A man was surprised to find a 50-year-old letter in a bottle from the Russian Navy while gathering firewood on the shores of western Alaska.
Tyler Ivanoff collecting firewood in Alaska found a bottle with a handwritten note inside wishing the discoverer “happy sailing” more than 50 years after it was dropped into the sea by a Russian sailor.
“I was just collecting firewoods when I discovered the bottle, I had to use a screwdriver to get the message out,” Mr. Ivanoff said.
He drew really hard using his teeth to work it out. The note was still dry and smelled like wine or some old alcohol. Ivanoff posted his finding on Facebook where Russian spokesmen translated the message and discovered it to be a testimonial from a Cold War Russian sailor dated June 20, 1969.
50-Year-Old Letter of a Russian Sailor
The note read: “Sincere greetings! From the Russian Far East Fleet mother ship VRXF Sulak. I greet you who find the bottle and request that you respond to the address Vladivostok -43 BRXF Sulak to the whole crew. We wish you good health and long years of life and happy sailing. 20 June 1969.”
Rossiya 1, a Russian television network, followed the original writer, Capt. Anatolii Prokofievich Botsanenko. He was interviewed by the network and was doubtful he wrote the message until he noticed his signature on the bottom. “There exactly!” he shouted. He served on the Sulak in 1969 when he was 35.
