When the road of life began to work. And on the other side. From horses to buses

In September, on one of the days when in St. Petersburg they remembered the beginning of the blockade 70 years ago, I went to Lake Ladoga. There, on the coast in the village of Osinovets, there is a museum of the Road of Life. This museum is a branch of the Central Naval Museum, and, as its director says, is the most visited museum in the Leningrad region.

At the Ladoga Lake station, where I arrived by train from the Finlyandsky Station, there is a memorial steam locomotive ESH-4375. During the war years, such vehicles carried cargo and passengers to Lake Ladoga. The motto on board is: “Everything for the front, everything for victory!”
On the memorial plaque “Eshki”, as the railway workers affectionately called this locomotive, it is written: “On this locomotive in the period 1941-1942, the Komsomol-youth brigade of the locomotive depot TCH-12 consisting of: senior driver Vasily Eliseev, assistant driver Ivan Belyaev, fireman Boris Alexandrov, as part of a locomotive column, delivered 2,312 heavy trains with 2 million tons of ammunition, fuel and food to besieged Leningrad and for the front. Honor and glory to the heroic railway workers for their courageous work on the “Road of Life.”
Along the railway track from St. Petersburg to the station there are memorial kilometer poles, one of them is in the foreground.

The Road of Life was the only transport route across Lake Ladoga during the Great Patriotic War. During periods of navigation - on water, in winter - on ice. Connected besieged Leningrad with the country from September 12, 1941 to March 1943. The road laid on ice is often called the Ice Road of Life (officially - Military Highway No. 101). During the Great Patriotic War it was called "Road of Death".

The original building of the Ladoga Lake station station. In the same building there is a museum dedicated, naturally, to the Road of Life.

I left his visit until the next time, since I learned about him shortly before the return train to St. Petersburg departed.

After walking a little along the road behind the station building, I reached Lake Ladoga.

Ladoga amazes with its size. Water all the way to the horizon, you can’t even believe that this is a lake, it seems like you’re standing on the seashore.

Lake Ladoga is one of the largest lakes in Europe, its length from north to south is 207 km, and from west to east 136 km, with an average depth of 51 m.

They also say that Lake Ladoga has a difficult temperament - the weather can change very quickly, and small ripples can give way to strong excitement. So in September 1941, a storm destroyed dozens of barges in this part of the coast and killed over a thousand people.

In winter, due to strong winds, there is no even ice on the surface of the lake, ice moves and hummocks form. This complicated the construction of the Road and the transportation of goods on ice.

The Leningrad blockade was established on September 8, 1941, when Shlisselburg was captured by fascist troops. This was the last land route that led from Leningrad to the mainland. Ladoga remained as the last hope for supplying the besieged city. There were no piers or piers on the shores of Ladoga. But already in September the first navigation on Lake Ladoga began. From the mainland, cargo was delivered first to Volkhov, from there to Novaya Ladoga, and then by water to the western bank to the Osinovets lighthouse. On September 12, two barges loaded with 626 tons of grain and 116 tons of flour arrived here first. This date is considered the beginning of the Road of Life. In total, before the end of navigation in 1941, 60 thousand tons of various cargoes, including 45 thousand tons of food, were delivered to the besieged city by water, and about 33,500 Leningraders were evacuated.

Entrance to the museum.

There are many exhibits on the site near the museum.

Military transport aircraft Li-2. It was this Li-2 that Alexander Rogozhkin filmed in the film “Peregon”.

On similar planes, food and medicine were delivered to Leningrad during the blockade.

On November 17, two groups carried out reconnaissance of the ice route. On November 20, the first horse-drawn convoy of 350 sleighs, headed by Senior Lieutenant M.S. Murov, set off along the ice Road of Life from Vaganovsky Descent near the village of Kokkorevo. Upon arrival in Kobona, 63 tons of flour were loaded onto the sleigh. On the morning of November 21, the convoy arrived at Cape Osinovets. On November 22, the first convoy of 60 GAZ-AA vehicles (better known as “lorry”) under the command of Captain V.A. Porchunov set off for Kobona for food. In total, during the first winter of the blockade, the ice road was open until April 24 (152 days). During this time, 361,109 tons of various cargo were transported, including 262,419 tons of food. More than 550 thousand Leningraders and more than 35 thousand wounded were evacuated from the city. Thanks to these transportations, the norms for the distribution of bread were increased from December 25: to workers and technical workers by 100 grams, and to employees, dependents and children by 75 grams.
The second navigation along Ladoga began on May 23, 1942, during which 1,099,500 tons of various cargo were transported in both directions, of which more than 790 thousand tons were transported to besieged Leningrad, including 353 thousand tons of food. About 540 thousand people were taken from the city to the mainland, including more than 448 thousand evacuated residents. Also, about 290 thousand soldiers and officers were transferred to replenish the Leningrad Front. In 1942, a pipeline for supplying fuel and a cable were laid along the bottom of Lake Ladoga, through which electricity was supplied to Leningrad from the partially restored Volkhov hydroelectric station.
From December 19, 1942 to March 30, 1943, the ice Road of Life was in operation again for 101 days. During this period, more than 200 thousand tons of various cargo were transported, including over 100 thousand tons of food, and about 89 thousand people were evacuated.

Reconnaissance of the ice route was carried out on such horse-drawn convoys.

Monument to military units that defended the Road of Life.

Turret from T-34.

Lots of anti-aircraft, naval and field guns.

Glowing buoy Zheleznitsa. The buoy was placed on the water route near the Zheleznitsa Bank. During the war days it was the main point for orientation when sailing.

Self-propelled landing double-hold tender. Load capacity 25 tons, speed 5 knots. They were built under blockade conditions, which is why they have simple angular shapes. They were equipped with engines from the ZiS-5.

Towing steamer Izhorets 8. In September 1941, it arrived at the port of Osinovets with ammunition and food. During the first navigation he transported a large number of different cargoes. After the war, the ship was repaired, sailed on White Lake, and in 1976. from Belozersk was brought to Osinovets and placed in eternal parking in the museum.

Sea hunter MO-215.
These were fast ships (they could reach speeds of up to 50 km/h), they carried out various operations, landing and picking up scouts in the occupied territory.

A lorry raised from the bottom of Lake Ladoga.
During the first 2 weeks of the ice road, 157 cars went under the ice. Drivers drove with the doors open to have time to leave the cab if the car began to fall through the ice. But they still died often.
During the two blockade winters, more than 1,100 vehicles went under the ice - one in four.

The brake light bulbs remained intact.

A fragment from another truck.

These are like fragments of an Il-2 attack aircraft.

