this coast was made in 1741 by naval master Bestuzhev and midshipman Mikhailov. Ship sounding along the Kaninsky coast was first carried out in 1827-1832 by members of the expedition of the Office of the General Hydrographer on the ship “Lapominka” under the command of M. F. Reinecke.

But long before the explorers, Pomors appeared here. They were attracted here by the abundance of fish and animals, and they came to the peninsula on their boats and boats to fish for seals, seals and salmon, beluga and navaga.

According to Reinecke’s description, there were no residential settlements here even in the middle of the 19th century, when the rest of the White Sea shores were already relatively populated.

Researcher of the Russian North S. Maksimov wrote in 1858: "If only six villages are scattered on the Winter Coast and five along Mezensky, then Kaninsky is completely empty and deserted. Constituting, as it were, a continuation of the Mezensky coast (from the Mezen Bay to Cape Kanin), which is all covered with forest, turning into bushes, the Kaninsky coast is treeless. Even a squat slank that does not reach heights

more than an arshin from the land... It consists of slate mountains, covered with tundra and near the water ending in bare cracks, mostly dark gray in color... Previously, about a hundred years ago, there was a water connection through the Kanin Peninsula by means of the Chizh rivers, which flow into the White Sea, and the Chesha, which flows into the Cheshskaya Bay. But now the lake from which both of these rivers flowed was overgrown with moss and turned into a swamp” [17].

Fishermen hunted not only on Kaninsky land. Back in the 15th century, they rushed for the “sable tail”, that is, for fur, to the regions of northern Siberia, Mangazeya, to the mouths of the Pechora, Taz and Ob, and their path almost always ran past the terminal cape of the peninsula - Kanin Nos.

These campaigns were an unusually difficult test for the Pomors, but the profits from them were so great that by the end of the 16th century the influx of industrial and commercial people into these regions of Russia increased sharply.

Despite intensive navigation, there were no lighthouses on Kaninsky land and further east until the 20th century, and sailing along the Kaninsky coast was very dangerous, since there are extensive shallow waters near it. The bottom here is composed of loose sands, transported from place to place by powerful currents. In the cut

As a result of this process, constantly moving shallows—cats—appear.

The Pomors swam, sticking to the shore, identifying themselves by shore signs, preserving in their memory and handwritten books information obtained from personal experience and from the stories of others. On the Kaninsky coast, as in other places of the White Sea, houris and crosses were installed for better orientation (see essay “Abramovsky”). And yet, even at the beginning of this century, the “White Sea Pilot” recommended going around Cape Kanin Nos no closer than 5 miles, and into the fog at a distance of about 20 miles, and throwing the line all the time. And only after making sure that Kanin’s Nose had been passed, it was possible to increase the speed.

Somewhere at the beginning of the century (the exact date could not be determined), a navigation sign was placed on the tip of the cape, but it was low and difficult to see, so to determine the location, sailors preferred to take bearings not from it, but from the tip of the cape itself - it was more reliable.

In 1891, when the export of timber and fishing resources from the Pechora river basin by sea increased, when powerful ships with iron hulls appeared and began to penetrate previously inaccessible areas of the Arctic basin, the Hydrographic Department approached the Maritime Ministry with a proposal to build on K

Anin Nose is a light beacon, since the absence of a lighthouse in such a dangerous place is “the main and only reason making it difficult for not only foreign ships, but also Russians, to navigate to Pechora Bay.” However, the proposal was not accepted; the answer was short: “there are no funds, and besides, there are more important places for fencing with lights.”

In 1895, the Minister of Railways K.N. Posyet sent a letter to the manager of the Maritime Ministry in which he reported that White Sea skippers complain that they often die with their cargo and families due to the lack of fire on Kanin Nos; cannot take shelter during a storm due to the inability to enter rivers and bays; often instead of the White Sea they end up in the Czech Bay. The lighthouse is also necessary, he said, for ships sailing to Novaya Zemlya and the northern shores of Siberia.

In 1909, the Special Commission on the construction of lighthouses and other warning signs in the White Sea and the Arctic Ocean, discussing the issue of navigation equipment for the sea route from the White Sea to the mouth of Pechora, considered two options for installing a lighthouse - on Kolguev Island and on Cape Kanin Nos. The White Sea Lighthouse Directorate believed that the lighthouse would be more effective for safe navigation

on the Kolguev ridge, but the surveyed ship captains spoke in favor of Kanin Nos, since it is cleared of ice earlier and is closer to the main fairway. As a result, the commission recommended installing a lighthouse on Cape Kanin Nos. However, nothing was done until 1915.

Resolving the issue accelerated the development of the Northern Sea Route.

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Lighthouse Kaninsky

In 1898-1910, the Hydrographic Expedition of the Arctic Ocean explored the Yugorsky Shar Strait and made an inventory

Ob Bay and the Yenisei Gulf, examined the fairways in Pechora Bay and performed other hydrographic work. Maps of these areas were compiled, which contributed to the establishment of regular steamship flights from Arkhangelsk to Pechora and to Yugorsky Shar. The culmination of the expedition’s work was the through passage in 1914-1915 of the vessels “Taimyr” and “Vaigach” under the leadership of B. A. Vilkitsky from Vladivostok to Arkhangelsk. The possibility of sailing along the Northern Sea Route from the western seas to the Pacific Ocean was proven, which promised enormous opportunities.

The Northern Sea Route ran past Kanin Nos, and the need for its urgent fencing with a lighthouse became obvious. In addition, the First World War, which began in July 1914, closed Russia's access to the ports of the Baltic and Black Seas and forced it to turn its attention to the northern seas, which were the only and most convenient access to the ocean at any time of the year. Only this way could Siberian bread and other military supplies be delivered to the Russian army.

In August 1915, the Naval Ministry urgently ordered

equip Cape Kanin Nos with a light beacon and a radio station. The disassembled iron tower was delivered by fast train from St. Petersburg to Arkhangelsk. An acetylene lighting apparatus was purchased in Stockholm. Also in 1915, the lighthouse began to operate.

It looked like a round iron tower 3.6 m high, mounted on a quadrangular wooden frame. The height of the fire from sea level was 47 m, which made it possible, with a low tower, to provide a fire visibility range of up to 12 miles. At the same time as the lighthouse, a radiotelegraph station was also built. The lighthouse was serviced by telegraph operators.

During the Civil War and military intervention, the lighthouse was practically inactive - there was not enough acetylene and it was difficult to deliver it to Kanin Nos. In addition, due to the closure of the radio station, the lighthouse was left without supervision and fell into a completely neglected state.

The situation changed dramatically in the early 1920s, when the Northern Sea Route Committee was created under the Siberian Revolutionary Committee and the Kara trade expeditions were organized by the Soviet government (1921-1928). These large-scale export-import transport operations required a set of measures to ensure them, including

le and navigation.

Ubekosever developed a special program for navigation and hydrographic support for ships. It included the repair of existing lighthouses and the construction of new lights and warning signs, including the reconstruction of the Kaninsky lighthouse.

In 1922, the fire at Cape Kanin again illuminated the expanses of the Arctic Ocean. The skerry-type lighting apparatus installed in the lantern was weak and did not fully satisfy the sailors, however, the lighthouse existed in this form for about 50 years. Only in the post-war years was it rebuilt. Currently, its 23 m high tower looks like a tetrahedral truncated pyramid with a red lantern structure. Painted with black and white horizontal stripes.

The lighthouse, whose lighting apparatus is located 75 m above sea level, shines with a white flashing light for a distance of up to 22 miles. For fog signals, the lighthouse has a nautofon.