Armor plate. Are these bullet marks?

Museum building. Inside there is an exhibition of five halls dedicated to the history of the creation and work of the heroic military communications that ensured life and communication between besieged Leningrad and the country from the end of November 1941 to March 30, 1943. The exhibitions are arranged in chronological order.

45 mm cannon on a ship's pedestal, 120 mm mortar, quad Maxim machine gun.

The Leningrad blockade was established on September 8, 1941, when Shlisselburg was captured by fascist troops. This was the last land route that led from Leningrad to the mainland. Ladoga remained as the last hope for supplying the besieged city. Lake Ladoga has a difficult character, and since the founding of St. Petersburg, bypass waterways have been built to bypass the lake for transportation. There were no piers or piers on the shores of Ladoga. But already on September 12, the first navigation on Lake Ladoga began. From the mainland, cargo was delivered first to Volkhov, from there to Novaya Ladoga, and then by water to the western bank to the Osinovets lighthouse. During this period, 60 thousand tons of various cargo were delivered to the besieged city and about 33,500 Leningraders were evacuated.

On November 17, two groups carried out reconnaissance of the ice route. On November 20, the first horse convoy was carried along the ice Road of Life, and a day later - the first convoy. In total, during the first winter of the blockade, the ice road operated for 152 days. During this time, 361 thousand tons of various cargo were transported, including 262.5 thousand tons of food. More than 550 thousand Leningraders and more than 35 thousand wounded were evacuated from the city.

The second navigation along Ladoga began on May 23, 1942, during which over 1 million tons of various cargo were transported in both directions. About 540 thousand people were evacuated from the city.

From December 19, 1942 to March 30, 1943, the ice Road of Life was in operation again for 101 days. During this period, more than 200 thousand tons of various cargo were transported, including over 100 thousand tons of food, and about 89 thousand people were evacuated.

On January 18, 1943, with the capture of Shlisselburg by Soviet troops, the Leningrad blockade was broken. A railway was built along the southern coast of Lake Ladoga to the Polyany station, later called the Victory Road. But the Ladoga communication also continued to operate until the final lifting of the siege of Leningrad on January 27, 1944.

Museum "Road of Life"
Leningrad region, pos. Osinovets.
Branch of the Central Naval Museum:

Piskaryovskoye Memorial Cemetery.

Victims of the siege of Leningrad and soldiers of the Leningrad Front are buried here (about 470 thousand people in total; according to other sources, 520 thousand people - 470 thousand siege survivors and 50 thousand military personnel). The largest number of deaths occurred in the winter of 1941-1942. (so, February 15, 1942. 8452 dead were buried, February 19 - 5569, February 20 - 10043).

Piskaryovskoye Memorial Cemetery.

The road of life

In the photo: 46 memorial kilometer poles on the highway from Rzhevka station to Lake Ladoga, Monument-steam locomotive, 56 memorable kilometer poles on the railway line Finlyandsky Station - Lake Ladoga, Broken Ring, Kobona, Rumbolovskaya Mountain, Katyusha, Crossing, Flower of Life, Steel Path , Legendary Lorry, Voybokalo

Scheme of the ice section of the Road of Life

Tugboat "Izhorets No. 8" ("Karedzh").

In September 1941, he arrived at the port of Osinovets with ammunition and food. During the first navigation, it transported a large number of different cargoes, for which the captain of the ship N.D. Baboshin was awarded the Order of the Red Star. After the war, the ship was repaired. Under the name "Koredzh" it sailed on the White Lake.

In 1976, it was brought from Beloozersk to Osinovets and placed in eternal parking in the museum.

A representative of a large family of river tugs built in the 1930s. (Displacement 130-140 tons, length 23 m, speed 5-7 knots). During the war, many of them were mobilized into the Navy and were part of the Baltic Fleet, Ladoga and Onega flotillas.

Small ships, which were prohibited from entering Ladoga in peacetime, served as minesweepers, patrol ships, and gunboats (as part of the Onega flotilla). They were armed with a 45 mm gun and one or two machine guns. The gunboats were also equipped with a 37-mm anti-aircraft gun.

“Izhorets-8” remained at the disposal of the North-Western River Shipping Company and provided towing of barges along the Ladoga route.

Museum "Road of Life".
village Osinovets.
Leningrad region.

Patrol boat MO-215 (more precisely, what is left of it).

Built in Leningrad. On August 16, 1941 it entered service. He fought his way to the border with Nazi Germany. Participated in military operations on Lake Ladoga and the Gulf of Finland. Traveled about 5 thousand miles. Made 24 military campaigns. Sank 5 enemy barges and boats. Was damaged in battles. Commander of MO-215 Lieutenant N.P. Epikhin rose to the rank of captain 1st rank.

During the war he was part of the Ladoga military flotilla. A representative of the “Small Hunter - 4” type (and not “marine”, as some believe), built in a large series in the 30-40s for anti-submarine defense, patrol service, and maritime border guards. Displacement 56 tons, length 27 meters, speed 26 knots. Armament: 2 – 45 mm cannons, 2 – 12.7 mm DShK machine guns, depth charges. The wooden set and paneling did not contribute to the preservation of the open-air exhibit. The same fate befell a boat of the same type, stationed in Novorossiysk. The hull of the MO-215 is rotten and sagging on the keel blocks, the artillery and deck equipment have been dismantled (the guns are installed at the entrance to the museum).

Museum "Road of Life".
village Osinovets.
Leningrad region.

Patrol boat MO-215.

Patrol boat MO-215.

Soviet military transport aircraft Li-2

The Li-2 is a Soviet military transport aircraft, the production of which began in 1942 in Tashkent on the basis of the PS-84 passenger aircraft (1939), created, in turn, on the basis of licensed production of the American Douglas DC-3.

Museum "Road of Life".
village Osinovets.
Leningrad region.

Museum "Road of Life".

T-34 turret produced by the 112th plant "Krasnoe Sormovo".
History unknown, stood on one of the armored boats of the Ladoga flotilla.

Museum "Road of Life".
village Osinovets.
Leningrad region.

Soviet attack aircraft Il-2. Combat (?) wounds.

Soviet attack aircraft Il-2, flew as part of the 15th Guards. assault regiment, was shot down on January 17, 1943 near the city of Vsevolozhsk.

Crew: pilot, senior lieutenant Vladimir Ivanovich Pavlov, died during landing, gunner, senior sergeant Ivashchenko Kirill Andreevich, was wounded during landing (jumped out with a parachute), went missing on July 17, 1944 (did not return from a combat mission) as part of that same 15th Guards. assault regiment.

Museum "Road of Life".
village Osinovets.
Leningrad region.

IL-2. Onboard weapons.

Cape Osinovets

On November 22, 1941, the first convoy of trucks entered the ice of the Road of Life.

The road of life from September 12, 1941 to March 1943 connected besieged Leningrad with the country. In summer - on water, in winter - on ice.

In this place on the coast of Lake Ladoga, ships never landed - it was considered impossible. But anything became possible to save the city - and barges loaded with grain arrived here. This voyage was especially dangerous - not only German planes and artillery, but the elements themselves were raging: in one night alone from September 16 to 17, over 1000 people died on barges broken by a storm. Ships sank, people died, but transportation did not stop.

Museum "Road of Life".
village Osinovets.
Leningrad region.

Osinovetsky lighthouse.

The war passed through Cape Osinovetsky like fire. In September 1941, a caravan of ships arrived at the lighthouse, where it was considered impossible to approach, delivering the first 800 tons of grain from the mainland for besieged Leningrad. From here the wounded were transported along the legendary Road of Life. In Cobonne, a church was equipped as an evacuation point.

Museum "Road of Life".
village Osinovets.
Leningrad region.

Osinovetsky lighthouse.

The highest of the eight lighthouses of Lake Ladoga is 73 meters. From the top tower you can see 50 kilometers ahead.

Construction of the lighthouse began in 1905. As the documents say, using a stick and rope. Nevertheless, it was built to last for centuries, only the outer diameter is 8.5 m. The weather vane was brought from England, so the parts of the world are indicated in the language of Foggy Albion. At the same time, a house for a lighthouse, a vegetable cellar, and a glacier were laid. Today they are in a dilapidated state.

There are 366 steps leading up in a circle. There is an abyss under your feet, a narrow space above your head and water all around.

village Osinovets.
Leningrad region.

Osinovetsky lighthouse.

At the beginning of the last century, many ships did not reach their destination - they simply sank in treacherous Ladoga. Then the naval authorities of the Russian Empire decided to build a lighthouse in Osinovets. The project was drawn up in 1905, but construction was completed only six years later. For this occasion, they even installed a special stele - a piece of rail, around which a poorly visible date is laid out in stones.

It is interesting that on the territory of the lighthouse you can find several more similar steles, painted red and white, but no one remembers why they appeared here. Nobody had heard of cranes then, so Russian craftsmen remembered the traditions of church construction and used exactly the same method - using winches they lifted building materials up with ropes. Part of one of the winches can be seen to this day - it was attached to a pine tree as a monument to the builders. Now the tree has grown so much that you can’t just get the “memorable sign” - you’ll have to bring a fire truck with a ladder.

Our people built it wonderfully, but there was an incident with the most important part of the lighthouse, the system of mirrors - they had never done anything like this in Russia in those years. Therefore, the “top” was ordered from the British. We must pay tribute to the queen's subjects - the English masters did not disappoint, and the system works properly to this day.

village Osinovets.
Leningrad region.

Glacier near the Osinovetsky lighthouse.

Osinovets
At the Osinovetsky lighthouse

Rzhev corridor Blockade
Four similar memorial signs were installed at the place where the road from Leningrad to the station passed. Rzhevka, where the “Road of Life” began.

On the first kilometer of the “Road of Life”:

68 years ago, on March 29, 1942, a terrible explosion occurred at the Rzhevka station.

On that early morning of March 1942, the enemy rained heavy artillery fire on Rzhevka. Unfortunately, the shells hit wagons with ammunition and tanks with fuel standing on the tracks. As a result, three terrible explosions occurred here, destroying the station, the trains standing on the tracks and the residential buildings of the village. It seemed that Rzhevka had plunged into complete hell. Explosions, blood, moans and screams of the wounded. Separate flames merged into a huge fire...

“The explosion area covered the village of Rzhevka, a military town, a training ground and partly one of the city districts (Porokhovye). About 20 fires simultaneously broke out in an area with a radius of 1.5 kilometers...” Shrapnel of shells and mines literally covered the area. Along with them, unexploded shells and mines, burning rockets, cartridges, grenades and bags of gunpowder were scattered... Explosions of ammunition scattered around occurred within a radius of up to 700 meters...

Memorial plaque on the station building:

“On March 29, 1942, the Rzhevka station, where a large number of wagons with ammunition and fuel tanks had accumulated, was subjected to heavy enemy artillery fire. Explosions of enormous force and fire destroyed the station, the trains standing on the tracks and the residential buildings of the village. Hundreds of people died, railway workers, military personnel, police officers, evacuated Leningraders and village residents. Remember those who gave their lives in the fight for Leningrad!”

According to historians, the Rzhev explosion was not an accident. Most likely, German intelligence knew about a large front-line order that the Okhta powder factory received shortly before the tragedy. There were so many shells at the station that it took a whole day to load them into the cars.

"The road of life".
Leningrad region.

To the young heroes of Leningrad 1941-1944
The first monument on the Road of Life is located at its third kilometer.

"The road of life".
Leningrad region.

May there always be sunshine

"There's only Tanya left..."

Zhenya died on December 28. at 12.30 o'clock. morning 1941

The Savichevs died.

Tanya is the only one left.

Tanya died in evacuation, near Nizhny Novgorod, in July 1944. She was able to survive the blockade, but could not survive...

Priyutino Estate Museum

Shelter is the former estate of the first director of the Public Library, president of the Academy of Arts A. N. Olenin.

Since 1941, a false airfield was located next to the estate. The strike group of the mine-torpedo aviation regiment was stationed here. There was a hospital in the manor house, where sailors, pilots and drivers who drove trucks with food along the Road of Life recovered after severe wounds.

"The road of life".
Leningrad region.

"Rumbolovskaya Mountain" Vsevolozhsk (10 km.)
“Bread came to us along the path of life, along the path of friendship for many, many who do not yet know on earth, a more terrible and joyful path.”
Olga Bergolts.

The road of life. 10 km.
10th kilometer of the Road of Life.
Leningrad region.

Life goes on

Section of the "Road of Life" 1941-1943 12th km.

Section of the "Road of Life" 1941-1943 Preserved as a historical memory of wartime.

The road of life included a land section by rail from the Finland Station with access to the shore of Lake Ladoga, where piers were built.

One and a half trucks on the routeNext The road of life passed along the ice of Lake Ladoga at a distance of 20-25 km from the enemy-occupied shore. The surface of the lake was covered with ice in the first half of November 1941, after which the connection between the blockaded city and the “mainland” was restored. Drivers' work on this road was extremely dangerous; the road was under constant shelling and bombing by German artillery and aircraft. However, approximately 6,000 tons of cargo were transported round-trip on the road each day.

The total amount of goods transported to Leningrad along the “Road of Life” for the entire period of its operation amounted to over 1 million 615 thousand tons; During the same time, about 1 million 376 thousand people were evacuated from the city.

To supply oil products to the city, the Ladoga oil pipeline was laid along the bottom of the lake.

"The road of life".
Leningrad region.

Section of the "Road of Life" 1941-1943. 12th km.

"Katyusha". Immortal glory to the fallen heroes

1941-1943 Remember these formidable years, the road of life passed here, Leningrad was saved by the courage of the brave, immortal Glory to the fallen Heroes."

17th km of the Road of Life. Behind the village Kornevo monument to anti-aircraft gunners "Katyusha". On the hill where the monument now stands, during the war there was an anti-aircraft battery that protected the Road of Life.

"The road of life".
Leningrad region.

“From here we led the Road of Life, so that life would never die!”

In the photo: “Descendant know! In harsh years, faithful to the people, duty and fatherland, through the ice hummocks of Ladoga, from here we led the Road of Life, so that life would never die!”

Here the cars went onto the ice of Lake Ladoga. A track was laid along the ice. There were repair shops along it, traffic controllers stood at every kilometer, and water intake points were located every 5 km. Anti-aircraft artillery and fighter planes protected the sky above the highway, road workers blocked cracks in the ice and craters from enemy bombs with wooden bridges. The road lived its own life and gave life to the huge city standing behind it.

"The road of life".
Leningrad region.

Ladoga Kurgan

1941-1945 The mass grave "Ladoga Mound" was created on the initiative with the participation of the Red Pathfinders of the Baganovo eight-year school.

"To military sailors, car drivers and other heroes of Ladoga who died during the Siege of Leningrad on the "Road of Life" in 1941-1943."

Memorial plaques: Front left: “When crossing Ladoga on the stormy night of September 17, 1941, many cadets and officers of the Leningrad naval educational institutions, civilian workers of the Navy’s hydrographic department died. Good memory to the dead.” Front right: "1941-1943. On Ladoga, during the fighting, the ships of the Ladoga military flotilla were killed: The patrol ship "Pupga" Minesweepers: ТШ - 122, ТШ - 126 Sea hunter MO - 175 Rescue ship "Vodolaz". On these "Many sailors who defended the road of Life died on ships in the waters of Ladoga. Eternal glory to the heroes." On the left side: four memorial plaques with the names of cadets and employees of the Navy Hydrographic Department. Back: memorial plaque. In July 1972, river workers of the North-Western River Shipping Company installed two memorial plaques: the first listing the lost steamships, boats and barges and the second listing the sailors who died on them and were buried in the grave.

"The road of life".
p. Osinovets.
Leningrad region.

The road of life. 47 km. Steam locomotive "Komsomolets".

“On this locomotive, in the period 1941-1942, the Komsomol-youth brigade of the locomotive depot TCH-12, consisting of: senior driver Vasily Eliseev, assistant driver Ivan Belyaev, fireman Boris Alexandrov, as part of a locomotive column, delivered 2312 heavy-duty trains with 2 million. tons of ammunition, fuel and food to besieged Leningrad and for the front. Honor and glory to the heroic railway workers for their courageous work on the "Road of Life."

These locomotives were used to transport evacuated residents of the besieged city to the shores of Ladoga, and to bring back precious cargo - food and ammunition.

"The road of life".
Leningrad region.

"To the unknown driver who gave his life for his Motherland in the Great Patriotic War"

village of Dusyevo near the river Sarya.
Road to Murmansk.
Leningrad region.

"Legendary Polutorka"

The village of Dusyevo on the Murmansk highway, about 80 kilometers from St. Petersburg, is one of the memorable places of the Leningrad siege epic. During the blockade, the Road of Life passed through Dusyevo, so it is no coincidence that the monument “Legendary Truck” and the memorial sign “Unknown Driver” were erected here. But Dusievo also has another side to the “siege medal,” about which much less is known.

During the Battle of Leningrad, the village of Dusyevo became the site of dozens of hospitals and infirmaries.

Several circumstances played a role here. The automobile “Road of Life” passed here, and then a temporary railway was laid a few kilometers from Dusyevo to Lake Ladoga. Secondly, it was the rear zone - the front was on the Nazia River for a long time.

Representatives of all types of troops who fought for Leningrad - infantrymen, artillerymen, pilots, sappers, signalmen, etc. - were treated for wounds in Dus'ev's hospitals. Here they saved the lives of those who participated in the Sinyavinsk offensive operation of 1942, in Operation Iskra to break the blockade, in the battles for the Sinyavinsky Heights in the summer of 1943, in the battle for the complete lifting of the blockade.

village of Dusyevo near the river Sarya.
Road to Murmansk.
Leningrad region.

Voybokalo station
“The Road of Life passed through the Voybokalo station in 1941-1943, connecting besieged Leningrad with the whole country.”

Art. Voyglass.
Leningrad region.

"Leningraders who died during the evacuation in 1941-1943."
Lavrovo village - the opposite shore of Lake Ladoga (the end point of the ice section of the Road of Life).
Leningrad region.

Old church gate

p.Chernoye.
Novoladozhsky Canal.
Leningrad region.

Church fence

“SMALL ROAD OF LIFE” (MJ), the name of the network of ice roads in 1941 - 1944. from the northern coast of Neva Bay through the island. Kotlin on the Oranienbaum bridgehead.

It operated in the following directions: Cape Fox Nos - Kronstadt, Gorskaya - Kronstadt, Kronstadt - Oranienbaum, Kronstadt - Krasnaya Gorka, Shepelevsky Lighthouse - Seskar Island - about. Lavensari, Kronstadt – forts “Obruchev” and “Totleben”. The ice roads were serviced by the Kronstadt Hydrographic Detachment. During the first winter of the siege (from November 20, 1941 to April 20, 1942), St. 200 thousand people, St. 40 thousand vehicles, 29 tanks and armored vehicles, 66 snowmobiles, 350 tractors, 134 guns. From December 15, 1942 to March 28, 1943, St. 270 thousand fighters, approx. 350 thousand vehicle trips, 1240 guns and other cargo. Through MJ in the winter of 1941/42. The Baltic Fleet transferred thousands of tons of fuel and food from its reserves to Latvia. The MJ was used to supply ammunition and everything necessary to the defenders of the Oranienbaum bridgehead and the Kronstadt garrison, in November 1943 - January 1944 - to transfer units of the Second Shock Army to the Oranienbaum bridgehead.

Kronstadt.

Key tags: ,

They say that during the war years this path was called “The Road of Death.” It is unknown how many people died of exhaustion, were killed, fell through the ice, froze or went missing here in 1941-42. The highway was bombed and shelled, it was covered with snow, cars often fell into ice holes (after all, they were driving at night). People rode in trucks, carts, and walked. Eyewitnesses write that there were robberies. They took away suitcases from the exhausted. But there was - and this is the main thing - something else: courage, nobility, self-sacrifice, honesty. In total, about 1 million 376 thousand people were evacuated from Leningrad. Among them are my very young grandparents. They called the path “The Road of Life.”

Boarding trams of evacuating residents of Leningrad, 09/18/1941

The blockade began on September 8, 1941. On this day, the last road connecting Leningrad with the country was cut. A narrow section between the Finnish border and the front line. The 45-kilometer-long highway ended on the shores of Lake Ladoga. Further - on barges, in winter - on a semi-truck on the ice. Of course, on foot - about 30 kilometers. Few made it. Food was being transported towards the besieged city. There were no marinas or piers on Ladoga at that time. But already on September 12, the first navigation began. On November 22, the first convoy of trucks entered the ice of the Road of Life. From September 12, 1941 to March 1943, the route connected besieged Leningrad with the country.

It is impossible to restore the exact route from Leningrad to Cape Osinovets. Firstly, closer to the lake there was a whole network of forest roads. Secondly, the modern highway A 128 coincides with the old broken country road only approximately. To understand, to feel how difficult it was...

The first seven kilometers of the journey passed within the city, along the so-called Rzhev corridor. Along this route, trucks and special locomotives-trams brought people to the Rzhevka station. The first control point was located at the corner of the Revolution Highway and Bolsheokhtinsky Prospekt. Here:

Further - the road went east - along the Revolution Highway and Ryabovskoye Highway. To the Rzhevka railway station. The area was subject to heavy shelling and bombing. In particular, on March 29, 1942, the Rzhevka station building was destroyed by a bomb attack. On that day, a large number of trains with ammunition and fuel accumulated at the station, and the explosions of German shells caused explosions of shells in the cars and fuel in the tanks. As a result of “explosions of enormous force,” the station and adjacent buildings were completely destroyed, killing several hundred people - railway workers, military personnel, evacuated Leningraders, and local residents.

3 kilometers of road. Here in 1968, probably the most famous monument to the dead children was erected - “Flower of Life”. The memorial includes: the Flower of Life monument, Friendship Alley, and the funeral mound “Tanya Savicheva’s Diary”, consisting of eight steles - pages of the siege diary. “The Savichevs died. Everyone died. There was only Tanya left...” Tanya Savicheva died in evacuation, near Nizhny Novgorod, in July 1944. She survived the crossing of Lake Ladoga, but the Blockade did not let her go...

Nearby is a birch grove. The trees are tied with red scarves. Previously, in the spring, the birch grove near the monument was red with pioneer ties...

10 kilometer – a sharp rise up - Rumbolovskaya Mountain. At the top there is an observation deck, from where on a clear day you can see the panorama of the city. There are memorial cemeteries nearby.

Near the “12 kilometer” stela you can turn into a field. A section of that very, real road has been preserved here. More precisely, it is a restored fragment. There are concrete slabs nearby. Having driven a hundred meters along the cobblestones, you can imagine the conditions in which military drivers worked.

Cobblestone. Perhaps that's the one...

17th kilometer of the Road of Life. Behind the village of Kornevo is a monument to anti-aircraft gunners - “Katyusha”. On the hill where the monument now stands, during the war there was an anti-aircraft battery that protected the Road of Life.

Thirty kilometer. Mass grave. Walking past the steles, you involuntarily pay attention to unusual surnames. A lot of them. St. Petersburg has always been an international city...

Here the cars went onto the ice of Lake Ladoga. A track was laid along the ice. There were repair shops along it, traffic controllers stood at every kilometer, and water intake points were located every 5 km. Anti-aircraft artillery and fighters protected the sky above the highway, road workers blocked cracks in the ice and
craters from enemy bombs with wooden bridges...

45 kilometer. Lake Ladoga station. Here the road meets the railway tracks. This and other locomotives brought evacuated residents of the besieged city to the shore of Ladoga, and brought food and ammunition back.

Ladoga mound in the village of Osinovets. Mass grave "Ladoga Mound". The memorial was created on the initiative of the Red Pathfinders of the Baganovo eight-year school. "To military sailors, car drivers and other heroes of Ladoga who died during the Siege of Leningrad on the "Road of Life" in 1941-1943."

At the beginning of the last century, many ships did not reach their destination - they simply sank in treacherous Ladoga. Then the naval authorities of the Russian Empire decided to build a lighthouse in Osinovets. The project was drawn up in 1905, but construction was completed only six years later. Our people built it wonderfully, but there was an incident with the most important part of the lighthouse, the system of mirrors - they had never done anything like this in Russia in those years. Therefore, the “top” was ordered from the British. We must pay tribute to the queen's subjects - the English masters did not disappoint, and the system works properly to this day.
This is the highest of the eight lighthouses of Lake Ladoga - 73 meters. There are 366 steps leading up in a circle. From the top tower you can see 50 kilometers ahead.

Cape Osinovets. In this place on the coast of Lake Ladoga, ships never landed - this was considered impossible. But anything became possible to save the city - and barges loaded with grain arrived here. From here barges with people left for the campaign. This voyage was especially dangerous - not only German planes and artillery, but the elements themselves were raging: in one night alone from September 16 to 17, over 1000 people died on barges broken by a storm.

Cape Osinovets, 1941

Museum in the village of Osinovets. Dedicated to the feat of the soldiers of the Leningrad Fleet, the Ladoga Military Flotilla, the heroes of the so-called “Road of Life” - military communication through the southern part of Lake Ladoga, along which Leningrad was connected with the entire country during the siege of the city. The museum displays ship flags and battle banners, weapons and military equipment of those years, models of ships, aircraft, and vehicles involved in transportation; documents and photographs. This is in words. In fact, outdoor exhibits are crumbling. Literally. In particular, the rust ate the famous semi-truck - GAZ - AA almost to the ground. And in the 70s I saw her safe and sound. If restoration is not carried out, the same will happen to other exhibits.

A bus plying along the Road of Life. Not preserved. Photo taken in 1988

Howitzer 122 mm caliber model 1938. Participated in the first Blockade

Tugboat "Izhorets No. 8" ("Karedzh")

In September 1941, he arrived at the port of Osinovets with ammunition and food. During the first navigation he transported a large number of different cargoes. After the war the ship was repaired. Under the name "Koredzh" it sailed on the White Lake. In 1976, it was brought from Beloozersk to Osinovets and placed in eternal parking in the museum.

Patrol boat MO-215

Built in Leningrad. On August 16, 1941 it entered service. He fought his way to the border with Nazi Germany. Participated in military operations on Lake Ladoga and in the Gulf of Finland. Traveled about 5 thousand miles. Made 24 military campaigns. Sank 5 enemy barges and boats. Was damaged in battles.
Wooden cladding did not contribute to preservation in the open air. The hull is rotten and sagging on the keel blocks, the artillery and deck equipment have been dismantled (the guns are installed at the entrance to the museum).

Self-propelled landing double-hold tender

Military transport aircraft Li-2

Soviet military transport aircraft, production of which began in 1942 in Tashkent on the basis of the PS-84 passenger aircraft (1939), created, in turn, on the basis of licensed production of the American Douglas DC-3. It was in this vehicle that my grandparents were evacuated from Leningrad.

One of the carts on which Leningraders were transported

Turret of the T-34 tank. The true story is unknown. Probably stood on one of the armored boats of the Ladoga flotilla.

People waited for days for water transport on the shore in tents like these.

I understand that I haven’t said much about the Road of Life. There are many more monuments and unique rarities that are worth writing about. There are dozens of published manuscripts - this is invaluable evidence. No matter how pretentious it may sound, I want it so that no one is forgotten and nothing is forgotten.

Our route:

The trip was made possible thanks to Ruslan

The siege of Leningrad lasted 872 days. During this time, more than one million people died from famine. After the end of World War II, the Nuremberg trials of Nazi and fascist criminals took place.

Representatives of the USSR brought charges against the commander of the German army group “North”, because of whose actions so many civilians of the besieged city died. General von Leeb was acquitted of this charge. At that time, there was no clause yet that would prohibit the use of hunger as a military strategy against civilians.

The survivors of the besieged city owe a lot to the appearance of the highway (“Road of Life”) through It. It made it possible to break the blockade ring, since due to its geographical location Leningrad is not able to survive without the supply of food.

Meaning of the laid path

The road operated from the autumn of 1941 to the spring of 1943. Its purpose was to connect besieged Leningrad (St. Petersburg) with the country. Officially, it was called Military Highway No. 101.

Since September 1941, Soviet troops, along with the civilian population, were surrounded by German and Finnish troops. The city was not ready for the blockade and did not have the necessary supplies of food and fuel. Everything needed could be delivered by air or across the lake.

The “Road of Life” across Lake Ladoga made it possible to evacuate part of the population and partially provide the surviving people with food.

Freight transportation on ice

In October 1941, research began to build a route across Lake Ladoga; in winter it was covered with ice. After preliminary calculations, construction began in November. It was assumed that the width of the track would be 10 meters so that cars could move in both directions at the same time. Every 5-7 kilometers special heating points were built.

The direction of the road was chosen based on the presence of strong ice cover. It had to withstand heavy loads. The main one was the GAZ-AA, popularly called a “lorry”. In order to prevent massive falls through the ice, there had to be a distance of at least 100 meters between cars. At the same time, a railway line was being built across the lake.

The created “Road of Life” (Leningrad) passed close to the front line; it required protection, which was provided by military units. The ice section of the road had two defensive lines created using wooden logs and sandbags, which were frozen with ice. Small-caliber artillery guns were installed every one or two kilometers and every three kilometers. The highway was defended from the air by six fighter regiments.

During the first winter of the blockade, more than 500 thousand residents were evacuated along the “Road of Life” and about 250 thousand tons of food were delivered. Basically it was flour, grain, cereals, meat products, fats, vegetables, nuts, dried fruits, vitamin C. The work of the ice road continued in the winter of 1942-1943.

Cargo transportation by water

With the melting of the ice, the road through did not cease to exist. Since the spring of 1942, transportation on ice was replaced by navigation by water. However, with ice still remaining in some areas, there was a full month between shipments across the lake. In April, it was no longer possible to transport cargo on ice, and barges were able to travel on water only from the end of May.

The country's leadership needed to carry out work to restore damaged ships. There were no more than 15 barges in working condition. They decided to build the barges on site. The site for the work was the pulp and paper mill in Syasstroy. At the same time, the construction of metal ships began in Leningrad itself, which were transported for final assembly by rail.

Anti-aircraft artillery divisions and fighter air regiments were responsible for guarding the route. They had to fight the forces of the German-Finnish-Italian flotilla.

In 1942, about 400 thousand residents were evacuated by water, and 350 thousand tons of food were delivered. At the same time, 290 thousand military personnel were delivered to the city. In addition to food and petroleum products, horses were also delivered to the city.

Since April 1943, cargo transportation across the lake continued. Although their number has decreased, since a significant part of the goods was already transported by rail, launched in 1942.

Was there only one “Road of Life” (Leningrad)?

The official route is the path from Kokorevo to Kobona along the lake. This thread connected the multimillion-dollar city with the country. Such information is available in textbooks and for tourists. However, there is evidence that the “Road of Life” across Lake Ladoga took a different route. The existence of other transportation lines is evidenced by many facts.

Calculation discrepancy

Simple calculations confirm the existence of several roads. So during the first winter of the blockade, the road worked for 150 days. Officially, about 350 thousand tons of cargo were transported. It turns out that 2,400 tons were delivered to Leningrad per day.

They transported cargo with “lorry-and-a-half trucks”, the back of which could load one and a half tons. Another half ton could be attached to a sled. That is, one loaded vehicle could transfer two tons per trip. Every day, 1,200 fully loaded lorries crossed the road. At the same time, they had to move in both directions.

The ice might not be able to withstand such an onslaught. Moreover, in addition to trucks, buses also plied along the highway, which transported about half a million civilians during these 150 days. Tanks were also transported across Ladoga, from which weapon turrets were removed to lighten the weight. It is unlikely that the blockade “Road of Life” alone would have withstood such loads, especially since the road was ice.

The Mystery of the Sunken Trucks

During transportation, about a thousand cars went under the ice. Many of them are still under water today. When the water in the lake is particularly clear, pilots visually record the outlines of the trucks. They are not always located on the official route. Some of them are located hundreds of kilometers from the well-known “Road of Life”.

There are documents from which it becomes clear that some drivers deviated from the route in order to profit from transportation and dump part of the cargo. However, there were not many such cases, and there were many hundreds of trucks that sank away from the highway. So the question of whether Leningrad provided Lake Ladoga only through one road is quite controversial.

Reasons for the existence of multiple routes

The official highway (“Road of Life” across Lake Ladoga) No. 101 Kokorevo - Kobona, of course, existed and operated. However, calculations and the location of many sunken trucks indicate that she could not be the only one.

All maps and documents on this case were classified for a long time and stored in special archives. Perhaps such secrecy is due to the desire not to reveal all the ways in the event of another war.

Reasons why multiple routes could exist:

• Danger from German aviation. The overwhelming superiority of German aviation in the winter of 1941 was undeniable. Having marked the road across the lake, the Nazis regularly bombed it. To minimize losses from air raids, it was necessary to change the route. The first lines were laid closer to the shores of the lake, but as the ice strengthened, the route was drawn closer to its center.

• The ice could not withstand the constant load. Eyewitnesses of those years testify that only 60-70 cars could pass along the road. Then the ice began to crack, and it took time to restore it. This means that the movement had to move to a new path. Otherwise, Leningrad would not have been able to receive such an amount of cargo.

Creation of a railway line

Only the railway could cope with large cargo transportations. By 1942, a line was installed on the eastern shore of the lake. This made it possible to increase cargo transportation. Thanks to all of the above methods, the blockade of Leningrad was partially lifted.

Memory of the broken blockade ring

Hundreds of thousands of people were employed to maintain the ice surface. They lived on the ice, filling the cracks that appeared and building wooden decks. The feat of these people, like the drivers themselves, is difficult to truly evaluate. The blockade was lifted at the cost of the lives of many of them. Lake Ladoga became the outlet that made it possible to break the ring of death for many civilians.

Along the land section from Leningrad to Ladoga there are monuments dedicated to the “Road of Life”. All of them are part of the Green Belt of Glory memorial, which stretches for many kilometers. The memorial consists of seven monuments, 46 memorial pillars along the highway, 56 pillars along the railway.

The most memorable are the monuments at 40 and 103 kilometers of the highway. The first is the “Broken Ring” memorial (architect V. G. Filippov), which symbolizes the breaking of the blockade ring formed by German-Finnish troops over Leningrad since the fall of 1941. At the 103rd kilometer there is a monument “Legendary lorry” (architect Levenkov A.D.). It depicts a car driving, breaking out of the ice.

November 18th 1941
The beginning of laying the “Road of Life”. During the Great Patriotic War, the 88th separate bridge-building battalion began ice reconnaissance of Lake Ladoga with the aim of creating an ice road to besieged Leningrad. Work to create the route, which led about 20 thousand people, began in October. On November 19, an order was signed for the troops of the Leningrad Front “On the organization of a road and tractor road across Lake Ladoga.”
On November 22, the first convoy of GAZ-AA trucks entered the ice. The ice road, which became known as Military Automobile Road No. 101 (VAD-101), began operating on November 26, 1941. The entire road had to be moved to a new track due to ice fatigue. And during the first month of operation, the road was transferred to new routes four times, and some sections of it even more often. Trucks regularly delivered food

The route was laid out and marked with milestones. The Ice Road was a well-organized highway that provided drivers with confident driving at high speed. The track was served by 350 traffic controllers, whose tasks included dispersing cars, indicating the direction of movement, monitoring the safety of ice and other duties. The road has become a complex engineering structure. Its builders made road signs, milestones, portable shields, bridges, built bases, warehouses, heating and medical stations, food and technical assistance stations, workshops, telephone and telegraph stations, and adapted various means of camouflage. This work required dedication and courage, as it had to be carried out under any conditions - severe frosts, freezing winds, blizzards, shelling and enemy air raids. In addition, lighthouse lanterns with blue glass were installed - first at every 450-500 m, and then at 150-200 m
On November 24, 1941, the Military Council of the Leningrad Front adopted resolution No. 00419 “On the construction of Military Highway No. 102 (VAD-102).” Thus, now the delivery of goods to Leningrad began to be carried out along two roads.
The road consisted of two ring routes, each of which had two separate directions of movement - for freight traffic (to the city) and for empty traffic or evacuation (from the city). The first route for transporting goods to the city ran along the route Zhikharevo - Zhelannye - Troitskoye - Lavrovo - station. Lake Ladoga, the length of the route was 44 km; for empty vehicles and evacuation from the city - Art. Lake Ladoga or Borisova Griva - Vaganovsky Descent - Lavrovo - Gorodishche - Zhikharevo with a length of 43 km. The total length of the flight along the first ring road was 83 km.
The second route for cargo transportation ran along the route Voybokalo - Kobona - Vaganovsky Spusk - station. Lake Ladoga or Borisova Griva (58 km) and for empty or evacuation - station. Lake Ladoga or Borisova Griva - Vaganovsky descent - Lavrovo - Babanovo - Voybokalo (53 km). The total length of the second ring route was 111 km. The former Tikhvin - Novaya Ladoga highway ceased to function, but was maintained in working condition.
Despite frosts and snowstorms, enemy artillery fire and air strikes, and the enemy’s occupation of Tikhvin on November 8, the movement of freight vehicles did not stop for almost a single day. In November-December, 16,449 tons of cargo were delivered along the route.
The “Road of Life” is not only a route on the ice of the lake, it is a path that had to be overcome from the railway station on the western shore of the lake to the railway station on the eastern shore and back. The road worked until the last possible opportunity. In mid-April, the air temperature began to rise to 12 - 15°C and the ice cover of the lake began to quickly collapse. A large amount of water accumulated on the surface of the ice. For a whole week - from April 15 to 21 - the vehicles walked through solid water, in some places up to 45 cm deep. On the last trips, the vehicles did not reach the shore and carried the loads by hand. Further movement on the ice became dangerous, and on April 21 the Ladoga Ice Route was officially closed, but in fact it functioned until April 24, as some drivers, despite the order to close the route, continued to travel on Ladoga. When the lake began to open up and traffic on the highway stopped, highway workers moved 65 tons of food products from the eastern to the western shore. In total, during the winter of 1941/42, 361,109 tons of various cargoes were delivered to Leningrad along the ice route, including 262,419 tons of food.

This was forty years ago. Having failed to capture Leningrad by storm without overcoming its defenses, the enemy hoped for the city's quick death from starvation as a result of a complete blockade. Obviously, the German command did not even think about the possibility of organizing any serious communication across Lake Ladoga. But the concept of the impossible became very relative when it came to saving Leningrad. For 152 days, from November 22, 1941 to April 24, 1942, and 98 days, from December 23, 1942 to March 30, 1943, there was a Road of Life - an ice route laid along Lake Ladoga, along which the city received the most necessary things in order to live and fight. Chauffeur Ivan Vasilievich Maksimov from the first to the last day he drove cars with cargo for Leningrad and took people out. He tells how it happened. Photographs of the war years, collected by participants in the Ladoga epic, explain his story.

They don't know on earth yet
Scarier and more joyful than the road.

“On the night of November 22, the first column of ten vehicles descended from the western shore onto the ice. I was in this column. It was a dark and windy night over the lake. There was no snow yet, and the black stripes of the ice field often seemed like open water. I won’t hide it, fear froze our hearts, our hands were shaking: probably both from tension and from weakness - for four days, like all Leningraders, we received biscuit a day... But our convoy had just been in Leningrad. And I saw how people died from hunger... Salvation was on the eastern shore. We understood that we had to get there at any cost. Not all the cars reached the shore, but the first group move was completed. I even remembered the first hot soup that we received. The next day these cars were heading back , bringing bread to Leningraders. While the ice was thin, it was impossible to fully load the car. We adapted to the situation - we used sleigh trailers to reduce the load on the ice.
The first flights are etched in my memory as the most difficult. We drove slowly, tensely, as if testing the way... After a few days, we took a closer look, felt the road, and gained confidence.
The harsh winter of 1941 seemed to be rushing to our rescue. Every day the ice became thicker and stronger. Traffic intensity and vehicle loading increased. For the first month I did not leave my car. It was also my home... Having crossed the lake, I quickly handed over the cargo, drove to the side, covered the “front” with the cabin with a tarpaulin in order to retain the heat from the hot engine longer, and fell asleep. After two or three hours I woke up from the cold, started the engine, took the cargo and went on the flight again.
People from Leningrad were transported from the western to the eastern shore. These flights were the most stressful and painful for me. Exhausted from hunger, people lay and sat motionless, seemingly indifferent. There were cases when paramedics, removing people from a car, reported that someone had died on the road. From pity, anger and grief, my heart sank, a lump came to my throat... I was always in a hurry when I was traveling with people, it seemed like I wouldn’t be able to do everything in time and I was terribly afraid of delays on the road.
At the end of December the number of flights increased. When counting, I was among the leading ones. Once on the eastern bank, in Kobon, where food warehouses were located, before the vehicle was unloaded, I was called to the commander and presented with a gift from the Leningraders. These were warm things. Squeezing the gift in my hands, I listened to the words of gratitude, but in response I could not say a single word... I did not cry, only tears flowed and flowed down my cheeks.
I was given a day of rest. They sent me to the sanitary station - within a month I was so overgrown that I couldn’t even see my eyes, a long beard had grown, my clothes had become salty and stiff. This was the first break since the start of work on the ice track.
The road was quickly developed. Mass transportation began. Trucks on the highway traveled in blizzards and blizzards, day and night, often falling into ice holes pierced by bombs and shells, dying before reaching the shore, or drowning. But despite incredible difficulties, food delivery did not stop. Soon we even abandoned camouflage, and at night, with headlights on, cars walked in a continuous stream.
The road was under fire all the time. However, most of the bombs and shells fell nearby. The drivers maneuvered and changed speed. The road workers immediately found new, workarounds or “patched” the road - they laid wooden walkways and froze the decking. The route was destroyed, but the road continued to live.
Driving on ice itself was difficult and dangerous. Under the influence of strong winds and changes in the water level in the lake, frequent movements of the ice fields occurred, and ice mountains, sometimes five to ten meters high, appeared along the way. Cracks and fissures appeared. It was necessary to build a lot of switchboards and walkways. During the winter of 1941 - 1942, the bridge-building battalion installed 147 prefabricated bridges on the ice of the lake, capable of withstanding the weight of not only loaded vehicles, but even tanks.
Gradually, the road, one might say, became settled. Along the route, tents and snow houses appeared for road workers and repairmen who lived here to come to the aid of the drivers at any moment. In such houses, “potbelly stoves” were installed, and telephone cables were pulled to them.
At the seventh kilometer of the route there was a tent for a sanitary and medical station. Olya Pisarenko, a military paramedic, lived there throughout the harsh winter. She surprised even the Ice Road veterans with her courage and endurance. She worked without rest or sleep, often under severe fire providing medical assistance to the wounded and frostbitten.
One day, her section of the road was bombed by sixteen fascist planes. Bombs riddled the highway. Olya fell into a hole. With difficulty they helped her get out, but she did not leave the track, she was barely alive and frostbitten, she continued to help the wounded.
A front actually passed along the highway. And every flight completed was like a battle won. The track was extremely busy. Here are entries from the diary of the headquarters of the 64th regiment, whose personnel were always on the ice and servicing the road.
“On November 23, 1941, several horses and cars fell through the ice.
5th of December. Fascist air raid on the fourteenth kilometer... A car with gasoline was set on fire. Between the tenth and fifteenth kilometers, thirty shells exploded, and about one hundred and forty bombs were dropped along the entire route. Between the twentieth and twenty-fifth kilometers a longitudinal crack formed."
Despite everything, traffic along the highway did not stop. Immediately after the raids, road workers went out onto the ice, laying new roads. Immediately the traffic controllers ran to the cars, showing the drivers a new path. And the traffic controllers were Leningrad Komsomol girls. They stood in the icy wind or snow at a distance of 350-400 meters from each other during the day with flags, and at night with lit bat lanterns. They kept their heroic watch around the clock in any weather.
In January, heavy anti-aircraft artillery could be installed on the strengthened ice. When it appeared, it was almost impossible for the enemy to precisely bomb the road.
The route was covered by troops of the Ladoga air defense region, anti-aircraft artillery and fighter aviation regiments of the front and navy, soldiers of rifle units and marines, border troops and an NKVD division. All approaches to the Ice Road were mined. As a result of all these measures, the flow of goods to Leningrad increased every day.
A team was even organized to lift cars and tanks from the bottom of the lake. After repairs, they returned to service again.
Road participants rejoiced at every increase in rations for Leningraders. On December 25 there was the first increase in the bread quota. The minimum was 250 grams per day for workers, 125 grams for everyone else. But already in April, Leningraders were given an average of half a kilogram of bread and the norms for other products were increased. The city lived and continued to fight.
In April, the snow began to melt, the water rose, and it filled the ruts of the road. That's when our torment began. You start slipping or braking a little, and the ice beneath you goes into the water. On April 24, the route was closed.
The legendary Road of Life existed for 152 days.

Tributes to our memory of war heroes sometimes bypass the names of those who ensured victory in the rear. But in vain.
interesting additions to the discussion a year ago -